Laura Ojeda Melchor

How to Start Broccoli from Seed

9 of the Best Companion Plants to Grow with Broccoli

The biggest benefit of juicy, reddish-black boysenberries is that they make the most excellent pie filling you’ll ever taste. (Okay, rhubarb is one of my favorite fillings, too.)Each berry weighs around 7-8 grams, which is heavy for the fruit of a br

There’s nothing like picking a plump, juicy-looking blackberry from the vines in your own yard and popping it into your mouth.The tart, sweet flavor of homegrown blackberries is unbeatabl

One day in early May, I was driving past the hardware store. I glanced over in the direction of the gardening center and what I saw made me slam on the brakes.Finally, after months and months of dreary

When I was seventeen years old, I visited Knott’s Berry Farm with my then-boyfriend (now-husband) and his family on a spring break trip to southern California.He’d grown up enjoying the famous boysenberry pie and chicken dinn

Back when I was 19, I traveled through Europe for the first time. I remember being struck by the beauty of the houses in the Austrian countryside: mountains rising behind dark log-wood houses adorned with window boxes filled with violets.While I have yet to add window boxes

Growing rhubarb, Rheum rhabarbarum, is not for those who lack patience.Compared to something like a

Alaska made me fall in love with rhubarb, and this is well documented. Just read our guide to growing rhubarb in containers and you’ll see what I mean.When my garden-savvy grandm

Are you a celery fan? Done right, it’s satisfyingly flavorful with a pleasing texture that leaves you wanting more.But it can be difficult for the home gardener to achie

The first time I ever tried rhubarb, it was a squishy mess inside a pie at a chain restaurant somewhere. I never wanted to eat it again.That all changed the summer I m

When I moved into my small, new house with a big patch of barren dirt for a backyard, I knew I needed to fill it with trees.Before it had been cleared for construc

There’s nothing like watching brilliant crocus flowers bloom through a field of snow.But what if you spend time

Never underestimate the power of a little bit of year-round greenery. It can truly do wonders for walkways – and for your mind.When I lived in Oklahoma for two years, wintertime was difficult. There were few e

When you think of your favorite winter holiday decorations, do you imagine glossy, pointy holly with bright red berries?I know I do. And if you’ve ever wondered if you could

The best part of living somewhere cold and snowy is that the wildflowers that bloom after winter bring me a sense of delight I can’t quite describe.Here in Alaska, it’s the wild roses, bluebel

Maybe it’s because I always struggled with math in school, but anytime I see numbers and measurements, I balk.Unfortunately for my plants, this includes

Also called double late tulips or double hybrids, peony tulips (Tulipa x hybrida) are round and layered with scores of ruffled petals, which makes them resemble a real peony (Paeonia lactiflora).But the two are entirely different flowers.

Are you growing your own aloe plant at home? If not, this is your chance to add an attractive ornamental succulent to your houseplant collection that offers tons of utility as well, as part of your homegrown medicine cabinet.Those of us who spend a lot of t

Garlic is such a phenomenal bulb that there’s an entire California restaurant devoted to it. The original location is in San Francisco and it’s called, The Stinking Rose: A Garlic Restaurant.I’ve walked past its aromatic do

Ah, garlic. I have a complicated relationship with this fragrant bulb, often called the “stinking rose.”Back when I was a child, I had seve

One of my favorite memories is of walking through an archway of bright blooms at the rose garden in the Butchart Gardens near Victoria, British Columbia.The scent! The sight! T

The first summer I lived in Alaska, my neighbors brought over a bouquet of enormous, lush pink flowers that I had never seen before. Set in vases against the green walls in my home, I could’ve stared at them for hours.I soon learned that peonies (Paeonia

Bleeding hearts were meant for cool weather. The herbaceous perennial plants, that is.With its feathery leaves, fleshy stems,

You’re walking alongside your sweet-scented rose bushes when you stop short. Something’s not quite right with your lovely blooms.You lean in closer, and see

I’ll never forget the morning when I first woke up to the sight of a moose lying down in my backyard.Well, two moose, actually. Young, fuzzy, and h

No matter where you live, you can grow aloe vera indoors. But what if you want to plant it out in the garden?If you’re located in USDA

Garlic is a stinky, pungent bulb. For this reason, it’s logical to assume that most pests will leave it alone.It’s even used as a pest deter

Oak Leaf holly is a fast-growing, evergreen shrub with glossy foliage that produces bright red berries in autumn, and provides year-round interest in the garden.Named for the unique, shapely leaves that resemb

I recently received my first ever boysenberry plant in the mail, and it came in the form of a tissue culture.It looked like an ordinary s

Growing corn is one of the most satisfying things you can do. Few things compare to the feeling of harvesting your own ears from a stalk taller than you, and then eating them that very same day.You won’t be able to wai

Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) is one of those herbs that grows all year long in the right conditions, which is good news for those of us who love using it as a seasoning in our favorite dishes.The name “rosemary” is pretty in itse

As a child, I was entranced by heart-shaped lockets. While I still think they’re neat as an adult, I tend to prefer plants over necklaces.One of my favorite types of flowers resembles a

If you want to start your spring garden early, or you simply desire some cheerful, indoor blooms, why not try growing violets indoors?These charming members of the Violagenus possess on

The evergreen perennial that we call rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) is a popular kitchen garden plant. And why not grow it indoors?With its spicy-sweet flavor, pu

Some say the plants in this genus are commonly called the peace lilies because the white spathe of their flowers looks like a flag of surrender.I think the combination of columnar central spadix an