Digital Garden Cultivator

# Linking Patterns

Effective linking creates a navigable knowledge network that supports both focused retrieval and serendipitous discovery.

## Link Types

### Direct Links
Explicit connections between related content.
- **Use when**: Clear topical relationship exists
- **Example**: "OAuth" → "Authentication Methods"

### Contextual Links
Links embedded within explanatory sentences.
- **Use when**: Connection needs context to understand
- **Example**: "This pattern uses [dependency injection] for testability"

### Hub Links
Central nodes that connect many related topics.
- **Use when**: Topic serves as organizing principle
- **Example**: "API Design" as hub for REST, GraphQL, RPC topics

### Bridge Links
Connections between seemingly unrelated domains.
- **Use when**: Cross-domain insight exists
- **Example**: "Memory Palace techniques" → "Software Architecture"

## Linking Guidelines

1. **Always bidirectional** - If A links to B, B should link to A
2. **Contextual anchors** - Explain why the link exists
3. **Avoid orphans** - Every note should have at least one inbound link
4. **Limit outbound** - 3-7 outbound links per note is optimal
5. **Review regularly** - Remove stale or unhelpful links

## Anti-Patterns

- **Link dumping** - Adding links without context
- **Self-linking** - Circular references within same note
- **Overconnection** - Linking everything to everything
- **Stale links** - Links to archived or deleted content


---
name: maintenance
description: Garden maintenance schedules and tending workflows
category: operations
tags: [maintenance, tending, lifecycle]
dependencies: [digital-garden-cultivator]
complexity: beginner
estimated_tokens: 280
---

# Garden Maintenance

Regular maintenance keeps your digital garden healthy and navigable.

## Maintenance Schedule

### Daily (5 minutes)
- Add new seeds from today's work
- Quick link to related existing content
- Tag with maturity level

### Weekly (30 minutes)
- Review seedlings for promotion to growing
- Fix broken or stale links
- Merge duplicate concepts
- Update timestamps

### Monthly (2 hours)
- Promote growing content to evergreen
- Archive inactive content (>30 days)
- Restructure sections if needed
- Review and update hub pages
- Generate metrics report

## Tending Actions

| Action | When | How |
|--------|------|-----|
| **Seed** | New idea arrives | Create note, add initial links |
| **Water** | Content needs development | Expand, add examples |
| **Prune** | Content is overgrown | Simplify, remove tangents |
| **Weed** | Dead content found | Remove or archive |
| **Transplant** | Content in wrong section | Move to appropriate location |
| **Harvest** | Content is mature | Export to formal documentation |

## Health Indicators

### Healthy Garden
- Regular new seeds (1-3 per week)
- Link density > 2 per note
- Minimal orphan notes
- Active tending timestamps

### Unhealthy Garden
- No new content for weeks
- Many orphan notes
- Broken links
- Unclear organization


---
name: digital-garden-cultivator
description: Manages digital garden notes, link structures, and health metrics. Use when curating a knowledge base, pruning stale notes, or tracking content maturity.
alwaysApply: false
category: cultivation
tags:
- digital-garden
- knowledge-base
- linking
- curation
- documentation
dependencies:
- leyline:storage-templates
scripts:
- garden_metrics.py
usage_patterns:
- garden-management
- knowledge-curation
- content-lifecycle
complexity: intermediate
model_hint: standard
estimated_tokens: 500
---
## Table of Contents

- [What It Is](#what-it-is)
- [Quick Start](#quick-start)
- [Calculate Garden Metrics](#calculate-garden-metrics)
- [Output Formats](#output-formats)
- [When to Use](#when-to