Is it possible to control pests in the garden without using pesticides? Many gardeners determine to use organic practices. But soon they find themselves discouraged when bad insects arrive in their gardens. How do organic gardeners keep bugs from eating their plants? A healthy, productive, organic home garden goes beyond home remedies for pest control and organic alternatives to pesticides . Natural pesticides have their place, but I've found that natural pest control goes beyond these stop-gap ...
Aug 27, 2019•37 min•Ep. 99
If you grow a garden, you know that homegrown vegetables taste better than anything you can purchase in the produce department of your grocery store. But why do homegrown vegetables and fruit taste better? Is it purely a mental thing -- where we naturally enjoy most what we put our hard work into growing? Or are there also scientific reasons why store-bought tomatoes don't compare to homegrown? In today's episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and post below, I share with you 4 reasons why the...
Aug 20, 2019•29 min•Ep. 98
When I asked the members of my free Facebook group, the Beginner's Garden Shortcut , what questions they had about their fall vegetable garden, I received more feedback than almost any other topic. Clearly, many beginning gardeners are interested in fall gardening. But they recognize it's not as straightforward as the spring or summer garden. For the beginner, fall gardening isn't as simple to get started. But, it is generally easier than the summer garden. With fewer pests and weeds, we get to ...
Aug 13, 2019•46 min•Ep. 97
When many beginning gardeners think about fall gardening, they find themselves overwhelmed. After all, they're tired from the effort put into the summer garden, and the thought of more work seems exhausting. Plus, they don't know when or how to get started. The truth is, fall gardening can be the most rewarding time to grow a vegetable garden . It just takes a bit of know-how to get started. In this week's episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , master gardener and garden teacher Stacey Murph...
Aug 06, 2019•35 min
When is corn ready to pick? It's a tougher answer than you realize. Corn ripens quickly and for only a few days, so the home gardener must watch for the signs that sweet corn is ready to harvest. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcas t, I talk about how to know when corn ripens for harvest. (For more information on growing corn, check out these posts: how to grow corn and what I learned about corn last year .) Click below to listen or continue reading....
Jul 30, 2019•17 min•Ep. 95
Is there anything better in summer than a fresh-picked watermelon or cantaloupe from the garden? But how do you know when melons are ripe and ready to pick? In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , I share my methods of knowing when to harvest cantaloupes and when to harvest watermelons -- my favorite fruit!
Jul 23, 2019•26 min•Ep. 94
Whether you grow your garden to stock up a year's worth of some foods like I do, or maybe your small space has produced more than you can eat fresh, you will want to look at options for preserving the harvest. While most people think of canning, this is only one option when it comes to preserving your hard-earned bounty. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and article below, I share the basics of three common methods of preserving: freezing, canning, and dehydrating....
Jul 16, 2019•38 min•Ep. 93
You would think something as simple as watering the garden would be easy for home gardeners. But garden irrigation can actually prove tricky to master. How much water does your garden need? Should you hand-water, use soaker hoses, or lay drip lines? How do you know if your vegetables are getting too much or not enough water? In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , garden expert Joe Lamp'l of the Joe Gardener Show shares his best practices for garden irrigation. Click below to listen t...
Jul 09, 2019•59 min•Ep. 92
When we begin our gardens, we imagine what our tomato harvest will look like. But most of the time, we don't anticipate tomato plant problems that often arrive in mid-summer. Beginning gardeners blame themselves and sometimes give up. But they shouldn't. Summer tomato problems are more common than you realize, and thankfully, there are steps you can take to overcome many of these tomato issues. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , gardening expert Joe Lamp'l of the Joe Gardener Sho...
Jul 02, 2019•49 min•Ep. 91
One fun part of gardening is that we get to learn and grow in our knowledge each season. My 2019 spring garden yielded several successes and lessons learned, and I want to share those with you. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , I identify ten lessons I've learned from my 2019 spring garden. Click below to listen to continue reading.
