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digit_gw

gotta keep track of things better

digit
15 years ago

I gotta keep track of things better. Or, get a better memory.

I can remember, barely, the Yaya carrots I grew in 'o7. But, looking back over a barely old invoice . . . I didn't even know I grew Lombardia spinach. How the heck did that turn out!!

This Oscarde lettuce . . . you know, I've long liked growing oakleaf lettuce but haven't had a green variety for quite a few years. So, this was a red oakleaf. Was it any good?!?

Then there's this Tropicana sunflower. What did that look like . . . ? No wait, that was another lettuce! The sunflower was Firecracker. Maybe a few brain cells were wiped out when that one went off.

This was maybe about 14 months ago that these things were in my garden. My memory must be something I forget with.

digitS'

Comments (10)

  • Skybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
    15 years ago

    The little scraps of paper I used to make notes on were no better than my olde brain, Digit, so this spring I started the beginnings of a "new system!" It doesnÂt translate well to GWÂcanÂt keep the tab stops or the bold headings in it, but IÂve stuck a few dashes in where there should be a space, and you can kinda get the idea! I add things to the list as I buy them or decide IÂm going to use them again, then I put down when they were planted (started it AFTER I seeded my tomatoes and eggplants this year!), then, if I get around to it I try to remember to come back and add when they germinatedÂor, at least, when I could see them! And on some of them I made notes about them and if I wanted to grow them again or not. I have to get better about that part.

    So far itÂs working really well, and I will definitely use it again next yearÂand probably expand upon it!

    So what if I need a walker for my brain!
    Skybird
    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

    # of Rows-- When Planted -- Germinated

    Beets:

    Warrior ( Harris Â05) 2-- 04.15.08 -- 04.30.08

    Carrots:

    Royal Chantanay (Harris Â06) 2-- 04.15.08 -- 05.15.08

    Cukes:

    Munchmore Hybrid (Totally Tomatoes Â08) 1
    Tasty King Hybrid (Totally Tomatoes Â08) 1
    Suhyo TK (Pinetree Â08) 1

    Eggplant:

    Classic -- 2 ea. -- Planted out 05.22.08
    Slim Jim (Pinetree Â08) -- 2 ea. -- Planted out 05.22.08

    Kohlrabi:

    Vienna Early White (Lake Valley Â07) 1-- 04.15.08 -- 04.27.08-- DonÂt grow again
    Kossack (Pinetree Â08) 1-- 04.15.08 -- 04.27.08
    Great even when huge and have been in the garden all summer! Definitely grow again!

    Peas:

    Green Arrow ( (Pinetree Â06) 1-- 04.15.08 -- 04.28.08
    Green Arrow (Seedman Â08) 1-- 04.15.08--04.28.08
    **Good flavor, not bad when bigger  grow again (got too big this year when I was sick!)
    **Long pods with lots of peas
    Early Frosty - sugar pea (Seedman Â08) 1-- 04.15.08 -- 04.28.08
    **Excellent flavor, not too bad when bigger  grow again!
    Early Perfection (NK Â05) 1-- 04.15.08 -- 04.28.08
    **Good flavor and holds pretty well
    Alaska  Rocky Mountain Seed Â08 1-- 04.15.08 -- 04.28.08
    **Just not that good, didnÂt produce well this year, when big not good at all  donÂt grow again.

  • jclepine
    15 years ago

    I write it all down only to forget where...did I put that in a spreadsheet or a word doc or in an email to myself?

    Not that bad, just not all that good at consistently using the same system.

    Mainly, I forget what I was going to buy. I hardly ever write out a list and then I get home (way up the mountain hwy) only to remember I was going to buy [insert random item here]. That never seems to encourage me to write it down. I just tell myself to remember it tomorrow...

    Can't forget to buy the turkeys tomorrow!!!

    LIST:
    buy turkeys

    Hah!!

  • polygonum_tinctorium
    15 years ago

    How about using a large hand-drawn map, posted somewhere obvious like the refrigerator? Label what goes where and the date it was planted. When something blooms or is harvested, add that date to the map, too. On the edge of the map, record important info such as actual frost dates, hail storms, elk visits, etc. If you do successive plantings and harvestings, figure out how to record both crops on the same map, or set up another map to use for the rest of the season.

    Next to the map, have another large piece of paper (or notepad) where you can write notes about what happens. You can organize it by plant or by date.

    For example, we'd keep a running tally of the harvest of different things. We'd list the date, how many of what we got, and any other useful notes.

    If you have a camera, take occasional snapshots of the garden or of your harvest.

    At the end of the season, if you're feeling ambitious, you could write a summary while the memories were still more or less fresh. You could list your favorite varieties, the most productive varieties, the ones that were least or most susceptible to insects or heat, good recipes, seed companies with good or poor quality, or anything else that seemed important.

    Then, file everything in your garden area. That would include the map, the day-to-day notes, the summary, empty seed packets, maybe a few photos, and so on. You could add some extra notes during the winter if you think about it, but it's not critical. (When did you eat that last potato? When did the pumpkins finally become inedible? How long did the hot pepper plant keep producing indoors?)

    This doesn't have to be elaborate. Honestly. If you set things up so that it's easy for you to take useful notes, you'll do it. E-mailing things to your favorite mailing list works. Posting photos or notes to a forum works. If you don't get everything recorded, it's no biggie. There will be another chance next year, next month, next week.

    I am scatter-brained, so a simple system such as the above works well for me. The big garden map, plus a notepad to jot down interesting details as they occurred to me, really helped me. I like the visual representation of what's going on.

