MAY 18 – First flowers opened on ‘Little Gem’ alyssum in bed bordering rear walk-30 clays after sowing. Plants have a height and spread of three inches.
May 25 – First flowers opened on ‘Little Gem’ alyssum edging rear walk 30 days after planting. Plants have a height and spread of two inches.
I would not have noticed the difference in plant performance had I not kept a daily record of gardening events. It is a certainty that I would not have been able to discover the reason for the difference.
To a professional plantsman or serious gardener, a notebook is as necessary as the plants he grows. A notebook is enough for the professional who needs only information essential to his business.
But the average gardener seriously interested in raising ornamental plants for his pleasure is denying himself additional enjoyment if he is content with just a notebook. A journal would better suit his purposes.
What Is A Garden Journal?
By definition: a daily record of events kept by anyone for his use. Granted that the information is primarily for the gardener’s reference, the keyword is “daily.” Unless the journal is maintained daily, nothing is gained over the usual random notes.
For the journal to be of most value, pertinent data includes a daily weather summary, planting dates and methods, the performance of each variety of plant, and all other activities and factors affecting the garden.
If this sounds like a lot of writing, it is a false impression. Five minutes a day will put the vital facts on paper.
I prefer to keep my journal brief yet include every bit of garden information I can. I begin in the spring when early bulbs poke through the ground, usually the last week in February. From then until the final clean-up in the fall, something enters the journal every day – even if only a brief weather report.
What The Journal Consists
At first, the journal consists mainly of weather, the progress of spring bulbs, and plans for the approaching gardening season.
When planting time arrives, I record methods of preparing the ground, setting out plants, and sowing seeds.
The date of appearance of each kind of flower or vegetable seedling is recorded. As summer advances, plant performance is recorded in this order: the formation of flower buds, the opening of the first bloom, the peak of bloom, and the date when the last flower dies.
If this daily record is faithfully kept during just one garden season, a wealth of interesting and useful information will be amassed – much of which would have been lost forever had it not been put in writing.
Taking The Weather
For example, take the weather. As every gardener knows, rain, sunshine, heat, and cold each has their special effect on the garden and specific plants. But, even in the minds of experienced gardeners, last summer’s weather is usually remembered simply as hot, cool, dry, or wet.
A daily weather summary enables the gardener to trace his way back through the pages of his journal and discover specific reasons why this plant failed, why that plant was slow in developing, or why another put on an outstanding show.
You don’t have to set up a weather station. You don’t even have to own a thermometer.
Almost every daily newspaper prints a concise summary of the previous day’s weather – minimum and maximum temperatures and rainfall amounts. I also record, in addition, the general amount of sunshine.
Keeping Count Of Other Important Things
The journal also gives information about things to avoid, work to do, and plans for next year.
Your gardening journal makes pleasant and informative reading on a blustery winter evening. In piecing together scattered items, every gardener will learn something new.
For example, he might learn that a Centaurea americana blooms 24 days after buds become visible, while a California poppy requires only six days for the same process.
And then, he may come across a puzzle like that involving the alyssum mentioned at the beginning. Two different sets of plants bloomed within 30 days, yet one set was only two-thirds the size of the other.
It could not have been in the planting methods since the separate seed sowings were made only 3′ feet apart under identical conditions.
From the journal, I learned that, in each case, the seedling appeared above ground in five days. Which left only one factor: the weather. The answer became obvious when summarizing conditions for the 30 days from seed to bloom.
The Appearance Of Seedlings Critical Period
The critical period was the six days following the appearance of the seedlings above ground. The first set enjoyed daytime temperatures in the mid-’80s, dipping only to 60° degrees Fahrenheit at night.
Immediately after the second set appeared, a spring cold front moved through, with the daytime high struggling to the mid-’50s and the night moving down into the upper 30s. The difference in plant performance was a matter of temperature in the seedling stage.
Although this effect is basic horticultural knowledge, in this case, the proof would not have been available if I had not kept a daily journal of gardening events.
The journal you begin this spring will do the same, and much more, for you. Try keeping a daily written record. Then watch your gardening take on new dimensions.
44659 by Richard D. Roe