Leaves are so familiar that it’s easy to overlook just how remarkable they are. But beneath their simple appearance is an extraordinary array of adaptations that help plants capture sunlight, move water, regulate temperature, defend themselves and build healthy soil. This week, I’m joined by evolutionary biologist Jonathan Silvertown, the author of “Nature’s Magicians: How […]
One of the best decisions that gardeners can make to increase the diversity of wildlife on the land that they steward is to “leave the leaves.” This easy-to-remember turn of phrase means refraining from raking, blowing, or mowing the fall leaves that butterflies, bees, moths, spiders, toads, salamanders and other critters rely on for habitat […]
One of Mother Nature’s very best gifts comes every fall, as leaves drop from trees. For the small price of collecting the leaves and depositing them in your garden beds as mulch, the returns are high. Raking and blowing leaves is a dreaded task for many of us, but those leaves are […]
If there’s one gardening subject that I mention more than any other, it’s probably mulch. Lots of gardeners still think the primary purpose of mulch is as an aesthetic element – to make garden beds look tidier. That couldn’t be further from the truth. When the right material is used and when it’s applied properly, […]
It doesn’t matter how big or how small your growing space is, and it doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner or have decades of experience under your belt. Every year brings new lessons, challenges, disappointments, and wins in the garden. With the end of another year just around the corner, I wanted to share with […]
As often as I mention the benefits of mulch, I’ve never devoted an entire episode to the topic – until now. Mulch tends to be an unsung hero in the garden. Yet, mulch and compost are the two most powerful tools that an organic gardener has at his or her disposal. I can’t imagine any […]
Between my podcast listeners and members of my e-newsletter and social media channels, I receive a lot of gardening questions. This week, I’m highlighting questions asked by students of my new Beginning Gardener Fundamentals course. I introduced the course at the beginning of this year to teach the fundamental garden basics I’m asked all the […]
As winter slowly yields to spring, the call to get our hands into the soil becomes irresistible. These spring tips for vegetable garden success are a valuable guide to the essential steps everyone can and should take for a bountiful and productive garden. Pick the best location You may have heard the phrase, pick the […]
For this week’s podcast, I polled the joe gardener Facebook Group to ask what garden questions they would like answered. This is a great community of engaged and supportive gardeners. There is never a shortage of questions. Here, I selected the most commonly-asked topics (some of which I’m asked frequently through my other social media […]
This week’s podcast is a slightly different format. I enjoyed a little Q&A session with Erin, my Director of Online Media. She asked me some questions to give you a little behind-the-scenes take on my joe gardener world. For that reason, show notes are a slightly different format too. Unlike all our other show notes, […]
My guest this week is Barbara Damrosh. An icon in the world of gardening, Barbara began her horticultural career in the mid-1970’s and has always been driven by the desire to help others get into gardening. To that end, she published her first of many books, The Garden Primer, in 1988; and she’s spent time […]
Cooler fall temperatures are great for growing vegetables like broccoli, kale and carrots, but they are also a signal that the time to put our garden to bed is fast approaching. Not too long ago, it was believed that the best practice was to tidy everything up – clearing away all remaining debris and making […]
Fall is a favorite time of year for many. It certainly is for me. The softer light and cooler temperatures, football games, the approach of Thanksgiving – these are just a few of the reasons fall is what I consider the best season. Yet, it’s the falling leaves that I’m most thankful for right about […]
I consider leaves to be Mother Nature’s greatest gift to gardeners. Beyond their unparalleled beauty when they peak in a kaleidoscope of fall color we all enjoy; real gardeners know the greatest gift is still to come when we use those leaves as mulch or in compost. While there is no dispute over the spectacular […]
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