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Microgreens are trendy right now for a very good reason; they’re incredibly healthy and easy to grow. Whether you’re a newbie to this recent gardening fad or an old hand at microgreens, we’re sure you’ll love learning to grow buckwheat microgreens. They’re a basic crop that’s hardy, low-maintenance, and absolutely delicious! Table of Contents All microgreens have health benefits, but buckwheat microgreens may just be the most nutritious ones out there....

If you’re sick of putting your seedlings in a windowsill that doesn’t get much sun, or you just want to super-charge your indoor gardening process, you should consider T5 grow lights. Your seedlings, herbs, and greens will respond immediately to the increased amount of light you’re giving them. Table of Contents But it’s not enough to just put a few light bulbs over your plants. If you already have lights, chances are they’re T8’s or T12’s​ and you should consider purchasing indoor grow lights that are optimized for your plants....

When it comes to buying a grow tent, the decision can be overwhelming for indoor growers. With so many manufacturers, sizes, and features, figuring out the best grow tent for your garden is a real challenge. In this review, we take a look at one of the more popular grow tent manufacturers out there — Gorilla Grow Tents. As you read through this Gorilla grow tent review, it’s important to realize that they make three types of grow tents:...

Have you ever had a star apple? If not, this tasty fruit is definitely something to try. Table of Contents Star apples aren’t actually apples, but a tropical fruit commonly grown in South America and Asia. In the US, they’re usually only found in Hawaii and Florida (great for tasting while on vacation!) The outside of the fruit is dark purple and shaped like a round apple. When cut open, the edible pulp is soft and milky, with seeds in the shape of a star....

Did you know that zebras are actually black with white stripes? The same rings true for their plant doppelganger, Haworthiopsis fasciata. Adorably nicknamed ‘little zebra’ this succulent is covered in white stripes. That funky pattern, plus a distinctive shape, makes the little zebra a unique addition to any garden. Table of Contents The Haworthiopsis fasciata zebra plant is in the same family as aloe vera, and it shows. It features green, triangular leaves that are stacked in a little bush....

Darkling beetles (family Tenebrionidae) are a large and diverse family of beetles with over 20,000 known species worldwide and over 1,500 species in North America. Many home gardeners who raise chickens or ducks may be familiar with mealworms, the larvae form of the darkling beetle, and may have even dabbled in raising these nutrient-dense worms. Table of Contents While a darkling beetle may be a nutritious treat for birds or tasty bait for fish, it can also be problematic for gardeners....

Wheat is a major food crop and has been cultivated all around the world for thousands of years. There are all types of wheat and they each have their characteristics on what their flour is best suited for such as in pasta, bread, or pastries. Today we will focus on growing wheat that is best used for baking bread! Table of Contents Growing your own wheat grain takes you one step closer to self-sufficiency and the end results are worth the effort....

If you’ve ever watched a row crop get demolished by a heavy infestation of army worms, you’ll know how they get their name. These ravenous little caterpillars devour entire golf courses and then move en-masse to the next, gobbling with equal vigor. Table of Contents But what exactly is an armyworm? Are there different kinds, and where are they found? What do they eat? How long do they live? And perhaps the most important, how do you get rid of them?...

Table of Contents What if I told you that the devil’s ivy plant was given that name because it’s nearly impossible to kill? As a houseplant enthusiast, any plant that’s hard to kill is a plant that I want to grow! ​ Listen to this post on the Epic Gardening Podcast Subscribe to the Epic Gardening Podcast on iTunes or Spotify Devil’s Ivy Overview Golden pothos is one of the most popular houseplants in the world because it is so easy to care for....

Mint is not just for mojitos! It’s for minted pea soup; stirring into baby boiled potatoes with lashings of salty butter; tossing into a Greek salad with chopped tomatoes and cucumbers; whipping into cream, sugar and chocolate to make chocolate chip ice cream…. is your mouth watering yet? Growing mint is a must for everyone and here are even more reasons to grow it! Table of Contents Used for its culinary and health benefits for thousands of years, mint is a powerhouse of health benefits containing vitamin A, C, B12, calcium, copper and manganese to name a few....

Fall and spring gardens can put gardeners in a bit of a pickle. What to grow? With a wonderful crunch and sweetness that can stand on its own or delight stir-fries, growing snow peas is a delicious and savvy choice to add to any late fall or early spring garden with mild temperatures. Table of Contents The snow pea is part of the pea or Pisum family and thought to have originated some 10,000 years ago either in Europe or India....

