Hardening off seedlings that you started indoors the easy ways is different from the traditional method where you bring plants out on a nice and sunny day for 2 hours, then bring them back in, repeat that the next day for 4 hours and bring them in again. Adding a couple of hours each day, it takes 7 ...
Planting Seeds and Seedlings into a Bottomless Pot
This blog article started as a simple way to grow cucumbers, with 3 significant advantages over the traditional method—planting pickling cucumber seedlings in a bottomless pot. However, we soon learned that this simple method has much greater potential and is useful for a variety of ...
Tips for Successfully Planting a Greenhouse Garden
Planting a greenhouse garden can be a fun and rewarding experience. Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting out, it's helpful to have a plan in place to ensure a successful growing season. Here are some tips and ideas to help you get started planning and planting your greenhouse ...
Northern Vegetable Garden Planting Schedule
When to plant what in a vegetable garden? This is an important question. The Northern Vegetable Garden Planting Schedule answers this question in a nontraditional way. The general rule for planting dates in our area seems to be very simple: plant everything on the long weekend in May. This has to ...
Cold Spring Challenge in the Garden
Living in a cold climate, cold is a constant challenge in the garden. We share many methods about how our garden survives blizzards and how we protect plants from frost. In this blog article, we want to particularly address the cold spring challenge in the garden. If you prefer listening to ...
Canning Fruit and Vegetables From the Freezer
It's one of those April days when I would love to be in the garden, pruning, trimming, and planting. However, it's snowing, so I'll have to wait to tend to my garden. Instead, I am bringing summer into my kitchen. Oh, the smell of summer! As I type, a big pot of salsa is simmering on the stove. ...
How to Grow, Care for, and Preserve Carrots
Beautiful, tasty, crunchy, and healthy—these are just a few words that describe the humble carrot. Whether you enjoy them raw or cooked, sweet or spicy, juiced, fermented, pickled, or baked, carrots offer endless culinary possibilities. If you're an aspiring gardener or simply someone who loves to ...
A Complete Guide to Growing Hardy Raspberries in Cold Climates
Raspberries are one of my favorite berries. Growing raspberries in a cold climate is not difficult because raspberries are quite hardy. Caring for the raspberry patch was one of the first tasks I learned in my childhood on my parents' homestead. If you did not have the opportunity to learn hands-on, ...
Essential Care for Seedlings: Growth Tips and Transplanting Methods
You have successfully planted your seeds, and they are growing—congratulations! Now, the question arises: what is next? Do they need to be up-potted, or can they continue to grow in the pots they were started in? This largely depends on how you started the seeds and the types of plants you are ...
Why I am Not Using Seed Snails for Seed Starting
Seed snails, also known as snail rolls, are becoming popular in the gardening world as a new method for starting seeds. However, I first learned about this technique many years ago from experienced Russian gardeners. At the time, I recognized it as an option but didn’t find it particularly useful ...
