Ways to Use A Garden Journal

Do you have a garden journal? Journals are a great idea for furthering your garden education... but then there is the patient work of actually writing in them. Where to begin? How do you scramble to catch-up when you are behind?
If you want to keep a written record of your garden, here are a few ideas to get you started... or to keep you going, as the case may be:
~Use a Date Book! - because gardening revolves around the calender. What time of year did I order mulch last year? When did Tulip 'Shirley' bloom? Does Clematis 'Nelly Moser' bloom at the same time as Geranium macrorrhizum? Most date books come with a full month layout and then blocks for each day. Because a date book already has a strong form, it becomes easier just to "fill it in" with the information that you are concerned about remembering.
~Write the "bloom schedule" for your garden on the monthly calender. Write the names of the varieties and show when they start & stop... also what is blooming with them. Write down if you like it or not!
~Use your photos to fill in the bloom schedule where you have failed to keep up with it during the growing season.
~Take it in the garden with you to write down your to-do lists as you walk through the garden. Check off or write down the tasks that you complete.
~Write down the names of new plants that you buy... and where you planted them. Just in case you can't find that nice little label later.
~Write notes for which bulbs you want to buy in the fall... do it in the springtime making notes straight into the "September notes". Then you will be able to find them to place your order in the fall. Walk through your garden at the height of spring and daydream about what else you could do next year.
So, maybe 2013 is your year to give it a go?