Why Your Seeds Aren’t Sprouting
Photo: kazoka (Shutterstock) While our elementary school science classes may have taught us the basics about seeds and how to plant them, if you’ve gotten into gardening as an adult,…
Why Knowing Your Area’s ‘Hardiness Zone’ Can Keep Your Plants Alive
Have you ever looked at the tag on a plant at your local garden center and been perplexed that it says something like “Zones 5-9”? This number refers to the…
Why You Should Pre-Sprout Your Seeds
Photo: Tatevosian Yana (Shutterstock) The satisfaction of watching your tiny shoots push out of the ground after weeks of waiting is one of the best parts of gardening—unless your seeds…
How ‘Benign Neglect’ Can Actually Improve Your Garden
Photo: 1000 Words (Shutterstock) If you like the idea of a bountiful garden, but you’re less keen on all the watering, fertilizing, and care it entails, I have a gardening…
The 7 Deadly Sins of Owning Houseplants
Photo: Ashley-Belle Burns (Shutterstock) Overwatering is the opposite of neglect, but it’s no less deadly. When I see an ailing plant, my first thought is, “It needs more water,” but…
A Beginner’s Guide to Using Apps and Gadgets for Growing Healthier Plants
Photo: Dikushin Dmitry (Shutterstock) Some people seem to have a “green thumb”—a natural affinity with houseplants that lets them grow anything, anywhere. I am not one of these people. The…
The Trees, Shrubs, and Plants You Need to Prune in the Spring (and How to Do It Right)
Photo: VH-studio (Shutterstock) Pruning is an important garden task. Besides simply keeping growth in check, proper pruning also keeps trees and shrubs healthy by ensuring that light and air can…
What to Do When the Tips of Your Plant’s Leaves Turn Brown
Photo: Ellyy (Shutterstock) It sucks finding brown leaf-tips on your little plant baby: You know it’s your fault, but you’re not sure what you’ve done wrong, and it’s not like…
Don’t Prune These Plants in the Spring
Photo: LiuSol (Shutterstock) No matter how much cleanup and prep you do in your garden before winter arrives, there’s always a list of new maintenance tasks each spring. And along…
Stop Adding Banana Peels to Your Plants (and Do This Instead)
Screenshot: Beth Skwarecki To hear TikTok tell it, banana peels are an amazing fertilizer for your garden due to their high potassium content and the fact that you get them…