See Inside
See Inside
Introduction:
You’re probably wondering what this strange-looking little book is all about. Well, it’s about YOU and YOUR gardens. Not about someone else’s idea of a good garden. You know what’s best for your land and your interests – anything from planting avocados to zinnias, from nurturing indoor orchids to herbs like rosemary. You are the gardener and this YOUR book.
What will you find in here? Lots of ways to help you plan, track and record your garden’s successes and maybe what you need to do differently next year. If you’d like to grow something, but don’t know exactly what or how much, turn to the JOURNAL section. There are plenty of lined blank pages and thought-provoking questions about what you want out of a garden. Also, you can delve into your memories of favorite gardens – whether those of parents, grandparents or some grand botanical ones. A garden can be a connection to the past and a way to reach out to the future by teaching new gardeners the way of plants.
See Flower Journal Pages
See Vegetable Journal Pages
See Fruit Journal Pages
See Greenery, Ground Cover & Grasses Pages
To organize your thoughts into plans of action for YOU, turn to the TO-DO LISTS, where you can list and check off those projects and activities you have accomplished. Think of this part of the book, of the whole book in fact, as GARDEN CENTRAL.
When you have bought your plants, turn to the DETAIL PAGES. There, you can describe your plants by variety and color, list seeding dates and plant dates, add in special needs and details, and keep track of how each is progressing throughout the year. There are pages to suit every Gardener – indoor and outdoor, flowers, vegetables, fruits, ground covers, shrubs and herbs.
See Flower Detail Pages
See Vegetable Detail Pages
See Shrubs Detail Pages
See Herb Detail Pages
See Indoor Plants Detail Pages
Next we come to one of the most useful parts of the book, the GARDEN MAPS. Pages are marked out in grids that correspond to your garden plot. You can record exactly where you planted that tomato seed or bulb and list exactly what it is, linking back to the DETAIL PAGES, where you guessed it, all the Plant Details are. No more guessing about where you planted what. Even for indoor gardens, you can indicated where pots are in relationship to each other and to the sun or light source.
Since this book is portable and your garden is not, you can take this book to show to friends and family what you’re growing and how it’s doing, especially if they can’t go see your garden for themselves. Sharing your gardening and gardening tips is half the fun of growing things.
And then when you become a proud “parent” of a plethora of plants, you can keep track of your successes in the TRACKER section at the back of the book. There you will find pages dedicated to Perennials – how they do each year – and Annual Veggies and Flowers – how each individual plant did vs. another of the same year. Lastly, there is a Purchase Record page, so you can remember when and where you bought each plant so that you know whether to return to that nursery or seek out another based on plant health and growth.
Finally, remember that this is YOUR book. You’re in charge. You can record your plant’s growth seriously or just have fun working through the journal pages. I’ve tried to make this book as useful to as many gardeners as possible. After all, we’re inspired to grow living things that can feed our families or that can decorate a garden path, and that’s a calling. Use this book to help you find the right path for YOU.
Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Julie MacShane
P.S. If you have any suggestions for future versions of the planner, please let me know at juliemacshane @ yahoo.com.
Copyright 2010 by Julie MacShane. No part of the book may be copied or reprinted without permission of the copyright owner.
