Innovating Organic Gardening

And when we’re in a hurry, it’s so easy to just grab the first packet we see. But as conscious gardeners, we know better.

We bring so much intention to our soil, our plants, and our gardens, so why not bring that same intention to the companies we support?

Over the years, I’ve noticed something: seed companies, much like people, all have their own personalities.

😀Some are focused solely on organic growing.

🕰️Some are deeply committed to preserving heirloom varieties.

💰Some are shaped by the bottom line more than anything else.

➡️Some pour their energy into creating new varieties—sometimes organic, sometimes conventional, and sometimes genetically modified.

And then there’s the human side of it:

• How they communicate.
• How they treat their customers.
• How transparent they are about what they sell.

These things matter more than we often realize.

Think of choosing a seed company the same way you think of meeting new people.

Sometimes you meet someone and instantly click—you just get each other. A warm friendship forms, and it lasts for years.

Other times, you meet someone who is perfectly fine, perfectly kind, but they’re simply not your person. They don’t quite align with where you are right now or what you value.

Seed companies are the same way.

😊When you choose one that aligns with your gardening values, it feels good. You know your money is supporting practices you stand behind. You know the seeds you’re planting carry the intentions you care about. And the whole process becomes simpler, smoother, and more joyful.

But how do you decide what seed company to buy from?

Something clear and grounded that helped me quickly see who truly aligned with my gardening philosophy.

So I created a set of 15 criteria to help people evaluate seed companies. – people like you.

These criteria simplify everything.

They will help you understand not only what a company offers, but who they are—what they stand for, how they operate, and whether their practices support the kind of organic gardening life you are committed to cultivating.

And now I’m sharing them with you, because I know how overwhelming this choice can feel when you’re trying to do right by your garden and the wider world.

If you’d like to make this whole seed company choice process easier, you can get the full list of criteria for free here:

I hope these help you make choices that feel aligned, empowering, and clear—because you deserve that ease. And your garden does too.

If you have your own way of choosing seed companies, I’d love to hear about it. Feel free to leave a comment or share this post with another gardener who might find it helpful. 🌿

The latter was how we used to have it when I was a kid. It was a simple family favorite. – Yes, I was the kid who loved spinach. 😋🥬

Ok, true confession, I pretty much only plant spinach in the fall, keep it in a hoop house, eat it all winter and into the spring and don’t replant in the spring.  

We tend to get freak super-hot spells earlier and earlier (think 90°F) which kills the seeds or baby seedlings, so now I move on from fall sown spinach to a summer crop.

Cool Hardy Spinach

Spinach is a cool weather crop which makes it a great fall green. 

It is hardy to 15° or 20°F which means in much of the country, it can overwinter without any protection. Therefore, you can easily harvest spinach fresh from your garden all winter long.

Therefore, you can easily harvest spinach fresh from your garden all winter long.

For those of us who get colder winter temps, grow it in a hoop house. This gives you a micro-climate that nudges up the temps enough to grow it longer into the cold months.  

Types of Spinach

Although there are some spinach substitutes that will grow in hot weather, here we are talking about the cool loving types with two types of leaves.

Smooth leaved varieties:

• Easier to wash
• Less volume per plant

Savoy leaved varieties:

• Tend to be darker green
• More harvest volume per plant
• Longer wash time

Seeding Spinach

Because spinach does not take up allot of space, you can put in anywhere, even in containers.

Granted, if you are a huge spinach freak, you might want to give it more space in your garden.

Plant seeds 1/8^th – 1/4″ “deep.

For baby leaf spinach plant seeds 2-4” apart. If you want to plant for baby bunches, go with the 2” apart.

If you are growing in rows and want space in between, good row widths are 12-18”.

Because my raised beds are 3-4’ wide, I can harvest from both sides, therefore I will plant a band of each variety I want, with a little space in between the types, that way I use the whole bed and get more harvest.   

This works well if you don’t have a large garden and want to grow some other direct seeded plants as well as spinach.

Seeds germinate best in soil temperatures of 32-60°F, so, it will depend on your planting zone when to plant. 

