January 9, 2007

Happy New Year! It's that time of year for resolutions.... I have two great ones for you, and we can help each other out if you choose to work on these as well. I would like to work towards keeping a better garden journal and making more time to spend in my garden.

My mind is where I currently keep my garden journal. In Minnesota Gardener's Guide by Melinda Myers, I learned that Thomas Jefferson kept a garden journal for fifty years! He entered information such as the name, date, and source of the plants he purchased along with how he grew it and when and why it may have been removed. This year I am going to work harder to write down in a notebook the activities of my garden. I'm fairly accurate at remembering or identifying what I plant, but I don't always remember when I planted it. I would also like to keep better track of when I make my fertilizer and pesticide applications. Plus, I just want to be able to look through my journal in December and find out when my blanket flower and my 'Sum and Substance' hosta were in bloom. If it is cold and wet in July, I also want to keep track of that. Weather patterns are interesting to record to see how they affect growth and flowering.

My vegetable and herb garden looks like it will be expanding this year, so I will definitely have to stick with my resolution to spend more time in the garden. I'll need the extra time with work with the additional basil, oregano, spinach, squash, and other favorites of mine. Another great thing about this resolution is that working in the garden is great exercise. There have been lots of studies to show that gardening does burn calories!

Happy New Year!

Wendy Jasper
Horticultural Advisor

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