Jun 25, 2019•35 min•Ep. 90
You've watched your beautiful garlic plants grow for months, and the time nears for harvest. But how do you know when to harvest garlic? And once you harvest, how do you cure and store it? The good news is this: harvesting, curing, and storing garlic is almost as easy as growing it ! You only need to know a few basics and you'll be eating garlic from your own backyard garden for months. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and in the post below, I show you what to do when your garlic...
Jun 18, 2019•24 min•Ep. 89
I think we'd all say experienced gardeners offer priceless garden wisdom , but there's a group of people first-time gardeners can also learn from that's often overlooked: second-time gardeners. Still with a beginner's mindset, gardeners in their sophomore year recall details experienced gardeners forget. It's kind of like how a mom of a toddler can offer something special to a mom of a newborn that a mother of teenagers can't. It's a "been there, done that" mindset that hasn't "been there, forgo...
Jun 11, 2019•27 min•Ep. 88
In my first garden, I planted once. I had no aspirations for a year-round harvest. Any harvest would equal a successful garden in my mind. But the second year I added a fall garden , and as I gained more experience I realized I could extend my garden season even further. I began growing more winter crops and I enjoyed expanding my growing season much further than the once-and-done summer harvest. Planning for a year-round harvest is a skill I'm still working to improve. That's why I invited Beck...
Jun 04, 2019•49 min•Ep. 87
Growing okra in my garden is one of my favorite vegetables to grow! And it's not just for those of us who live in the southern US. With a little understanding of okra's basic growing requirements, this tasty vegetable can be grown in most areas of the country. Plus, its versatility offers growing options of both raised beds and in the garden. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and in the article below, you'll learn how to grow okra either in your garden or raised bed -- no matter w...
May 28, 2019•36 min•Ep. 86
When you discover aphids in your garden, you naturally want to get rid of them -- fast! With a host of organic aphid control solutions available online, how do you know which one to choose? If you're like me, you want something easy. And more important, you don't want your actions to harm your garden or your plants. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast, I share with you how I tested 3 organic aphid control methods -- homemade insecticidal soap, Neem oil, and worm castings -- side by ...
May 21, 2019•33 min•Ep. 85
Do tomato plants need to be pruned? In my first years of gardening, it seemed everyone told me, "yes." But as I gained more experience and began listening to other gardening experts , I learned that the answer to this question isn't as clear as you'd think. People get passionate about tomato pruning. But I started asking myself, "why?" Is it because this is the way they've always done it? Because their mom or grandpa told them that's the best way to care for tomatoes? Or are people pruning tomat...
May 14, 2019•38 min•Ep. 84
First-time gardeners must decide: "should I plant in a raised garden bed or in the ground?" Certainly, it's not always an either/or decision. While I've always used a combination of both for many reasons, Jill Winger of the Prairie Homestead converted her in-ground garden to a garden comprised entirely of raised beds. Though a devastating experience of inadvertently poisoning her garden served as a catalyst for the switch, she shares the benefits and drawbacks of both methods in today's episode ...
May 07, 2019•34 min•Ep. 83
There are few garden subjects I am more passionate about than mulch. It prevents weeds and regulates moisture in the soil, among its other benefits. But which mulch should you use? Perhaps the most common is shredded leaves, but what if you're like me and you don't have access to deciduous trees? Then what are your options? I've used wood chip mulch, hay mulch, straw mulch, and pine needle mulch, and I talk about the pros and cons of each type of mulch here . Although I prefer wood chip mulch, I...
Apr 30, 2019•35 min•Ep. 82
On any given day in the garden, you'll find me with earbuds and my phone, listening to my favorite gardening podcasts. What better way to spend a few hours in the garden than to do the thing I love, while learning ways to do it better? As a first-time gardener in 2013, I could not find enough gardening podcasts to fill my time or my thirst for knowledge. Since podcasting was in its infancy, I listened to the few I could find. Then, as I started teaching others how to garden, I even created my ow...
