From my perspective, there is one thing in this world that is certain and that is the fact that time never stops. The hands on the clock move from one hour to the next. Each day rolls into the following one. The seasons change without our permission or agreement.
When it is extremely hot outside, I wish for an early fall. When the weather is beautiful, I beg it to stay. Wishing and begging are futile. Love it or hate it, autumn has arrived.
I feel sadness when I look at the declining echinacea, the struggling tomato plants and the lack of pollinators. On the other hand, I feel relief from the sweltering heat, swarming mosquitoes and pesky wasps.
As the garden prepares to take a rest, there are many activities we can do to prolong interacting with our plant friends. One of them is to create or update a garden log.
Personally, I love doing this because it helps me to remember how to repeat successes and avoid the same mistakes. In the spring, I make a list of the new plants. I note the date, location and method of planting, i.e. seed or starter plant. Regarding vegetables, I always note the variety.
Then in the fall, I walk around my garden and assess the progress, or lack of it. For example, this year, under the tomato section, I wrote: planted an “early girl” tomato that was not early. She was, indeed, quite late at producing. On the other hand, the “celebrity” tomato performed quite well — juicy and sweet. The “Brandywine” was a total bust.
For okra, I noted the exact seeds, spacing and placement of the plants. Okra has given me fits over the years here in Colorado. It seems to prefer the warmer nights and ample humidity of Oklahoma. To my surprise and delight, this year was the best okra season in 12 years. I purchased new seeds of a different variety, which is a fact I want to be able to recall next spring.
An additional example from my garden log would be regarding yellow echinacea. This is a gorgeous perennial that blooms for a long time in the summer. However, it is a beast. It will overtake anything and everything in the same planter. Despite aggressively dividing it a few months ago, it still ran amok and choked out the new coreopsis and pink salvia. My notes are to relocate all other plants from any container containing yellow echinacea.
Shade is another item worth noting in a garden log. As trees grow, parts of your yard that were sunny a few years ago may now be sitting in the shade. This is important if you are growing sun-loving plants in that area.
Also, if you have turf, it is a good idea to jot down fertilizer type, amounts and dates applied. You can also make note of fertilizer schedules for ornamentals.
Writing down your sprinkler system times for each zone can also be helpful. We tend to adjust ours throughout the summer. It is nice to know a reasonable starting point in the spring.
If you have newly planted trees that were staked, it is a good idea to make yourself a reminder as to when you can remove those stakes. I once forgot and had a tree at the back of our property staked for several years. Oops.
Arianna Kelley Rawlsky has a master’s degree in horticulture and created Bringing People and Plants Together, an organization dedicated to bringing horticulture education and therapy to the community. For more information: PeopleAndPlantsTogether@gmail.com or follow us on Facebook.
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