Catfaced tomatoes have an unconventional and ugly appearance. Few things are more of a disappointment to a home vegetable gardener than discovering that their prized tomato plants don’t look the way they expect them to. Catfacing on tomatoes is a physiological disorder that is characterized by irregular and often distorted growth, resulting in misshapen tomatoes…
Many gardeners want to know how to ripen tomatoes indoors when the growing season ends or the weather turns cold. Whether your tomatoes are completely green or only partially ripe, you can try the simple indoor methods below to finish the ripening process. Basic supplies like paper bags, cardboard boxes, newspapers, sunny windowsills, bananas, and…
If you’re looking for a cool-weather root vegetable to plant in your home garden this year, try growing rutabagas. This guide will show you how to grow rutabagas from seed to harvest. Rutabagas – also called swedes, neeps, yellow turnips, Canadian turnips, or Russian turnips – have an earthy, peppery flavor when raw, and a…
Growing herbs indoors is a great way to keep their fresh flavor at your fingertips all year long. With the right setup, many popular herbs will grow inside, providing a constant supply to use in your recipes. It’s important to choose varieties that adapt well to indoor conditions. Basil, rosemary, parsley, and chives are popular…
A cottage garden blends beauty and practicality in a relaxed, welcoming way. It’s a mix of flowers, herbs, and edibles that feel natural yet intentional. In this guide, you’ll learn simple ways to create the look of a cottage garden in your yard. We’ll discuss edging ideas and features that make the style so popular….
Propagating hydrangeas to get new plants for free can be done in several ways – hydrangea stem cuttings, tip rooting, air layering and division of the mother plant. Growing hydrangeas from seed is also possible, but not as widely done as other forms of propagatio In today’s article, I will show how each of these…
Keeping your garden thriving during the hottest months can be a challenge. These summer garden tips will help you keep plants healthy and productive. From smart watering habits to protecting your soil, small changes make a big difference. Your garden can stay vibrant even in the heat with the right strategies. Pests, weeds, and sun…
Chives grow well with a variety herbs and vegetables. The list of chive companion plants below will help you decide how to design your vegetable garden in the most efficient way. Growing chives can help protect your crops. Their strong aroma acts as a natural pest control, deterring predatory insects. The flowers of chives will attract pollinators…
Bell pepper colors can be confusing, especially when they change as the peppers ripen. This post breaks down what the different colors mean and how they affect flavor and nutrition. You’ll learn why peppers start out green and turn red, yellow, orange, or even purple. We’ll explain how ripeness, variety, and growing conditions influence these…
Using tea bags in gardens is an easy way to recycle something you would normally throw away. Used tea bags offer benefits for both your plants and soil. Tea bags help enrich the soil, support composting, and can even be used to make homemade fertilizers. Using them in the garden can improve your plants and…
Vegetable gardening mistakes happen to every gardener, whether you’re just starting or have years of experience. The good news is that most mistakes are easy to fix once you know what to look for. Overcrowding plants, poor watering habits, and not feeding your soil can all hold your garden back. Mistakes with spacing, pruning, or…
If you love to garden but don’t like working in the summer heat, check out these tips for summer-time gardening to beat the heat. For so many of us, the scorching heat of summer can be really hard on our bodies, our moods, and our desire to keep working in the garden. Don’t let the…
Fan flower (Scaevola aemula) is an excellent warm-weather plant that is often grown as a summer annual. It is useful to grow in window boxes, hanging baskets, containers, or as a border plant. Even if you are a seasoned gardener, you may not have heard of scaevola. It is a relatively new-comer to the garden…
Taking care of aloe vera plants is easier than you might think. This succulent thrives with minimal attention, making it the perfect plant for beginners and seasoned plant lovers alike. Not only is aloe vera a beautiful addition to your garden, but it also has a soothing gel inside that treats burns, cuts, and minor skin…
We are right in the middle of the hottest part of the summer. The early spring bloomers are finished, and now it is time for the tough summer blooming plants to be the stars in the garden. Summer blooming plants have to be able to withstand the high temperatures that come with summer. They also…
Hydrangea color change is always a surprise to gardeners. You buy a plant with blue blooms only to discover later that the blossoms are now pink. Why does this happen, and what can you do about it? Hydrangeas are a very popular garden plant. They are a perennial shrub that comes in a variety of…
Most gardeners may have heard the term “deadheading” when talking about flowers, but what is deadheading? Plant deadheading, also known as “grooming a plant” and “pinching flowers,” is a term used for the process of removing faded or spent flowers to keep the plant tidy and to encourage new blooms. Deadheading flowers is a task…
This list of flowers that don’t need deadheading is a helpful tool for gardeners interested in reducing time spent on garden maintenance. Deadheading is the process of pinching off faded or spent flowers. It makes the plants look better and encourages them to rebloom. Many plants like to be deadheaded, but there are also plenty…
Every morning I take a garden walk to see what is growing and what needs tending. Today, I spent the morning deadheading daylilies. I have clumps of daylilies – hemerocallis – that have naturalized into plants with numerous blooms on them. Some of them have 12 or 13 blooms out in a day. Since daylily…
It’s time to learn about growing heirloom seeds! Heirloom vegetable seeds have so much going for them. They end up giving you plants that you can’t go to a big box store and buy, they cost less than hybrid vegetables and you can save your own seeds from one year to the next. Have you…
Nephrolepis Exaltata Bostoniensis is one of the most popular indoor plants, and can also be grown outdoors in some parts of the country. Care of Boston Fern means providing extra humidity to keep the fronds fresh and fluffy and not giving the plant too much sunlight. Luckily for gardeners who don’t seem to possess a green thumb,…
Asiatic vs Oriental lilies – are they the same? This is a question that I often get asked by readers. These two types of lilies look similar and share many common traits, but they are two different types of hybrid lilies. Both of these lilies are grown commercially and are popular in cottage gardens. These…
What can you do if you don’t have the time or space for composting in the traditional way? This is where trench composting is your friend. Most organic vegetable gardeners are aware of the benefits of having compost pile. Even so, one of the most common vegetable garden mistakes is forgetting to add compost to…
This neat garden tool storage DIY project not only looks great in the garden, but is functional and weather-proof, too. This means that you can have your tools handy, no matter the weather outside! Are you wondering what to do with an old mailbox? For me, the best way to store garden tools is inside…
These cold hardy vegetables are perfect for the cool weather of early spring. Now is the time to get them planted. Many of us have very cold temperatures going on right now but it’s never too early to plan ahead for vegetable gardening. With spring right around the corner and daylight savings on the horizon,…
One of the biggest pleasures that my garden gives me is its ability for attracting butterflies to it. With the right nectar plants, a garden can be swarming with these fluttering friends all season long. But it is not just the plants that attract butterflies. There are a few other things that you can do…