You can plant a garden in the same spot every year, but it is generally not recommended to plant the exact same crop continuously. Experts advise rotating plant families or actively revitalizing the soil to avoid serious gardening setbacks.
In gardening, the "70/30 rule" is a flexible guideline used in several different ways depending on your gardening goals. The three most common interpretations involve native plants, garden design, and vegetable growing.
October is the perfect time to plant trees, shrubs, conifers, and hardy perennials—or spring bulbs like tulips and daffodils—and if you're looking to sow cover crops or install lawns, now is the time for that as well.
Read on to learn some of the most common mistakes made by beginner gardeners—and how to avoid them.
If a farmer plants the exact same crop in the same place every year, as is common in conventional farming, she continually draws the same nutrients out of the soil. Pests and diseases happily make themselves a permanent home as their preferred food source is guaranteed.
The three-crop rule (or crop diversification requirement) is an agricultural policy under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) designed to promote soil health, biodiversity, and prevent soil depletion. It mandates that farmers cultivate a minimum number of different crops based on their arable land size.
A farmer with between 10 and 30 hectares of arable land is obliged to grow at least two crops, and any one crop cannot exceed 75% of the arable land.
The "3-hour gardening rule" is a safety guideline advising gardeners to avoid working outdoors between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. during the summer months. This window is when the sun’s UV rays are at their strongest and temperatures peak, posing risks for both you and your plants.
Yes, many vegetables should not be planted together. Poor pairings can lead to stunted growth, shared diseases, or intense competition for nutrients.
Coffee grounds provide tomato plants with a mild nitrogen boost, improve soil drainage, and help deter pests like slugs and snails. However, to avoid compacting the soil or stunting growth, it is best to compost the grounds first rather than dumping fresh grounds directly around the base of the plant.
It is not inherently illegal for you or a farmer to replant seeds, but it is illegal to replant patented seeds or those protected by commercial contracts. Seed companies use these legal mechanisms to protect their investments in agricultural research and development.
Hotter summers, extended droughts, and dry winds are becoming more common, and hydrangeas are paying the price. Gardeners from coast to coast report the same issues: leaves crisping and curling in early summer, stems wilting despite regular watering, and blossoms fading far too quickly.
Plus, October also marks the beginning of bare-root planting season, so you can plant bare-root apples, pears and other fruit trees, along with fruiting shrubs such as blackcurrants and gooseberries. There's also still time to plant spring bulbs.
The three most common enemies of the garden are sap-sucking insects (like aphids), destructive garden wildlife (like deer and rabbits), and parasitic plant diseases (like powdery mildew or blight). Identifying these threats early is the best way to protect your plants.
Here are some of the most common landscaping mistakes and how to avoid them, along with how to create a beautiful garden in your own yard.
Generally speaking, 200 square feet of garden space per person will allow for a harvest that feeds everyone year-round. For an average family of four, plan for an 800 square-foot garden—a plot that's 20 feet by 40 feet in size should do the trick. If your family is larger (or smaller), scale up or down as needed.
Baking soda can sweeten tomatoes and deter pests, but must be used sparingly to avoid harming plants. A light sprinkle around the base wards off slugs, ants, and aphids, and a diluted spray mix helps prevent fungus.
Plants that prefer alkaline or neutral soil, along with those that require dry or well-draining conditions, generally dislike coffee grounds. Applying coffee grounds can stunt their growth by making the soil too acidic, altering nutrient balances, or trapping excess moisture around the roots.
Tomato plants love the nutrients these provide, but these amendments must be broken down first. Eggshells supply much-needed calcium (which prevents blossom end rot), and coffee grounds offer nitrogen. However, direct, chunky applications take too long to decompose to help your plants immediately.
The title "King of Vegetables" doesn't belong to just one plant; it depends on the culture or context.
The "Three Sisters" is the most famous and efficient 3-plant combination. Rooted in Indigenous agriculture, this symbiotic trio maximizes garden space by working together to support, feed, and protect each other:
The best vegetable garden layout maximizes sunlight, simplifies maintenance, and boosts yield. Use raised beds or the square-foot method to save space, and orient your rows or beds north-to-south. Always position tall plants on the north side so they do not shade shorter crops.
The Amish water their crops by prioritizing natural soil moisture retention over mechanical irrigation. For fields that require supplemental watering, they rely on gravity-fed systems or manual labor using buckets, totes, and traditional watering cans filled from nearby creeks, ponds, or cisterns.
The health benefits of gardening include improved muscle strength, flexibility and heart health, as well as better overall well-being and quality of life. Gardening can improve your muscle strength, flexibility and heart health.
Never put chemically treated wood, non-porous barriers like plastic or landscape fabric at the base, or heavy native clay into a raised garden bed. Additionally, avoid invasive spreading plants (like mint) and sprawling crops (like giant pumpkins or sprawling watermelons) that consume the entire space.