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.

Bright red Euphorbia pulcherrima bracts stand out against dark green foliage

Seeds

Can You Grow Poinsettias From Seed?

Are you crushing on that stunning poinsettia you picked up for the season and want to propagate? Gardening expert Melissa Strauss explores whether you can grow these plants from seed and what other possibilities there are for propagating it.

A serene winter garden features a house surrounded by bare bushes and trees blanketed in soft white snow.

Gardening Tips

11 Winter Tasks To Do Now For An Abundant Spring Garden 

As we ready the garden for winter, there are a few activities to accomplish now for a solid foundation leading into spring. Setting these in place lets nature continue the work for us in the quiet season. Join gardening expert Katherine Rowe in a look at winter tasks to improve the future garden.

A person in sturdy boots scattering tiny grains over freshly tilled soil in an outdoor garden.

Seeds

How and When to Start Seeds Outdoors

It may be chilly now, but spring will be here before you know it, and along with it comes planting time. Join gardening expert Melissa Strauss to discuss direct sowing seeds in your spring garden.

A fuzzy bumblebee with bright yellow and black stripes gathers nectar from a vibrant pink flower with thin, pointed petals.

Gardening Inspiration

9 Beneficial Garden Insects That Overwinter in Fall Leaves

Autumn’s leaf drop presents a renewable resource straight from the garden. Fall leaves make an excellent mulch and soil conditioner full of nutrition, and they also create valuable habitat to foster overwintering pollinators and other beneficial insects. Explore how leaving the leaves is pollinator-friendly with gardening expert Katherine Rowe.

Close-up of a woman's hand gently touching a young sprouted seedling in a black seed starting tray, featuring cells filled with soil and delicate thin stems topped with pairs of rounded cotyledons.

Seeds

Seed-Starting 101: 11 Tips to Get it Right

Seed starting doesn’t have to be complicated. A few simple steps can ensure prolific germination and vigorous early growth to start your season off right. Join organic farmer Logan Hailey for 11 straightforward seed-starting tips for beginners.

A small insect crawling out of a sandy burrow surrounded by dry, sparse grass and patches of loose dirt.

Gardening Tips

7 Ways You Can Help Bees Overwinter in Your Garden

Bees are vital to a thriving garden. But, some of our fall and spring habits can make your space inhospitable for them to overwinter in. Gardener and beekeeper Melissa Strauss shares ways that you can help important pollinator populations stick around and stay safe during the cold winter months.