    Now that I'm mostly doing houseplants rather than outdoor plants, I'm way more lax. A camera works best for me now. I snap a few photos whenever something interesting happens, and then inflict the gory details on all my imaginary computer friends.

    I know the above is probably pretty obvious and probably has been mentioned many times before. But what the heck, here it is again.

  • billie_ladybug
    15 years ago

    My method is somewhat unique. I am as busy as the rest of you: College, trying to find work, ranch, garden, the DH that can be more troublesome than the three kids with all their school activities and 4-H. I have tried to make this as simple as possible.

    First I have a map that I photocopy of my garden. Since I have raised beds, the lay out never chages (or will not when I finish it). When ever I plant something I add it to my "planted" list. Then number the item and circle it on the map, to show that it is planted.

    Any seed packets that I empty are thrown into a bucket that I have in the kitchen that was there for decoration anyway. Since I do all my prestarting in the kitchen anyway, it is really convient and when I order over the winter, I just bring the bucket to my computer.

    Then there is the harvest. Since everything goes through the kitchen: eggs and produce, I keep a compostition book in the kitchen drawer to make quick notes and compile the quantities harvested like how many pounds of each tomato. Then if I want and have time later, I can put it into a spread sheet, but I find that for what I need, the comp book is fine. I just make sure I date each entry.

    My seeds are stored in the door of the back fridge in empty miro whip containers. I put slips of paper into the end each one so it shows to the front of the container that lists only the types of seed in them: tomato, pepper, cabbage, carrots, etc. This way if I want to know if I have any more Pink Brandywine Tomatoes, I can pull only that container and look. I don't have to go through everything I own.

    It works for me. I have things to keep track in the places I do that work, which keeps me marking things down. At least if I write something down or throw the empty packet into the bucket, I know I don't have to look in the fridge to find any more.

    Billie

  • bpgreen
    15 years ago

    I read once that there are three signs of old age.

    • Your eyesight goes

    • Your hearing goes

    • Dang. I forget the last one

  • polygonum_tinctorium
    15 years ago

    "Since everything goes through the kitchen"

    That seems to be the key, indeed.

    "My seeds are stored in the door of the back fridge in empty miro whip containers."

    Do you add a packet of dehydrator to the jars?

    "At least if I write something down or throw the empty packet into the bucket, I know I don't have to look in the fridge to find any more."

    How do you deal with the seeds you save?

  • highalttransplant
    15 years ago

    After reading this thread, and the one Greenbean posted with the link to her photos, I've come to the conclusion that I kept very good, almost anal records (Hey, what do you mean your not surprised?!) when it comes to germination dates, with an Excel spreadsheet. The area that I need to work on is keeping track of the harvest. There isn't enough room on my germination spreadsheet for more columns, so I guess I need to come up with a different document for tracking what I harvest. I think with tomatoes in particular, it would be helpful to know how much each type produced, and how big they were, if they tasted good, etc., since by the time the next spring rolls around, my mind can't be counted on to remember what happened the previous summer.

    The other thing that is a necessity for me since I have such a tiny vegetable garden, is mapping out where things are being planted. I found a chart in The Postage Stamp Garden Book that tells how many inches apart to plant things when gardening in a small space. So I draw out the garden on some graph paper, and it makes it very easy to see how much will fit. Underneath the map, I have room to make notes, such as frost dates, things to do differently next year, etc.

    I probably need to keep up better with my seed sources too. I do have a folder where I keep mailorder receipts, but since I have been doing a lot of trading this year, I'm not sure which tomato came from who.

    Hey, the good thing is we have all winter to get better organized. What else you gonna do when there's a foot of snow on the ground. Well, unless your into wintersowing!

    Bonnie

  • digit
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    All such helpful ideas for being more organized!! (Eexcept for BP's . . . who really strikes me as about the most organized, maybe even efficient of the lot. He's holding out on us.)

    I'm not willing to jinx anyone by telling you about some of these techniques I've tried - some of which, I'd forgotten until you've reminded me.

    In the spirit that BP represents so well. Here's a negative, a neutral, and a positive (not in order) for the state that I'm in.

    Steve's digits:

    I think it would be interesting if old people got anti-Alzheimer's disease where they slowly began to recover other people's lost memories. ~ George Carlin

    Men do not quit playing because they grow old; they grow old because they quit playing. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

    First you forget names, then you forget faces. Next you forget to pull your zipper up and finally, you forget to pull it down. ~ George Burns

  • billie_ladybug
    15 years ago

    Polygonum - I used to add it to every one, but soon discovered that the seeds that came from the mail orders really don't need it. I do still add them to any seeds I save, I don't trust that I got them dry enough. I stored onion seeds for 10 years this way (planted them this spring). I bought them and never had room to plant them, or the time or the energy to seperate the little ones...

    Seeds I save usually go into an envelope and into the same container they would if they were bought. I have a bunch of coin envelopes that I have no idea where they came from at this point, but they are the same size as a seed packet, so work great.

    Billie

  • bpgreen
    15 years ago

    "except for BP's . . . who really strikes me as about the most organized, maybe even efficient of the lot. He's holding out on us."

    Hah! I'm only organized when it comes to the computer. When it comes to everything else, I'm a mess.

    My garden the last few years has been overtaken by pumpkins that grew from seeds that didn't die in the compost.

    I did create a task list for my latest lawn seeding project, but I just created a text document on my desktop and used Stickies to remind myself when it was time to do something.

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