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Grow Mushrooms in Your Container Garden

If you use wood mulch in your plant containers - at least an inch on top - it not only saves water (up to 80% LESS water), but it provides a nice environment in which you can grow mushrooms!

Mushrooms will grow best in mulch 2" deep or more, in large containers that are 12" wide or more, but some specialty varieties can be grown in smaller containers.

Some mushrooms that grow well in containers are:


  • Elm Oyster
  • Wine Cap
  • Mini Almond Agaricus
  • Meadow Mushrooms
  • Freckled Dapperling

Generally, smaller mushrooms can grow in smaller containers. The above mushrooms can grow in smaller amounts of mulch than most.

For smaller indoor containers you need specialty strains of mini-mushrooms. There are a number of Agaricus strains, and a few other edible mushroom strains that will produce in very small containers. You can find a few on this website

Mushrooms in Your Garden














No Tend Gardening - How DID They Do It?

When I was a kid, in school, we were told about Native Americans who were nomadic, who planted in the spring, foraged across their range in the summer, and came back to gather the harvest in the fall.

Having it drilled into us that nothing will produce if we are not there to snatch every opportunistic weed from the soil around our vulnerable plants, we simply cannot imagine such a careless attitude about growing food!

How DID they do it?

There are four basic requirements if you want to practice No Tend gardening as they did. And meeting these requirements will also help you to reduce the amount of tending in your garden.

  1. Choose plants which naturally do well in the climate and conditions which you have available. We are schooled into an idea of a vegetable garden that must contain certain items, regardless of whether they grow well in our area or not. We must have our tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuces, whether they grow easily or not! The plants must be able to grow well without additional watering, and to repel the pests common to the area. Wild plants do this well - and our vegetables were originally wild plants, and most still have those same capabilities, IF they are paired with the right growing conditions. You have to research YOUR growing conditions, and the requirements of vegetables you like, and see which ones fit best.

  2. Choose plants which are aggressive growers, which can compete well with the weeds. Plants like beans, corn, amaranth, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, and many others are very strong growers, and can hold their own against weeds. Give them the right conditions, and they can become weeds themselves.

  3. Choose a location which is suitable for growing plants all year. Low ground that gathers water is good in many places, but in others, it will flood. High traffic areas for wild foragers are not good ones either - and certainly you won't want an area where the buffalo are likely to stampede... Ok, so maybe our concerns are a bit different! But the point is, consider what is going to happen on that spot through the entire season. Whether you are there or not, if you want low maintenance, this is essential.

  4. This last item is optional for US, but was not for them. Native Americans had to plant crops that matured in the fall, at a fairly predictable time. This means they chose shelled beans, dried corn, pumpkins, root crops, winter squash, and other crops which are ready in the fall for harvest, and can stay in the field for a while. Now, in our circumstances, we could harvest early peas, lettuces (which do grow like weeds in some places), green beans, broccoli, and other early and mid-season crops.

Planting was done using a No Till method. Use a sharp stick to make a hole to plant the seed, right in the sod. No more competition in the sod than when left to the opportunistic weeds that grow in tilled soil - and sod possessed more qualities and structure to encourage better growth in the veggies.

While most of us have no real need to do complete No Tend gardening, it might provide a useful method for untended fields where we had the time to plant, but not to tend. If you choose the right crops, and the right location, there is every chance you could bring in an extra crop in the fall - one that didn't mind waiting until you had the time to haul it in.

Especially on a farm where you need more storable crops for animal feed in the winter, such crops could be invaluable. Most of the No Tend crops favored historically were crops which were stored for winter use. This makes them eminently suitable for use for both people, and animals, as additional easy care crops to add to the more intensively cared for fields or gardens.

Whether you choose to give the whole concept a try, or simply use the principles to lessen the work required to produce your own food, it is worth exploring to see what your land and climate might be capable of producing without having to hover and provide every need for the growing plants.

