Tag: gardening
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North American Butterflies and the Flowers They Love (Infographic)
When you think of pollination, you probably think of bees, and we’ve posted infographics in the past about how to attract bees to your garden by planting the flowers they love. Well, bees aren’t the only insects that help with pollination in the garden, butterflies do too! If you have a garden, small children, or simply enjoy…
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Why Start Seeds Indoors?
We’ve posted a bit about tips for starting seeds indoors as spring has been approaching, but I wanted to talk a bit today about why to start seeds indoors. You want to have a beautiful garden, and you want it to provide you and your family with plenty of food when it comes time to harvest.…
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How to Grow Cucumber Vertically
Cucumbers are a delicious treat to grow in the garden, and it’s really fun to branch out and try different varieties, from pickling cucumbers for your root cellar to small, juicy Gerkins you’ll rarely find at the supermarket. The trouble with cucumber plants is that they crawl…like crazy. The cucumber plant from simply one seed can spread out…
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Composting Chicken House (Video)
When it comes to homesteading, I think the more (proverbial) birds you can kill with one stone, the better. After all, that’s a huge part of what homesteading is all about: creating your own little self-sufficient system. This plan for a composting chicken house is awesome. It’s well-known that chickens can be easily put to…
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Growing Calcium in Your Garden (Video)
Greens can be an excellent source of calcium, you just need to plant the right ones! John of GrowYourGreens.com shares what plants you can grow that are full of calcium, some even more than milk! He also explains how to amend the soil to ensure as much calcium as possible. This is a great video…
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The Right Way to Water Your Plants
You may not have realized it before, but there are proven best practices for watering your plants and garden. Determining just when and how to water for the healthiest, most productive crops is all about paying attention to a few key factors. It might seem a little silly; is there really a wrong way to…
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Most Decorative Edibles for Your Yard
Maybe you’ve only got a small yard or a patio, and would like to combine your vegetable garden with your landscaping. Or perhaps you can’t have a garden where you live and you’d like to grow some veggies under the guise of decorative plants. Perhaps you’re just the visual, artistic type and would like to produce…
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Urban Homestead
This is a very inspiring short film about “the hub”, a 1/2 acre lot in the small town of Oxford, in North Canterberry, New Zealand. Kane and Fiona Hogan are able to grow a beautiful, productive, and lucrative garden right in the middle of their town, and use that revenue to get out into the…
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Tips and Tricks for Starting Seeds
Winter is on its last legs and it’s time to get ready for this year’s garden! If you’re in a zone with a shorter growing season or just want to stagger your crops for a richer harvest, check out these easy seed starting tricks. We already mentioned the first two in a post on frugal…
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Frugal Ways to Start Seeds
It’s almost time for spring planting, are you ready? This is a great time to start your seedlings indoors to transfer to prepped garden beds in a few weeks. However, if you’re not set up with lots of fancy seed trays and want to get started anyway, here are a few frugal hacks for starting…
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Shade Tolerant Vegetables
Sun is a crucial commodity in any garden, and if you don’t get enough sun in your garden, you might be wondering what to plant. Even having half your garden or yard covered with a shadow for part of the day seems like it excludes a great many options for planting. Fortunately, there are shade…
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3 Beginner Compost Mistakes to Avoid
Getting a good compost pile going is an awesome way to build your soil and contribute valuable nutrients to your organic garden. There are lots of methods for getting started, and lots of options as far as bioavailable, organic material you can use to build it. However, you can also make mistakes, and before you…
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Clever Ways to Teach Children About Self-Reliance
Kids these days! The new generation seems to be so fixated on their devices and pop culture, and I think a lot of us who grew up with these things are looking at today’s youth and shaking our heads. But of course, the truth is, that adults as well as kids need to learn more…
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Why Are My Plants Turning Yellow?
Yellow leaves are never a happy sight to see on plants you’ve been caring for and watch grow. And they’re not a good sign. Yellow leaves on plants or entirely yellow plants can be indicative of a number of different issues. Here are some of them: Pests One possible cause of yellow leaves is pests…
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5 Ways to Cut Back on Weeds
Weeds are one of the biggest downsides of gardening. Just as soon as you get the whole garden weeded it seems like they’re sprouting up again. It is true that weeds are nearly impossible to fully get rid of, but fortunately, there are ways to stunt them so much they’re barely a problem in your garden.…
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How to Grow Watermelon in a Pot
There’s nothing quite as refreshing on a hot summer day as a nice, juicy watermelon. Unfortunately, the watermelons you find in the supermarket are often conventional and even GMO. If you’d like to harvest some of your own this summer, you don’t need a whole field, you can grow them right in your backyard or…
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Grow 53 Plants in 4 Square Feet (Video)
We’ve been talking a lot about urban homesteading here lately, and when you’re talking about gardening in an urban or suburban environment, space is always going to be an issue. A lot of urban gardeners are turning to vertical gardening, which is an excellent way to maximize space and production when growing area is limited. This is…
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Back to Eden Gardening Explained
Last week, we shared a video from YouTubers Deep South Homestead of their “Back to Nature” gardening method that they improvised themselves. They got this idea after they tried the Back to Eden gardening method with poor results. This method of gardening may have failed in their area for any number of reasons and their improvisation was…
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A Simple Guide to Starting a Beehive (Video)
Last week, we shared the very cool idea to make a beehive using mason jars, so since it did not come with instructions as to how to actually start a hive, I thought I’d go ahead and follow up with that one. Bees are a wonderful thing to do on the homestead, or even in…
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Growing Cauliflower in a Container
Cauliflower is a great vegetable. It’s nutritious, delicious, and has grown in popularity in recent years since it makes a great base for many grain-free dishes. If you’d like to grow your own, you don’t need a garden to do it; cauliflower can be grown in a container, if you follow the right steps. First…
