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.

Perennials leave standing through winter, withered and covered in white snow on their dry, yellowish-brown inflorescences.

Gardening Tips

10 Flowering Perennials to Leave Standing Through Winter

Leaving the garden a little wild is becoming quite trendy. That cottage garden, wildflower meadow aesthetic has some excellent benefits to the environment and the gardener's workload. Beekeeper and pollinator enthusiast Melissa Strauss shares some perennials you should leave standing this winter.

A close-up shot of a person in the process of raking fallen leaves, beside a wheelbarrow filled with debris, showcasing fall cleanup mistakes

Gardening Tips

9 Fall Cleanup Mistakes That Can Kill Your Perennials

Don’t jump the gun! Cleaning up too much, too early, or too late in the season can kill your perennials. It’s best to use minimally disruptive cleanup methods for the fall. Grab a rake, get your gloves on, and prepare to clean up the garden with holistic, non-harmful methods.

fall bird garden essentials. Titmouse with gray and yellow feathers perched at the entrance of a green wooden birdhouse on a tall maple tree adorned with red-orange autumn leaves.

Gardening Tips

7 Fall Bird Garden Essentials: Beyond Feeders

It’s easy to make your garden a special place for birds. As long as you include a few fall bird garden essentials, you’ll have winged friends with you throughout the year. Learn about these with Master Naturalist and experienced gardener Sarah Jay.

A close-up shot of a person's hand in the process of pickin ripe, oblong, green colored fruits, showcasing how to harvest pawpaw

Harvesting

How and When to Harvest Pawpaw Fruit

Although pawpaws look tropical, these custardy fruits are North American natives with a short harvest window. Join farmer and native plant enthusiast Briana Yablonski to learn when and how to pick the fruits to enjoy their peak flavor.

A planned vertical rain garden with a gutter chain surrounded by different plants, with containers meant to collect rainwater

Gardening Inspiration

How to Start a Vertical Rain Garden

Rain gardens increase biodiversity while offering landscape solutions to challenging zones. They slow stormwater, improve infiltration, and filter pollutants, all while enhancing aesthetics. While sunken by design, there’s no reason to limit the interest to the horizontal. Garden expert Katherine Rowe explores how to take the rain garden concept vertically for added applications and appeal.

A neatly mowed, dense lawn with uniform green blades and a smooth, even surface displays grass seeds suitable for almost any region.

Seeds

The Best Grass Seed For Your Region: Lawn Pro Recommendations

Wondering what type of grass seed to buy this year? Wonder no more! Here are expert recommendations for the best grasses in each ecoregion. Choose a few new cultivars, or go for a tried-and-true mix that’s dependable. Join lawn pro Jerad Bryant in shopping for the best grass seed mixture for your region.

A gardener's hands pull a long, cream-colored, tapered parsnip root from the soil by its green leafy top during harvest.

Harvesting

How and When to Harvest Parsnips

As parsnips slowly develop underground, it helps to know what to look for in determining when to harvest. Gardening expert Katherine Rowe outlines when to harvest the root vegetables for peak nutty, sweet flavor.

A person using pruners to harvest grapes, which appear dark purple and ripe perfect for fresh eating and other uses

Harvesting

When and How to Harvest Grapes

It’s the end of the growing season, and grapes are turning from green to bright purple. It may be time to harvest! First, look for ripeness. Then, harvest the grapes and preserve them for year-round use. Join backyard grape grower Jerad Bryant to learn when and how to harvest your grapes.