If you have shade cloth you can put over the bed during the day, this will allow you to plant a bit sooner. If the temperatures cool down at night, you can remove the shade cloth for the overnight, although this is not necessary.

If you are planning on harvesting whole plants, then you will need to succession plant every two weeks for a continual harvest.  

Harvesting Spinach

You can harvest either the baby or at full sized leaves.  

Here are a couple of strategies:

If you want only baby spinach, then you do want to succession plant every two weeks to keep your harvest going.

What I do instead, as the plants get bigger, I only harvest the outer leaves.

As long as you only harvest the outer leaves, the plant will keep growing. 

Once the plants start to grow into each other, you may need to choose some plants to harvest whole plant so others can grow bigger.

By doing this, I use less seed and get more harvest.

Preserving Spinach

I don’t wash my spinach when I put it in the fridge, Instead I wait to wash it until I am going to use it. I find it lasts longer in the fridge when it is not wet.  

You can also freeze spinach either raw or blanched. 

The frozen spinach you get in bags from the supermarket has been blanched. But you can freeze it raw also. No matter which you do, you want the spinach as dry as possible before freezing. This is why I prefer to do it fresh as is easier to dry it.

You can also make spinach chips by drying it in a dehydrator.  

Pests & Diseases Affecting Fall Grown Spinach

One of the reasons I love growing in the fall is that I don’t have the pest pressure that can happen in spring and summer.

🌿Aphids and leaf miners can go after your spinach, but I haven’t seen this with fall grown spinach unless I leave the plants into the later spring when the temps have warmed up.

🌿Two diseases that can affect spinach are downy mildew (Peronospora farinosa f. sp. spinaciae) and fusarium wilt (Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. spinaciae). I have not had problems with these, which is wonderful living in such a humid climate as I do in zone 7b.

• Fusarium wilt is primarily soil borne so if you have this issue, you’ll need to address your soil heath.
• Downy mildew tends to happen when temperatures are warmer, again, less a problem with fall sown than spring sown spinach.

Some varieties have been bred for resistance to some diseases, so if they are a problem in your area, look to the hybrid varieties below as options. These are hybrid varieties – NOT GMOs.

Tested and Trusted Spinach Varieties

Over the years I have grown at least twelve varieties of spinach.

The ones below are the four I have zeroed in on as growing the best for me for the  last four years. I also include an honorable mention.

Bloomsdale Longstanding

If you want flavor, this one still is the best. There are various “Bloomsdale” varieties and I have tried all I have come across.  Although Winter Bloomsdale is good, I still think the “Longstanding” variety has the best flavor.

David Landreth developed the original Bloomsdale spinach in the 1800s. In 1925, the variety was improved and reintroduced to the market by seed breeders Zwaan and Van der Molen in Voorburg, Netherlands, under the name Long Standing Bloomsdale. The spinach variety won  the All-America or AAS Award in 1937 and continues to be a popular variety today.

This variety is generally easy to find. At the time of writing this, I buy it from High Mowing Organic Seeds.

Bloomsdale Longstanding is a wonderful overwintering spinach for a bountiful harvest.

Giant Winter

Giant Winter, or Giant of Winter is the English translation of the Dutch, Gigante d’Inverno. Anther from Zwaan and Van der Molen, who developed it in 1926.

With large dark semi-savoyed leaves, this is another great winter spinach variety.

It was bred for overwintering in a high tunnel or under a layer of mulch in the cold months.  It does get big, likely the largest variety I have grown so if you want nice big juicy spinach leaves, this one might be for you.

This is not one I grow in spring as it really doesn’t like the heat, so as the name implies, this one really is a winter wonder.

I get it from High Mowing, which is where I have been buying spinach seed from lately, but Baker Creek, Adaptive Seeds and Territorial Seed Company all have it – so you have options.

Renegade Spinach

If you are looking for a more disease resistant variety, especially against powdery mildew, then look to this hybrid variety.

I first grew it about six years ago and it continues to do well, so it stays as part of my spinach bed.  I do like to grow more than one variety each year (that goes for other crops too) because any variety can have an off-year, so growing more than one gives you a bit of insurance.

