Farming Values

Gardening Tips

At Harvest, gardening is the heart and soul of our community — and growing your own produce is a great way to connect with friends and neighbors while enjoying a wide variety of colorful, hardy native plants that bring biodiversity and beauty to our community and your home. This season, take some tips from Farmer Ross to maximize your harvest while conserving resources. Memories are made in the garden. So unplug, and dig in!

1. Add sand or wood chips to our “black gumbo” clay soil to enhance drainage and improve soil quality for an overall healthier garden.
2. Transform your kitchen waste into “black gold” with home composting. Compost makes a great fertilizer that’s chemical-free.
3. Roll up your sleeves and weed! Weeding gives your garden room to grow by aerating the soil and freeing up water and nutrients for your produce, herbs, or flowers.
4. Give the ground a drink just before it rains. It may seem counterintuitive, but this improves the soil’s ability to absorb the rain and helps to prevent quick runoff and flooding.
5. Freshen up your mulch! Mulch not only looks nice, but it also reduces the need for weeding and holds moisture in your garden, which saves you time and conserves water during the hottest times of year.
6. Pay extra attention to your plants’ watering needs during the hot, dry summer. Even drought-tolerant plants need water to help them stay strong and reduce runoff.
7. Save your heavy pruning for fall, but take time to trim or pull off unhealthy parts of your plants for strong, healthy plants and a lush garden.
8. Share the bounty of a bumper crop from your family garden. Extra produce can feed your friends — and your soul.
9. Use brightly colored, flowering plants to attract butterflies and birds to your garden for a healthier ecosystem.
10. Save water costs and reduce the strain on our precious watershed by choosing native, drought-resistant plants and using mulch to keep moisture in and weeds out.
11. Take the time to garden with your kids and other Harvest Littles, planting familiar plants in fun colors such as rainbow carrots, purple broccoli, or crimson okra. You’ll enjoy the homegrown vegetables all season, and you’ll savor the memories for a lifetime.
12. Even if it stings, let it “bee.” Bees, ants, and many other beneficial insects may carry a bite or sting, but they have their own places in the garden, helping to aerate soil and to pollinate flowers.
13. During the heat of summer, garden earlier in the day, wear long sleeves and a hat for shade, and keep a water bottle handy.
14. Plant more perennials. Perennial plants return year after year, taking root for an established garden that is better for the soil and uses less water.