What is a Digital Garden?
A digital garden is a way of publishing and organizing ideas online that breaks free from the chronological constraints of traditional blogs and the rigid structure of wikis. Think of it as a middle ground—more cultivated than a stream of social media posts, but more organic and exploratory than formal articles.
The Garden Metaphor
Like a physical garden, a digital garden:
- Grows over time - Ideas start as seeds, develop into saplings, and mature into full concepts
- Has different seasons - Some areas are in full bloom while others lie dormant or are being replanted
- Requires tending - Regular care, pruning old ideas, cross-pollinating concepts, and planting new seeds
- Has winding paths - Non-linear navigation that lets visitors discover unexpected connections
- Shows work in progress - Not everything is perfectly manicured; rough edges and experimental patches are part of the charm
Key Characteristics
Non-chronological: Unlike blogs that organize by date, gardens organize by connection and development. Ideas link to related concepts regardless of when they were written.
Evergreen content: Notes are living documents that evolve and improve over time rather than static posts frozen at publication.
Learning in public: The process of thinking and developing ideas is visible, not just the final polished thoughts.
Imperfection welcome: Half-baked ideas, contradictory thoughts, and works-in-progress all have a place.
Interconnected: Heavy use of linking creates a web of related concepts that visitors can explore organically.
Digital vs. Traditional Publishing
| Traditional Blog | Digital Garden |
|---|---|
| Time-ordered posts | Topic-clustered notes |
| Publish when "complete" | Publish early, refine often |
| Archives rarely revisited | Old content actively maintained |
| Linear reading path | Non-linear exploration |
| Polished final thoughts | Thinking process visible |
Tools for Digital Gardening
Popular platforms and tools include:
- Obsidian - Powerful linking and graph view
- Roam Research - Block-based, bidirectional linking
- Notion - Flexible pages with databases
- TiddlyWiki - Non-linear documentation
- Foam - VS Code-based, GitHub-powered
- Dendron - Hierarchical note-taking in VS Code
The Philosophy
Digital gardens represent a shift from performative publishing to generative thinking. Instead of presenting finished thoughts to an audience, gardeners cultivate ideas in semi-public spaces where the process of thinking becomes as valuable as the conclusions.
This approach acknowledges that knowledge isn't linear, that understanding develops over time, and that the best insights often emerge from unexpected connections between seemingly unrelated ideas.
Getting Started
To start your own digital garden:
- Choose your tools - Pick something that makes linking easy
- Start messy - Don't wait for perfect notes; plant seeds and tend them
- Link liberally - Connect ideas even if the relationship isn't immediately clear
- Tend regularly - Return to old notes and update them with new insights
- Embrace the process - Focus on learning and thinking, not performing
A digital garden is less about having the right answers and more about asking better questions, making unexpected connections, and thinking in public.