“No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth, and no culture comparable to that of the garden…But though an old man, I am but a young gardener.” ~ Thomas Jefferson
There’s a podcast I listen to on a regular basis that I highly recommend – The Thomas Jefferson Hour – and it was the inspiration for this month’s post. As you may or may not know, Thomas Jefferson was quite the gardener. Not only did he spend a significant amount of time gardening, but he also kept an exquisitely detailed gardening journal.
I was talking to Trace about the concept of a gardening journal and he asked if I would like to do one for our garden. I had thought about it keeping one, but hadn’t worked up the motivation to actually get started. With Trace’s encouragement I found a blank sketch book (it doesn’t really matter what you use) and started making notes. Since I just started it this weekend I’ve had to look back over the last couple of months’ blog posts to make sure I got my dates right for what we planted and when. I included the date we planted the seeds and placed them in the indoor grow box, the date we moved them out to the greenhouse, the date I transplanted and separated the seedlings and, finally, the date I transplanted the seedlings into the ground.
Besides simply recording the important dates, I’ve tried to make a few simple observations as to how certain plants are doing or why I chose to transplant some on one day and others at a later time. I also put the receipts from our seed orders in there, as well as the sketch I did of the layout for the garden.
I would encourage anyone with a garden (large or small) to keep some sort of record. At the very least, keep track of what you planted and when and what was successful. If nothing else, this may help you decide what to plant (or not plant) next year. It doesn’t need to be complicated, while there are “official” garden journals available, it can be as simple as a piece of paper.
I hope to make notes and observations in my gardening journal as the season continues. While it would be beneficial to make notes daily, both on the plants themselves as well as on the weather, and animal or pest activity, I’m not sure I have the discipline. My goal, therefore, will be to observe and write weekly. Then, next winter as Trace and I sit down to plan the 2013 garden, hopefully the 2012 gardening journal will provide us with hints as to what we might do to improve our garden, or at least, what we should avoid doing.
“A garden is half-made when it is well planned. The best gardener is the one who does the most gardening by the winter fire.” ~ Liberty Hyde Bailey, Cofounder of the American Society For Horticultural Science
(Friday: What We Did This Week To Prep)