Savvy Gardening

Kitchen garden basics: How to get started today

Kitchen gardening is making a comeback. These small, attractive, and productive vegetable gardens are having a renaissance of sorts. They’re popping up in backyards around the world. Let’s take a look at the basics of kitchen gardening with an expert on the subject, Nicole Burke, author of the beautiful book, Kitchen Garden Revival. The info in this article, combined with what you’ll find in Nicole’s book, will have you growing in your own kitchen garden like a pro.

Patio vegetable garden setup and tips to get growing

Written by Jessica Walliser

If you’re looking for a way to grow food that doesn’t involve a half acre of land and a strong back, consider setting up a patio vegetable garden. All you need to start growing today is a sunny spot on a relatively level surface, some containers, potting soil, and the right veggies. In this article, I’ll walk you through the process of setting up and maintaining a patio vegetable garden of your own.
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Cucamelon seeds and how to plant them

Written by Niki Jabbour

I love planting cucamelons in our vegetable garden. In fact, I love them so much, they’re featured in my award-winning book, Veggie Garden Remix! Cucamelon plants are easy to grow and prolific, with each producing hundreds of small oval fruits that look like tiny watermelons but taste a lot like cucumbers. With more gardeners wanting to grow cucamelons, many nurseries are now offering seedlings. Yet savvy gardeners can easily grow their own plants by starting cucamelon seeds indoors in mid-spring. In this article you’ll get expert tips on planting, growing, and harvesting a bounty of cucamelon fruits.

Deer-resistant perennials: Beautiful blooms and foliage for spring, summer, and fall

Written by Tara Nolan

The other day I watched a deer walk through one of my raised beds, ignore the sage and chives, and amble right up to my patch of daylilies. It happily munched away on the tender spring shoots as I took a photo. I have deer-resistant perennials throughout other areas of my property. Usually the deer only seem to visit in the winter when they get really hungry. They enjoy feasting on my cedars and one year they chowed down on the euonymus beside my front door until it was barely nothing (I must say the deer-pruning made it grow back strong and healthy!). But recently, a group of them like to walk up my street, following the path to the backyard, nibbling my garden as they go.

How to grow cucumbers in a container garden

Written by Niki Jabbour

Long before I had a garden I was growing cucumbers in containers. This is because cucumber plants are easy to grow, productive, and thrive in pots and planters. Plus, cucumbers grown in containers typically have fewer issues with pests and diseases so planting in pots can actually reduce potential problems.To be successful, however, it’s important to select the right type of container and growing mix. You’ll also need to pay attention to watering and fertilizing and harvest at the right time. In this article you’ll learn how to grow cucumbers in a container garden and discover the best varieties for pots.

4×8 raised bed vegetable garden layout ideas

Written by Tara Nolan

You’re excited to grow a vegetable garden. You’ve built your raised bed in a space that gets at least six to eight hours of sunlight a day, and filled it with soil. How do you figure out how much to grow? I thought I would put together a 4×8 raised bed vegetable garden layout to show how much can be planted in a raised bed. I ended up creating a couple because I had fun planting all those virtual veggies!