I did it: I made four resolutions for the New Year. They might not be your typical kind, but they’ll help make the world a greener place:

Let Annie’s resolutions inspire you to “go green!”

Photo Credit: Simon Spiegelman

The earthworm is our environment’s friend – be kind to him!

Photo Credit: Ann Hoglund

Water-wise plantings can replace large patches of lawn (just make sure the plants you pick thrive in your region).

Photo Credit: Mark A. Miller

Resolution No. 1: Stop giving. Yeah, you read that right. One of our eco-police at the PTA suggested that we offer our “time” for the holidays instead of buying gifts that no one really likes. I admit I rolled my eyes at her idea, but then I went home and made it my own. I called my best friend Elissa and offered to help her with her so-called “simple garden project.” My thinking was: A) I love my friend and B) it should be easy. (After all, we were just going to add fresh compost to her garden, and hey, I’m a Master Gardener, so what’s the big deal?)

Well, I was wrong. I’d forgotten there wasn’t a simple way to access Elissa’s back yard from her city street, so we had to ferry our wheelbarrow loads through her husband’s art studio. This was like turning the bulls (or Lucy and Ethel) loose in a china shop. His studio was crammed full of antique, elegant and expensive refinished lamps, chandeliers and sconces. After gracelessly reaching the back yard and catching our breath, we had to lift the wheelbarrow over a cement step, shovel the compost into 1-gallon buckets, then methodically haul said buckets over a 3-foot wall into the garden.

After an hour of misery and misfortune, I wrote a note to myself: “Dear Diary, I hate gardening, best friends and the PTA lady who made me feel guilty about shopping at Marshalls. Do-gooders should stay home.”

But once Elissa’s plants were tucked into their new, fertile surroundings, she looked so grateful and hopeful. I actually felt the warming reassurance of altruism – instead of that usual sting of cynicism. Maybe do-gooders do have a place in the world after all.

Resolution No. 2: Less water, more egg nog! This is going to be the best gardening year ever because we just fired our front lawn. No more codependency. Another round of organic, locally produced egg nog for all! We replaced our front lawn with drought-tolerant, native plants. I’m done with hearing, “I’m hot. I’m thirsty. I’ve got thatch. I’m rusty.” There are no more whiny blades of grass allowed on our property!

Instead, we’re bringing in plants that are self-sufficient and have high self-esteem. My new favorite undemanding obsession is Romneya coulteri (also called Matilija poppy). The nursery pro I bought it from called it a “rampant opportunist.” At first I thought he was talking about me. (Was he a casualty from my dating years?) Then I realized he was talking about the poppy. I immediately felt a bonding with this “I’m-on-a-mission” plant. It grows over 6 feet tall and blooms all summer long with bubbly blossoms resembling fried eggs. We’ll have our best front yard yet!

Resolution No. 3: Worship the worm. It’s said that in the late 1800s, British scientist Charles Darwin spent nearly 40 years studying earthworms. (You wonder where he found time to develop his theories on evolution.) Earthworms are the workhorses of the garden that do the dirty work to keep our soil nutritious. Debbie Tidd teaches an awesome worm composting class at The Gardens at Heather Farm (a living museum in Walnut Creek, CA). She got me hooked on the worm, and now this native New Yorker can pick them up and hold them without squealing!

This year I plan to upgrade from a small plastic starter box to the “Can-O-Worm,” the Cadillac of commercial worm bins. Besides just liking the name, I’ll be able to collect larger batches of worm castings. Alas, Charles Darwin, we hardly knew you. Perhaps sometime late at night when I can’t sleep, I’ll write your name on our deck with baby earthworms. (Is that so wrong?)

Resolution No. 4: Become a beneficial bug. I’m going to become a beneficial bug. No, not a dreadful, 16-legged creepy crawler. Rather, I’ll be the one incessantly bugging friends and family – in a sometimes dramatic and overbearing way – to become organic gardeners. I’m going to cajole and badger everyone to work with nature, not against it. (This will be fun – I swear!)

Here’s why I’m so adamant people convert gardeners to “green” thinking: On my way to work, I noticed a young man spraying a chemical fertilizer on a tiny green lawn, while his buddy worked a noisy leaf blower, scattering nutrient-rich leaves out into the street where they either ended up in our overtaxed landfills or clogged up the street’s storm drains. (Those same leaves could’ve been a great mulch for someone’s flower border!)

What’s more, a recent study conducted by the National Audubon Society found that homeowners are using 50 percent more herbicides than they did 20 years ago. Many pesticides and herbicides contain ingredients that have been listed as carcinogens. And of course, they eventually end up in our air, soil and waterways. Not good!
 I’m going to bug you to make some changes, too. Why not make your own New Year’s resolution to change your slipshod gardening habits? It’s really not that hard to go green and make this year a great one for your garden. (And hey, you can take it one earthworm at a time!)