Sometimes I think I won’t reorder seeds when I run out, but then it keeps doing so well, I order and grow it again.

I get it from High Mowing Organic Seeds.

Ted Tabby

I keep growing this one because it looks so pretty. The thick juicy round leaves are smooth dark green with red veins.  The red color comes out when it is cold and goes away in heat.

I have tried three red spinaches, and this one has outperformed the others. Red Tabby was bred by the Dutch company Rijk Zwaan. Do we see a pattern here?  Seems we owe much of our luscious spinach variety from breeders in the Netherlands.

The red color comes from an antioxidant called betacyanin.

Being a hybrid, it is another good choice for a disease resistant spinach.

This one has a milder flavor than some others which is pleasing and works well in salads as baby spinach.

I get it from John Scheeper’s Kitchen Garden Seeds, or Territorial.

Space – Honorable Mention

10 years ago or so, I grew allot of Space Spinach and really loved it. It germinated and grew well, was a smoother leaved variety and was reliable. Then it disappeared from seed catalogs.

About three years ago is appeared again and I was looking forward to growing it again.  I tried it two years in a row and it did not do well – bummed.  I still have a soft spot for Space Spinach which is so called because it takes up less space in the garden. 

I am going to try it again, and felt it deserved a place on this list.  I get it from High Mowing Organic Seeds and is bred by Bejo Seeds.

This is another one to try for is downy mildew resistance and what used to be for me, a long harvest window.  I would plant it in fall, and still be eating it the beginning of April.

Reported Health Benefits of Spinach

Although I am not a doctor and therefore cannot make any health claims, research shows that spinach is:

• A source of vitamin A which is great for healthy skin and lungs.
• Vitamin C which many of us use to strengthen our immune systems when we think we might be a cold.
• Calcium to support strong bones and teeth.
• Iron to develop the protein hemoglobin for oxygen transport through the bloodstream, which helps combat fatigue and make a strong like Popeye (if you don’t know who that is, he is an old cartoon character, have some fun watching this compilation video._ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxO758l7JVM
• Fiber to regulate the digestive tract, a help insure the other nutrients are taken up in the body.
• Several minerals including folic acid, magnesium, manganese, and lutein, a carotenoid that aids in eye health.
• Potassium which has been shown to lower blood pressure.

By seeding spinach in the fall, you have a spinach harvest all winter long.

May your spinach and the rest of your fall and winter garden bring you a bounty of food – Debby Ward, Member of GardenComm International

Why Fall Container Gardening Rocks

🍂Fall is not the end of gardening season—it’s a fresh beginning!

Whether you’re short on space or just want a more manageable garden, container gardening lets you grow where you are.

Discover how easy and rewarding it is to grow your own food in containers this fall.

🥬🥕Leafy greens and root crops and happy in cool temperatures. They get less bug pressure which means easier maintenance for you.

Growing in containers give you control over soil, sunlight, and watering, making it easier to grow successfully.

Best Veggies to Grow in Fall Containers

As I often am heard saying, you can grow anything in a container, it simply depends on matching the size container with what you want to grow. We’ll get to that in a bit, first –

👉Let’s focus on some top-performing crops for fall that thrive in containers:

Lettuce

Lettuce can be started indoors in summer for larger transplants or direct seeded once temps cool down a bit.

Spinach

Direct seed spinach as it doesn’t like to be transplanted. All the seed packets say this.

I have found, when I tested starting spinach in trays, that the germination rate was pretty horrid.  I wasted too much seed trying as an experiment – so don’t waste your seed, learn from my test.

Radishes

As with all root crops, Direct seed these once the weather begins to cool down. Succession plant them every two weeks for continuous harvest.

Kale

If you direct seed, you’ll end up with baby kale, although you can leave some plants to grow quickly the following spring when temps begin to warm.

This is because kale is cold hardy and can overwinter in all but the coldest planting zones without protection.😃

Chard

When my friend was growing up and times were hard at the restaurant, his father would substitute chard for spinach in various dishes, and apparently none of his patrons could ever tell the difference.

