Don't know if anyone is still following this thread. But I've gotten some good ideas. I started organizing my gardening stuff about 3 years ago.....out of necessity. I am forgetful. And I got sick and tired of having to stop, go back in the house get on the computer and look up stuff. So now I have one notebook where I keep general info like instructions on pruning and dividing perennials, fertilizing lawns, and clever ideas I see in garden magazines, just anything rather general. I have another notebook where there is a page for each plant that contains a picture and growing info, and a description of a location. In that notebook I also have a bar graph type chart of bloom times for the different plants in my yard. That let me see at a glance that I needed to plant something to bloom at a specific time of year. I also have started working on putting photos in there taking of different section of the garden on the first of each month. I also have made a rather detailed chart of actual locations of my plants that shows me how large the plant will eventually grow. It's not that I am organized, it's that I was driving myself crazy with forgetting information. I've also got a sheet in there to tell me what has to be pruned in the spring, summer, or deadheaded during the year, or cut back in the winter. I've also started a diagram to show where the shade/sun is in my yard during the year....again this is out of desperation because my tree is growing and I'm trying to figure out where it is a good idea to put another raised bed for veges. Along with this I am keeping a very simple journal where I just jot down info like when did I fertilize, what did I use, where I had a problem develop and what I think caused it, I'll note what plant I might want to rip out and what I might want to replace it with, what needs to be moved, general info on the rain (lots or little) and if the temps were unusual, when the hummers showed up. I'm actually pretty surprised at how incredibly useful the info is to me the next year. And I really wish I had started this many years ago. The two notebooks are something that basically only I work on in the winter when I can't be outside gardening. It keeps my mind going! And by the way, I'm not normally a terribly organized person by any stretch of definition, so this all surprises me. I think every person has to find the method that works for their own unique way of thinking. I don't think I could buy something someone else had developed and have it work for me. If I did I would end up giving up on it pretty quickly. dell

I keep daily weather logs because I'm a weather nut. In my weather logs, I make brief garden entries. I used to keep a specific garden journal but after decades of gardening I decided my garden was a place of enjoyment, relaxation, & peace. It was not a science experiement. Maintaining detailed records became a chore & when I got behind...I felt somehow guilty. Realized I was making work out of pleasure so I stopped. I do maintain a list of everything that's planted in the gardens & note if something dies. And, that's more for if/when we sell the property since our gardens & my botanical listings sold our last home before it hit MLS. Keeping track of the weather has been of enormous help to me in my gardens. I've learned that my perceptions of what the weather has been are almost always wrong. Having actual weather facts has resulted in much positive shuffling of plants in my gardens. For example, this year I don't think my lilac met its dormancy requirement explaining the ridiculously poor bloom. If it happens again next year, I'll probably give up on lilacs. Global warming is very evident in my shoreline garden. I'm 'sperimenting with new hydrangea varieties because now even variegated ones are blooming for me. But, no journal of exact bloom dates, diseases, critters, etc. Tricia

A nice "take with you to the garden" journal consists of using a recipe box (I prefer the 5"x8" size) and use two types of dividers (Alphabetical A-Z and Monthly Jan-Dec). I then file a card for each plant/tree/shrub by name of plant and also include plant detail/care/other information, where/when/price purchased, and where planted in the alabetical section. I also can place a photo protected by clear tape on the back of the card. In the monthly section, I file general cards noting "TO DO'S" that I would like to accomplish that month so I don't forget seasonal needs (fertilize, prune, etc). One could also add additional sets of alphabetal A-Z dividers in possibly different colors to use to further divide different groups (annuals, perennials, trees/shrubs, etc). You can also use the monthly section for other monthly reminders you may want to remember (birthdays, anniversaries, or special "to do" reminders). Hope this is helpful - Works for me!

I keep a journal using a spreadsheet. It's convenient because it's the same spreadsheet that I keep all my maps in. By maps, I mean the layout of the garden, Jiffy Greenhouse Pellet trays and so on. To add to the journal, I just click on the "Journal" tab and type away, then it's back to the maps for more tweaking. Here is a sample: 02/23/09 Completed all beds. Prepped planting areas for tomatoes away from the fence on the north side with compost and bone meal. Tilled leaves into east side of north bed. Spread tomato fertilizer over north bed. The only thing missing at this point is some mulch. Purchased an additional 10 bags, but it was not enough to completely cover the fabric. Moved plants indoors for the cold nights and back out in the morning. Forecast shows no more frost for the next 10 days. Will see what it says next weekend. May go ahead and plant out all non-tomato plants to free up space. 02/24/09 Potted all tomato plants that were in the Jiffy tray to Peat pots. Watered Jiffy Pellet Tray as pellets were drying out. Watered outdoor plants as well in tray. Set watering timer. It went off as scheduled and watered for the appropriate amount of time. I believe it went off between 9:00 and 10:00pm and watered for 15 minutes. It is set to do this every three nights. 02/26/09 Watered all plants. The plant on the right end of the window sill was looking weak. We'll see if the watering fixes it. Planted an MP in the ground. If the weather gets cold, this one will get the third WOW. 03/01/09 Plants that were outside on the tray were severely damaged by strong wind. Moved them to the window and moved the window plants to the tray. All plants were dry, especially garage plants. Deeply watered all plants. Left all plants indoors overnight due to cold. Still too cold to place them outside in morning, plan on moving them back outside in the afternoon. 03/03/09 Two of the three WOW's keep collapsing onto the plants. Drained and removed those two and hoping that there is no more frost. Watered all plants and planted another MP and CC into the ground. Planted second MP where a BK was planned before, but the spot planned for the second MP was not ready. Hope to plant more tomorrow.