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The best post hole digger, you say? Why would you ever need that? Well, let me give you some reasons. Table of Contents You’re about to install the deck of your dreams, but you just realized that to do it, you need to have 6″ wide by 30″ deep holes that can accommodate your deck posts as well as the concrete footing around them. Maybe you’re preparing to put up that birdhouse that your cousin got you for your birthday, and want to be sure that it has a sturdy pole that won’t shift, so you’d like to bury the post about 18″ deep....

Not too long ago I was looking for more ways to experiment with my deep water culture systems, including building a very simple hydroponics for kids project. I wanted to keep the system as simple as possible while making sure it still produced a healthy plant. Enter the Kratky Method.​ What Is The Kratky Method? Let’s start off with my video overview of the Kratky Method: Because hydroponics grows plants without soil, there are often a lot of moving parts in a hydroponic system: pumps, wicks, airstones…and the electricity to power them all....

With a name that translates from its native Spanish as “chimney”, these little fireplaces are popular decorative firepits. But not every chiminea can be the best chiminea for everyone, so today I’m going to demystify this traditional style of firepit! Table of Contents Its origins reach back hundreds of years, although it’s hard to pin down precisely when they first appeared. Some believe they were in common use starting about 400 years back, where others say perhaps 600-1000 years....

Cleaning may be a chore, but having a broom dustpan combo can make it less so. Or at the very least, having the right broom for the task. Table of Contents That’s right – there’s many styles of brooms out there to be had, and some are better than others. Let’s talk about the best sweep set that’s easy to use, gets the job done, and packs up small for easy storage...

When I first started gardening, I did everything by hand. Table of Contents Big mistake! It got tiresome after just a few months, so I decided to invest in some garden tools for heavy loads. The first thing I bought myself was a high-quality wheelbarrow. If you haven’t yet invested in a wheelbarrow, it’s the most efficient way to transport your soil, mulch, weeds, or pretty much anything else you can dream up....

Looking around for the best electric screwdriver for your tool chest? Perhaps you want the best cordless screwdriver, or maybe you want something that’s simply got a lot more torque than your arm does. Or maybe you need something that will get into an awkward angle, which your standard non-electric might have problems doing? Table of Contents No matter why you’re looking, I’m here to help! I’m going to share how to pick the best electric screwdriver for your needs, and then we’ll discuss some of the top brands on the market today....

Do you raise chickens? If so, you’re likely awash in an abundance of fresh eggs from your birds, just like Kevin is. Thankfully, Kris came to the rescue and taught Kevin how to make her incredible Bloody Mary deviled eggs! While deviled eggs are incredible on their own, the Bloody Mary deviled eggs are packed with all of the flavor of a Bloody Mary in deviled egg form. Hot sauce, tomato paste, and other ingredients combine to provide deviled eggs with a kick!...

Corn plants are famously fast growers, so it makes sense that corn microgreens are one of the quickest you can grow. In less than a week, you can turn a handful of hard kernels into an abundance of healthy, delicious microgreens. If you haven’t tried growing microgreens yet, this is an excellent place to start. Table of Contents Most microgreens taste a bit like their full-grown, green selves, and corn is no exception....

If you’re looking to add a low-maintenance annual flowering plant to your garden, look no further than the rocky mountain bee plant! These plants originated in western North America and southern British Columbia. They can thrive when grown inside their native range with little to no human intervention. Table of Contents These plants were used as a food source by Native Americans, but today they are admired as pollinator plants that will attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and native bees to your garden....

Houseplants are a great way to bring a piece of nature into your home, and Calathea orbifolia will surely stand out form your collection! When grown indoors, this calathea will stay rather small, although its leaves can grow to be pretty wide. The white and green stripes are mesmerizing and will quickly become your favorite house plant! Table of Contents Calathea orbifolia can be a bit tricky to care for at first as you try to find just the right spot for it in your home....

