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Keeping a Garden Journal
Introduction
Keeping a garden journal is a
great way to teach your kids how to track the highs and lows of a garden. By recording plant
varieties, sowing and harvest times, unexpected issues, and favorite growing methods, kids will
create a beautiful and useful tool that gives insight into the wonders of a garden from one
year to the next. Scientific observations such as weather patterns, rain amounts, and
pollinators in the garden can be coupled with sensory observations- smells in the air, the
texture of a favorite flower, sounds of wind in the leaves- to create a fantastic and lasting
memory of summer in the garden.
Garden Journals don’t have to be
all writing- they are a perfect place to press flowers, create leaf rubbings, and add drawings.
You can include other academics as well. Math can be incorporated by creating a line chart to
track plant heights. You can add vocabulary words such as “photosynthesis” and “hydration” in
proper context.
Whatever form a personal journal
takes it will be a valuable resource in the garden from one season to the next.
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What You Need:
• A notebook. Just about
anything will do, but a three-ring binder can work very well for adding in lined paper, blank
pages for drawing/leaf rubbings/plant pressings, graph paper, and even folders to hold plant
tags.
• Pencil
• Pen or highlighter
Optional:
• Colored pencils
• Tape
• Parchment Paper
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What to Do:
1. A journal is meant
to be a record of big and small events in the garden. Here are a few basics to get
started:
2. A sketch of the garden (graph paper
can be helpful here). See if you can teach your child to sketch a plan of the garden in scale.
Include a key to plant tags if you have the tags on hand.
3. Pictures of the garden, either drawn
or photographed
4. A plant list that includes a basic
description, light/soil needs (or where it currently is planted).
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Keep Track Of:
• When the seeds were sown and
transplanted, and where the seeds and plants are from. Costs can also be figured in for a
mathematical bonus.
• The length of time it takes to flower
• The length of time it takes to fruit
• Notable pests
• Pollinators that are attracted to the plant
Observations can be made on a
daily or weekly basis, but journals should be updated as often as time allows. The garden is a
dynamic living thing and the changes from week to week will amaze you!