Raised Garden Bed Myths















Growing Root Crops from Scraps

When you try to recycle onion bottoms, carrot root tops, potato peels with eyes on them, shriveled sweet potatoes, overaged garlic, or if you decide to try planting some harder to find items like shallots from items you purchased at the grocery store, it really helps to use organic vegetables!

Many root crops are sprayed with a sprout inhibitor (Google "budnip"). It can prevent sprouting, delay sprouting, or allow sprouting but prohibit reproduction, depending on the plant in question, amount sprayed, and general age and conditions of the plant. Some may never grow at all. Some may. Some may grow badly.

Organic crops are generally not treated with substances to prevent sprouting, so they will work much better to start new plants.

Easiest Winter Microgreens

Microgreens are a great winter crop, as are sprouts. Crops which do better in cooler weather will work best, especially if your home is cooler than average or has variable temperatures.

The easiest microgreens for growing without having to use heat mats or other special compensations in the winter, are:

  • Cabbages
  • Lettuces
  • Broccoli Raab
  • Sunflower (grows very fast)
  • Beet
  • Pea
  • Arugula
  • Kale
  • Turnip Greens
  • Radish
  • Broccoli

Those plants enjoy cooler temps, and indeed, grow with a sweeter flavor in the cold weather than they do in the heat. They all grow easily, and fairly quickly, and except for turnips and beets, can be grown with or without dirt (root crops really need dirt).

Keep the fresh veggies coming through the winter!

Winter Container Gardens

Yes, you can grow a container garden in the winter. Containers are more prone to soil freezing than gardens in the ground though. Your primary goal then, is keeping the containers warm. You have the same options you have for any garden:

1. Greenhouse. Pots work well in greenhouses, and if they are clustered together, they'll retain heat better. We like wide and deep trays instead of round pots for greenhouse gardening.

2. Cold frame. A cold frame can be set over containers, or it can be built onto square or rectangular planters. It helps to paint the inside walls white, to reflect light.

3. Row cover. This will keep plants warm in containers - it makes a difference of roughly 5 degrees.

4. Cloches. A Cloche is a cap, made of row cover, plastic, or glass. Row cover or plastic is fastened over a wire mesh frame to support it. Old French Bell Jars were made entirely of glass, and were set over individual lettuce plants, but this kind of cover can be used on a pot as well. You can make one from any kind of rounded frame, and heat shrink window film. If the cloche is large enough to cover the entire plant and pot, it will keep the soil warmer.

Some people recommend burying pots in the ground for the winter. This allows them to stay slightly warmer. I'm not a fan of this - for one, it is a lot of work for relatively minor benefit (especially in very cold climates), and the pot may be damaged due to frost heave. If you leave the pot in the ground year-round, the roots of the plant will grow out of the pot and into the soil, causing damage (and difficulty) if you then choose to move the pot. Roots can also damage the pot. I figure if you are going to bury the pot in the ground, you might as well just plant IN the ground.

Late fall is not too late to plant, just make sure the soil stays above freezing, and the air temps are at least 50 degrees average during the daytime for plants to germinate. They'll grow slowly, but if you choose cold tolerant plants, they'll still give you a respectable harvest. Cover them with some kind of protection as soon as nighttime temps get below freezing - while cold tolerant veggies and herbs can usually tolerate temps down to 15 degrees F or so, new seedlings cannot, and they don't grow much when subjected to those temps. They'll grow better with some protection.

Critters in the Garden

Keeping deer, rabbits, dogs, cats, and other four legged critters out of the garden can be a challenge. This simple method can keep many out:

Use wire fencing, at least 14 gauge (12 may be better), either twisted or welded wire, with a 2" X 4" grid. Lay it on the ground. You can cut it to fit around trees in an orchard. It can be laid on the ground right after you plant, or laid down before you set in transplants in your garden. Fold any sharp ends down so they don't create a hazard.

Animals don't like to walk on wire, and they'll avoid it if they can. They'll only walk on this if there are no other food sources around that are easier to get at. Worth a try if you are having animal issues in the garden.

