The Beginner's Garden with Jill McSheehy

Are you ready to make a plan for your garden? How do you know how much you will need from your garden? How many plants should you plant? Thankfully, to get the answers to these questions, you don't have to start from scratch. Instead, take a few cues from someone who has the years of experience and research to provide you a starting point.   SHOW NOTES:   (*links below contain affiliate links, whi...

One of the most common struggles for gardeners is how to deal with weeds. There are different strategies that we can try, but what really works? We may not ever have a weedless garden, but we can certainly strive for having to weed less . I had the opportunity to talk with a renowned horticulturist, Dr. Lee Reich, about his book Weedless Gardening and he shared a few of his best tips for protectin...

Is it possible that organic gardening can actually be an option for everyone ? We all know the high prices of organic food at the grocery store. But what if you could grow your own organic vegetables where you live? A common misconception is that you have to have a lot of land to grow a garden. But that's just not true! CaliKim has been growing her own organic fruits and vegetables in a small Cali...

How does a garden that requires minimal input and maximum harvest sound to you? Instead of you working for it, your garden works for you. It's almost like the garden runs on autopilot. Sounds too good to be true, right? Not according to MI Gardener's Luke Marion. Luke spends 15 minutes a WEEK in his 5,000 sq ft garden, outside of the busy planting time. So, how does he do it? Luke shares his metho...

Gardening with limited space? Even if you don't practice urban gardening, most gardeners can use tips to maximize the space they have. Kevin Espritu of Epic Gardening understands the challenges of gardening in a small area. That's what compelled him to write a book full of tips and how-to's for gardeners in small spaces, Field Guide to Urban Gardening. SHOW NOTES: (*links below contain affiliate l...

When you're a beginning gardener, there are all these garden terms that I had to look up. When I was getting started, I got several things wrong because I misunderstood some of these terms. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast, we'll walk through some of the most common misunderstood gardening terms. Click below to listen or continue reading.   Show Notes:  https:// journeywithjill.net...

I'm sure you've heard of superfoods, but what exactly are they? And why would they matter to the home gardener? In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast, my friend Stacey Murphy joined me to talk about 5 superfoods we can grow in our gardens.    Show Notes:  journeywithjill.net/111   Get Jill's "In the Garden" Weekly Emails + Free Printable Resources Here:  journeywithjill.net/gardensignup...

Have you ever wondered why gardeners so often have chickens? My family brought in our first flock of chickens six years ago and added a second a few years later. I love them. They do wonderful things for my garden and the eggs are just a bonus. If you've ever considered adding a couple of hens (or more) to your garden, it may seem overwhelming to know how to get started. I had the opportunity of i...

Now that your garden season is coming to a close, what fall and winter garden tasks can you do now to set you up for success in your next garden? When spring arrives, you want to hit the ground running and not have to fuss with tasks that could have been done in the off-season. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast, you'll find 13 Fall to Winter Garden Tasks I'm doing right now to set u...

What comes to mind when you hear the phrase, crop rotation ? Maybe it's something you think you have a basic understanding of, but when it comes to actually putting it into practice in your garden, you come up with more questions than answers. Is it necessary to rotate your crops from year to year, especially if you grow in a small space? Do all crops need rotation? What does it mean to rotate by...

When we begin dreaming of our first garden, we get anxious, wondering if we'll ever learn everything there is to know. (Short answer: no, because in gardening, learning never stops!) But what if we could ask other gardeners just a few seasons ahead of us what they wish they'd known before they started their first gardens? This is Part 2 of 23 Things Gardeners Wish They'd Known. You can hear part 1...

When we begin dreaming of our first garden, we get anxious, wondering if we'll ever learn everything there is to know. (Short answer: no, because in gardening, learning never stops!) But what if we could ask other gardeners just a few seasons ahead of us what they wish they'd known before they started their first gardens? When I started the Beginner's Garden Podcast in 2017, my sole purpose was to...