Where would the world be without peanuts? They’re such a popular food that we doubt the culinary universe would be the same. Knowing how to grow peanuts should be an absolute necessity, as we eat them in practically everything – sandwiches, salads, sauces, desserts. Raw peanuts are roasted, boiled, pureed, and turned into oil. They’re ubiquitous! Table of Contents For such a popular food, the peanut plant is a bit underrepresented in the home garden....

Monstera adansonii, also known as the Swiss cheese plant, is a unique flowering plant with beautiful heart-shaped leaves. Because of the oval-shaped holes or fenestrations dappled throughout the leaf, it’s sometimes called Monstera adansonii Swiss cheese, or simply swiss cheese plant. This lovely monstera has glossy, green leaf surfaces and is incredibly easy to grow. Table of Contents The following is an in-depth exploration of Adanson’s monstera. We’ll provide insight into the best methods of care to have a lovely, vibrant tropical plant year-round!...

Plant and animal diseases are a huge threat to the livelihoods of agrarian societies. The word “blight” does not refer to one specific plant disease, but rather a general term that describes conditions that severely hinder the healthy growth of plants. Blight on plants has had a significant impact on human populations, movements, and diets throughout history. Table of Contents Some most notable blights include the potato blight that caused the Irish Potato Famine of 1846-50, the bacterial leaf blight in rice that swept through Asia in the 1960s that caused the lost of up to 80% of crops, and the southern leaf corn blight epidemics of 1970-1971 which total 1 billion dollars in economic damages....

Growing New Guinea impatiens can be one of the easiest ways to add some colorful blooms to your garden. Related to the common impatiens, new guinea impatiens are a popular choice for any master gardener looking for impatiens with a higher morning sun tolerance. The new guinea is a flexible flower you can place almost anywhere, whether on the porch with your other potted plants, in shady spots in the yard, or amongst your dark green foliage....

Leaf composting is one of the smartest things you can do for your garden. If you haven’t gotten into it yet, or don’t know where to start, this is for you. Get ready to know everything you’ll ever want to know about how to compost leaves so that your leaves decay quickly and turn into beautiful, rich compost! Listen to this post on the Epic Gardening Podcast Subscribe to the Epic Gardening Podcast on iTunes...

Remember chia pets? They were those animal-shaped planters that grew “fur” as the chia plants grew. Well, that cute little fad was actually a method of growing microgreens, even if it was a bit unconventional. It turns out that chia microgreens are very easy to grow and even better to eat. So let’s set aside the chia pet planter and grow chia microgreens as a crop! Table of Contents You’ll be amazed by the health benefits of chia seeds....

Nectarines are a fantastic addition to the home garden for their sweet tasty fruit with the added benefit of making beautiful trees. Growing a nectarine tree will decorate your garden with lovely fragrant pink blossoms in the spring, provide a mouthwatering scent of ripe nectarines during the summer, and present a fiery display signaling the start of fall. Table of Contents A nectarine is a smaller sweeter version of a peach with smooth skin....

Showy milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) is well known as a host plant to monarch butterflies. This is especially true with social media movements and many organizations offering free milkweed seeds to help encourage the establishment of this perennial flowering plant. There are over 100 species of milkweed plants that are native plants in North America, so chances are that you’ll be able to find a native milkweed species to add to your butterfly garden!...

As a gardener, you want your plants to grow up big and strong. To achieve that, you’ll probably have to boost their health with some sort of fertilizer. In this article, we’ll discuss an effective yet offbeat fertilizer called bone meal. Table of Contents Not only is bone meal fertilizer organic, but it’s chock full of nutrients. It primarily supplies phosphorus, one of the three primary plant nutrients, but also calcium and nitrogen....

We’re all familiar with coco coir at this point. It’s absorbent and used as a soilless growing medium. But coconut coir mats have their purpose too! Table of Contents These moisture-holding mats can be used for lining hanging planters or starting microgreens. Cut into strips, they’re easy to fold and set into hydroponic net pots as a medium. And they’re renewable and eco-friendly. We’ve got our top choices for you to go over, along with tons of information on what you should know before buying coco fiber mats....