Waking the Garden Up

Earth Day is coming up in less than a month, which is a typical planting date for cool-weather crops in Chicagoland. Cool-weather crops such as broccoli, kale, and parsley can handle slight dips in nighttime temperatures, provided they have been hardened off properly. This is also a great...

About Arugula

Arugula is a peppery-tasting salad green. It is popular among edible gardeners because it is ready to harvest from seed in just a few weeks (probably why it is also known as “rocket green” in some parts of the world). Arugula can be planted in the spring and fall, and grows and tastes best in...

About Peas

  Far from those frozen mushy things your mom used to hide in your mashed potatoes, fresh peas from the garden can be one of the tastiest things you’ve ever put in your mouth. These frost-hardy, cool-season crops are often among the first crop to harvest in the spring, and luckily with...

Part 1: Seed Startin...

Start with clean plant pots, clean hands and a sterile seed starting mix. Most bagged mixes are already sterile. Starting seeds indoors in topsoil or compost can sometimes lead to fungal diseases in the seedlings, or too many nutrients that overwhelm the young plants. Moisten your seed...