A cool thing about growing chard is that you can get vibrant colors.  It is also biennial, so will last in your garden for two years.📅

Turnips

You can seed them close together and harvest the first ones as baby turnips for snacks.  This will give the remaining ones space to get bigger.  I tend to get three harvests from one planting by continuing to harvest and leaving space for others to get bigger.

Turnip leaves are great for soups or stock.🍲

Arugula

As it gets big, harvest part of it to eat and leave room for more plants to grow bigger. Choose short days-to-maturity varieties. 🥬

Carrots

Make sure your pot is deeper than the mature carrot size is listed on be on the seed packet.

For example, A Yaya carrot is about 6” long, so you’ll want a container that is a minimum 10” deep to grow that variety.

❄️Carrots are pretty darn cold hardy, being fine as low as 18°F and can withstand some frost, so they are great to harvest as it gets colder.

Like with radishes, succession plant for a continuous harvest.

Cilantro

Cilantro is a cool season herb I always direct seed in the fall.  Seed it liberally in a container as small as 8” for some yummy fall salsa.

Choosing Varieties for Your Fall Container Garden

One way to start is by choosing any of your favorite varieties. 😊

If you are new to fall gardening, or want to try something different, seed catalogs give you clues to help narrow your choices.

👀Look for words like “compact”, “grows in a small space” or “great for containers”.

A variety that is listed to grow quickly is also helpful. Look for shorter days to maturity varieties.

To clarify why, as the sunlight wanes, it signals plants to grow slower, so add a couple of weeks to the days to maturity when planting in fall.

❄️Cold hardy varieties are also great because they will give you some peace of mind if you get a snap cold spell or earlier than expected frost.

Setting Up for Fall Container Garden Success

Container Size & Shape

First, choose the right containers for what you want to grow.

To determine this, think of the size of the fully grown roots. That is how far apart they will be at their largest. You may be harvesting baby ones, but you want enough space to enjoy a good harvest.  

🥬For leaf crops, the larger the container, the more bountiful harvest you will get.  If you have large square or rectangle containers, you can more easily grow root crops and leaf crops in the same container because you have corners to tuck in more plants.

☑️A high-quality organic potting mix is essential. Using one that includes mycorrhizae will give your roots a major boost.

The bigger the roots, the bigger the plant, and hence, the bigger the harvest.

The Sun/Shade Consideration

Remember – we are talking about plants that prefer it cool or cold.

If you are planting your cool season crops when it is still hot outside, placing your containers in the shade will make your plants happier.  

One of the great things about growing in containers is they are mobile.  Even if you are growing on a balcony, you can still move the containers to give them more or less sun.  As it gets cooler, move your containers into a sunnier location.

Watering

Containers dry out faster than in-ground gardens, so check your containers every day to be sure the soil is moist.

If you will be traveling, you can get a drip system on a timer to ensure your garden stays watered. Just be sure to either buy a timer that can withstand a freeze or bring it in before freezing temperatures break it.

If you are putting in transplants, a layer of straw mulch will help keep moisture in and protect not only your soil, but also the roots of your plants.

Your Fall Garden Can Start Today!

You don’t need a big backyard or raised beds to grow fresh, organic food this fall.

With a few containers, the right crops, and a bit of know-how, you’ll be harvesting healthy, homegrown veggies long after summer ends.

Want to Grow Even More? 🌱

Ready to plan your full fall and winter garden (not just containers)?
🎁 Get my FREE Fall & Winter Garden Checklist!
It’ll walk you through all the steps to keep it growing an abundance —even as the weather cools.

Summer storms can bring downpours that give plants a flush of water for quick spirts of plant growth.

This is why doing a mid-season assessment of what is happening in your garden will clarify how to keep your garden flourishing the rest of the summer.

Take a cool morning, mid-day break or evening to slow down and observe what is happening in your garden. This will allow you to see where to take action.

Reflect – What’s Thriving and What’s Struggling?

We love those signs your plants are doing well.

Then there are those plants that are not doing great.

Look for mid-season stress indicators such as wilting leaves and signs of nutrient deficiencies.