Food Forests


Cheapest Microgreen Growing Method

Microgreens can be expensive to grow, because they not only take a lot of seed, they also take fresh soil for every batch. The combination of those two things makes them more expensive to produce than sprouts.

You can grow Microgreens the same way you grow sprouts, without the dirt. Grow them in a sprouter, or on wet papertowels. Either one will work fine. Rinse or mist them to wet them once or twice a day (depending on your climate).

Let them grow until the second set of leaves appear. Cut them with scissors, and enjoy!


Microgreens are really just overgrown sprouts, and can be grown from any clean seed for any kind of green that you'd normally eat mature, and a few that you would not! They can be grown like sprouts, with just water, or in soil. Either way, they are allowed to get a little larger than sprouts, but usually not fully into the secondary leaf stage. Unlike sprouts, Microgreens are typically clipped rather than tossed in roots and all. They'll grow in a sunny window just fine. You can find Microgreen mixes and seeds in most major seed supplier catalogs and websites now.

Weeds to the Rescue

Summer is here, and in many places that makes pot gardening a real challenge. Pots may dry out very quickly, and they overheat more easily as well, stressing the plants both above ground, and at the roots. Setting the pots in taller grass or in around other plants can help to conserve moisture and insulate the pots. It is wise to keep the grass around them cut enough so it does not go to seed all over them, but don't cut it really short - keep it tall enough to provide protection for the pots.

It's Ok To Give Up

When you've tried gardening more than once, and you always have a great crop of lettuce and green beans, but the broccoli and tomatoes always get eaten up by bugs, it is ok to give up! But don't give up on everything! You're growing lettuce and green beans just wonderfully!

There are any number of problems that can make you feel like a failure in the garden, in spite of lovely crops in other areas. Sometimes certain crops just don't like your soil, they don't thrive in your climate, or they are prone to pests that are especially aggressive where you are located.

It is ok to decide NOT to grow things that are especially troublesome. One of the rules of success is to do more of what works, less of what does not. That doesn't mean you grow only lettuce and green beans, it may mean figuring out why those two things do well, and then expanding with other things that thrive under similar conditions.

Taking a break from growing things that don't do well not only helps you focus on success for a while, it gives the garden a rest, and gives you time to address potential underlying problems without the pressure of this year's crop looming over you. You can use the time to build the soil, give it a rest from infestation of certain pests, or work on balancing things out in other ways, or even put in structures that may help you be more successful in the long term.

If what you are doing isn't working in one area, it is ok to take time off and enjoy the things that do well. Eventually an idea will occur to you, or an opportunity will come to help you try again in a new way with the things that didn't do well.

As long as you are growing things that you enjoy having on your table, you're a success as a gardener! You don't have to be able to grow everything. There is wisdom in knowing when to let go and either take time off or just let it go altogether. Either one is ok.

Cold Climate Gardening

A combination of windbreaks, and wood chip mulch on your garden can help to raise the temperatures as much as a full climate zone. Wood chip mulch should be applied each spring - about an inch. Compost or Manure may be added on top of the mulch. Windbreaks may include buildings, trees, or snow fence type barriers. If you live in an area with much drifting snow, a windbreak will create a great drift on the leeward side of the break, which may be as much as 4-6 times wider than the height of the windbreak. This may be an important source of moisture, but it also REDUCES soil temperatures and delays the spring thaw in that area. There is a ribbon of sheltered ground between the windbreak and the drift, and more sheltered area beyond the drift. Planting in naturally sheltered hollows also provides a windbreak.

Reducing Bug Damage to Seedlings

Bugs can completely mow down a small plant literally overnight. One way to reduce bug damage is to start seedlings indoors, and set them out when they are larger. This works with greens, and many other plants that can be completely gobbled when they are small, but which have greater capacity to withstand insect damage when they are larger. Wait until plants are several inches tall before moving them outside. This won't help with things like bunnies gobbling your greens, because they are big enough to chomp out a dozen plants in a single sitting. But it will slow down the grasshoppers and other munchers.

