Garden Basics

Or How NOT to be a Plant Murderer!

In my neck of the woods, it’s time to transplant the seedlings I started indoors months ago out into the big wide world. Just throwing them out there, though, after they’ve been protected and coddled indoors for months, is a big fat guarantee of failure (and dead plants).

So, what’s a good plant parent to do?

Don’t worry, I’ve got five of the BEST (easy) tips to get your babies off to a great start in the garden so you have lots of veggies (or flowers!) to enjoy all summer. Let’s get started.

Worms, Worms, Worms….for my Composter! Part 2

I’ll be perfectly honest here. I wasn’t going to do another post on worm composting after my first one (you can find my first worm composting post here, if you’d like).

But, it’s been several months and it’s time to harvest my compost and move the worms. Since I had NOOO idea how to go about it, I figured you might not either. I did some research and discovered it’s really not that hard, so let’s get started.

Weed Control that doesn’t Damage your Soil

No-till gardening is just what it sounds like ~ you’re gardening without tilling the soil. You won’t be using a rototiller, plow or anything else (other than maybe a hoe or spade on occasion) to turn your soil.

Starting Healthy Seedlings Indoors

Hopefully you read my last post on The Five Essentials for Indoor Seed Starting. If not, take a few minutes and read it now.

Now I want to talk to you about the eight easy steps to growing healthy seedlings once you’ve got all your supplies.

As we talked about in my last post, you might be anxious about starting your seedlings from seeds, thinking it’s complicated or difficult. I’m here to assure you it’s not.

Supplies you Absolutely Need to Start Seeds Successfully Indoors

It’s almost the most wonderful time of the year! No, not THAT most wonderful time of the year (Ho! Ho! Ho!), the OTHER most wonderful time of the year ~ Indoor Seed Starting Time.

Yes, in the middle of a snowstorm (coming tonight- UGH!)) it’s time to think of spring and all those wonderful vegetables I’ll be growing in just a few months.

There are so many ways to garden sustainably.

Is gardening more sustainably for you? Well, would you like to attract more pollinators, help the environment and grow more beautiful flowers and healthy vegetables and fruits at the same time? Then sustainable gardening is just what the doctor ordered!

Before we get into the nitty gritty, have you checked out my previous post on making your home more sustainable? If not, check it out here.

Why I’m Trying these New (to me) Plants This Spring

As gardeners, don’t we all love the thrill of trying new-to-us plant varieties? Maybe it’s just me, but I have such fun growing something I’ve never grown before and seeing what happens.

As Janet Kilburn Phillips said, “There are no gardening failures, only experiments.” I’m a scientist at heart, so experiment I will!

Reading and Understanding a Seed Packet

If you’re an experienced gardener, you’re probably already very familiar with the different parts of a seed packet and what they mean.

However, if you’re new to this stuff, the back of a seed packet may look a tad intimidating. I promise, it’s really not that bad, and I’m going to walk you through what each part means so you’ll be able to give your new plants the very best start possible.

How to Grow an Entire Garden in Pots

Do you have limited space for gardening but still want to grow a TON of fresh veggies this summer? Ever consider containers?

Maybe you’re renting and can’t dig up the yard or you have little experience with vegetable gardening. Maybe your soil is just awful and you don’t have the money to amend a large garden’s worth. That’s OK! You can grow all the food crops you want in pots. Let me show you how!