The lemon verbena plant is by far my favorite herb to grow! It has the most aromatic, supercharged zingy lemon scent of all herbs. Close your eyes, inhale and you’re instantly transported to a sun-drenched lemon grove in the Mediterranean, feeling uplifted, refreshed, and awake! Table of Contents The leaves are normally used as an infusion to flavor foods. Add a few fresh leaves to boiled water to make a revitalizing herbal tea; as a scented garnish in cocktails, cold drinks, and desserts; infused in creams and butter to flavor ice cream, biscuits, and cakes; or as an alternative to a lemon zest rub to give a lemon zing to meat dishes....

If you want to add pops of green, waxy reds, and streaks of gold to your living space, look no further than Peperomia. These flowering plants are native to Central and South America and fit right into the domestic climate. As tropical plants, they don’t need full sun or high heat to thrive. There are over 1000 species within the Peperomia genus with varying natural habitats. That means there’s a wide range of growing conditions depending on the variety you choose....

Ready for a test? Table of Contents With paper and pencil, make a list of ALL nutrients that plants need to grow properly. We’ll wait…no cheating! Here’s the list to check yourself against: NitrogenPhosphorusPotassiumCalciumMagnesiumSulfurChlorineCopperManganeseIronBoronMolybdenumZincCarbonHydrogenOxygen There are more elements here than you listed, I bet! To fully understand how plants grow and how we can help them grow better, we have to understand what they need to grow. In this article, we’ll dive into everything a plant needs from a nutrient standpoint....

It’s safe to say you’ve probably heard of coconut coir, and you’ve enjoyed the delectable dried and sugared shavings of coconut. But have you ever considered growing a coconut tree yourself? Not only can you harvest the delicious flesh of a tropical coconut in the right climate, but you can also use the fibrous fruit coat in soil mixes too. Table of Contents So much can be done with coconuts and the coconut palm that it might as well be the signature feature of the tropics....

Although this plant is botanically known as Pachysandra terminalis, its more common name is Japanese spurge, and it makes an absolutely fantastic ground cover plant. It’s an herbaceous perennial that you can easily grow as a classic shady area cover. Table of Contents If you’re looking to cover up an area in your backyard or a shady zone in your garden, Japanese pachysandra is one of the classic options to consider....

Table of Contents As the cold weather starts to come on, many of us sigh and look forward to the start of the spring again, when we can once more grow fresh vegetables and fruit for our tables. But it doesn’t have to be like that! There’s many cold-weather vegetables that can easily grow with just a little protection. And building a cold frame is the perfect solution. While a cold frame can be as simple and small as a plastic 2-liter bottle with the bottom cut off, carefully placed overtop of a plant to offer a little more warmth, what I’ve got for you today is a list of 26 different concepts and plans for winter cold frames that encompass a bit more space in your garden and allow for a better collection of vegetables....

It’s impossible to have a garden without water. Plants need it, lawns need it. We all have to have a way of conveying that water to where it needs to be. And we all have old, heavyweight hoses lying about, as they’re a requirement in the yard. But in recent years, expandable garden hoses have jumped onto the market. How do they work, and which one’s best for you? Are there drawbacks or benefits of expandable hoses when compared to old-fashioned heavy hoses?...

We love growing microgreens, but sometimes miss the bright colors that full-grown plants bring. Lucky for us, there are some microgreens out there that aren’t your run-of-the-mill grass green. So, for a splash of color in our microgreen garden, we’re adding kohlrabi microgreens, a vision in purple or white! Table of Contents Maybe you’ve heard of kohlrabi, passed it in the grocery store, or even eaten it. If so, then you know it’s a funky-looking plant, which is why many gardeners shy away from it....

Greensand, also called glauconite, is an incredible organic soil amendment for your organic garden. Table of Contents It’s a mineral that formed in prehistoric times in anaerobic ocean environments. Deposits of iron, potassium, lime, silicates, and 30+ other trace minerals at the bottom of stagnant pools of water eventually compressed to form the rock known as greensand, which is mined up and processed for use in the garden. It’s easily crumbled, thus the name greensand stuck due to both the texture and color of the mineral....