WILTING LEAVES

Leaves can also wilt from a disease or bug predation. Yellowed leaves are often a disease and some insects can severely damage plants and cause leaves to wilt. 

Wilting can also be a sign of lack of water.  Perhaps you have not had rain and been busy and not watered. Sometimes, this is all you need to do. 

See my post on watering your summer garden to pro tips on how best to handling watering in heat.

Keeping a garden journal in some form is a great way to start cataloging what is happening in your garden.

Observation and documenting what you see are the first steps to mitigating critters and diseases with an Integrated Pest Management System. You can get my Integrated Pest Management Workshop to creating yours including my worksheets, created specifically for home gardeners.

Prune, Train, Deadhead, and Thin as Summer Garden Maintenance

Let’s look at some pro tips for pruning tomato plants, squash, and herbs.

Prune

 I make sure to keep the leaves pruned from the bottom 12 inches of tomato plants. Also prune out excess leaves inside the plant.  Get everything you need to get an abundant tomato harvest with my Grow Great Tomatoes Master Class.

I do try and save plants that have gotten some disease.

First by removing the diseased leaves. Observe if the plant starts to bounce back after you do this. If not, if the plant continues to get more signs of disease then it may be best to take the plant out, clean up around it to be sure to get any potentially diseased leaves, and throw the leaves away. Don’t put them in your compost.

This may sound like a bummer, but it gives you the opportunity to plant something else that may thrive better.

For example, you could seed some basil, which are good companions for tomatoes and will give you some fresh basil later in the season.  Watch your temperatures though as the basil germinates best in temperatures between 75° and 85° degrees. If it is hotter, they may not germinate as well.  

Train

Some crops do better when trellised like cucumbers. Small melons and vining squash can also be trellised.

Dead Head

Deadheading is the task of cutting dead flowers. You can keep flowers pruned and bring them inside to enjoy, or you can let them dry and save the seeds. No matter how you do it, keeping your flower heads trimmed will keep them blooming longer.

Thin

Bush beans can be thinned so they are not too close together.

I like to plant my bush bean seeds 8” to 12” apart.  If some don’t come up, I reseed and end up with a succession of beans in the row.

Succession Plant Summer Crops & Start Fall Crops

When bush beans start to stop producing, simply pull the plants and direct seed more.

A few years ago we forgot to plant our potatoes – oops 😯 so we went ahead and experimented with planting them in mid-summer. It was a happy accident as we dig fresh potatoes in December. 🥔❄️

As I wrote about in a previous article, mid-summer is the time to start fall crops you want to transplant like broccoli, cabbage, chard and kale. Save direct seeding cool season crops until later in the year though, as they won’t germinate well when it is hot. I have a seed germination chart in that fall garden planning post.

If you do want to sow seeds in hot weather, try and keep seeded areas in the shade of other plants or under shade cloth.  Plant them in the evening and water them well so they have the cooler night temperatures to start.  Keep them well watered, but don’t drown them either.  You soil should be moist, not dry or waterlogged. Don’t use all your seed, test some to see how they do in you mid-summer climate. If they germinate well, then you can plant some more.

By replacing underperforming crops, you will better utilize your garden space.

Refresh and Rebuild Soil

If you plants don’t have much leaf growth, your soil might be lacking in nitrogen. In this case you can add some coffee grounds. You can also add some compost or worm castings to freshen up your soil.

Mulch keeps the roots of your plants cooler, which your plants will appreciate. Read my article on mulching your vegetable garden.

Plan Ahead – Summer Seed Saving

Remember, that gardening is a process. We celebrate what’s working and make informed changes for the time at hand, and for next year. 

If something hasn’t done well in your garden, that is ok!  Every year something thrives and something doesn’t in my garden and the gardens of my friends. This is simply part of the process. It is one way we grow and learn.

If you have any July garden wins let me know and if you have questions, let me know that too here.

Summer Garden Maintenance Checklist

This reusable checklist keeps you on track with veggie, herb and flower summer garden maintenance.

📆I think of June as being like January.  In January I plan my spring and summer garden and then six months later, I consider my fall and winter garden.

