Do you have more seeds and plants than you can fit into your garden? It’s a common problem for the enthusiastic food gardener! In this episode, Donna and Steven talk about finding more growing space so that you can fit more crops into the same space. Get ideas for: Growing in ungardenable spaces…like the root-infested space next to hedges Reducing space used by pathways Tiering crops in a garden Using paved areas, decks—and stairs! If you’re looking for more on garden planning, check out these 7 vegetable garden layout ideas.   *** -->Join the 5,000+ gardeners in The Food Garden Gan ..read more

Want to grow great tomatoes? With the right transplanting and care, your tomatoes will be off to a great start. In this episode, Donna and Steven talk about: Transplanting tomato seedlings Protecting transplants from cold spring weather How to stake, train, and support tomato plants Pruning tomato suckers Watering and feeding Tomato challenges, including pests, diseases, and blossom end rot. If you’re looking for more on how to support tomato plants, check out this article.  -->Join the 5,000+ gardeners in The Food Garden Gang who stay on top of home food-growing ideas with our wee ..read more

Wondering when to plant vegetables? Not sure what to plant first? You don’t need to plant everything at once. In this episode, Donna and Steven talk about when to plant vegetables, and the Canadian tradition of planting the garden over the Victoria Day (May 24) weekend. (Sometimes it makes sense…though not for all crops in all zones.) If you’re looking for more on planting vegetables, check out this article on direct seeding.  *** -->Join the 5,000+ gardeners in The Food Garden Gang who stay on top of home food-growing ideas with our weekly e-mail. We’re making the world a better place ..read more

Your vegetable seedlings can look great indoors. Then fall like dominoes in the garden. If they’re not hardened off. But if you harden off seedlings, they stand a much better chance once you plant them in the garden. In this episode, Donna and Steven talk about: What hardening off means Why harden off seedlings How to harden off seedlings When to harden off seedlings Harden off seedlings in a greenhouse If you’re looking for more on growing vegetables from seed, check out post on how to direct seed vegetables.  -->Join the 5,000+ gardeners in The Food Garden Gang who stay on top of h ..read more

Wondering about fruit to grow in a cold climate? Today we head to Alberta, to find out how to grow saskatoon bushes. Arden Delidais grows in Zone 2—and doesn’t get any winter dieback on her saskatoon berries. Delidais’ orchard and winery, DNA Gardens, has a number of cold hardy crops including saskatoon berries, apples, plums, rhubarb, currants, and haskaps. Saskatoon bushes (Amelanchier alnifolia) are native to North America. (South of the border you might hear them referred to as juneberry or shadbush.) Delidais tells Steve and Donna about: How to prune saskatoon bushes Saskatoon varieties ..read more

Have you tried direct sowing but didn’t get good results? Wondering how to direct sow seeds? Direct sowing—a.k.a. direct seeding or direct planting—is when we sow seeds straight into the garden. We skip starting transplants indoors. It gives better results for some crops—because there’s no transplanting shock. And that’s great, because it saves you the hassle of growing transplants. But some crops need extra growing time…and that’s where transplants make sense. Or sometimes, hot summer weather causes spotty germination outdoors, meaning transplants are a better option. To ace your direct seedi ..read more

Want to harvest more veg from the same amount of space? You can get lots more from a small space by growing in containers. (If you get it right…but that’s not difficult!) If you get these 4 things right, you’re on the road to container gardening success:  The right container Good soil A suitable location Proper care In this episode, Donna and Steven share top tips for container gardening success, including choosing pots, selecting soil, finding a suitable spot, and caring for your container vegetables. If you’re looking for more on container gardening, here are top container garden cr ..read more

Figs + Container Veg. Live events in April 2024. Find out more about these new live virtual events. ----  Can’t get enough pawpaw fruit? Want to grow a pawpaw tree? If you haven’t tried pawpaw fruit, many people describe the flavour of its silky, yellow flesh as tropical. While it’s the largest fruit native to North America, it’s difficult to find the fruit for sale.   Yet it’s easy to grow. That’s why many gardeners and small farmers plant pawpaw trees. In this episode, Donna and Steven talk with pawpaw expert Adam D’Angelo to get tips on growing pawpaw trees.  We talk about ..read more

Figs + Container Veg. Live events in April 2024. Find out more about these new live virtual events. ----  When you make only withdrawals—no deposits—you eventually end up in overdraft. It works that way at the bank, with friendships—and with soil. And growing crop after crop in a garden is like making withdrawal after withdrawal. The crops use nutrients. Working the soil affects its structure. Amending soil is like putting money back into the bank. Soil amendments can improve soil structure, soil chemistry, and return nutrients to the soil. In this episode, Donna and Steven talk about pr ..read more

Figs. Lemons. Container Veg. New live events in March and April, 2024. Find out more about these new live virtual events. ----  Looking for herb garden layout ideas? If you’re planning a herb garden, there are many ways to add herbs to the landscape. You can have a stand-alone herb garden, a herb lawn, herbs mixed with paving, use herbs as bedding plants, weave them into a perennial border, or make a herb container garden on a patio, deck, or paved space. In this episode, Donna and Steven talk about ideas for using herbs in home garden landscapes and share their favourite perennial herbs ..read more