Planting and Growing
Guides for planting flowers, shrubs, trees, and vegetables
Seed-Starting Heat Mat vs No Heat Mat: Worth It?
November 10, 2026 · By Rhett Montgomery
A heat mat won't rescue every seed from a cold windowsill — but for peppers and tomatoes, it's the best thirty dollars in the setup.
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Setting Up a Seed-Starting Station: Trays, Lights, and Heat
November is when the seed station goes up — a shelf, a light, a tray — so February’s sowing isn’t a scramble.
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Best Seed-Starting Supplies to Buy Once and Use for Years
Tired of seed trays that crack after one season? Buy the set that lasts — five pieces of gear worth owning for years.
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Reference Table: How Deep to Plant Spring Bulbs (and How Far Apart)
Spring color starts with a hole dug in fall, and this table gives you the depth and spacing for seven bulbs.
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Why Eggplant Won’t Set Fruit — and How to Fix It
Flowers open, flowers drop, and the plant looks fine — the cause is usually the night temperature, not the plant.
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Starting Eggplant Indoors: Timing, Heat, and Hardening Off
Eggplant is the earliest seed to start and the quickest to sulk — sow ten to twelve weeks before last frost, with real heat.
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Best Eggplant Varieties to Grow from Seed
A tall eggplant plant covered in purple flowers and carrying nothing is the August heartbreak this roundup prevents.
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How to Winterize a Rain Barrel
A full barrel left out through a hard freeze will split — draining it now takes twenty minutes and saves a spring replacement.
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How to Install a Rain Barrel on a Downspout
A rain barrel is only as good as its hookup: level ground, a clean diverter cut, and an overflow that leads away from the house.
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The Best Rain Barrels for Gardens
Your gutters catch hundreds of gallons every storm — most of it runs straight past the garden. These three barrels put it to work.
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Why Parsnips Won’t Germinate — and Forked Roots, Fixed
Nothing sprouts, or the roots come up forked? Here is what your parsnips are telling you — and how to fix it next sowing.
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Growing Parsnips and Turnips: Direct Sowing, Thinning, and Harvest
Late spring soil, a half inch of cover, and patience: the slow roots reward the gardener who sows them right the first time.
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Best Parsnips, Turnips, and Rutabagas to Grow from Seed
Parsnips take months, turnips take a month — pick the root that fits your season, and skip the sold-out favorite for now.
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