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5 Proven Steps to Starting Your Veggie Garden

As Spring approaches, our thoughts turn to gardening.

Raised bed vegetable garden in the summer

Maybe you want to build a raised bed garden, put some containers on your deck, or add in-ground beds.

In this post, I share a snapshot of my solid step-by-step strategy to start a veggie garden that has been used by hundreds of people to start their garden.

Step 1: Your Garden Dream, Vision & Goals

For Step 1 it is important to take time to document your garden vision, what goals you have, and your garden as you have dreamed it.

Many folks don’t take the time to document this, so their dream garden becomes a vaporous ‘some day’ vague memory, vs actualizing the manifestation of their garden dream.

Lynn comes to mind. When she bought her house, they randomly put the shed and some garden beds in various places. Then she realized later that she had not considered what she really wanted out of her garden and it was kind of a mess. 😏

Step 2: Observation & Assessment 👀

To avoid making a mistake like Lynn. Or on choosing the best the type, size and location of the garden you put in that works for you – take some time to observe your space, light, water and other resources as well as your time.

This way you can be sure the garden you put in not only is in the best place, but also fits into your lifestyle, and that is where Step 2, Observation & Assessment comes in.

This is a critical step to be sure you get a garden that will work for you, and hence move you along that success pathway.

Once Lynn learned how to look at her yard, she was able to see what was happening to make good choices. 😀

Step 3: Building Healthy Living Soil

a raised bed is one choice for your veggie garden — Building awesome living soil in a raised veggie bed

Healthy living soil is the foundation of any garden, so building soil that will support your garden and grow plants for you is Step 3.

You probably know that chemical pesticides and fertilizers kill your soil, but did you know that tilling does too?

Tilling allows the carbon in your soil to be released into the atmosphere thereby depleting your soil of it.

This is why commercial conventional growers add fertilizers, because they have, by their actions, depleted it from their soil. The soil becomes nothing more than an anchor for the plants, but it is the life in the soil, that grows healthy lively plants.

Quality soil is loaded with life and will grow plants for you.

Remember that soil is 25% air and 25% water, so you want to build soil that will allow water and air to penetrate it.

Also, be sure to use your subsoil, whatever that is, because that is where the soil life lives.

Step 4: Choosing Quality Plants & Seeds

locally grown veggie plants — Get chemical-free plants

Step 4 of how to start a vegetable garden, is choosing quality plants and seeds for your garden.

This is the step that most people start with, and they often fail because they didn’t do the first three steps.

Learn clues for buying plants and seeds.

These include such as purchasing plants with a USDA Organic tag or from small local growers you know are chemical free.

Find quality seed companies to be sure they have signed the Safe Seed Pledge.

This shows they are committed to offering non-GMO seeds.

They may belong to organizations committed to organic growing and sustainable biodiverse practices.

Get my full list of ways to choose a good seed company:

Get my FREE Guide on How to Know What Seed Company is Best.

seed company criteria by debby ward, now to choose quality seed companies

Step 5: Garden Layout & Planting

learn garden layout — Organic veggie & flower garden

Then, in the last step to start your vegetable garden – that can include herbs and flowers too! – is when you get to design your garden and layout where plants will go in your gardens.

This is also when you do your seeding and transplanting.

Once you have done the fist four steps, you will be confident you have started the right type of garden for you and your lifestyle and put it in the best spot.

This way those young plants and seedlings have the best chance of providing you the yummy home grown produce you desire.

I hope this short overview has clarified how you can start a vegetable garden.

These steps showed Lynn how to start the vegetable garden she had envisioned, but hadn’t been able to manifest.

She how has a garden she loves, full of food and beauty. It has become her joyful sanctuary.

cover image of How to Start a Vegetable Garden Guide and Workbook

So you can do the same, I have created an e-book: How to Start a Vegetable Garden Guide & Workbook that provides your more support for my proven 5-step process to successfully start a vegetable garden.

The system works for any sized garden, from containers to acres.

