This one slipped away in a hurry. You may be thinking I am referring to the 2025 hunting season, though it is fleeting, I am talking about the past year in general. Everyone told me the older you get the faster the years pass, though we all know time is constant. They must know something though because we’re in a brand-new calendar year now. So, what went well for you in 2025 and what did not? We all have challenges, but what can we do to somewhat ensure that the new year will go as we hope it will? I’ll share with you some of my experiences from last year and what I can do to make them better.
My garden in 2025 was remarkable. Sure, there were some trouble areas that I am already addressing but for the most part the harvest was bountiful. I always use basic slag in my tomato garden to stop blossom-end rot. It is high in calcium and a deficiency in this element in your soil is the number one culprit for this disease. For those who are not aware of this issue, the tomato will rot on the bottom of the fruit rendering it useless. Just looking at the ripe tomato on the vine you would think nothing is wrong. That is until you pick it and look at the bottom. Losing tomatoes to this disease is not only frustrating but extremely disheartening. The bad thing is that once you have it, it is very hard to cure for the current growing season.
Basic slag was in very short supply this past year due to subdued steel manufacturing due to tariff uncertainty. Slag is a byproduct of steel production, and we just didn’t have an abundance of it. Lime can suffice, but it’s not as good as slag. I’m already on the lookout for this necessary garden “tool” because it will be that time again before we know it.
My gardening partner, Ford Day, and I tried our hand at growing Indian maize this past year. Though we had some success, we have a lot of work to do for the upcoming season. Weed control was marginal at best. Granted, we are limited in our herbicide arsenal due to no transgenic herbicide tolerant varieties available in Indian corn. One must be extremely careful when using herbicides because they can put you out of the corn growing business if you’re not careful. It seems that Indian corn, sweet corn, and other novel cultivars, are much more sensitive to herbicides and are more susceptible to injury than commercial varieties. You can always use a garden hoe to remove grass and broadleaf weeds, but it is very physical and a lot of work. I asked Ford several times to “weed” the garden while I was out of town, but tools don’t fit his hands very well. I’m going to work on that this year though.
We had a great start on a sunflower field this year, but I warned the producers about the reality of deer damage. I told them far in advance that an extensive electric fence needed to be installed before the planter ran. My advice fell upon deaf ears. We planted 30 acres and had perfect emergence. Weed control was a challenge due to incessant rainfall and we couldn’t get sprayers going. A window finally opened and weeds were sprayed and the nitrogen was applied. Again, I encouraged the growers to get the fence up.
Sunflowers reached a height of around 12 inches and still no deer. Everyone was encouraged but I knew better. Then it happened. Overnight, the hooved marauders took out about 10 acres of the field. They scrambled to get the fence up, but it was too late. Once deer find them, you can’t get them out. It was a race until dove season. Each week the stand thinned due to the deer, but we did have enough acres to have a beautiful field to make pictures in.
The summer progressed, the sunflowers matured, and the doves found them. There were a couple thousand doves feeding in the field a few weeks before season opened. The deer stayed at work crunching them between their jaws. By the time season was here there were no sunflower heads left and the doves left with them. Just like a party, when the bar closes and the food is all gone, the guests will leave. So did the doves. I’m already planting that seed, no pun intended, to get the fence in place before the planter runs this spring. I’ll let you know how it goes.
There are three deer stands in my garage. In fact, they have been there for a couple of years now. I just haven’t “found” or “made” the time to get them in the woods. I know where they need to be, but I just haven’t finished the task. You can write this one down in your book though, come February, they will be in good places for next season. We all talk about getting the chores done early, then the season slips up on us. October is not the time to get it done; we’re already in the season by then. The same goes with liming and fertilizing food plots. This needs to be a spring and summer task, but we seem to be preoccupied with fishing, golf, and whatever else by then. I’ll need some help, but you can be certain I will be yanking my buddies’ chains to get this done.
If there is a culprit to not getting things done in a timely manner, I think it could be labeled as “priorities.” It’s easy to set goals but if you don’t take strides to ensure that you stay focused and accomplish what you set out to, then the entire goal setting process is for naught. This applies to exercise, your job, your lawncare, your health, and more. I invite you to dig your heels into whatever you do and not become complacent about finishing a job. Is it laziness, or perhaps procrastination, that causes us to lose focus and not succeed with our goals? It’s mind over matter!
I will be the first to take my own advice for 2026. I will be proactive and not reactive when it comes to gardening, exercise, work, and any other endeavor that I take on. Since I have retired from the corporate world, I think I will have more time anyway, however if I trudge through the cotton with JH this summer, some of my “free” time may be compromised. There I go again with a potential excuse. I refuse to let this happen.
What will you do this year? Will you become complacent and not finish jobs? Will you take the bull by the horns and clean out those storage facilities that you never visit but continue to pay rent? Will you keep your lawn manicured? Will you remove the grass from your corn rows? Will you keep the deer out of your sunflower patch? Get up and get going, there is no better time than right now. Enjoy 2026 and set goals to make sure you accomplish what you want to. If you don’t achieve your goals, that’s ok, just make sure that laziness and complacency are not the culprit of why you didn’t.
Until next time enjoy our woods and waters and remember, let’s leave it better than we found it.
jeff.north@northag.net
