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**Last Updated 2/2/2020
Hi! Welcome to my blog Life Design by Cynthia. I’m a published author, avid blogger, lover of everything books, and garden enthusiast. This blog has a little bit about all of my passions in life. It is my creative space where I can share what interests, inspires, and motivates me on the day to day. But before we dig in, don’t forget to pin me.
Two of my biggest passions in life are bullet journaling and gardening. Man’s first job right after creation was to tend the garden of Eden. Working in the dirt, encouraging new life, and reaping the fruits of your labor is a very rewarding and self satisfying experience.
I started gardening as soon as my hubby and I bought our first house. My dad always had a big garden every year. Growing up with plants and chickens taught me a lot about hard work. Don’t believe me? Try shoveling chicken shit for a few hours and you may change your tune! LOL
As a mom, I want my kids to know the same childhood that I had. I want them to experience the growth of a plant from seed to fruit. I want them to know what it is like to be able to walk into your back yard and snack readily from the bushes and the garden.
Our first garden was just a single raised bed in the sunniest part of the back yard. A decade later, our garden is now more than 10 raised beds with fruit trees, bushes, and flowers spread throughout the yard.
I like to grow a variety of plants each year. I don’t have a lot of time during the week to spend in the garden, so I try to pick plants that don’t require a ton of attention.
Using my bullet journal, I like to plan my garden ahead of time, deciding what plants to grow and when to plant them so the harvest doesn’t all come in at once.
Garden Bullet Journal Supplies
You can devote a whole bullet journal to your garden or add in some gardening pages to the bullet journal you are currently using. This year, I am keeping it simple. My current bullet journal is the Leuchtturm1917.
I like the size of this bullet journal as it is easy for me to put in my purse and run out the door. Also, I like the hard cover and thick pages. My pens and highlighters don’t leak through as I am working on my bullet journal spreads. Click here to check out the Leuchtturm 1917 on Amazon
Not All Pens Are Made Equal!
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Sharpie pens are the best! I use these constantly as they do not bleed and the tips are fine enough for me to use to draw. Click Here to check it out on Amazon
Mildliner Creative Markers are the best highlighters I have ever used. The colors don’t bleed through the paper and they come with double sided tips. One large and one fine point. Click here to check it out on Amazon
Related Post: The Best Bullet Journal Supplies On Amazon
How To Set Up Your Garden Bullet Journal
To start with, what exactly is a garden journal and why do you need one? A garden journal is a record of what you have achieved in your garden as well as a place to keep your notes for future use.
Benefits of Using A Garden Journal
- You don’t have to remember what you did because it is written down.
- Lists of what worked well and what didn’t.
- A record to help plan your garden for the next season, keeping in mind crop rotation and variation.
- Keeps your tasks organized and helps to maximize productivity.
Garden Journal Page Ideas
Set up your garden journal the same way you would your bullet journal starting with an index. Setting up your bullet journal index spread is simple. Leave the first few pages of your bullet journal blank and label them INDEX. For more index page ideas click here.
If you are going to use your current bullet journal for gardening, I suggest using washi tape to mark the pages. This will make it easier later on when you are flipping through and trying to find something.
Run the washi tape along the edge of the page and fold it over. When you look at your pages, you can easily find your gardening spreads.
Garden Journal Dump Page
If you have never used a dump page, you are missing out. In my garden, there is a lot that I want to do, to add, rearrange, etc. Writing everything down on a dump page helps to clear the clutter from your brain and organize it into easy to manage monthly tasks.
I use a page in my bullet journal before I add in my future log. By looking at the tasks, I am able to assign them by importance to each month and spread out the to do list so it is more manageable.
Here is an example of a dump page. I use this same method in my work bullet journal on a monthly basis. Dump pages are really a God sent tool to help me organize my thoughts and keep myself focused on completing the tasks at hand.
Garden Journal Page Collections
There are lots of garden journal spreads you can add to your bullet journal. The sky is the limit when designing your journal. If, like me, you are not as artsy as others, a simple bullet journal may be best for you.
Monthly & Weekly Spreads
Monthly spreads take a little work to put together but are very helpful in keeping an overall focus on what goals you need to meet for the month.
I use the future log to determine what garden tasks I need to complete each month and my Lunar calendar to set up my monthly spread. In addition to the daily listing, I like to include a title page. The monthly title page is for inspiring my inner muse and “coloring therapy”.
