This blog isn't just for gardeners (although I hope it inspires some of you to try growing a plant or two). (I'm addicted to learning as much as I am to gardening.)
To help me get there, I'm extending my learning through the University of Massachusetts, Stockbridge School of Agriculture's, Sustainable Food & Farming program. I hope one day to take all that I'm learning and apply it to a larger plot of land.
GARDEN TRACKER WITH FIRNEDS TRIAL
I love learning from gardening communities (and lots of trial and error). That reality quickly turned into my filling every sunny inch of space of my postage-stamp size lawn and turning it into a garden oasis. I grow mostly vegetables and herbs with some exception for fruits (when the squirrels and rabbits don't get to them first). I got up the nerve to give it a try - starting small with a single wooden wine box that turned an idea into reality. For years, I wanted to try gardening, but didn't know where to start. I'm Catherine, a small-space urban gardener in New Jersey (Zone 7a) who started gardening out of upcycled wooden wine boxes. How do you start the gardening season? Would love to hear what you do. When you're ready to start prepping, be sure to check out my prior post, Planning Your Garden. Now, if only the snow would completely melt. I just placed my seed order and will be getting the seeds going in the next 3-4 weeks. In any case, I'm really excited about this coming year. I added a couple of columns to it.can't say that will be where my edits end. The type of spreadsheet I'm currently using is one I created to be more of a "log." Here's my start of my Garden Tracker Spreadsheet. This year, I will be growing seedlings indoors and plan to have a plant sale in May.stay tuned for that if you're local. But, as each year in the garden passes, the more I want to grow things from seed. I still plan on buying a few things at the Garden Club sale this year. I highly recommend for those of you who aren't sure you want to start seeds indoors or not that purchasing seedlings from your nursery or local garden club sale is a great way to get started. I typically start many of my plants by purchasing seedlings. Maybe THIS will be the year my stuffed poblanos will be made from my own home-grown peppers.Ĭheck out my post about planning your garden from last spring. Peppers are like this - I'm a miserable failure at peppers (although my habaneros were ok), but I'm going to try ancho chile peppers again this year. So far.I'm still new and, quite frankly stubborn, so I keep trying things even when they didn't work before. I plant things each year I've never grown before, so it's important for me to start tracking what I'm doing and see what's working and what's not so I can make better decisions each year. For me right now, as a relatively new gardener, I'm looking for patterns and trends to what I'm doing. It helps me see at a glance what to expect during the season and things to reflect on for next season. Whether I planted indoors or direct sowed in the garden I mainly use a garden spreadsheet to track:
I don't go overboard with the spreadsheet though. So naturally, you might be wondering, "Does a garden need a spreadsheet?" Yes. When I cut my finger while cleaning a (very sharp) Ulu knife the day before Thanksgiving one year and had to go to the ER and get stitches, the first thing I was asked by friends was, "How does this impact the spreadsheet?" (I too wondered this and agonized over whether or not to go to the ER.THAT's how serious I am about planning spreadsheets.one little thing shifts and you may end up with Thanksgiving on a Saturday.) Although some might scoff at the idea, I would argue that you can't plan a meal like Thanksgiving for 20 people without a solid spreadsheet. My "Thanksgiving Spreadsheet" has become legendary. Those who know me well know that there's nothing I won't use a spreadsheet for.
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