Apr 23, 2019•24 min•Ep. 81
In the early months of my podcast, I received an email from a veteran gardener from a generation ahead of me. We traded emails frequently and formed a friendship in the years since that first email. Several months ago, he sent me a list he had created called his "12 Garden Rules." With his permission, I share this wise man's gardening wisdom to you. No matter what your age or experience level of gardening, you are sure to find his advice valuable.
Apr 16, 2019•34 min•Ep. 80
If you've ever noticed the eaten leaves of your broccoli, cabbage, or kale, you've likely encountered one of worms that attacks the brassica family of plants. Even organic gardeners struggle to find ways to control these pests that can decimate your beloved cole crops in short order. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast, you'll learn 5 organic ways to both prevent and get rid of cabbage worms in your garden.
Apr 09, 2019•29 min•Ep. 79
In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , I talk to the author of Vertical Vegetables , Amy Andrychowicz. You may recognize her as the writer behind the web site Get Busy Gardening . Amy is a zone 4b gardener in Minnesota, and she uses vertical gardening to both practically make the most of her small space and aethestically beautify her backyard patio and garden....
Apr 02, 2019•50 min•Ep. 78
About a year ago, I wrote a post about 7 Common Mistakes in Raised Bed Gardening . It has since become one of the most popular posts here at the Beginner's Garden, and many readers have posted more questions about their raised bed gardens. So I thought I would visit this topic again and answer some of those questions. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and in the post below, I dive into nine of the most common questions I hear. Click below to listen to the full discussion or contin...
Mar 26, 2019•32 min•Ep. 77
My journey to the ideal tomato trellis system has not been an easy one. It started with using a flimsy round "tomato cage," which couldn't bear the weight of my vining tomato plant loaded with fruit. Then, I turned to the Florida Weave method. This worked beautifully for my Roma tomatoes but not the vining, indeterminate varieties. Finally, I decided to try two other popular methods -- tomato staking and a heavy duty professional tomato cage. Then I tested each method and took detailed notes on ...
Mar 19, 2019•36 min•Ep. 76
When beginning gardeners start planning their gardens for the first time, most do not know which vegetables will keep producing all season and which will harvest once and finish. I know I didn't think about that my first few seasons. But now I understand that some vegetables produce all season and some give a one-and-done harvest. With that knowledge, I am better able to plan my garden to full production all season.
Mar 12, 2019•31 min•Ep. 75
On this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and in the article below, Emily Leuba from the Crazy Worm Lady shares all you need to know about the fascinating world of composting with worms.
Mar 05, 2019•58 min•Ep. 74
What can I plant in my garden to keep pests away? Doesn't every organic gardener want to know this? We don't want to use pesticides, so we want to know what herbs deter pests, what flowers deter caterpillars, and what plants repel specific insects that plague our gardens. While scientific research on the topic of companion planting for pest management is still in its infancy, blog posts, books, and articles abound with ideas. But what suggestions are based in science and which ones are based in ...
Feb 26, 2019•38 min•Ep. 73
In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcas t, I share my top 21 money-saving tips to growing a frugal vegetable garden. Click below to listen or read the article below to learn my 21 tips to saving money gardening, and when you're finished, be sure to share your own tips so we can all benefit! journeywithjill.net/podcast
Feb 19, 2019•47 min•Ep. 72
Before you go out and buy any soil or compost, here are 4 things to think about to get exactly what you need for your garden on your budget. Don't waste your money on something you don't need! If you've wondered, “How do I start a raised bed garden?” Then these tips will get you started!
Feb 12, 2019•35 min•Ep. 71
When we start our first gardens, we're full of excitement and hope. But there's another feeling not far behind: fear. What if we make mistakes without realizing it? In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and the blog post below, I share five common mistakes I see first-time gardeners make. I made them all myself as a beginning gardener, and I want to prevent you from going through those failures like I and so many others have experienced.
Feb 05, 2019•37 min•Ep. 70
