Everything You Should Document Now for Next Year’s Garden.

The sometimes magical, sometimes annoying thing about your garden is how much it changes. At the beginning of summer, everything looks very different than it does in November, to the point where it’s impossible to remember exactly where everything was when you start planning and planting next season’s garden. That’s why it’s important to have a place to keep notes from season to season so you can keep track of every detail of your outdoor space.

Pay attention to all the holes that need to be filled in the next year.

I’ve planted hundreds of bulbs and grown more perennials than I can count, but every year there are holes in the garden. This can happen for a variety of reasons: the plant doesn’t come back after a year, or the garden somehow shifts itself, or I simply didn’t take a specific angle into account when planting. For some reason, I try to walk past my house every few weeks and look at it the way others see it, and then jot everything down in my little garden notebook. For example, I was so diligent in caring for the light bulbs in one area of ​​my yard that the adjacent area looked empty. I first noticed this last year and this year I added some bright colors in this area to balance it out. Even in areas with a lot of color, there were a few holes where the bulbs didn’t reach, and I documented them this fall to fill.

The gaps become more obvious at different times: in the fall I notice places that could be filled in next year so things don’t look so dead; and in early spring I notice which areas germinate first due to the sun, and plan to plant snapdragons there. The thing is, if you asked me to remember all of this when I needed to do the planting, I wouldn’t.

Make random observations and note recurring problems.

I have two garden arches that I have been struggling with for three years, trying to find the perfect vegetable to cover them in the summer. This year I grew pumpkins nearby that eventually took over half my yard. I would like to remind you that they will be working on the grille next year, so I made a note. I noted that the idea of ​​growing green beans in the middle of a raised bed was really poorly thought out since no one could reach and pick them, and I didn’t want to make the same mistake. I noted that I need to rethink the trellis for my sauce tomatoes, and I need to move my bush beans next year, and that each African marigold needs its own frame. Each of these observations is pretty minor on its own, but they add up, and I’ll enjoy my garden a lot more next year if I don’t forget about them and make the same mistakes again.

I also take note of the colors and where they should go and where they shouldn’t, what needs to be thinned out because it’s getting out of control, and what area needs more (or less) watering.

Plan your harvest before you plant a single seed

I swear I’ll only grow one type of sauce tomato every year and there will inevitably be twelve of them. The same applies to lettuce, eggplant and onions. The key to solving this problem is keeping score. At the end of the season, take note of which varieties did well and which did not. Next year, you can narrow down your goals and plant only what you have been most successful in harvesting. The Banana Legs Tomatoes were a big disappointment this year, and the Sunrise Sauce was a surprise dark horse. These notes extend to what I really enjoyed working with (or struggled to use) in the kitchen. Through this process, I narrowed down my preferences for garlic (Music), potatoes (Amarosa), and eggplant (Galina).

Your notes don’t have to be organized. Store them wherever and however you like if it makes sense to you, as long as you can find and read them when it’s time to plant. I do little doodles in my notebook all summer, but I always make sure to make a little page for my annual observations. This is what I turn to when ordering seeds in the dark of winter and when doing my annual garden planning.