Contents
Garden HandbookRecommended figures

Recommended figures

Names, schematics, use cases, and recommended briefs for the built-in Typora and VS Code figure list.

The /garden list in Typora and in VS Code / Cursor comes from the same built-in list. There are currently 21 items: 20 common figures, and Other as the last item. Choosing one inserts a single garden compose brief, not a different author fence. That brief is for your material and goal, not a syntax lesson.

Use Other when no built-in figure fits, or when you need to combine text and graphics freely. Do not treat the list below as a closed allowlist.

For the entry and compile steps, see Compose and Checks & Shortcuts.

Schematic for Join diagram

Join diagram Use this to show how two sides connect through a middle item.

Schematic for Fan-out diagram

Fan-out diagram Use this to show a first stop that then branches to several places at once.

Schematic for Layer diagram

Layer diagram Use this to show top-down layers that do not have to be walked in order.

Schematic for Aspect diagram

Aspect diagram Use this to show several aspects of one thing, with no required order.

Schematic for Two-row contrast

Two-row contrast Use this to contrast a background process with the process you want to emphasize, on two rows.

Schematic for Illustrated list

Illustrated list Use this to explain independent items one by one.

Schematic for Flow diagram

Flow diagram Use this to show the order in which something is done.

Schematic for Step diagram

Step diagram Use this to explain something step by step, with room for detail inside a step.

Schematic for Comparison diagram

Comparison diagram Use this to compare two or three options under the same conditions.

Schematic for Timeline

Timeline Use this to arrange events by date or time.

Schematic for Message sequence

Message sequence Use this to show who sent what to whom, and when.

Schematic for Tabs

Tabs Use this when several groups of notes are independent and the reader should see one group at a time.

Schematic for Chart

Chart Use this to turn numbers you already have into bars, lines, or shares.

Schematic for Tunable chart

Tunable chart Use this when the reader should change one or two inputs and watch the result.

Schematic for Conversion diagram

Conversion diagram Use this when one input should produce several results at once.

Schematic for Code walkthrough

Code walkthrough Use this to walk through code line by line: what runs, and what the variables are.

Schematic for Stepper

Stepper Use this when the reader should pause on a step and see how state changes.

Schematic for Path callout

Path callout Use this to mark how far you have walked on an existing flow or state diagram.

Schematic for Checklist

Checklist Use this when the reader should follow items one by one and come back to check progress.

Schematic for Grid diagram

Grid diagram Use this to mark which cells in a two-dimensional structure matter, and why.

Schematic for Other

Other Use this when no built-in figure fits, and you need to combine text and graphics freely.