You get a 12 worksheet pages in a 4- page e-book that includes design ideas and action steps to keep you on track and having fun.

e-book, how to start a vegetable garden guide and workbook what you get graphic

Get the Workbook & Guide to do these 5 Steps

May these still step illuminate the path for you to start the garden you have always wanted. -Debby

Steps to Create a Simple Spring Seed Starting Plan

Debby WardLeave a comment

That’s Actually Fun!

This might sound like a drag, but I promise you, it’s pretty darn fun.

Seed Packets from some of our recommended companies

Creating a simple spring seed starting plan completely transformed my seed starting season.

What used to feel like a hair-pulling mess of guessing, second-guessing, and starting everything at the wrong time has become one of my favorite early-season garden rituals.😊

It helped me clarify, simplify, and focus, and in doing so, it shifted my entire spring garden experience.

For years, I struggled with the same questions many gardeners do – When should I start what? – What have I already planted? – Why does everything feel so chaotic?

Then one day, it finally clicked.🌟 I realized I didn’t need a complicated spreadsheet or a rigid system. I just needed a simple, intentional way organize my seeds by timing. 📆

What followed was a surprisingly easy process that helped me manifest a calm, well-timed, productive spring and summer vegetable garden.

If you’re starting seeds for your spring and summer garden and want a system that feels nourishing instead of overwhelming, the exact process I use is below.

Why Seed Starting Timing Matters More Than You Think

Have you ever wondered why some years your garden feels smooth and abundant, while other years feel rushed and out of sync?

Often, it comes down to timing.

❓Do you do this? –

Many gardeners start everything at once. Spring lettuces get started at the same time as summer tomatoes. Some plants shoot up too fast, others lag behind, and suddenly the whole season feels a little wonky.

When seed timing is off at the beginning, it tends to ripple through the rest of the season.

But when you set this up thoughtfully at the start, everything that follows becomes easier.

As spring unfolds and life gets busier, your garden rhythm is already established. You’re no longer scrambling, wasting time, or spending extra money buying plants because seeds weren’t started on time.

Starting from seed allows you to discover more varieties, uncover better flavors, and harvest a garden that feels truly yours. And it doesn’t have to be complicated.

A Gentle Seed Shift That Changes Everything

scattered seed packets and note paper on a table

I arrived at this system by doing it wrong many times.

Sometimes it felt pretty chaotic.

Each misstep helped illuminate what didn’t work, until this simple process emerged. It now takes me very little time, yet it helps me foster, sustain, and thrive through the entire growing season.

Instead of reacting, I feel prepared. Instead of stress, there’s flow. Instead of confusion, there’s confidence.

And that’s exactly why I wanted to pass this along to you.

My Simple, Step-by-Step Spring Seed Starting Plan

This is the exact method I use every year to create a spring and summer seed starting schedule that feels clear, calm, and doable.

light green number one is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 1: Pull One Seed Packet Per Crop

From your seed stash, pull out one packet for each type of crop you want to grow.
One tomato, one pepper, one zinnia, one marigold, one basil, and so on. This keeps things focused and prevents overwhelm.

light green number two is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 2: Read the Back of the Packet

On the back of each seed packet, you’ll find guidance on whether the seeds should be started indoors or direct seeded outdoors.

light green number three is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 3: Create Two Simple Piles

Based on that indoor/outdoor information and your own past experience, separate your packets into two piles:

Seeds to start indoors
Seeds to start outdoors

This step alone can feel incredibly clarifying.

light green number four is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 4: Sort Indoor Seeds by Timing

Start with the seeds you’ll be starting indoors. Put them in order based on how many weeks before your last frost they should be started.

This information is on seed packets from companies that support home gardeners.

I usually end up with piles like this:

10–12 weeks before last my frost
8 weeks before
6 weeks before
3–4 weeks before

For example, through experience I’ve learned that here in zone 7 Virginia:

Thyme and basil do best started 10–12 weeks early
Peppers and eggplants around 8 weeks
Tomatoes at about 6 weeks
Squash closer to 3 weeks

Your timing may be a little different, and that’s okay. This process helps you tend to what works in your garden by giving you a framework to start.

