My 2012 gardening to-do lists are getting longer, and if I don't budget my time wisely not everything will get done. There's an easy solution, though. I'll create a calendar.

Calendars have roots, and I can't imagine life without a calendar. Yet calendars like we have today didn't exist before Julius Caesar, a Roman emperor, decreed in 46 B.C. that each year of his "Julian Calendar" would have 365 days. Caesar's calendar also was divided into 12 months that began with the month of January - the name Caesar chose to honor the powerful Roman god of time, Janus.

Janus was depicted as having two faces that simultaneously looked in opposite directions. Legend has it he was able to concurrently see the past, present and future. In other words, Janus was the perfect planner. So the ancient Romans made their plans and asked Janus to bring them to fruition during his month of January. January is also when I schedule what I want to do during the upcoming growing season - on a dedicated calendar that I call my "gardening calendar."

My gardening calendar

Just like Janus, before I can plan an upcoming growing season, I look back at the results from past growing seasons. Then I project the most likely outcomes forward and note them on my calendar.

My garden-planning calendar contains basic information, such as when to start seeds indoors and outdoors, as well as when to till, transplant and mulch. I also keep track of when seasonal pests show up, so I can pre-treat the plants that are periodically attacked by insects and diseases.

Keeping track of what's happening in my garden with the help of my gardening calendar is easy to do. Plus it saves me plenty of time, money, energy and plants, while also mitigating disappointments that can interfere with me having a happy gardening year.

Have a happy gardening year.

This week in the garden

Sometimes I wonder if our plants know what time it is, because right now, for instance, some spring-flowering bulbs are prematurely poking their leafy tops out of the soil, even though winter has just started.

Fortunately, their leaves are naturally protected from perishing during subfreezing temperatures. Even so, I'll add more mulch to their beds, since adding more mulch will help keep the roots of these shallow-rooted plants from being thrust out of the soil during the winter's repeat freeze-thaw cycles.