Potting Soil

Potting mix really isn't the best medium for plant growing! Somehow, we've bought into the myth that a formula mixed up in a factory, using all sorts of things that plants don't normally grow in, is superior to backyard soil. People are even encouraged to use it to fill raised beds when they have poor garden soil! Consider... potting mix has no dirt! While it has no weeds, which is a minor advantage, it is sterile! Sterility may reduce disease short term, but actually makes it worse long term. Potting soil is more likely to have problems with mold, because there are no natural bacteria to inhibit mold growth. The soil is also missing the healthy probiotics which encourage plant health. It typically holds water poorly. The ingredients are often anything BUT natural, and nature simply does not formulate petroleum products as a growing medium. A mixture of dirt and compost is the best medium we have ever found for growing plants in pots, or raised beds. Compost balances out poor soil, so mixing it about half and half with poor soils will balance out most growing problems, and is more suitable for raised beds. We reluctantly use potting soil when we have no access to dirt and compost, but it really isn't a good option for keeping plants healthy and happy.

Small Buckets

We found 1 gallon plastic buckets, the same style as 5 gallon buckets, at the dollar store. They make good planters with holes drilled in the bottom. The ones we found were black, so they'll hold heat, and perhaps not be the best for some items in a hot climate. If you get creative about planting containers, the dollar store has all sorts of options.

Deer Fencing

A solid fence that cannot be seen through is the best barrier for deer. They won't jump through what they cannot see through, because they can't see if it is safe on the other side. 6 ft tall is generally sufficient for deer anywhere in the country. Other fences are less effective, they can jump over fences up to 12 ft high.

Diatomaceous Earth

Diatomaceous Earth is a fine powdery substance that is made up of the crushed bodies of a single celled sea creature. It is one of the better natural choices for controlling certain kinds of bugs in the garden - soft bodied bugs, specifically. It will reduce the number of cabbage loopers, and is effective on many other kinds of insects as well. It looks and feels like talc, and is available in several forms. Look for the type intended for animal use, and then you can use it in the garden, and around pets to control worms (sprinkle it on food, and around where they leave their droppings). We used a duster to apply it in the garden, but you can use a large zip bag with a tiny bit cut off the corner. Get the bag full of air, pinch the hole in the corner loosely, and squeeze the bag toward the plant. With a bit of practice you'll be able to use this method as well as a duster.

Bargain Plants

Bargain plants. Many stores clear out plants that are not doing well, and will mark them down to half price, sometimes less. Look to see if the plant is basically still there - a reasonable amount of leaves that are still green. Generally all that has happened is that the plant has outlived the pot’s resources. If it is a potted plant, meant to stay in the pot, just fertilize it a little to revive it. If it is a garden plant, putting it into garden soil should do the trick, though it will likely drop blossoms or any fruit that is on it when you  transplant. Be patient, it will most likely come back.

Peat and Cow Pots

Peat Pots, or Cow Pots either one are easy to transplant because the entire pot plants right into the soil. They do have a few issues though. They are prone to drying out, especially if you have a lot of pot above the level of the soil - so fill the pots up to the top when you fill them with soil. Set them in a tray, and make sure that the pot gets wet every time you water them - this is how you know you have watered them enough. If you push them close together (so they are touching enough to square off the sides), they'll retain moisture better - but they'll also have issues with roots growing from one pot into another if you do this. I usually do it that way anyway, and spread them out more if it looks like roots are coming through, because we have lived mostly in dry areas where problems with the pots drying out were significant. When you plant them, make sure the entire pot is buried below the surface of the soil also, or the pot sticking above the soil will tend to wick out the moisture from around the plant, and cause problems with drying out the plant during the sensitive transplant adjustment period. If you have too much pot above the surface of the soil, tear it off and throw it in the bottom of the hole before you plant - it will break down and add to the soil.

