Keeping records

[womble]

The thread that I wrote this on, has vanished. I'm not sure this tip merits a whole thread to itself, so I thought I'd write an introduction to bulk it out a bit

When you keep your records, go back over them and using a highlighter pen, colour over the name of the vegetables, ie, peas, beans, courgettes etc.
Then when you go back and search for something, the names jump out at you and its very easy to find what you want.

[selfraising]

Hi Womble
Was it the alternative rules thread, cos I can't find it either. Perhaps mods have removed both threads. Anyway I think it's very useful to keep notes and I like the idea of the highlighter pens

[Eyren]

Good tip, womble! I can never find anything in my gardening diary - a task for a rainy day, methinks...

If you don't mind me extending your thread, I was going to post asking what kind of records people find useful. I have an A4 ringbinder with:

* A page per month showing the moon phases and their dates, with a list under each moon phase of what I intend to sow/plant that week, and a separate list of non-planting chores that need doing

* A "free-form" journal that I fill in whenever I do a significant amount of gardening

* A chronological list of all my sowings/plantings, with columns for date, variety, amount sown, amount germinated and amount grown on

* An alphabetical inventory of all my seeds, with sowing months and best-before date

* Rotation schemes and layout plans for my garden and allotment

* Miscellaneous notes e.g. a printout of some webpages on moon planting, leaflets from the Garlic Farm, etc.

* Year-by-year archive of previous plans and diary pages (though this will have to move into a separate folder soon!)

Anyone got a different, maybe even more elaborate record-keeping system?

[selfraising]

I like the idea of the ringbinder Eyren. Might have to get one of those too to fill with tips and printed off sheets. I have 3 records on the go. One is an exercise book with squared paper for planning my planting for raised beds and containers. Then I have a database with columns one for the seed type,month it needs to be sown in, when I sowed, germination date, any further comments and finally if I need to re-order. I have 3 sheets on the database one for veg, one for herbs and one for flowers. The final book is just a gardening journal really, commenting on what I did, the weather, and what I need to do/get which I then tick off if I've done it.

[womble]

I too have a ringbinder, with a very untidy filing system in it, which every year I am going to sort out and never do.
Useful because you can chuck all the bits of paper you find, from seed companies etc in the front of it.

I certainly don't do as much as you Eyren, just write down something I might want to know next year, when I sow or plant and big things I do, or the harvesting of certain crops etc.

[Capsid]

Sorry, I chuckled about losing things on a record keeping thread.

Your PC is the perfect record keeping device. I use a spreadsheet to record sowing and planting dates etc.

I also use One Note which is part of the Microsoft Office suite which is very similar to a ringbinder/scrapbook but a virtual one.

[shirlthegirl43]

I got one of these from my sons for Christmas, I am hoping it will not get lost like my notebooks usually do

Garden Journal Birthday Gifts Ideas and Organisers

[vonbarky]

I use myfolia.com

I'm not financially connected with them, just a satisfied customer, but I have really been enjoying using myfolia.com to keep my records. They are making improvements all the time and it really has been fantastic to keep my notes on. Granted, it can't do everything, but it's been a definite step forward for me in my record keeping.

Plus, it's a great way to share what I'm doing in my garden with my family and friends back in the United States.

Cheers,
Keith

[womble]

To be totally honest, I can't see an improvement on the Mark One, pencil and paper to be honest. Easy to write anywhere, easy to read anywhere, anytime. You can add other bits of paper to it, can't delete it by accident........

[Hazel at the Hill]

To be totally honest, I can't see an improvement on the Mark One, pencil and paper to be honest. Easy to write anywhere, easy to read anywhere, anytime. You can add other bits of paper to it, can't delete it by accident........

Ah - but I'm less likely to lose the computer than I am my RHS diary (which I have temporarily mislaid,....)

Although I use both - diary (when I've not lost it!) then use it as an aide memoire when I update the blog. Oh and I use a sowing spreadsheet (crop/variety/date sown/date planted out/date 1st and last harvested)

[TEB]

[QUOTE=Hazel at the Hill;390408]Ah - but I'm less likely to lose the computer than I am my RHS diary (which I have temporarily mislaid,....)

lol me to

[selfraising]

Hi Hazel at the Hill. going to add to my database your columns on harvesting. Never thought of that doh.....Thanks!!

[Eyren]

Your PC is the perfect record keeping device. I use a spreadsheet to record sowing and planting dates etc.

In theory, yes - but I work on a computer all day, and have other hobbies/interests that require a certain amount of computer time, so when it comes to gardening I like to escape the tyrannical screen for a while and get back to old-fashioned paper and pen. I've tried keeping a computerized journal and it just wasn't the same.

That said, I do have an OpenOffice Calc (free equivalent of Excel) spreadsheet for my 2009 Balance Sheet, and I have been known to plan my rotation via a spreadsheet because it's much easier to move blocks of data around in digital form.

[Hazel at the Hill]

My 2009 plan looks like this at the mo.

[FionaH]

I use a spreadsheet that Hazel kindly sent me. Ive added a notes column and various bits, i also have a plane of my beds, (labelled and coloured!).
Also have a list of what I have spent, which is looking rather alarming at present. I hope to offset that with crops harvested. Dont think I will break even, if it shows I am spending way too much I shall delete it before Mr H sees it