You can put sticky notes with the timing on the top of each pile if that helps you at this step.

light green number five is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 5: Sort Outdoor Seeds the Same Way

Next move on to the seeds you’ll direct sow outdoors. Decide which ones you’ll start first, second, and third based on what is on the seed packets and your past experience.

I also separate out crops I’ll succession plant, like carrots.

light green number six is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 6: Create Simple Time-Frame Baggies

Place each group of seed packets into its own baggie. On the outside, write when that set should be started and if it is started inside, outside or outside succession planted.

light green number seven is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 7: Add Your Chosen Varieties

Now go back to your full seed collection, pull the varieties you want to grow, and place them into the appropriate baggie.

light green number eight is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Step 8: Done!

That’s it.
Your spring and summer seed starting plan is complete.

light green number nine is a dark green circle with a lavender outline

Optional: Note Days to Germination and Maturity

While you have the packets in hand, notice the days to germination and days to maturity. You don’t need to memorize them, just start to become familiar with the range.

Good seed companies will have this information on the seed packets.

Don’t get hung up here and you can skip this if it seems like too much. This info can be super useful later for garden design planning.

Your garden year is simplified not by trying to do it all at once, but by starting with a simple schedule.

Garden Planning Clarity

If you want more clarity and confidence as you plan your garden, I invite you to grab my free PDF – How to Start a Vegetable Garden Checklist. It will help you stay on track with all the tasks to start your veggie garden and set your garden up for success from the very beginning.

🌱 Get the free Start a Veggie Garden Checklist and take the next step in your garden journey.

More Pro Gardening Tips

You’ll also have an option to join my newsletter, where I share professional, practical garden guidance to help you simplify, focus, and grow a vegetable garden that’s productive, beautiful, and abundant.

And I’d love to hear from you, what part of seed starting feels most confusing right now, or what has shifted for you after reading this? Share in the comments and let’s grow together.

Your garden year is simplified not by trying to do it all at once, but by starting with a simple schedule.

Debby, Your Garden Coach

Unlocking Abundance: The Power of Yearly Garden Planning

Debby WardLeave a comment

Are you looking forward to your spring and summer garden, with it’s bounty of yummy edibles and joyous blooms?

Do you want to see your garden teeming with vibrancy, brimming with succulent produce, and blossoming with colors that enrich both your soul and your dinner plate.

This is the promise of meaningful yearly garden planning. It’s more than a mere boring task, it’s a strategic roadmap that propels your garden toward greatness like an orchestra in harmony with you as the conductor.

By embracing yearly garden planning, you harness the power of foresight. You lay the groundwork in advance, aligning the stars to create a harmonious ecosystem where plants thrive in synergy.

Say goodbye to the days of haphazard planting that yield – well- ??? If you welcome a structured approach that optimizes resources, space, and time – whether you consider yourself an “organizer” or “planner” or not, you manifest more from your garden.

I realize some of you are “not into planning”, so for you, I have created steps to simplify and shorten the process and make it fun and create.

For those who like to plan, embrace my system and manifest abundance in your garden.

Below are some yearly garden planning ideas, carefully lifted from my full planning process to get you started.

If you want to quicken the process and get my professional support, start with booking a short call here, or go to my website and message me from the contact page.

Yearly Garden Planning Tips

Maximized harvests: Plan out all four seasons at once. Things can change, but it gives me a plan for those days when I need a bit of clarity. Strategically time your plantings to ensure a continuous yield throughout the seasons.

Ecosystem balance: Encourage beneficial insects, and discourage pests, by planning your garden to be a self-sustaining thriving ecosystem. Diversity is the key here, have as many different types of veggies, fruit, flowers, and herbs, as you can fit into your garden spaces.

Conscious time management: By planning all four seasons in advance, you can look at your calendar, and consider what else is going on in your life to make strategic decisions about when to start seedlings, when to direct seed, and when to do any soil amending with mycorrhiza or when to do your biodynamic preparation sprays.

Again, here is that link to book a short free call so we can illuminate the next best step to your garden planning.

