Last year, I discovered the power of writing down my garden design objectives. What began as a simple bucket list for 2024 transformed into a valuable roadmap that kept me focused throughout the season. It’s not like I worked on one project at a time until completion – I did follow my usual habit of a little here, a little there – interspersed with regular garden chores. But the process of making a list was so beneficial to accomplishing at least 5 specific projects, that I’ve decided to continue the tradition for 2025.

This isn’t about setting maintenance or personal improvement goals. This list captures the significant transformations I’m planning to tackle this year. Here’s what’s on the horizon for my garden in 2025:

1. Reimagining the Kitchen Patio Gardens

Last year brought an unexpected change when we had to remove a 25 year old hybrid magnolia tree due to a severe scale infestation. After a weekend of cutting and burning, we were left with an opportunity to rethink this space.

Instead of planting another tree, I invested in a stunning garden urn from Campania International, which now serves as the focal point on the left side of what I call the Kitchen Patio Gardens. This is the space I sit in every day, drinking my morning coffee, reading a book or enjoying some wine after dinner. I’m kind of enjoying the more open look removing the tree created.

Here the guys are installing the urn. The top alone weighed over 500 pounds and the bottom was even heavier. Thanks Blue!

The plan for this year is to completely restructure not just the garden around the urn, but the garden on the opposite side. Running through the middle of these two beds is a wide set of steps leading to the lawn. The current plan is to line the steps with dwarf conifers – I’m leaning toward dwarf Korean Fir, possibly ‘Ice Breaker’. I’ll also re-arrange the existing salvias, peonies and other plants already in this space in a way that complements the new centerpiece and creates some symmetry between the two sides.

2. Continuing the Great Shrub Edit

This project is a continuation from 2024, when I successfully removed about 25 overgrown or misplaced shrubs. For 2025, I’m extending this effort by:

• Removing two Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Golden Mop’ in the pool area – these are now growing well into the narrow space between the beds and the pool. These plants do not stay small unless you prune them heavily. And when you do, they lose that natural look. So time for them to be replaced with more miniature evergreens.
• As part of the kitchen patio garden redo, I’ll be replacing the barberries along the kitchen patio steps and lining them instead with Ice Breaker Korean Fir.
• Reducing the number of boxwoods throughout the yard (with boxwood moth on the horizon, I’d prefer to have fewer plants to replace all at once if, or when, we start to see some damage our way)
• And removing several more barberry along the back garden. While I’m not having a seeding issue they are considered invasive in Ontario. Plus, I’m tired of heavy pruning them to keep them small enough for the space. Once again, wrong shrub, wrong space.

I’ll still have plenty of shrubs in the yard. However, over time I’ve realized that an all shrub border is just plain boring and many of the shrubs have outgrown their space over 20 years. So time to rejuvenate the ‘ever changing’ garden.

3. Adapting Some Vegetable Beds to Changing Sun Patterns

Even vegetable gardens evolve, and the sun patterns in mine have shifted over time. Some beds that once enjoyed full sun are now partially shaded.  In another, we’ve removed some trees bringing a couple of veggie beds back into full sun. To help me reconfigure these beds for better succession planting, I’m planning to:

• Transform the permanent shadier sections into perennial food crop areas with rhubarb transplanted from my second, now sunny, garden
• Add asparagus, more currant bushes, perennial bunching onions, and possibly some mushrooms to this shady area

I’ll relocate some rhubarb in the summer or fall of 2025, leaving the rest in the original bed for the following spring. That way I’ll still have a good harvest in spring 2026. Then, in summer 2026 I’ll remove all the rhubarb from the original bed, giving me one more large sun bed for 2027. Like I said, this list is definitely about long term goals, not yearly maintenance.

4. Enhancing the Back Woodlot with Native and Naturalized Shrubs

When we first moved in, the back woodlot was mostly scrub brush, overrun with grape vines, raspberry canes, and invasive garlic mustard. While we’ve managed to control the grape vines and raspberry canes, I want to further improve this area by:

• Adding more shrubs to reduce garlic mustard pressure
• Naturalizing the space with dogwoods (Arctic Fire, Arctic Sun, Red Twig Osier)
• Introducing bayberry, willow, snowberry and some other native shrubs (that are also deer friendly)
• Researching appropriate natives & other perennials that can compete with garlic mustard

A note: this bed does have some pre-existing pachysandra. While I know it’s considered invasive in Ontario, it’s that or garlic mustard. For now it stays, until I can get control of the garlic mustard in the more open areas. In the world of gardening, sometimes you have to pick your battles. I’ve worked hard over the last two years to eradicate a lot of periwinkle in my gardens (not planted by me I can assure you).  I’ve also removed a ton of pachysandra from my main beds. But this section will remain for the foreseeable future as for now it’s a useful barrier to the garlic mustard.

5. Developing my “Monet Garden” Along the Front Walkway

This wide, full-sun bed running along our front walkway already has good bones with ninebark, evergreen shrubs, some walking paths, and a couple of new trellises put in last year. I’m planning to enhance it this year with perennials inspired by a Monet garden style:

• I’ll focus on a color palette of blue, violet, and white (which will complement the nearby Circle Garden), with touches of pink and red
• My current plant plan consists of dahlias, peonies, iris, clematis, campanulas, echinacea, salvias, agastache, crocosmia, gaura, monarda, and verbascum mullein, penstemon
• I’m going to try a rose or two again, despite challenges with humidity and Japanese beetles
• For this year, I’ll add some zinnias for additional color
• The plan is to also add a lot of daffodil bulbs in the fall (they’re deer-resistant, which is essential in our area)

6. Creating a Second Peony Garden

My love for peonies has inspired me to create a second peony bed. I have peonies all through the garden and currently one dedicated space filled with just peonies. I’m going to try adding several peonies to a narrow strip of garden east of some tall evergreens this year. Since they will have to compete with the shallow evergreen roots, the plan is to supplement the soil as needed and take advantage of my drip irrigation system to ensure adequate moisture. I’ve got plenty of peonies I can split in the yard, or there’s always the garden center.

I’m excited to see how these projects develop throughout the year.