Most people think of tomatoes when they think of growing a vegetable garden, yet summer crops are only part of what your garden can grow for you.

👍Top Reasons to Grow Food in Fall & Winter

1. Eat from your garden year round
2. Less bugs and weeds
3. Lower maintenance

Let’s look at considerations for starting fall crops in the summer.

As I am sure you know, there are two different to start plants, indoors and outdoors. The considerations for each are somewhat different and so is the timing.

No matter what you decide to plant for the fall and winter garden, some planning will allow you to make the most of your garden in each season.

Space for Direct Seeding Fall Crops

Another way to make space for fall planted crops is by saving room when planting summer crops.

In humid climates, this gives you the added benefit of more air circulation around your summer plants which will help keep diseases at bay.

Summer Weather & Cool Weather Crops

🌱Direct Seeding Cool Crops

While most folks are harvesting tomatoes and zucchini, savvy growers are already sowing the seeds for crisp, cool-weather crops.

Direct seeding may not be possible in areas with hot summers.

There are certain cool loving crops that simply can’t take the heat of summer, and also don’t transplant well, if at all.

Fall crops like it cool and here are the best temperature growing ranges for some popular fall crops. These crops are happier in even colder temps, but won’t grow well, or will die in warmer temperatures.

Ideal Growing Temperatures for Fall Crops

• Beets: 50°F – 75°F (10°C – 23°C)
• Broccoli: 60 – 75°F (16 – 24°C)
• Cabbage: 55 – 75°F (12 – 23°C)
• Cauliflower: 60 – 65°F (15 – 18°C)
• Celery: 55 – 70°F (12 – 21°C)
• Chard: 50°F – 85°F (10°C – 29°C)
• Collards: 60 – 70°F (16 – 21°C)
• Fennel: 60 – 70°F (16 – 21°C)
• Kale: 55 – 75°F (12 – 23°C)
• Lettuce: 40 – 75°F (4 – 23°C)
• Parsnips: 50°F – 75°F (10°C – 23°C)
• Peas: 45°F – 75°F (7°C – 23°C)
• Radish: 40°F – 70°F (4°C – 21°C)
• Spinach: 50°F – 60°F (10°C – 16°C)
• Turnips: 50°F – 75°F (10°C – 23°C)

So you can see, that starting many transplantable plants indoors can be to your advantage.

We will look at them in a minute, but note there are some crops that you can plant in the summer and grow into the fall like carrots which grow in temperature ranges of 45°F – 85°F (7°C – 29°C).🥕

Starting Fall Crops Indoors & Hardening-Off

The heat mat could also be too hot if they are under hot lights, or in a sunny window in the hot summer sun.

To grow well, they seedlings do need lots of light and cool temperatures, so growing them in a well air conditioned room under lights is ideal.

Hardening off your seedlings slowly will be critical. as the seedlings are not going to be able to withstand harsh hot conditions.

I start by taking them outside at dark when it is cooler. I gradually take them out earlier and earlier in the evening, in a shady spot. If I know I will be transplanting them when it is still fairly hot, I will gradually get them used to full sun. At some point I leave them out all night and bring them in on hot sunny days.

How to Know When to Start Your Fall Plants

When starting summer plants indoors, calculate the days to germinate (or sprout) plus the days maturity (or harvest) + two weeks.  Adding two weeks is important because the sun is getting lower on the horizon (vs rising in spring), the plants grow slower.

🔢So as an example: If I have a cabbage that is 10-14 days to germinate, and 62 days to maturity. Then I would add a mid-point or average of the days to maturity, in this case 12 days to sprout, plus 62 days to maturity, plus 14 days = 88 days.

So I would start these cabbages 88 days or twelve weeks before I want to be harvesting and eating them.  In this example, if I want to harvest them in November, I would be planting them in August.

Transplanting Fall Crops

You’ll want to give them adequate growing time before it gets cold. For example, I like to plant them at least four weeks before my first frost date.

This means you may have to remove some summer plants before you want to.  If you are trying to get more tomatoes from plants that are mostly spent, harvest all the tomatoes, even the green ones and process them. This gives you have space for your fall crops.