I look forward to hearing about your amazing garden ideas, Debby

Weed Less and Help Your Plants and Soil Thrive

Debby WardLeave a comment

If you have garden beds, you likely have weeds, or plants that are not growing as well as you think they should. Maybe you are concerned about keeping your soil healthy.

That is understandable because a key to low amounts of easy to pull weeds, and happy plants and soil is often overlooked or taken for granted. And when we don’t examine this one thing, all these potential garden bummers can happen, and usually do.

Many folks have an understanding they should mulch their garden beds, yet what I see are big misconceptions about mulch and how and when to use it. That is understandable since most of us just do what is fast and simple, usually whatever we see someone else doing, without given it much thought or attention. And this could be leading to some less than ideal practices for the plants in your garden and make more work for you.

What I’ve often seen is mulch used incorrectly for what plants need or want, often based on a visual preference that has nothing to do with the plants themselves. Negating what your plants need leads to them not thriving in your landscape. With some information and consideration, you can solve more than one thing with proper mulching.

Instead of simply hauling in a bunch of bagged mulch for everything, or not mulching at all, understanding mulches and their proper use can give you a big leg up not only on those weeds, but help your plants thrive and protect your valuable soil.

Using the right kind and amount of mulch can provide you:

Less ways for weeds to take over
Protect your soil
Keep your plants in a better environment and
Allow you more time

You might be pulling allot of hard to get at weeds in your garden and struggling to keep up. When I have had to weed an area with landscape fabric under shredded mulch, the landscape fabric becomes more of a weed anchor, with the roots embedded into the fabric, making it hard to get them out. Conversely, with the right depth and type of mulch for each space, the weeds can come out really fast and easy, cutting your weeding time in half or more.

Many folks know I am often talking about healthy living soil. Mulch is a supper important way to protect your soil from being washed away in a heavy rain or bleached by the sun. If you are like most folks, you have either made a time and work, or financial investment to build your garden soil, and keeping it covered with mulch is an insurance policy protecting that investment.

Plants generally don’t want to be left in a desert of dirt on their own. And different types of plants prefer different types of mulch. This is one determining factor for choosing what mulch you will use where. Another is what you have locally for free. Using your resources will help you keep your garden budget down. Keeping your soil covered will not only help your soil thrive, as we have discovered, but also help your plants thrive.

Many times I have spoken with students or clients who one of these issued and mulch was their solution. Stephanie comes to mind, who has a community garden plot. She used hardwood mulch that was available at her plot location to help smother and keep at bay some pretty darn thick weeds that had taken over the plot prior to her taking it over. Then there is Andrea, who didn’t know it was good to mulch her annual vegetable beds and blueberry bushes and had lamented the high quality organic compost she had trucked in, was being washed away by heavy rains. When she added mulches, her plants did much better and she kept her valuable soil in place.

This is why I often say,” When you seek professional gardening advise, and get training, you overcome the blind spots to your garden success.”

To expand and provide you more information on mulching that I can put in one blog post, I have created a short mini-course called “A Deep Dive Into Mulch – How and Why to Mulch Your Garden and Your Landscape”.

It may be a deep dive, but it is still a pretty short course because I value your time. It includes pros, cons and information on all different types of mulches and what mulches different types of plants like to thrive. If you want more info on correctly using mulches, and types of mulches so you weed less, and your plants and soil thrive. Check it out.

Have an awesome garden day, Debby

Designing Your Spring Veggie Garden

Debby Ward1 Comment

Bak choi is a great spring crop — Bak Choi

A client of mine, Deanna loves spring greens yet was daunted by lack of success with her spring garden. She realized she didn’t really know how much space different plants needed. She also wasn’t certain what spring plants grow well with each other. She had grown Bak Choi successfully, but that was about all. She wanted to add more greens and cool weather root crops like radishes, carrots, beets and turnips, yet she was not sure how to integrate them with the greens.

In previous years, the root crops ended up being small at best and the greens ended up rotting. She was tired of buying what she felt like was wasted seed. She had tried a couple times and wasn’t happy with the outcome. When she came to me, this was one of her major concerns to insure productivity in her garden. She was so happy when she learned that some simple adjustments could make a huge impact on her productivity.

