Detailed guides for growing vegetables and starting seeds
When we first started growing vegetables, garlic was not really on our radar. It’s not particularly expensive to buy at the store any time of year, so we were dedicating all our time and space to higher-dollar crops. Then, I noticed it was getting kinda hard to find fresh garlic on the shelves in…
Garlic has a pretty long growth cycle from planting to harvest. Cloves or “seed garlic” are planted in the fall, and then you can largely forget about it over winter, until it begins to grow again the following spring. Even during the growing season, garlic is a laid-back crop that doesn’t require much fuss. I’ve…
Growing a good crop of tomatoes can be a bit of a challenge; a fun one, but a challenge nonetheless. It’s not just about getting the soil, fertilizer, and water right for some big, good-quality fruits. Your plants will also need proper support to keep them upright and off the ground. Tomato plants get massive…
Tomatillos, a quirky relative of tomatoes, are the base ingredient that puts the zing in salsa verde (a.k.a. green salsa), which will really take your tacos up a notch. If you like salsa verde in a jar, just wait until you’ve tried a fresh batch made with tomatillos from your garden. You can also use…
A lot of staple spring and summer crops are best started from transplants, including things like tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, and broccoli. I also like to transplant many of my annual flowers instead of direct sowing them; that way, I’ll get earlier blooms, which help attract pollinators to the garden. Moving baby plants from their safe…
Though growing it is an exercise in patience, winter squash is one of the best crops to plant for low-effort winter food storage. When kept in a cool, dry place, it’ll keep easily for months with few extra steps aside from harvesting it. Plus, it’s loaded with nutrients that are harder to come by in…
Starting your own garden transplants from seed isn’t terribly complicated, but there are a handful of major boxes you’ll need to check to ensure your seedlings are set up for healthy growth. One of the biggest problems beginners run into is insufficient light indoors. While moisture is the top priority during the sprouting phase, lack…
Tomatoes are the number one must-grow vegetable for gardeners both brand new and years in. They’re also not the most “set it and forget it” kind of crop. The plants are vigorous and determined enough they’ll likely grow and yield a handful of tomatoes without much tending. However, good maintenance will take your tomato harvests…
Tomatoes are on the must-grow list for every home garden, each spring. Your little tomato transplants are tough and eager to get growing, but diseases such as wilt and several common tomato blights can become a challenge, once warm, wet weather arrives later on in the season. Fortunately, good growing practices and some defense measures…
Conventional grocery store tomatoes are grown in sheltered greenhouses or tunnels, picked while green, and ripened under meticulously controlled conditions using ethylene gas. That’s why they’re blemish free and perfectly red, like a generic stock photo of a tomato. Backyard garden tomatoes usually have a bit more…character. Once you start growing them, you’ll start to…
