Saturday, July 10, 2010

Picking on myself

I could kick myself. we've worked hard getting our garden planted and weeded, but I've done a poor job of planning and documenting things.
I have a ballpark figure of how much we spent on seeds, plants, tools and other necessities,  but I didn't capture the true costs, nor the true yields that we've had so far.
We love to eat, preserve, and share pepper with our friends and family so we planted a ton. But I didn't bother to document which plants were which. When someone asks for sweet pepper, or hot banana pepper, I have to go through our garden munching on pepper until I find the right ones.
I also haven't documented things like my fertilizing schedule. I've fertilized, but I'm not sure when I should fertilize again. 
I could lay blame for this on the fact that I've worked a really demanding day job for many years, and I could probably convince myself that I didn't have time to plant the garden properly. And to some extent, I WAS really pressed for time. 
But the thing is, proper planning actually saves time not to mention increasing the yield. I'm certain of that.
As I stood outside watering the garden which is beginning to parch after weeks of no rain, I made a commitment to myself that I would start a garden journal - today.
I plan to apply the skills I learned in business school to the task at hand. Plan, implement, measure, adjust as necessary. So there! I fessed up. I hope you are happy now!  :)

3 comments:

  1. All that planning and cataloging sounds like more work than putting in and weeding the garden. I like statistice about things, but I'm not well suited to document every day of a long term project, like a garden.

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  2. I applaud you for even HAVING a garden. I am lucky to get a load of laundry in on a consistent schedule! Keep on planting and watering and musing in your garden, it is very inspirational. Please keep in mind that I am a slug and you are lucky that I cannot nibble those greens from the internet, they look delicious. Come on over to Slug's Rest if you need a giggle or a break from the action!
    I am at "Adventures of Mr. Slug and Friends" if you care to visit between the tomoatoes and the spinich pruning. Please bring some with you!
    Love, Mrs. Slug

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  3. I can attest to the benefit of keeping even a simple spreadsheet. Nothing elaborate...just a date and activity and a note. That way I can keep track of fertilizer, water, bug activity, first harvest, etc. I find referring to previous years' sheets helps a lot too.

    As for pepper foraging? I use plant tags made out of old mini blinds. *munch*

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