Here are a few ways she improved her spring garden.

Plant Spacing

When you direct seed it is harder to get plant spacing right. Many folks only direct seed because they do not have a setup to start seeds indoors. This was Deanna’s situation. She was direct seeding all her crops. Seeds are small and can be hard to handle, so folks at the seed companies tend to expect you to scatter all the seeds in a packet in a row and then “thin” them so they have room to grow. This is one way to give your plants more space, but a wasteful one.

It is far better to seed with wider spacing. My rule is to seed at about 1/3 the spacing listed on the seed packet as the final plant spacing distance. This allows you to harvest smaller root crops or greens as they begin to crowd and leave some to get larger. You also don’t waste seed this way and can have one seed packet often last for a couple of years. Very handy to keep costs down.

Avoid scattering seed close together and then leaving them that was as they get larger. This is how Deanna had rotting plants. Not only, were so close they could not get any air circulation and rotted, but they did not have the space to grow to full size and produce the yield you would want.

If you fingers struggle with small seeds consider these options:

Buttercrunch lettuce from Territorial Seed Company — Territorial Seed Co.

Buy pelleted lettuce and carrot seed which is much easier. Check Territorial Seed Company for a variety of pelleted lettuce seed.

You can also get an inexpensive hand seeder that will allow you to dispense smaller seeds a bit easier. These can be super simple up to more sophisticated. Territorial has a selection of these also. One advantage is they can be used for all kinds of seeds.

If you have the advantage of being able to start greens seedlings indoors, it is easier to give each plant the space it needs. I still tend to transplant a bit close together and harvest every other or third one as they begin to crowd each other. This extends the harvest and allows the remaining plants to get larger for harvest later and fills in the space so you are not wasting space in your garden.

Timing

Another key to spring garden success is timing. Granted this is trickier as the weather gets less predictable and computer models are unable to keep up with climatic changes, yet there are some tricks you can employ.

First is to succession plant. This is where you plant a new batch of the same crop about every two weeks. This gives you a couple advantages and can be done with either indoor or outdoor seed starting.

Outdoors, if weather turns too warm/hot/wet/dry for a crop, you can try again. Additionally, and perhaps more importantly, it is another way to spread out your harvest. This means you don’t harvest at once. This is especially useful for root crops where you are harvesting the entire plant.

Valmaine Lettuce is great in all seasons — Valmaine Romaine Lettuce

Indoors, succession plant your spring greens and then transition to following those on with summer greens. Some lettuces will take much more heat than others. A couple of my warm weather favorites here are Valmaine and Jericho romaines. These can follow-on after cooler loving lettuces such as most of the butterheads.

Lettuces, cabbage and chard are cool loving crops and you’ll get an earlier harvest if you can start these indoors while it is still too cold to start them outdoors. After you harden them off, they can be transplanted into the ground for your first greens harvest. Spinach though, doesn’t transplant well so start that one directly in your garden.

As always there is trial and error in your specific microclimate and this is another reason for not scattering all your seed at once.

Companion Planting

Spinach and beets are great spring companion plants

Another way to increase the use of your spring garden space is to interplant root crops with leaf crops. Gratefully this is pretty easy with cool weather crops because most greens and roots combine just fine.

Lettuces are happy with all the cool weather roots. Spinach and chard go well as they are in the same plants family. Same idea with kale, cabbage, kohlrabi, turnips, rutabagas and radishes, which are all in the brassica family.

peas can feed the kale so they make great companions — Peas and Kale

Don’t forget a star of your spring garden – peas! Peas thrive in spring so plant some of your pleasure be it snow peas, snap peas or shelling peas. We love shelling peas best, granted they hardly make it out of the garden as I tend to just pick and eat them, fresh, raw and oh so sweet!! My favorites are Green Arrow and Alderman/Telephone Pole. Check the vine height of pea varieties to be sure they match your pea fence. If you don’t have a pea fence, get one what doesn’t need support like Sugar Ann snap pea. There is a reason why you may have heard “peas and carrots” they go tougher in the garden. Plant your carrots in front of your pea fence.

