You may have heard about oxheart tomatoes or have seen some pictures of them. If you’re not familiar with oxhearts, you may think they are some kind of new variety, but actually, they’ve been around for nearly a century. Oxheart tomatoes are mid season to late season tomatoes that are similar to beefsteak varieties and … Read more
You’ve probably seen those pictures of leek-growing champions giving themselves a hernia while lugging around enormous first-prize leeks. Yes, those leeks are legit and those gardeners are not using mutants or loading up their leeks with hormones. In many cases, those leeks are of specific varieties which are bred to grow abnormally large, but only … Read more
Leeks are a mild-flavored member of the onion family, cousins of green onions, bulb onions, and garlic. In fact, leeks just look like giant green onions. The pale green/white stalks are tender and can be used in soups, salads, or as a substitute for onions in certain recipes. The leaves are tougher and thicker, but … Read more
Strawberries are one of the few fruits that if you take care of them, they will give back 100 times more. Not only are strawberries prolific producers, but most varieties readily grow out runners which can multiply into new strawberry plants. You can quickly fill out an entire bed in a few years starting with … Read more
If you love kale, growing (and eating) your own is one of the most satisfying experiences as a gardener. You’ll find kale is tough and resilient, giving you multiple harvests all season long. Seed-saving is one of the most important skills you can cultivate (pun intended) as a gardener which not only helps you save … Read more
I’ve been growing peppers for many years, and I fondly remember always having a few sweet and hot peppers in our garden when I was a kid. But my first real dive into growing my own peppers from seed was growing Thai chili peppers. Thai chili peppers are relatively compact, are stupidly prolific, and can … Read more