“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 (recently rebranded to Listening to America) – and it was the inspiration for this month’s post. 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 have attempted keeping a garden journal multiple times, but haven’t ever made it past the planning stage. I'm trying again this year - this time with the Lee Valley's A Gardener's Journal which is set up as a 10-year perpetual diary. I hope to include details like 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 intend 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. There's also space to track spending as well as sketch 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, it can be as simple as a piece of paper, though it can be fund to use something 'pretty' like the Lee Valley journal or even the Moleksine Gardening Journal.
My plan - hopefully - is 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. So, realistically my goal will be to observe and write weekly. Then, next winter as we sit down to plan the 2025 garden, hopefully this year's 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
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