Looking for good ideas for a garden journal printing project? Most gardeners only plant their gardens one or two seasons a year, but anyone who has attended to plants from seed or seedling to harvesting time knows that this undertaking is much more complicated than it looks. And gardening is also a labor of love for those who enjoy nurturing plants and growing their own food.
One of the ways that gardeners improve their handiwork year after year is by using a garden journal. After reading books, listening to experts, and experimenting with trial and error themselves, garden journal printing is an excellent way for new and seasoned gardeners to make the most of their undertaking to keep track of current and upcoming plantings as well as look back on past gardens to help shape future ones.
What is a Garden Journal?
When you think of the word journal, you may think of a lined notebook where writers jot down their ideas, hopes, dreams, or life experiences. And in a way, a journal for gardeners is just that, except the subject of the journal is a plot of land or a container where the writer’s hopes and dreams of fruits, vegetables, and herbs sprout instead of emotions or personal thoughts.
A garden journal printing project that gardeners use is a place where green thumbs are honed, perfected, and, on occasion, where records of less-than-successful gardens are kept.
Garden Journal Printing Ideas
The beauty of a journal for gardening is that there is no set way to craft one that is helpful and useful throughout planning and tending a garden plot. But if you are just getting started with the idea of garden journal printing or you have used them before but want to make a more helpful one, our list of garden journal ideas can help you set up a journal that you will love.
The trick is to pick and choose the sections of the journal that will be the most helpful to your gardening needs.
1. Planning. Your Garden Journal Printing Project
Many times, the idea of planting a garden grows out of a desire to grow a specific vegetable, herb, or fruit because it is already a favorite so growing your own seems like the logical next step. For other gardeners, picking up seeds or small plants at the neighborhood garden store unexpectedly transforms into planting a full-blown plot over time.
But whether you cultivate a small container garden or an acre of fertile land into your dream garden, plotting out which plant will go where is a key element in getting started for the next planting season. Your journal can help you:
- Create a layout of the garden
- Make sure that companion plants are in close proximity, like beans, corn, and squashes that are known as the “three sisters”
- Ensure that pest-attracting plants are scattered throughout the garden to protect other more vulnerable species
- See what layouts were used in past seasons to help you decide on the best choices for upcoming plantings
2. Plant Discovery
Journals are the perfect location to note new potential varieties to include in your garden. A running record of the type and potential size of the full-grown plant as well as its water, food, and light requirements can help gardeners judge which ones will be the right fit for their current or future garden locations.
By keeping all plant discovery content in one place, gardeners will be more likely to include vegetation that meets their garden’s requirements as well as their own expectations and needs and not add in a plant that won’t be successful when planted with the rest of the garden.
3. Recording
Another section that many gardeners include in their garden journal printing projects is a place to record how the current garden performs. Did the grouping of potatoes in small mounds sprout when expected? How high did the garlic bulbs reach?
Or which varieties produced the most tomatoes on the vine? This garden journal printing area is perfect for marking down daily, weekly, monthly, or seasonal records of plant growth to help gardeners track their plants’ progress.
4. Evaluating
Closely connected to a plant record, many gardeners like to include a follow-up section in their garden journal printing project to evaluate the growth record. Even after planting a single garden, it is helpful to evaluate why some plants did better or worse than expected.
This evaluative section may be purely speculative, or it may be based on years of experience as a gardener or it may be a little bit of both. But an evaluation of why some plants flourished while others did not is helpful to know so future plantings will produce the fruits, vegetables, herbs, or flowers that you want.
5. Scheduling
Including a notation on when each variety should be watered and fed helps gardeners track their work as they become familiar with new varieties as well as establishing a how-to guide for others who may assist in the garden upkeep.
6. Harvest Planning
Not all varieties are ready to harvest at the same time, so specifying the time and method of harvesting is key to getting the most out of your garden. This garden journal printing planning section might be tied to the planning area as early-season harvests may make room for later seasonal plantings to keep the garden full from the start to the end of the gardening season.
7. Storing Photos
Many gardeners like to keep a photo record of their garden at different stages, from soil preparation to planting to early growth to harvest time. Photos or even sketches of seeds, seedlings, or full-grown plants can also be helpful so closely related varieties are easier to tell apart as well.
8. Sourcing
Gardeners famously trade and gift seeds or seedlings to others, and a garden journal printing project is an excellent location to track these transactions. Garden journal printing can also provide a spot for you to record sourcing spots for your favorite varieties as well as a place to list other gardeners who might gift or trade them as well.
9. Spending
For many who cultivate their own food, saving money is an important part of the process. So tracking all spending on seeds, supplies, and equipment in a garden journal printing project can make tracking savings much easier by having all of that information in one place.
10. Reminding
As the planning, planting, growing, and harvest seasons go by, most gardeners learn more about the craft. A garden journal printing project can provide a place to jot down notes about lessons learned and advice for next year’s plot in a convenient location so you can learn from this year’s mistakes or triumphs.
11. Recapping
When the harvesting is done and it’s time for the garden to lay by for the winter, a season recap is the best way to sum up the entire process. Creating an end-of-season recap spot is one of those key garden journal printing ideas to include because it provides a way for you to quickly access thoughts about previous planting seasons in a specific spot.
Gardeners who hold on to their journals year after year can turn right to the summation of any particular season to help them make future plans or advise other budding green thumbs.
Custom Garden Journal Printing
Developing a journal that includes sections that will help you be a better gardener is the first step in garden journal printing. The next step is choosing the details that make your journal easier to use.
- Garden Layout: Consider including a sketch or graphic showing your garden layout in some or all sections of your journal. This will help you quickly refer to plants, plans, notes about future gardens, or problems you faced during the season without having to sketch or draw out the garden plot every time.
- Lined vs. Blank Pages: You may prefer lined pages for your journal to keep it neat and tidy, but some gardeners like the freedom of blank pages. Consider using a mix of both on your first garden journal printing to see which one works best with your journaling style.
- Custom Covers: Make your journal as unique as you are with a cover that reflects your interests or choose a color to represent each year or each garden you plant. Including the year, the dates of the planting season, or the name or location of your garden can help you keep track of what is contained in each journal. Keepsake journals might benefit from using a cover designer that can assist in creating a cover that you will love year after year.
- Binding That Works: Choose the type of binding that will make your garden journal easy to use while looking great. If you want your journal to lay flat or open completely, Wire-O or Plastic Coil will work best. For journals that are bookshelf-ready, Perfect Binding looks great. And smaller, booklet-style journals work great with Saddle Stitch binding.
Grow a Relationship with a Quality Printer
Don’t forget to plan to cultivate a relationship with an experienced printer like Dazzle Printing. Help your gorgeous garden journal ideas grow into a beautifully bound journals with a printing partner that uses quality materials and years of experience to print customized journals for gardeners.
