Gardening

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. Here’ what to know about the meaty beefsteak tomato: What it is, how to use it, and how to grow a beefsteak … 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

While store-bought Romas tomatoes can be succulent and flavorful, there’s nothing like  homegrown to have your dishes bursting with life. Let’s take a closer look at what the Roma tomato is and how you can grow it yourself! Whether you’re cooking up some marinara sauce or slicing up a fresh summer salad, Roma tomatoes are some of the most delicious varieties around. These plum tomatoes are considered paste tomatoes. They have fewer seeds and a … Read more

Artichoke Plant – Enjoyed since Roman times, artichokes are herbaceous perennial plants that belong to the thistle family. Their flower buds are edible and harvested before they flower. Artichokes are an attractive landscape plant and a nutrient-rich vegetable. These plants can grow up to 3 feet in height and width. The edible part is the flower bud before it blooms. When allowed to bloom, the flowers can grow to 7 inches in diameter. With the right … Read more