Keeping Records

[Aberdeenplotter]

p.s. The Reader's Digest publication --- the Gardening Year is an excellent starting point for inexperienced Gardeners but adjustments have to be made for sowing dates according to where you live. We are at least 4 weeks behind the Midlands of England which most books seem to be targeted at

[Madasafish]

I record planting dates on the plastic labels..

Since our weather is so variable, a detailed diary is in my opinion a waste of time..

[PyreneesPlot]

Since our weather is so variable, a detailed diary is in my opinion a waste of time..

... but interesting

[catgirl]

I stumbled through my first year of growing fruit & veg without recording anything at all. Then tried to make plans as to what and how much to grow for this year, after which I changed the whole layout of my garden which made said plans useless (I don't have an allotment).

So, while I have given up on making plans I have got a general idea of what I want to grow. Having made a list of what I can grow month by month means I know when I can start sowing. But, keen to learn from this year's experiments and mistakes, I have started keeping a diary recording exactly what I have done in the sowing process. I'm hoping to keep it going as the plants are maturing as well, to record how well each variety performed in the end. But we'll see how long my enthusiasm for record keeping lasts!

[planetologist]

I log sowing time, when/if I plant out, and the period that I eat things. I also have a diagram of what goes in which bed, for crop rotation, but then I don't keep track of volunteers, so it's not an exact science. As with almost everything else in life, especially in an unsustainable society, it's not about everything you might want to know, but the minimum system that you can actually keep going alongside everything else that is going on. I recommend pencil and paper.

[Chippy Minton]

I have a plot plan (PowerPoint) so I get the rotation right, I never remember anything, I never measure yields, I just enjoy what I get and so every year is my best year ever

Each to their own

[WPG]

I make a sowing and planting plan, an audit of the seeds I've got left (way too many) and a diagram of the plot showing planting for previous and current years. As I use a lot of green manures, they also have to be recorded so I know where they fit with crop rotation. Also keep a photo-scrapbook, and a handwritten allotment diary (which is mostly about the weather, pests and things needing fixed)

Most of my record keeping is forward planning- like Chippy Minton, I don't keep records of yields. As long as there's something half-edible to harvest then I'm happy.

[salilah]

I've got a spreadsheet of seeds with ideal dates - but with over 300 seed types, I don't really stick to it much

An A5 neat notebook that I've been running for years - writing getting smaller! - where I try to record weather and what I've done (only really weekends as I'm in London in the week). Typically this is good up to June, then a gap, then a few weeks, then I forget completely! Includes first harvests, and any other interesting stuff (deer in garden, for example). What I like about this is that at quieter times of the year, I can look back and see what I was doing last year, year before etc, which is fun

I also try to review at end year and make recommendations to myself - but this doesn't really work, every year I say fewer tomato plants and do the kale / PSB earlier, and I never do!!

[mothhawk]

I have a spreadsheet of seeds - so easy to sort - alphabetically/by plant group/sowing time etc, and easy to slot into the list all those packets of impulse buy seeds that I couldn't resist.

I start a word doc each January to record weather, sowing dates, germination, pricking out, planting dates, but I've never made it past the beginning of August yet, often not into July, but only having a small garden, it's not too crucial.

I also do a temperature chart day by day for each month, max and min, which is linked into the word doc.

[hellybore]

I keep a scruffy little notebook which has a rough plan of the allotment for the last few years, for crop rotation. I also use it for making a note of plants I want to try. Apart from that I just make a note on the seed packet when I sow something, and take the odd photo of plants and produce. Seeing what everyone else gets up to is motivating me to try being a bit more organised - I like the idea of using an excel speadsheet,. Do people design their own from scratch or are there templates you can download? Also like the idea of keeping an online diary/blog, not tried it before but I like the idea of uploading my photos so that they can be more of a reference in the future. And it would be nice to have something else gardening-related to do when the weather is foul!

[Alison]

I have a rough drawing of the site which indicates where things will be planted in each year's rotation although that only covers the main stuff with other things being slotted in between. Most importantly I have an excel spreadsheet which I've been running for about 8 years which lists all the seeds I have, how many I have (in some cases this just says "loads" or "some"), how many I want to sow (for direct sow this may just say "4' row"), which month and whether it's at the start, middle or end of the month. I then record when I did sow, , germination rates, transplant, plant out, harvest etc and add some general comments about yield and if I've delayed anything due to the weather. Some bits will be missed but I find it really helps me keep up to speed with things each year. Over Christmas I've updated the sheet for 2014 and have printed a copy off to mark up by hand when I don't have time to log on. I like the fact it's a spreadsheet as I can sort or filter. Kept a diary one year and found it time consuming and not very helpful (would expect a blog to be the same) as it takes so long to find the entry you're looking for. Also I know that whilst I don't record everything it really helps to look back at trends over the years and I know that I'd not manage to keep on top of things if I didn't have the memory joggers for what to do when.

[Veggielot]

I keep a plan of what I plant in each bed each year to help with crop rotation. Always plan to keep more records of variety planted and amount harvested etc but never seem to have enough time to keep proper records.

[binley100]

I keep a diagram of beds and whats gone in where. Also start off recording whats been sown and when its germinated but by april/ may time have lost the plot so its mainly used for toms, chillies etc..

[Penellype]

I keep a folder in Dropbox containing the computerised equivalent of a piece of paper for each variety of fruit and veg I grow. I then basically write a diary for each, for example sowing and germination dates, when I planted out, when I staked things, how I did it, whether it worked, any pests or problems, when I first harvested and when the crop finished. I also have a spreadsheet with 3 pages for the various garden areas, sowing dates and crop rotation, and reminders of what to do and when, such as pruning, ordering nematodes, putting up fruit cages etc.

One of my friends recently expressed an interest in growing strawberries and asked for advice, adding that he wasn't going in for a "military operation" like mine!

[datz]

I have started using the Evernote app. (available for Mac and PC and as a mobile app)
I already used it as a general place to dump receipts, notes etc. I have now photographed each seed packet I have and can add sowing details as I go on. This was an idea from a blog post by Emma Cooper http://emmacooper.org/blog/evernote-evangelist