Let's Get Planning

There's a blizzard outside, so what better time than now to start planning my garden? Each year I keep a journal so that I can evaluate what worked well and what didn't. This helps me plan for next year. I keep track of the seeds (variety and source) that were planted, seasonal conditions such as temperature and rainfall; pests that occurred; and the success of the harvest. Every season is different, and depending upon numerous factors there are always some plants that do well and others that do not. Sometimes it's a new variety of a vegetable that fails, and other times it may just be the weather conditions (too wet or too dry) of that particular summer. Last year, my tomatoes did very poorly and stayed green even til the first frost. Of course I will not give up on growing tomatoes, but I may buy from a different supplier or try a different location in the yard.

An invaluable tool in my journal is a sketch of the garden with the location and planting dates of  each crop. In addition to helping me remember what types of greens are popping up in each row, it's  useful for planning next year's garden. I make sure to rotate the crops to different locations in the garden. This helps deter pests and also is better for soil fertility as different plants take and return different nutrients to the soil.

Too often, I don't give enough thought to planning and end up buying too few or too many (more likely) seeds. It's hard to look at the seed catalogs in the winter and not get carried away with thoughts of a future bountiful harvest. I frequently end up with several unopened packets because I run out of space. This year I hope to plan better. 

There are excellent resources available on the Web to assist the backyard gardener. The Organic Gardening's Spring Planner includes when to start seeds indoors and a gardening bed grid that can be printed and used to draw your garden to scale.  It also comes with a template for a daily spring gardening journal. The Gardener's Supply Company Kitchen Garden Planner has a cool tool for planning a raised bed. Simply select, drag and drop selected plants. When you are done, you have have a beautiful design along with planting tips. Mother Earth News also offers a garden planner for a $25 a year subscription which you can try for free for 30 days at motherearthnews.com/garden-planner/. So, with all these helpful planning tools, there's no reason not to get started today.