Frustration, thy name is "I can't find..."

I've never posted to this forum but here goes. Actually, I looked for a forum called "Organizing Garden Stuff" but no go. I am so far behind on getting plants and seeds in the ground and in pots, but I get so frustrated, I end up giving up. Why? I can never find a blasted thing! Just now, I've lost two pressure nozzles (used to shoot aphids off), my sunflower seeds - and pretty nearly my mind. All my trowels and garden gloves end up on one side of the yard or the other despite the fact that I bought multiples just so they'd be handy. Same with spades, rakes and, well, you name it. Seeds are here, there and everywhere. So my question is: HOW do you keep your garden stuff ORGANIZED?!!! Believe me, I'll be so happy to hear any method you use.

Alma

I don't organize but I do minimize. I don't have anything but what is absolutely essential. One trowel, one adjustable nozzle which stays on the end of the hose. Don't use gloves or I would be forever searching also. I do have a big covered bin that I keep seeds in.

Mother always made me put my toys away when I'd finished playing, and I guess the lesson stuck with me for the rest of my life! After every gardening session, I gather all my tools and stuff up and take them back to the toybox, I mean garage, where everything goes into its cupboard, onto its shelf, or is hung on its hook. Only if my DH borrows something and leaves it in the barn or his workshop (the cave of chaos) am I searching for what I need. I still haven't found the rake he was using last week!

It's not that I don't TRY to be organized; I do. I've just reached that horrible point in life where I can't remember why I opened the fridge door, much less where I put my gloves. And, unfortunately, I don't have a 'toybox' where everything goes. There's a cupboard on the front porch that only holds little stuff, a big cupboard in the back yard and various holders for long-handled tools. And if my OH uses any one of those, it's anybody's guess where he left it! There has to be some method to this madness.

tomatofreak, I really understand. My DH says that my goal in life is to distroy routines. I really don't like routines, however I agree with you on frustration. I think I've conquered it though, at least so far this year. I have one of those collaspable heave plastic garden containers, (I got them at Sams' years ago in 3 sizes), I took the mediom size and put all of my standard stuff in it, gloves (mismatched cause I lost the partners), clippers, handheld rake for leaves around bushes, trowel, current fertilizer in use, knee pads,etc. The container has handles and it is very light. I take it with me and know just where to put things (and find them) when I need to. It's worked great this year, I find that I don't leave things around any more, of course the spring is new, I'm sure that I can distroy this routine soon enough!

Wadin', I don't have a routine either and sometimes I think that's part of the problem. I start something in the morning, stop for some reason and when I try to resume later, I've forgotten where I put the stuff. I think I need a tote, a cart - and memory lessons!

forget the memory lessons!..... what was this about?

I can't believe I met up with a gardener today who admitted to having about 800 multi-purpose tools - and he knows where they ALL are! Says he's a collector. Ya think? However, he was going to give me some black pots - and couldn't remember where he put 'em. I perversely felt better. ;)

Alma,
My method is the opposite of most of the other posts. It cost me bit more, but seems to alliviate, though not eliminate the problem. My solution is to have multiples of everything and in bright colors.

The bright orange, lime green and pretty pink handles have meant less dark green and brown handeled items buried amongst the salpiglossis, never to be seen again till October. The 5 gallon garden bucket that I carry around is also bright pink with a lime colored tool holster/pocket thingy around it...I can spot it anywhere in the yard.

I find with three sets of everything, I've gotten better at pink set stays in the bucket (which goes everywhere I do in the yard), orange set stays in the greenhouse, green set is the floater set because it will end up where one of the others isn't. (And the old mismatched set is wherever, so I'm covered). I just programmed my brain to it when I set up that system and told myself that if "self" retrained itself regarding the color code, it would be better than circling the yard 3 times, going in the house (upstairs and down) and still never finding what I was looking for. I used to be exactly like you, but I have office supply stuff, etc the same way...A roll of tape and a stapler wherever I may need it. My DH on the other hand has ONE of anything and diligently puts things back in their place (cleaned) after each use.

Gloves, I buy six identical pairs at a time. I have clothespins in my bucket and in the garage so when I take the gloves off, I tell myself "if I clip them, they'll be dry when I use them next...."Self" likes dry gloves so it listens...LOL...I am not a spring-chicken, so there are lapses, but not nearly as often.

Needless to say, I watch for sales or end of the season prices to indulge my need for "many" of everything.

Chocolate Moose, what's with the "not a spring chicken anymore" bit. don't you think we aught to get smarter? I love your approach, why fight the problem? Ha! just get one set of tools and gloves for every garden and leave them there waiting for whan I'm arrive. I love that! thanks.

I love the color-coded idea! The problem with the gloves is that I'll leave them on and walk from the front yard to the back - and take 'em off. Shortly, I'll go back to the front and where are those blessed gloves? Why, they're all in the back yard. The bucket might solve that problem so I'm gonna paint me some buckets! When I think how much time is wasted looking for stuff (in the house, too!), I get so aggravated, I want to throw up my hands and quit. The funny thing is that in the kitchen, every little thing is in its place and the only time it's not is when the man of the house decides to put the dishes away. ;0) He's lived here over two decades and would starve if he needed to cook for himself.