Garden Journal

I started keeping a garden journal 12 years ago. Every year I’m sure I’m going to remember the name of the impatiens that looked so beautiful in the barrels in the front yard, or the date I should expect the Japanese Beetles to rear their ugly heads, but I don’t. And I won’t remember which daylilies I was going to move in the spring, or the variety of pepper that produced such tasty fruits, so I write it all down.

I like playing with markers, colored pencils and crayons way too much to keep a garden journal on the computer. Instead I like to write and draw in wirebound sketchbooks (Dick Blick has a great selection). I start with a new sketchbook every spring and usually fill it up completely by fall. In the last few years it has become relatively cheap to print photographs on an inkjet printer, so now I include photos in my journals as well. That saves me a lot of time because it’s much easier to show a photo of a great color combination or a mystery insect than it is to try to describe it in words or draw it.

I include all sort of things in my journal such as:

• Reports of unusual weather like dry spells, heat waves, cold snaps, hailstorms, etc.
• Lists of new plants I purchased and where I planted them (sometimes squirrels play evil tricks with my plant markers so it helps to have a written record)
• How tall my plants grew (sometimes it differs greatly from the listed height and this information becomes invaluable when you want to move plants around or add new ones)
• Pest or disease reports
• Photos and ideas from garden tours
• New insect, bird or animal sightings in my yard
• Dates of when new flowers bloomed or new vegetables ripened
• Notes for next year about what to grow or not grow, what to purchase, what to move around or yank out, etc.

I have fun looking back in the old journals and seeing how much the garden has changed over the years…the triumphs, the blunders, and which plants I loved and hated. In just a few months I’ll rely on this year’s journal when I’m making my seed orders. Soon after that, I’ll open a new sketchbook and begin recording a fresh, new gardening year.