Basics

Whether you're new to gardening or experienced, everyone needs some gardening basics to get going!

In this category, you'll find a wealth of information that spans a wide number of topics. From seed starting to grow bag gardening, pruning tips to raised bed tricks, you'll find the fundamentals of gardening awaiting you here.

While it's optimized towards new gardeners, even a pro can find useful tips in our Basics category. We all need to get back to basics sometimes, and there are always useful tools and tips that other gardeners have developed along the way to add to your own practices.

Our Basics category can inspire you to new gardening heights, too. Those who have experience with in-ground planting can learn about other techniques such as raised beds or vertical gardening.

Collage of two images of wooden vs. metal raised beds. A wooden raised bed is made of a wooden frame, filled with soil and various plants of dill, radishes, beets and other vegetable crops. The metal raised bed is made of galvanized metal, has a ribbed structure and a pale green tint. Young cabbage seedlings grow on a raised bed.

Gardening Tips

Wood vs. Metal Raised Beds: Which is Better?

Raised beds offer the ultimate growing solution for gardens with poor soil, aggressive weeds, or space constraints, but should you plant your crops in wood or metal? Garden expert and former organic farmer Logan Hailey discusses the pros and cons of each and how to choose the best material for your garden.

Close-up of a raised bed with growing zucchini plants. The zucchini plant is a lush, bushy annual characterized by sturdy, succulent stems branching out from its base, supporting a canopy of large, bright green leaves with prominent veins and slightly fuzzy textures.Amidst the foliage, vibrant yellow flowers bloom, each bearing five distinct petals and a central stamen.

Raised Bed Gardening

5 Tips for Growing Great Zucchini in Raised Beds

Zucchini is a prolific grower and generous giver. While zucchini loves room to spread, getting a great yield while contained in a raised bed isn’t an issue with the proper preparation. Garden expert Christina Conner shares her top tips for growing great zucchini in raised beds this summer.

beneficial weeds. Close-up of flowering Chickweed plants (Stellaria media) in a sunny garden. Chickweed is a delicate annual herb with small, oval-shaped leaves arranged in pairs along its succulent, branching stems. Its dainty white flowers, each containing five deeply notched petals.

Gardening Tips

41 Beneficial Weeds and Their Uses

While some weeds can be problematic for garden crops, weedy plants aren’t always the enemies we’ve made them out to be. Garden expert and former organic farmer Logan Hailey digs into the beneficial uses of common weeds for everything from pest control to pollinator habitat to edible nutrition and herbal remedies.

pollinator garden raised beds. Close-up of a white wooden raised bed with various flowering plants attracting pollinators to a sunny garden. The raised bed features red and yellow petunias, Verbascum 'Southern Charm', purple and white Sweet Alyssum, Echium pininana, pink and purple hydrangeas, Phlox, Salvia and more.

Raised Bed Gardening

How to Grow a Pollinator Garden in Raised Beds

Pollinator gardening is a popular way for plant lovers to support those all-important garden workers. We just love a functional and beautiful raised bed garden. In this article, beekeeper Melissa Strauss will help you build a raised bed garden that the butterflies will be talking about for miles.

save overfertilized plants. Close-up of Calathea Orbifolia in a large white pot outdoors. The plant has damaged leaves due to overfertilization. Calathea Orbifolia is a stunning tropical plant known for its large, oval leaves adorned with intricate patterns of silvery-green stripes that radiate from the central vein. Each leaf showcases a blend of light and dark green hues. The tips of the leaves are brown and dry.

Gardening Tips

9 Ways to Save Over-Fertilized Plants

Too many nutrients can be catastrophic for houseplants, vegetables, and shrubs, but these remedies may help you save over-fertilized plants. Garden expert and former organic farmer Logan Hailey explains how to identify and fix over-fertilization before it kills your plants.

garden color schemes. Close-up of a flowering bed of colorful zinnias in a sunny garden. Zinnias are vibrant and eye-catching annual flowers known for their striking colors and diverse forms. They feature sturdy stems with lance-shaped leaves arranged opposite each other. Atop these stems, zinnias produce large, daisy-like flowers with multiple layers of petals in a wide array of hues, including shades of red, orange, pink, and white.

Gardening Tips

10 Garden Designs for Different Color Schemes

Choosing colors for the garden allows us to play with exciting combinations and moods. Color combinations create lively, energized spaces or peaceful and serene ones. They’ll complement a home or contrast it beautifully through striking opposites. Explore ideas for different color schemes with garden designer Katherine Rowe.

Wooden raised beds and paved pathways form a structured garden. Verdant plants thrive, reaching upward with lush foliage. Some spill gracefully over the edges of the beds, adding a soft cascade of greenery to the landscape.

Gardening Tips

Where to Put Raised Beds in Your Garden: 7 Location Tips

Thinking about installing a raised bed in your garden but not sure where to put it? Looking for tips on getting the location and orientation right? In this article, certified master gardener Liz Jaros highlights the priorities for siting a raised bed where it will yield the healthiest, most productive plants. You’ll learn the characteristics of an ideal location and how to avert some costly location mistakes.

Wooden garden beds neatly arranged in a sunlit garden, offering a rustic charm to the outdoor space. Sunlight filters through the leaves, casting a warm glow on the thriving greenery, creating a tranquil oasis in the backyard.

Gardening Tips

Raised Bed Gardening: 7 Beginner Tips

Ready to build a raised bed garden in your yard? Wondering how to prep your raised beds for success? In this article, certified master gardener Liz Jaros offers 7 beginner tips for choosing, building, filling, planting, and caring for a raised bed garden.

budget gardening. Close-up of a female gardener in denim overalls and a red plaid shirt digging soil in a garden bed using a garden trowel. The garden bed contains rows of Swiss Chard plants. Swiss chard plants showcase a vibrant and striking appearance with large, glossy bright green leaves and strong, succulent pale green stems.

Gardening Tips

31 Tips for Starting Your New Garden on a Budget

Are you excited about starting a new garden but intimidated by the potential cost? There are plenty of practical ways you can save money on your gardening project. Join thrifty gardening expert Liessa Bowen as she shares some of her favorite tips for gardening on a budget.

Close-up of a blooming Blue Butterfly Pea - one of the natural plant dyes. The Blue Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) is a striking vine with delicate foliage and mesmerizing flowers. Its slender stems bear compound leaves consisting of three ovate leaflets. The flowers, reminiscent of butterfly wings, are a vibrant sky-blue color with a distinctive shape and intricate patterns.

Gardening Tips

21 Garden Plants to Use as Natural Dyes

You’ve heard of vegetable and cut flower gardens, but what about dye gardens? Dying yarn and fabrics with plant-based dyes allows you to create beautiful hues and develop a new appreciation for plants. If you’re not sure where to get started, join Briana Yablonski to learn 21 plants you can use as natural dyes.