I know this can be hard, but you can make green tomato salsa for the winter – AND – have fresh fall crops. You get both!

The first year, they were aghast the very idea. The second year they groaned. But – by the third year of having all this fresh food from October through the winter and into spring, they got it.  They got it so well, that they started looking for summer plants to take out! 😃

I encourage you to look through your seed packets, check out some end of summer seed sales and make and consider what fall and winter crops to grow and start planning.  

Planning a fall harvest in the middle of summer may seem backwards, but it’s the key to a thriving autumn garden. – Debby

Free Fall & Winter Garden Checklist

Learn more or get it NOW🎯⬇️

Whether you’re tight on space or just want to keep your favorite herbs close at hand, container gardening is a simple, rewarding way to grow flavorful, fragrant, and even healing plants right where you live.

You don’t need a big backyard to get started—just a little sun, some good soil, and a clear plan.

In this article, I’ll walk you through 5 simple steps to create a thriving container herb garden, so you can enjoy fresh ingredients, gorgeous blooms, and a deeper connection with your garden—no matter where you grow. 💚 Ready to dig in?

Step 1: Decide what Herbs to Grow 🌱

This is why most people I know want to grow some herbs in containers, so they can have some fresh for whatever dish they want to make.

I have even decided what to cook for dinner based on what herbs are abundant in my container garden.  This is a fun way to get creative with your meal planning.😊

✨ Consider adding medicinal herbs like chamomile or calendula to support your wellness naturally. These also add flowers to your herb garden. 

Want some edible color in your herb containers? Brighten things up with pollinator-friendly edible flowers—annuals like nasturtiums or perennials like lavender.  💜

Lavender is a lovely perennial what is edible and smells fantastic!

A thoughtful mix will give you beauty, flavor, and function all season long!

Step 2: Assess your Sun and Shade where Your Herbs Containers will Live ☀️🌤️

Sunlight is the secret ingredient for many herbs!

Before buying your plants, take a few days to observe your space. Is it sunny all day, shaded in the afternoon, or mostly dappled light?

⛱️For example, perhaps you want your containers on your deck, but your umbrella shades the area. By considering how to rearrange the items on your deck, you can provide your plants more or less sun so they have what they need to be happy.

🌳Pruning one tree branch can also make a big difference. I had a client once who only needed to prune back one small limb of her tree and to get enough light to flood in to grow more sun loving plants.

Step 3: Match Your Container Location Sun Levels to Your List of Plants 🌞🪴

Once you know how much light your space gets, match it to the needs of the herbs, veggies, and flowers you want to grow. This is where the magic happens! 🪄

Giving each plant its ideal light conditions means stronger plants, lush growth, and bountiful harvests.

There are some herbs that will be happier with some shade part of the day, especially cool loving herbs like cilantro and dill.

💪🌿 You’re building a container garden that thrives, not just survives.

Step 4: Choose the Right Container(s) for Your Plant List 🪴💧

Think of your container like a cozy home for your plants! The larger the root system, the bigger and more productive the plant—so go up a size if you can. 🌼

In this case, bigger can be better. Larger containers also allow you to group plants together which can be attractive.

Want to make your life easier? Look for self-watering containers that help maintain consistent moisture. 👉But heads up: they’re a helper, not a substitute for regular watering—especially in hot, dry weather.

A self-watering container will allow you to go away for a long weekend without watering, but not take a two week vacation unless it rains every three or so days while you are gone.

Not sure the best color for your container?  Read my article on container colors here.

Step 5: Use High-quality Organic Soil & Plant Your Herb Container(s) 🌱💚

Don’t skimp here—your soil is the foundation of everything! Choose an organic potting mix rich in nutrients, and look for one that includes mycorrhizae—beneficial fungi that boost root health and nutrient absorption.

When deciding how to group your herbs in your containers, think about the variety of leaf colors and shapes – mix it up!

It can also be fun to do different varieties of the same type of herb. I am growing twelve kinds of basil this year as an example. In the past I have grown ten kinds of thyme.

