Savvy Gardening

Growing snap peas from seed: A seed to harvest guide

Snap peas are a spring treat and growing snap peas from seed is an easy and reliable way to enjoy a bumper crop of this popular vegetable. Peas thrive in cool weather and are among the first crops planted in early spring with the harvest beginning 50 to 70 days later, depending on the variety. Snap peas are often called ‘sugar snaps’ and have plump edible pods that are sweet and crunchy. This relatively new type of pea is delicious raw or cooked and can be grown in garden beds or containers. Below I cover everything you need to know when growing snap peas from seed.

Basil companion plants: The best garden partners for basil plants

Written by Jessica Walliser

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is an annual herb that not only brings flavor to the kitchen, but also surprising benefits to the garden. There are dozens of varieties of basil, and they all make great companions for so many other edible plants. This article isn’t focused on increasing your basil yield or even on how to make your harvest. Instead, it’s about which basil companion plants are great choices to grow side-by-side in the garden.
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When to cut back roses: Pruning advice for timing and technique

Written by Tara Nolan

In late winter and early spring, as our green thumbs are itching to get back in the garden, there are a few tasks that can be accomplished as we wait for warmer temperatures. Knowing when to cut back roses is one of those to-dos that fits within this pre-gardening season timeframe. I will say that a lot of roses, especially the newer varieties, are pretty low maintenance and don’t require a ton of care. If you are buying a small plant, it will take some time to become established, so you don’t necessarily have to touch it for the first couple of years or so.

When to transplant seedlings: 4 easy options for healthy plants

Written by Niki Jabbour

Knowing when to transplant seedlings can mean the difference between healthy, vigorous plants and those that are stunted and root bound. Seeds for vegetables, herbs, and flowers are sown in cell packs, plug trays, or peat pellets with most outgrowing their containers after 4 to 5 weeks. Transplanting the small plants into larger containers allows seedlings to develop robust root systems. Knowing when to transplant seedlings is a skill that is easy for gardeners to learn, even those just starting out. Below you’ll learn how to tell when the time is right to repot seedlings.

Boxwood leafminer: How to identify and control this boxwood pest

Written by Jessica Walliser

The boxwood leafminer is a common pest of boxwood shrubs (Buxus spp.). If you have brown, blistered leaves on your boxwoods, this little critter could be to blame. The boxwood leafminer was introduced to the North American continent from Europe in the early 1900s and is now found in nearly every region of the United States and southern Canada. In this article, I’ll share more about this pest and offer tips for controlling it without synthetic chemical pesticides.
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The easiest flowers to grow from seed: From alyssum to zinnias

Written by Tara Nolan

Strolling the aisles at the garden center to browse for flowers to plant in the spring is undoubtedly fun, but growing them from seed presents a few advantages. For one, it means you can choose from an abundance of varieties. I make flower lists of seeds, just like I do with vegetable and herb lists. Here, I’ve gathered a few of the easiest flowers to grow from seed. Some are so easy to plant, it literally involves dropping seeds from where you stand in the garden.