July here in our part of the world is till the depths of winter and although I’m thinking and preparing for the new season – there is not much time spent in the actual garden. It is great to get out there on frosty morning to see how the ground is chilled and laced with ice – and to think triumphant thoughts about slugs and other pests not surviving the winter chill to make it through to eat my precious spring plants. And then there is the occasional warm day when you notice that the daffodils are emerging and you realise that even when you can’t see it, there is still growth and movement going on.

It won’t be long till spring will be upon us so use this time to get yourself organised. Give your garden shed or whatever you use as your potting area a good clean up. My potting shed is in the hothouse so its not a bad place to be on a cold winter’s day. Get rid of old rubbish, stack all those plastic seedling trays that came with last year’s plants from the garden centre and recycle this year for your own seedlings. If you have an old bath or tub around the place – give all the plastic pots and punnets a good wash first if you are worried about the transfer of disease. At least give them a brush to get off any dirt and cobwebs etc. Have them stacked ready to go for sowing time.

Tools can be sharpened and maintained. Give them a good clean and oil with a bit of linseed oil and hang on the wall or at the very least put into the one space where you know they are and all ready to go. I don’t know how much time I’ve wasted hunting around for my trowel or dibber or anything else I suddenly need and can’t find because I haven’t put it back where it’s supposed to go. I have a lovely trug that I put all my bits and pieces in so I can just pick it up and take it to wherever I am working.

Make a list of what you are going to need for the new season. It’s quite helpful to have a blackboard in your space to be able to write on. Potting mix, seed raising mix, tape measure, string line, dibber, trowel, garden fork, chalk, plant tags, notebook and pen, scissors. Add what you need as you think of it.

One or the most important items in the organised gardener’s toolkit is actually some kind of permanent marker. You’ve heard it said that the pen is mightier than the sword, but how much mightier is the sharpie than the gardener’s memory! How often have I planted or sown seeds and told myself I’ll remember what they are and when I sowed them. It doesn’t take long until I look at that tray on the bench a couple of weeks later (when the seeds are still thinking about coming up but haven’t emerged yet) and wonder what the heck they are! Or even worse, sow a row of seeds in the garden and either not mark where the row is or name what I have sown. If there is more than one of you gardening then the danger is even higher. The ‘other gardener” (also known as husband) might come along and not realise you have already sown seed in that row and merrily dig it over to do something else. More evidence for my theory that there should be separate spaces for men’s and women’s gardens.

Get yourself a good new sharpie and a good supply of plant tags so your are ready to record the variety and date sown or planted. For my seedlings I just use wooden popsicle sticks. You can get these very cheaply from any craft store. The trick Is you need to write on them before you sow the seeds as once you get a bit of moisture on your fingers they don’t work too well. You can also get the bigger size wooden ones that are suitable for the garden bed. They may only last the season but they do the trick. Hunt around your local garden centre for whatever they have there and get what suits you and your needs. But always- always make a note of what you have sown.

If you have lots of packets of seeds all over the place then a good rainy day exercise is to get them all organised. My background is in librarianship so I have a thing about organising so that you can find what you are looking for. It is a family joke about the spices in the pantry being sorted into alphabetical order but I put up with it for the pleasure of finding the ginger when I need it so I pay no attention to the smirking.

When it comes to seeds, I find it best to sort into family or companion groups which is how I organise my planting in the Crop Rotation Calendar. If you don’t already have a copy you can order either a digital or hardcopy by going to this link. Crop Rotation Poster It is a good tool to help you with your planning. I have divided up the planting into 4 main companion groups so file seeds under those headings. All root crops together for example, and all leafy greens together. Then have a space for herbs, perennials, and flowers. I use a plastic box with a good airtight lid to store them in so find a box the right size for you. Cut up some card to make dividers and label them. Then sort them into their spaces, put the lid on and store is a cool dark dry place away from humidity and pests.

If you want to get really organised I am going to do an online workshop on how you can preplan your new season’s vegetable garden so you are ready to go in spring. That’s when those garden markers and sharpies come in really handy! So let me know if you want to find out more about that and I’ll let you know when its ready to go.

In the meantime – grab a moment on one of those lovely warm winter days and get yourself organised for a great new growing season. You will thank me when you spring hits and you suddenly feel the urge to get out and get growing – and you’ll have everything ready and waiting for that moment!