Pulling this all together

May people have asked me about how to design a spring veggie garden, so lets pull some of these tips together.

Choose your varieties and see when they will mature, if they can take some heat and how big they will be full sized.

Next use the companion planting tips to choose which plants to put in which bed.

Then decide how long you want to harvest each type of plant to create a succession planting schedule. This will tell you when to start your seeds, be it indoors or out. Remember root crops are all direct seeded.

Finally, choose a block of your garden for each set of plants for example, one for brassicas, one for peas and carrots, once of lettuce and radishes, etc. Split up each block by how many rounds of succession planting you want. So if you want three rounds, split it up into three sections. Plant the first section, two weeks later the second section and three weeks later, the third session. Tada! You’ve designed your spring garden.

Don’t want to design your garden yourself? Manifest a beautifully designed garden with Debby’s Professional Custom Garden Designs. Get Yours!

Companion plant cabbage and broccoli with root crops like carrots, betts, turnips and radish — Spring Boundy of Companion Planted Cabbages, Carrots, Beets, Brocolli and more!

Process & Budget Tips to Get Ready for Seed Starting

Debby WardLeave a comment

Sometime in January or February I really start honing in on starting seeds indoors for my spring and summer plants. It occurred to me, the steps I take to get ready to start my seeds could be useful for you, so here we go …

I start by deciding what I want to grow in the spring and follow-on for the summer. Make a list of what you want to grow, using variety names where you know them. Also make notes about what you’d like to try that would be new for you. Include any types of crops you would like to replace because they did not do well. This could be a type of crop, like broccoli, or it could be that a variety that didn’t do well, so you want to find another one to try.

image of seed inventory spreadsheet page — Your seed inventory can be in a spreadsheet, notebook, jotted on a peice of paper or on your phone.

At some point in this process, do an inventory of your seeds and see what gaps you might have between what seeds you have and what is on your list of plants to grow.

By Mid-January I have received most of my seed catalogs, although there are a couple stragglers in February. Once you have your list of what seeds you need, then you can go through your catalogs and see who has what you want.

When looking for a new variety, compare not only different choices in one catalog, but in more than one. If you think you have found a variety you want to try, see if any of your other seed companies carry it and read their description also. More information on the variety helps you hone in on the best variety for you to try based on your goals.

Granted, I tend to go through each catalog when I get it and then multiple times thereafter. I’ll put a tick mark by anything that looks interesting and I might want to get.

I make a photo copy of the order form so as I start to hone in on what I want to get, I can use the form while looking at the catalogs. That way I am not constantly looking in each catalog for where the order form is. I don’t send the forms in, I will call (first choice) or order online, but having the list makes the ordering processing faster, simpler and easier, plus I can calculate any tax or shipping for budgeting. I can also check my list against the packing list when the seeds come in.

I’ll fill out the forms in pencil, so when I see the total cost of them all, which is pretty much always more than I want to spend, I can go back and erase what I cut out to stay in budget. Alternatively, I’ll star the items I am not going to order, or erase the price, so it does not end up in the total. This way I have the list of everything I wanted to grow in case my budget allows for another seed order later.

Which leads to another budget tip. Spread out ordering from your preferred companies. Order from the ones who have the first seeds you need to start and order last from companies with varieties you can start later. I will sometimes adjust who I am buying what from for this purpose. If I see something I want to grow in the fall, I will often wait to order those varieties until June when I’ll be needing to get them started.

Enjoy a cup of tea and browsing those seed catalogs!

FREE Seed Starting Checklist – Spring forward your indoor seed starting!

Keeping Track of Your Seeds

Debby WardLeave a comment

Bet there are some of you out there who are seed freaks like me. Can’t wait for the next seed catalog, find yourself trolling through seed websites, seeming to always be looking for the next thing you want to grow.

Then what do you do when you do order your seeds, and don’t use the whole packet? Do they go in a drawer, or bag in a big jumble? Oh, then sometime later, you find some other seeds you just have to get, and those packets get put, well, on the kitchen table, a pocket in your garden bag, in a jar – somewhere!