Garden Design Plan
Designing your garden is easy when you are using a bullet journal. Using the dots as your guide, roughly sketch out your garden layout. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Your bullet journal is personal. It is for you alone, so who cares if your tomato looks like a strawberry! As long as you know what you are looking at, you did a great job.
Inventory of Seeds
I do not keep seed packets in my bullet journal. That’s just too messy, plus I have a lot of seeds. They wouldn’t all fit even if I tried.
I do however suggest keeping an inventory of seeds in your garden bullet journal. You can make a simple spread with planting dates, estimated harvest times and other pertinent information relating to the seeds you want to grow.
| Seed | Plant | Harvest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomatoes | April 15 | Early July | Likes lots of sunshine, keep roots moist |
| Green Onions | Late January (6 weeks before last frost) | June | Start indoors, move outside once dirt is workable |
| Snow Peas | Late February | May | Likes colder weather. Some shade |
Lunar Calendar
Gardening according to the phases of the moon is an idea dating back to biblical times. Lunar gardening is said to work with nature rather than against nature.
The moon goes through a 29 day lunar cycle shifting through its four phases: first quarter moon, full moon, third quarter moon and new moon.
The first quarter moon is the phase where the moon’s light grows brighter (waxing). Likewise, the third quarter moon is the phase where the moon’s light dims (waning). Full moon is the phase when the moon is at its brightest and new moon is when there is no moon in the sky at all.
If you garden according to the lunar calendar, all aboveground crops should be sowed between the first quarter moon and the full moon. These should be foods such as beans, squash, broccoli, and tomatoes.
Leafy greens should be transplanted or sown into the soil during the new moon. They are vegetables such as lettuce, kale, mustard, and spinach. If you notice, these vegetables are also the ones that do well with part shade.
Root crops should be sown during the waning moon, or from full moon to the third quarter moon. These vegetables include potatoes, turnips, and asparagus. Nothing should be planted between the third quarter moon up through the new moon. Instead, place your focus on weeding and bettering soil quality.
Rain and Temperature Trackers
Tracking the rain and temperature is easy when you use your bullet journal. You can keep it simple, like me, and track the number of inches in rain and daily temperature. Basically, I want to know how many inches of rain we had in a month and what the average temperature was (both the high and the low). This helps me gauge the soil moisture and temperature levels.
Other Garden Collection Ideas
- Hours spent in the garden
- Money spent on seeds, plants, tools, etc.
- Plants/seeds you would like to add next year
- Daily, Weekly, & Monthly Observations
- Pictures/Sketches of Your Garden
- Crop Pairing
- Individual Plant/Seed Information
- Bloom/Harvest Dates
- Tips & tricks You’ve Learned Along The Way
Your garden journal is a tool you will use for years to come. Reap the benefits of your labor, track your progress, and maximize your harvest.
My Garden & Me…
Over the years, I’ve learned a lot and tried many diverse techniques from traditional gardening to raised beds, even verticle gardening.
I’ve planted everything from trees to shrubs, herbs to vegetables, and flowers to bulbs. I’ve tried all kinds of varieties of heirlooms as well as propagating crossbreeds of my own.
Not all styles of gardening fit everyone. Trying different methods of gardening is the best way to figure out what will work for you and fit reasonably into your busy schedule.
My bullet journal has helped me to remember what I’ve done in the past as well as what worked and what didn’t. Tracking my yields and trying new techniques and plant varieties is only a small part of what I keep in my garden bullet journal.
Tracking my garden design and establishing a monthly to do list is key to successful gardening, especially if you have a hectic work schedule.
Some Pictures From My Past Gardens
Garden Journal Articles That May Interest You:
Bullet Journal: Spring Garden
Here are 16 essential plants to include in your spring garden plan.
How To Plan Your Garden Using Your Bullet Journal
February is the month to pull out your garden journal and develop your Spring garden plan….
Things To Do In May
Warm days and cold nights mark the beginning of spring. The days are getting longer and so is my to do list. Spring marks the beginning of the planting season. Canning. Harvesting. Drying. Freezing. The next few months marks the start of the busy season. Before I go any further, I want to clarify that…
Tribes Grow Better Together!
Don’t Forget To Pin Me.
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