Be mindful of using your containers to their full potential by including perennials that will last all winter. After the annual dies back, you’ll still have the perennial!🌿

Example ideas:

• Annual Italian basil with perennial thyme and a nasturtium.
• Rosemary with calendula and marjoram.
• Sage with purple basil and petunia.
• Oregano with annual chamomile and Thai basil.
• Parsley with nasturtium and lemon verbena

Whether you’re brand-new to gardening or refining your skills, these simple steps can help you build a garden that’s beautiful, useful, and deeply satisfying.  

👉 Ready to grow your best garden yet? 💌 Sign up for The Harvest Companion, my free email newsletter packed with seasonal tips, organic gardening wisdom, and personal support to help your garden—and your confidence—flourish. 🌿📬 Let’s grow together!

A question from a client promoted this guide on better and worse colors for your container – from your plant’s point of view.🌿

Why from the plant’s viewpoint you ask? Because you want the most vibrant plants, and as low maintenance a container garden as you can get.

It is easy to choose a color because it is trendy.  Yet, because of the nature of “trendy” as transient, when we are buying or painting a container that we will use for several years, we want to move past the simply trendy, to the sustainable.

Worst Colors for Container Your Container Garden

Black or dark-colored pots can be a double-edged sword. They absorb and retain heat, which might extend the growing season in cooler climates. However, in hot summer months, this extra heat can:

🔥Cause heat stress, leading to wilting and poor plant growth. The black color will heat up faster as it absorbs heat from the sun.  In the summertime, it will get so hot that it will burn the soil, and plant roots in from the outer edge inward at least an inch. 

🙁 Dry out soil faster, meaning you’ll need to water more frequently.

😢Damage roots if the soil temperature gets too high.

This means you have less growing areas, need to water more often and risk damaging your plants.  

🪴Red

Red acts just like black, absorbing too much heat, so everything that applies to black colored containers, applies to red ones.

🪴Other Dark Colors

In general, dark colors are not the best, for the same reason as black container colors. 

There are cases, in colder climates, or if you are using a container for cold season growing only, where darker colors could be useful because you want the container to absorb more heat from the lower sunlight.

If your container is in the shade without direct sun, that is the other time you could consider a dark color.

🌱 Solution: If you’re in love with black pots, place them in partial shade, mulch the soil surface with light colored straw, or group them with lighter-colored containers to balance out the heat effect.

✅Best Pot Colors for Growing in Containers  

The while color adds a clean look that works with any color house, desk, garage, patio or yard.

🪴Other Light Container Colors

This is where you can get creative if you would like a container garden that is not all white, or not white at all. You could choose a light grey, green, or even pink or blue. This allows you to have a variety of colors or create a color palate for your container garden.

🪴What if you want a container color you can’t find?

Some paint will crack-off or fade. Be sure and check that your paint type is suited for the material of your containers.

🪴Bright Colors

🐝 How Bright Container Colors Can Attract Pollinators (And Which to Avoid!)

Color isn’t just about temperature—it also plays a role in attracting (or repelling) insects! Pollinators like bees and butterflies are drawn to certain colors, while some shades might keep pests away.

🌼 Best Colors to Attract Pollinators:

• Yellow, blue, and purple are favorites for bees and butterflies. These shades help create a buzzing, thriving garden. If you have not had enough pollinators, these good be good options.
• Bright red and orange attract hummingbirds, making them great choices for flowering plants that need bird pollination as long as they are not in full sun.

🚫 Colors That Repel Some Bugs:

• White and very pale colors can deter some insects, as they’re harder for pollinators to see.
• Bright blue or purple might repel certain pests like aphids, making them a strategic choice for planters near vulnerable plants.

💡 Tip: If you want a vibrant, pollinator-friendly garden, mix and match your container colors to create an inviting, dynamic space for beneficial insects!

When choosing a container color, think beyond style—consider how it affects soil temperature, plant health, and garden biodiversity. Whether you want to extend your growing season, conserve water, or invite pollinators, your choice of color can make a surprising difference!

May your container garden be bountiful!

Debby, your professional organic garden coach, trainer and public speaker.