It is time to plant and you were absolutely sure you got that variety, but darn it, can’t find it, quick buy more. A month later, oh there are those seeds I knew I bought, darn, I double bought and now have more than I need.

I confess to have done all the above!

The answer is coming up with a seed inventory system that works for you. It can be simple or complex, depending on how many seeds you have, and what your personal style is. Make it something that works for you.

I have allot of seeds, I run a seed swap, save seeds, partner with seed companies and did plants sales for years, so having a system became critical to business. You don’t have to be in business to need to organize your seeds.

Here are some tips to create a seed organization system that works for you:

Create a spreadsheet, chart, list on your phone, or a notebook to jot down seed orders when they come in.
Have one place to put seeds that have not made it onto your inventory yet.
Have one place where you store your seeds after they are on your inventory.
Create a way to know when you have used up your seeds. I fold my seed packets in half for example.
Have a trigger in your system that lets you know when you need to buy more of that variety.
And a trigger if you grew something and you don’t want to grow that variety again.

Review your inventory at least once a year. I like to do it over the winter, and if you have a system in place, it takes much less time, so you can get back to important things, like looking at more seed catalogs and websites :-)Seed Inventory Journal

Empower Yourself with 3 short videos for a deeper dive into seed organization with the Seed Organization & Storage Mini-course.

Templates & Worksheets to Save Time:

Saved Seed Label Template
Seed Inventory Journal
Seed Viability Chart
PLUS: FREE 15 minute 1-on-1 call with Debby

Why Growing Dry Beans is So Awesome

Debby WardLeave a comment

Do you love soups in the winter? I sure do, a pot of soup on the stove heating up the house with its yummy smells filling the air. Dried beans are a must have for winter soups.

Today is a pleasantly cool rainy fall day, perfect for listening to some favorite tunes, enjoying a cup of tea and shelling beans, humming and dancing while the shelled beans pile up in a bowl, ready to be planted next spring and eaten this winter.

When I shell dried beans, I keep some of the biggest, plumpest out for planting the following year. The rest are put into jars for eating.

There are literally hundreds of varieties of dried beans, so choose the ones you like to eat. Are you into Minestrone soup, then grow Cannellini beans. Into nachos, then grow pinto or black beans. Love making chili, grow some Kidney beans. Beyond these pretty well known favorites there are loads of other types to try to make you own unique winter soup.

A couple lesser known of favorites I like to grow are Vermont Cranberry and Christmas Limas. Vermont Cranberry is a bush bean, where Christmas Limas are pole beans. They are both beautiful and both make your soup broth a rich warm burgundy color.

You can find lots of varieties of dried beans that grow as bush beans or pole beans, depending on which you prefer to grow. I like a bit of both. Bush beans yield faster, but I get a larger harvest from pole beans. Check the Days to Maturity on the varieties that look interesting to you. This will tell you if you’ll have enough time to grow them until they dry on the plant. If you are in the south, this is usually not an issue. Northern gardeners whose number of hot summer days are shorter may want to stick to shorter days to maturity bush types.

When looking at seed catalogs for bean varieties, note that some beans are good both fresh and dried. This can be a good use of garden space, as you can have a round or two of fresh green beans, then let the rest go for dried beans. This way you get two types of beans from one plant!

Bon Appetit, I’m off to enjoy my first cool weather soup made with home grown beans.

Choosing Seed Companies Just got Easier!

Short Seed Company Videos

Covers 20 Vetted Seed Companies
All companies have been tested with my 16 criteria so you get to do the fun part of choosing varieties
Why each company is great and recommendations on what to buy from them
You’ll even get some of my favorite varieties!

Get the Seed Company Videos Now

Build Your Own Seed Starting Rack

Debby WardLeave a comment

Hi folks, I friend messaged me this week asking if I could recommend a seed starting rack. She is in Wisconsin, so getting started now with her seed starting.

I confess I have little experience with pre-made seed starting racks and systems. I have been gifted with one, but I don’t like it as well as the one my sweetheart made.