Looking for garden projects to do during the slower time of the gardening season? I get so excited about next season's garden in the fall and winter. There is so much to learn and so many ways to think and prepare for next growing season.   Show Notes:  journeywithjill.net/105   Get Jill's "In the Garden" Weekly Emails + Free Printable Resources Here:  journeywithjill.net/gardensignup   Join the B...

After the garden season has closed, do you ever wish you could grow food indoors? Maybe it seems like a pipe dream. You think your winter food will come solely from what you've preserved and what you can buy at the grocery store. But it doesn't have to be that way. Even if you have a small indoor space, you can add fresh vegetables and herbs to your table, even in the dead of winter. In this episo...

The end of the summer gardening season is the perfect time to reflect on the year so far -- specifically, summer garden lessons learned . Whether you're a new gardener or have had many years of experience, we can all learn from each other. This is why I love to share my gardening lessons in real-time with you! You may have already seen my lessons from this year's spring garden so now it's time for...

What fall garden tasks should you complete as your summer garden comes to a close? Whether you plant a fall garden or want to make sure your garden is ready for a spring planting, these 7 tasks will prepare you for your next gardening season. journeywithjill.net/102

When I began exploring medicinal herb gardening, I felt like I had walked into a foreign country. I didn't know where to start or how to navigate this new territory. But like everything in my garden journey, I took small steps. And while I still consider myself a beginning medicinal herb gardener, I do feel like I've found my footing a bit. Because growing a medicinal herb garden -- or simply intr...

In 2013 I planted my first garden. Looking back, I see mistakes and successes from that first year. All of them served to teach me, and they helped me grow a more successful garden each season. Because we all can learn from each other, and because many of my mistakes are common among beginning gardeners, I wanted to share seven mistakes and eight successes from my first season. https://journeywith...

Is it possible to control pests in the garden without using pesticides? Many gardeners determine to use organic practices. But soon they find themselves discouraged when bad insects arrive in their gardens. How do organic gardeners keep bugs from eating their plants? A healthy, productive, organic home garden goes beyond home remedies for pest control and organic alternatives to pesticides . Natur...

If you grow a garden, you know that homegrown vegetables taste better than anything you can purchase in the produce department of your grocery store. But why do homegrown vegetables and fruit taste better? Is it purely a mental thing -- where we naturally enjoy most what we put our hard work into growing? Or are there also scientific reasons why store-bought tomatoes don't compare to homegrown? In...

When I asked the members of my free Facebook group, the Beginner's Garden Shortcut , what questions they had about their fall vegetable garden, I received more feedback than almost any other topic. Clearly, many beginning gardeners are interested in fall gardening. But they recognize it's not as straightforward as the spring or summer garden. For the beginner, fall gardening isn't as simple to get...

When many beginning gardeners think about fall gardening, they find themselves overwhelmed. After all, they're tired from the effort put into the summer garden, and the thought of more work seems exhausting. Plus, they don't know when or how to get started. The truth is, fall gardening can be the most rewarding time to grow a vegetable garden . It just takes a bit of know-how to get started. In th...

When is corn ready to pick? It's a tougher answer than you realize. Corn ripens quickly and for only a few days, so the home gardener must watch for the signs that sweet corn is ready to harvest. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcas t, I talk about how to know when corn ripens for harvest. (For more information on growing corn, check out these posts: how to grow corn and what I learned...

Is there anything better in summer than a fresh-picked watermelon or cantaloupe from the garden? But how do you know when melons are ripe and ready to pick? In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast , I share my methods of knowing when to harvest cantaloupes and when to harvest watermelons -- my favorite fruit!

Whether you grow your garden to stock up a year's worth of some foods like I do, or maybe your small space has produced more than you can eat fresh, you will want to look at options for preserving the harvest. While most people think of canning, this is only one option when it comes to preserving your hard-earned bounty. In this episode of the Beginner's Garden Podcast and article below, I share t...