Gardening

Learn how to harvest prickly pear safely. I live in Tucson, Arizona, and have at least 30 prickly pear cactus plants on my property. We lost a few to a record-breaking drought a few years back. Aside from that, we have done nothing to maintain them and enjoy the harvest of prickly pears each year.  We moved to Tucson when my son was in second grade. The first full week of school, in August, his … Read more

Tomato hornworms and tobacco hornworms will wreak havoc on your garden. You may first realize you have a problem when you see bite marks on leaves along with leafless stems on your tomato plants. Damage control is the first thing you need to do. We explain how to get rid of tomato hornworms easily and for good. It’s a game of I Spy when you realize you have tomato worms or tobacco worms. Inspect the … Read more

Growing lettuce is easy when you know what you are doing. Here I explain how to grow lettuce from seed or regrow from lettuce. It grows quickly and is a cool season crop. See below for my videos about growing leaf lettuce and growing romaine lettuce from seed. Lettuce grows well in growing zones 2 – 11 as long as you plant it at the right time of year. Lettuce doesn’t like extreme temperatures. If … Read more

Growing radishes is one of the easiest ways to start a vegetable garden. Radishes are a cool season crop. They are quick-growing, easy to plant, and require little maintenance. They are ideal for first-time gardeners. But don’t just pick up a packet of radish seeds and start planting. There are several things to know to help ensure a successful harvest.  While seeds are relatively inexpensive, there are costs involved in gardening. The quality of the … Read more

Learn how to harvest basil to maximize growth. This warm weather plant will produce lots of leaves. The great thing about growing basil is you can snip leaves off to use in cooking as well as snip branches off to regrow more basil plants. You can also harvest the seeds. Before you know it, you’ll have several plants with more leaves than you know what to do with. There’s no fear of killing the plant … Read more

Learn about growing a lime tree. They do well in the ground and in containers. There are many lime varieties to choose from, depending on what you want to use them for. Some are more cold hardy than others. Whether you’re a key lime pie fanatic or love the thought of bringing the tropics into your home, growing a lime tree is a fun endeavor. You can use limes for cooking and baking. In my … Read more

When you decide to plant tomatoes in your garden, there are two types from which to choose –determinate and indeterminate. There are distinct differences between the indeterminate tomatoes and determinate tomatoes and reasons you may select one over the other. Although we’ll do a comparison between the two types later in this article, our main focus will be indeterminate tomatoes which will give you mouthful after mouthful of juicy goodness all season long. What are … Read more

There are as many as 150 different types of basil plants, with sweet basil being the most popular for culinary purposes. Beyond sweet basil, cultivars like Thai basil, Genovese basil, Greek basil and lemon basil are also in demand. Easy to grow, basil belongs to the mint family, which encompasses a broad range of herbs including mint, rosemary, lavender, and sage. Basil is characterized by its distinct aroma which is both sweet and spicy, and … Read more

Learn how to prune basil to ensure lush, vigorous growth. Pruning basil correctly will help the plant to grow bushy and longer. Basil grows easily. Taking steps to trim it properly and timely will enable you to use the leaves, grow more leaves, and propagate new basil plants.  Why You Should Prune Basil There are a few good reasons for trimming basil, including harvesting, spurring growth, growing new plants, and prohibiting it from going to seed. … Read more

Growing a stevia plant is a way to enjoy sweet leaves whenever you want. You can use them fresh, dried, powdered, and as a liquid to sweeten drinks and food. Stevia grows well in garden beds and containers and makes an edible houseplant. They are high-yielding plants that produce all year. They grow much like basil. We explain how to grow a stevia plant, how to care for it, plant uses, and more so you … Read more

Growing a pomegranate tree will yield mighty pomegranates in your backyard. They also grow well in container gardens and indoors. It’s a pretty tree with colorful blooms. These deciduous shrubs are easy to care for, drought tolerant, and typically unaffected by pests and disease. A pomegranate tree is a good choice if you want a fruit-bearing tree. They are suitable for beginner gardeners. Pomegranate trees are ideal first trees to start a small orchard. It … Read more

The loquat tree, also known as Erioboytra japonica, produces juicy, sweet, tangy plum-sized fruits with a yellow or orange thin downy skin. Depending on the cultivar, their flesh can be white, orange, or yellow. The fruit is delicious, whether fresh or dried. It can be added to fruit salads or fruit caps or cooked and preserved. They also make excellent pies, preserves, and jams. It’s possible to grow a loquat tree in a pot. They … Read more

The yucca plant is a popular ornamental indoor and outdoor shrub. Although it’s easy to confuse the names yucca and yuca, these are two different plant species. We’ll be covering the yucca plant here, which doesn’t have an edible starchy root but has excellent medicinal properties and other uses. Yucca plants are perennial evergreen trees and shrubs. Most are in the family Asparagaceae.  Some varieties flower and a few produce edible fruit. They are not … Read more

Pepino melon – The perennial pepino shrub often produces an abundance of fruit in various types of conditions. It has recently become more popular to plant in home gardens, especially in warmer climates. Where it originates naturally is South America, where the climate is warmer and humid. If you’re wondering what it is, where to grow pepino plants, and when to harvest pepino melon, read on to learn more about these unique fruits. The great … Read more

Filled with nutrients and a great addition to salads and other dishes, you might be ready to dig into the beets in your garden. However, knowing when to harvest beets is vital to their quality and taste. Beets grow quickly and will be ready to harvest in less than two months. In this guide, we’ll help you identify if your homegrown beets are plump and ready for picking. You can eat the beetroot leaves and … Read more

Learn when to harvest potatoes. Since they’re a root crop, they aren’t visible. We’ll explain how to know when they’re ready to pick. Potatoes are annuals. You plant and harvest potatoes, and then the plants die. The next season, you’ll need to replant them to grow more. Potatoes are classified by early, mid, and late season varieties, which refers to the days to maturity. Some types can be fully formed in 65 days, while others … Read more

Growing a quinoa plant can be surprisingly easy, especially after you get it going. After harvesting, you can enjoy it in salads, as a side dish or meal.  Quinoa plants are colorful and can be part of an edible landscape. It’s easy to grow for beginner gardeners and is drought tolerant making it low maintenance. Quinoa is a warm season crop. Therefore, you’ll need to live in an area warm enough so it will have … Read more

Beefsteak tomatoes are easy and fun to grow in your home garden. They can grow to be a pound or more each. Whether you’re slicing them for sandwiches, dicing them up for a quick pico de gallo, or eating them straight off the vine, there’s no way to go wrong with beefsteak tomatoes. I love planting them in my garden. Here’s what to know about the meaty beefsteak tomato: What it is, how to use it, … Read more

Whether you are a beginner or experienced gardener, growing a zucchini plant is easy. Growing zucchini is one way to be sure you have success with a vegetable garden. This summer squash is simple to cultivate. You just need a few plants to grow up to 10 pounds of zucchini. While it will grow prolifically alone, with some maintenance and care — especially with pollination — it will flourish throughout its growing season.  Zucchini grows well … Read more

Pole beans remain a staple in many gardens because they are one of the easiest summer crops to grow. They thrive in heat and humidity. They are also called vine beans, climbing beans, yard longs, and runner beans. Because they grow vertically, growing towers of pole beans can be a great addition to maximize space in your garden. Pole beans are, as the name implies, climbing plants. They can be grown on a trellis or … Read more