Here is the Materials List:

Found plywood, 2×2, 2×4
Shop lights
Chain
Hooks
Screws
Wire
Switch box/s
Timer

General process to build your own seed starting rack:

Decide where you want to put your rack. It is best if you can place it in front of a window that gets good light as this will enhance the productivity of your rack. I can also say, it is really nice if you can place it in a permanent location. Ours was built with screws so it can be taken down an reassembled, but frankly, since I am four season gardening, I just keep it up.
Consider how much space you need for seed starting. Small scale home gardeners may not need much. My rack holds 14 seed trays and that is not enough for all I grow. Most folks can get away with one bank of lights which will cover two to four standard sized seed trays. A double bank will give you space for four or five seed trays.
I prefer to use found wood instead of buying new since so much is thrown out these days. We used wood found in a dumpster in back of a store, and some left over from a job.
Build the thing. It can be as simple or complicated as you make it. I have the advantage of having a partner who is a contractor, so he built and wired switches for me.

The best way to show you how we build it is in photos .. so here you go …

DYI Seed Starting Rack — My homemade three tired seed starting rack – front view. The rack has three shelves and uses old shop lights. We found some of these in the trash, some were from a friend who was getting rid of them. Each shelf has two banks of two lights. I use old fashioned ones to have the heat for summer seedlings. One cool and one warm in each bank which is less expensive than “grow lights”.

make your own seed starting rack — Outside corner of the rack.

build a place to start seeds — Inside corner.

seed rack height — We used hooks and chain, attached to a bar on the outside of each shop light to raise and lower the lights to accommodate different height plants.

put your seed rack next to a window for more light — Inside where the chain is attached to the rack.

The top bank we just had lights so made a really simple holder.

grow plants from seed — The top bank we hung from the ceiling.

Wiring for switches. We have a switch on each side so we can turn on one set of lights on each bank. This allows us to put the trays in either direction for growth or saving electricity if we don’t need both sets of lights at once in a bank.

how to start seedlings — Bottom who shelves filled. I will sometimes put trays on top of the lights until they germinate to make more room, as in this picture.

Easy Gardening – Why Fall & Winter Gardening is the Best

Debby WardLeave a comment

Got a text last week from a wonderful lady, who inspired this post.

Because of the heavy bug pressure she had in her garden this summer, she didn’t think she wouldn’t garden this fall and winter. 🍂

I see this allot, people are going into the fall, having had some difficulty gardening, whether it be bug pressure, drought, or life circumstances, get garden burn-out and stop, right when it becomes the easiest time of year to garden.

As the last two seasons of the year approach, some people mentally check out on their garden. I find this so unfortunate because you can continue the joy all year. 📅😀

Here are 3 reasons for you to get that fall and winter garden going:

Lack of bugs – As cooler weather approaches, there are not only less bugs eating your food, but less bugs wanting to eat you. 😀

Once the weather cools down, you don’t have to worry about bug pressure until it gets warm again next spring. A major relief.

This also allows you to take some time and assess how your garden did over the summer. What pests showed up that helped or harmed your garden.

If you want to get a jump on critters next year – start with this Free Checklist.

woman sitting on her sofa fanning herself from the heat

Pleasant Weather – The cooler weather is also much more pleasant to be out in your garden than the brutal heat of summer.

Your garden can be a welcome haven of outdoor time when it is enjoyable to be outside.

Taking an afternoon day-trip to your garden is less expensive and time consuming and still allow you to get away from work and other concerns.

It is also a wonderful time to have a garden party. 🥳

You get food all year! Most everyone loves their homegrown summer tomatoes. Think about how much better your homegrown tomatoes are than the ones you buy in the supermarket.

5 winter soups including carrot, beat, mushroom and broccoli

Translate that into your salads, green smoothies, and winter root veggie soups.

Yes, homegrown produce of any variety is going to be fresher, more satisfying and better tasting then store bought. Plus, since is it so fresh, it will have a more nutrition to keep you going.

How to Garden in Fall & Winter

Think of how you prepare for your summer garden. You might buy seeds and get them started indoors, you might check your soil health, or plan what plants you want to buy.

You get to so all that again for fall – how exciting! 😍