Grocery Bags

Plastic Grocery Bags can be used in the garden. Tie over plants in the spring or fall to protect from frost. Cut in wide strips to use for ties to stake tomatoes or squash.

Wetting Potting Mix

Wetting Potting Mix. Most potting mixes don’t absorb water very well. The water tends to puddle, sits on top of the mix, or the mix floats on the water, and it stubbornly refuses to absorb into the mix. When we are filling pots, we like to get a 5 gallon bucket, and a large spoon or stick. We dump the potting mix into the bucket, wet it down well enough that it gets clumpy and no dry patches remain. If we get too much water, we can pour it off outside. Once we’ve got a good damp mix, we fill our pots, and sow the seeds. Much easier than trying to fill trays or pots and then try to get the water to absorb.

Using Mulch

Use Mulch on planters in the summer time to reduce temperature in the pots, and to hold moisture into the soil. In warm climates, pots can dry out very fast. Grass clippings (if grass has NOT gone to seed), leaves, bark, straw, and other loose organic material.

5 Gallon Bucket Planters

A 5 gallon bucket makes a good planter. Just drill holes in the bottom or put rocks in the bottom to ensure drainage. It can be made into a Vertical Planter by cutting three 2" holes 4" from the bottom of the bucket, and then another row 4" above that, offset from the first row - shorter buckets will accommodate 2 rows, taller buckets will accommodate 3 or 4 rows. Fill with potting soil, and plant the top with plants, and transplant individual plants into the holes in the side. Make sure to water thoroughly each time you water.

Using Shade Cloth

Shade Cloth can be used to reduce heat on cool season crops to help them last a bit longer through the hot months. Look in the chapter on Shady Yard Solutions (not in the first release) for a listing of plants that tolerate shade well.

Floating Row Covers

Floating Row Covers are sometimes suggested as a method of keeping plants bug-free. I can only recommend that as a short term option, they have problems if used for very long for bug control. First, bugs usually appear in the heat, and floating row covers tend to increase the heat quite a bit. Not good in hot climates. Second, they are a pain to work around, because you have to lift them off to get at anything, and re-anchor them (they have to be really anchored well in windy areas) - this makes it impractical to use them for things like cucumbers that you need to check and pick daily. Third, they are supposed to let water through, but they don't do it very well. The row cover tends to get heavy and the water concentrates in hollows to drip through all in one place, or it sheds off the sides. Water can also mash it down on the plants, or weigh it down so that it gets muddy and heavier because of the mud. Fourth, once a few of the bugs get under (and they eventually WILL), the fun is over, and the party inside is ON. They'll have a fine old time in there ravaging your plants.


Baskets may also be used for growing plants. Best for cooler dry climates where drying out is less of an issue if used without a liner - they will break down faster without a liner also. Line with plastic if you wish, and poke a few holes in the bottom for drainage. Baskets look awesome, and if you can't get used baskets cheaply, dollar stores often have them.

Using Paper Products in Your Garden

Toilet Paper Tubes, Paper Towel Tubes, Crochet Thread Spools, and other cardboard tubes make good planting pot alternatives. There's nothing new in this idea, avid recyclers have been recommending it for decades. Cut TP tubes in half, cut Paper Towel tubes down to 2-3" lengths, leave Crochet Thread Spools whole (they are best for larger plants like tomatoes). Set them upright in a tray. Fill with potting soil, right up to the top (when you water it, it will sink anyway). They follow the same rules as Peat Pots, though some roots may grow through the cardboard, some may not. If they do not, you can tear off the cardboard before planting - there isn't a real need to do so though, because it will break down and help the soil if you leave it there.

Companion Planting

Companion planting does help! Marigolds, Nasturtiums, and Mint can be used to deter certain types of bugs. We typically scatter Marigolds and Nasturtiums through our gardens, in between the plants, where they cheerfully bloom among the vegetables. Mint is pretty aggressive, and cannot be interplanted, but you can put pots around the garden. There are other plants that help deter bugs as well.

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