Are you interested in growing your own food and embracing the beauty of a simple, self-sufficient lifestyle? Then you’re in the right place! Whether you’re planting your first seeds or tending a flourishing garden, you’ll find practical tips and projects to make growing vegetables, fruits, and herbs easier and more rewarding.
From creating a bountiful vegetable patch to harvesting fresh herbs from your kitchen windowsill, this space is all about cultivating nourishment, connection, and sustainability. Discover beginner-friendly guides, seasonal planting advice, and tried-and-true tips for growing your favorite foods at home.
Ready to dig in? Explore our gardening resources and see how growing your own food can transform your simple living journey—one seed at a time.
If you need a little help planning your garden and keeping your notes organized or understanding your climate, we can help.
If you live in the south, you’ve probably seen dewberries growing along fence lines or in patches in a field. These small, trailing vines produce juicy berries that look like blackberries but ripen earlier in the season. With a little care, you can bring these wild berries into your own garden and enjoy a harvest …
One of the best parts of growing a garden is enjoying fresh, homegrown food right outside your door. But if you’ve gardened for any length of time, you know how easy it is to end up with too much of a good thing. A bumper crop of zucchini, an overflowing basket of cucumbers, or more …
USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map Find Your USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Enter ZIP Code: Search If you’ve ever picked up a packet of seeds or looked at plant tags at the nursery, you’ve likely seen a reference to the USDA Hardiness Zones Map, also called gardening zones or planting zones. Understanding the USDA Plant Hardiness …
We’ve been keeping chickens for about 15 years and over the years I’ve thought about getting an automatic chicken coop door. But, honestly, it didn’t need like the right thing for us until recently. If you’re a backyard chicken keeper, you know that caring for your feathered friends can be both rewarding and time-consuming. One …
Raised garden beds are so very convenient and can be a great way to grow food on practically any land. But raised beds can be expensive to fill with soil, especially if they’re really tall. The good news is that you can use a variety of materials to cheaply fill raised beds and save money …
There are so many things to love about aloe vera; it’s both pretty and useful. Fortunately, growing aloe is pretty easy and can be done in any climate. Let’s chat about how to grow aloe vera indoors and out. Aloe Vera Benefits The common aloe vera plant packs huge benefits. I truly believe that no …
It is possible to grow enough food to feed your family even if you live on a small piece of property. Maybe not 100% of your fruit and vegetable needs but, honestly, I don’t know anyone who grows 100% of their food. This is a really long article, so you might want to grab a …
Using mulch in the vegetable garden isn’t just about having a prettier garden. Mulch can help control weeds, build the soil, reduce watering, and much more. So, exactly what is mulch? What is mulch? There are various definitions of mulch but basically it’s anything that you put on the soil around a plant – usually …
I was an adult before I found out that the loofah “sponge” I buy in the bath section at the store is actually not a sponge. It is, in fact, a plant. When I learned that, I knew I needed to start growing loofah to provide bath scrubbies and sponges for cleaning. Loofah, also spelled …
I have to admit that I’m not the best at keeping indoor plants alive. I’m not sure exactly what the issue is, but most of my potted plants die. But that doesn’t mean I don’t grow a mean indoor garden – one that’s filled with vegetables and herbs. I think the biggest difference is that …
As a family who keeps bees I’m often asked about using honey for allergies – mainly, does it work? The simple answer is “it depends.” There are a lot of variables to consider when deciding to use local raw honey as part of your seasonal allergy protocol. The basic thought process of using honey for …
Because figs don’t ship well, it’s hard to find fresh figs in the local grocery store. Fortunately, fig trees are easy to grow and care for, making them perfect for growing in the backyard orchard. Fig trees ( Ficus carica) originated in Northwestern Asia and the Middle East. They were brought to the Americas by …
Unlike regular potatoes and other vegetables, sweet potatoes are not started from seed or from an older potato, they’re started from slips. Sweet potato slips are small plants that sprout from the sweet potato tuber. And they’re super easy to grow at home and without any special equipment. The first time I grew sweet potatoes, …
Sometimes I feel like some of the things our family does would qualify in the list “You might be a ______ if…”; You can fill in the blank…redneck, crazy woman, frugal gardener, whatever. Our diy irrigation system for the garden probably qualifies us as one of those things. Ensuring that your garden gets adequate water …
It probably doesn’t surprise you that the most popular salad vegetable grown in home vegetable gardens is lettuce. Lettuce is one of the fastest producing vegetables you can grow and the foundation of most salads. Unfortunately, growing lettuce can be a little tricky, especially in warmer climates. However, as long as you understand a little …
After tomatoes, green beans might just be the most popular home vegetable garden crop. And for good reason! They’re easy to grow, super prolific, and quite tasty. Every year we grow green beans for eating fresh and for preserving. Now, green beans also have other names. Some people call them snap beans because they make …
Carrots are the most popular root vegetable grown in the home garden. And for good reason. They taste great, are super nutritious, and are fun to pull up. Growing carrots, isn’t all fun and games, though. They’re particular when it comes to soil and can be stubborn when it comes to germinating. Let’s chat about …
Tomatillos are nightshade plants that love the summer heat. They’re native to Mexico but can be grown in most home gardens in North America, and are very popular in Texas and the southwest states. We’ve been growing tomatillos for several years and every year I’m amazed at how well they grow with very little care. …
It’s not that people are intentionally keeping tomato growing secrets, it’s just that sometimes those of us who have been gardening a while forget what it’s like to be a beginner gardener. And sometimes new gardeners don’t know what questions to ask. I’ve been reminded of this as I help my sister with her first …
Cucumbers are one of those vegetables that people tend to love or hate. My family is mostly filled with cucumber haters but that doesn’t deter me from growing cucumbers every summer. They’re worth growing even if only a couple of us like them. Like zucchini and summer squash, cucumbers can be quite prolific which is …