Community Ideas, Tips & Guides

Sterling, Scotland, known for its rich historical significance and stunning landscapes, is now home to a blossoming community of novice gardeners embarking on their horticultural journey with the help of GardenAdvice’s MyGardenTeam service. Among these enthusiastic beginners are clients who have recently developed a new vegetable plot and installed a greenhouse, aiming to cultivate a variety of vegetables and fruits. The Dream Begins: A New Vegetable Plot and Greenhouse

Happy Friday GPODers, and welcome to our second installment of GPOD Vignettes! In case you missed it, check out our first installment of this series here: GPOD Vignette #1.

Are you passionate about gardening and looking to elevate your green space? Discover how a GardenAdvice.co.uk course can help you transform your garden into a vibrant, low-maintenance haven. In this GardenAdvice is helping an aspiring gardener with a garden in Hemel Hempstead after the gardeners owner attended a GardenAdvice gardening course in the garden.

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While you can decorate and enjoy a private backyard just the way you like—or at least within the confines of an HOA’s rules—the elements of a shared courtyard or patch of grass should consider the group rather than the individual homeowners. «While some may not find this ideal, fostering a sense of community in these shared outdoor spaces can provide a sense of enjoyment,» says Joe Raboine, VP of Design at Oldcastle APG, parent company of Belgard Here are some tips on how to make the most of communal space. 

These cute little winged insects not only play an important role in maintaining a healthy garden ecosystem, but they are also a symbol of positivity. Let’s have a look at the reasons why ladybugs are good luck.

Kaleidoscope Ginnel Garden by Petrus, RHS Tatton Flower Show 2024

With high-tech farming machinery that relies on wireless connections, alongside the ever-growing online opportunities for farmers—such as interacting with potential partners and buyers and the ability to sell products to a wider array of consumers—connectivity is becoming more and more important for modern-day farming. 

Edimentals is a new term for growing flowers and vegetables together. Gardens today are often too small to have a separate ‘veg patch.’

At Modern Farmer, we believe that creating a sustainable and equitable food system is only possible with small, local, and family farms. But North America is facing a farmer shortage. The average farmer is just under 60 years old, and the trend of inheritance within families is declining, which means there is a need to train the next generation of farmers. 

It’s official, the UK is a nation of gardeners! With recent Census figures showing that 87% of UK households have a garden, many Brits are now beginning to embrace their green thumbs.

También hemos publicado este artículo en español. Para leerlo en español, haga clic aquí.

Propagating plants from seed is what hooked me into gardening. Even now, after years of watching seeds transform themselves, the magic of germination never fails to thrill me. The essence of gardening is change and the work of gardening is care. Nothing stays the same for long. The hands-on physicality of weeding, digging and planting is a great antidote to looking at a screen, which many of us are doing more than ever today.

Cottagecore took hold of the internet for its dreamy, farm-life aesthetic. Romanticized images of frolicking through gardens, growing veggies at home, and baking pies from freshly foraged berries proliferated social media feeds. However, there are some people who go beyond the aesthetic and actually live the lore. Enter: urban homesteading.

This story is part of our ongoing PFAS series, The PFAS Problem: Demystifying ‘Forever Chemicals’

Pride month is swiftly approaching, and you might want to add some nods to the LGBTQ community in your home. But it can feel difficult to do that when your style is more subtle or leans towards neutrals and quiet luxury and so much pride decor is bright, bubbly, and colorful.

In today's super-hectic world, with everyone working like machines, we have just forgotten to live a life. While we always crave to step out of the technological world to spend quality time in the lap of nature, managing our schedules is not so easy. 

In 2008, Jessica Eikleberry was 29 years old and had just read Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma. She wanted to start eating locally and, with the help of her mom, she made a goal for the coming Thanksgiving: an all-local meal.

As a researcher of urban agriculture, I was shocked to see a recent news article bearing the headline “Food from urban agriculture has a carbon footprint six times larger than conventional produce, study shows.” I had spent five years researching and publishing peer-reviewed articles and book chapters about urban agriculture during my Ph.D. with the Berkeley Food Institute, and this conclusion seemed to fly in the face of all that I’d read. How could this be? 

How GardenAdvice.co.uk for Beginners Can Empower Your Gardening Journey

Hey GPODers!

Last month, the job listings page for the American Climate Corps went live. The ACC is a new program developed by the Biden administration that plans to mobilize young people into careers fighting climate change and environmental injustice. These roles span the country and both private and public sectors. Like other corps-type jobs, these roles will be term limited.

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Last summer, members of the InterTribal Buffalo Council (ITBC), a Native non-profit group dedicated to restoring tribal bison herds among its 83 member Nations, embarked on a timeless practice across the grasslands of southeast Montana: the slaughter of a 1,600-pound American bison, right out in the open prairie. 

Pizza Hut

Robin L Marshall / Stringer / Getty Images

At the end of February, the town board of Lind, Wisconsin voted against changing the zoning laws to allow a nearby 600-cow dairy to install an anaerobic digester. These digesters are becoming more common, particularly at larger dairy operations housing thousands of cows, called concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). This is partially because they have been included as a key ingredient in the Biden administration’s pledge to reduce methane emissions in animal agriculture.

As much as we adore forecasting upcoming trends here at The Spruce, we love seeing those trends executed in real life even more.

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Nate Lewis and Melissa Barker knew that Oyster Bay Farm was for them. “It ticked all the boxes,” says Lewis. Situated in Olympia, Washington along the shores of Puget Sound, the fertile land and waterfront views make the farm an ideal spot. 

My career in ornamental horticulture has led to the development of a working theory: Ornamental grasses are an acquired taste for most gardeners. This theory grew from personal experience (my tastes have changed significantly since growing up gardening on the Front Range) and from similar opinions expressed by several folks I’ve coached. I think this delayed appreciation stems from a realization that grasses can excel where perennials fail. Ornamental grasses may lack flash, but they offer four-season appeal, eye-catching forms and textures, and superior tolerance to harsh weather; in addition, they give gardens an immersive feel thanks to their penchant for gentle movement.

The winding peaks and troughs of Arizona’s Verde Valley, weaving through jagged ochre mountains, dreamy cactus-clad deserts and deep volcanic canyons, make up some of the most iconic images of the American West. For thousands of years, the valley has been home to both the Verde River, one of Arizona’s only perennial wild rivers, and to Indigenous communities from the ancient Sinagua and Hohokam peoples to present-day tribes including the Yavapai, Hopi, Apache and Zuni. It is also home to 270 species of birds, 94 species of mammals and 76 species of native amphibians and reptiles. All this makes the Verde River key to the history, culture and ecosystem of central Arizona. 

As a teenager, I distinctly remember my father telling me to not follow in the family business. I now know he said this to shield me from the many hardships farmers continue to face. America’s farmers, especially beginning and Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) farmers face insurmountable challenges, yet 87 percent of young farmers are dedicated to regenerative, climate-smart farming practices. Today’s beginning farmers are passionate about growing nourishing foods, diversified crops and building soil; yet because of astronomical real estate costs, most farmers are unable to purchase land on which to operate.

I’M OPENING my garden on Saturday June 8 from 10 AM to 4 PM as part of a weekend of events in my Hudson Valley, N.Y., community, that also includes the spectacular garden of Peter Bevacqua and Stephen King (above) nearby, two plant sales, and more. Tickets are on sale now (links at the bottom of the page); last year they sold out, so we’ve upped the numbers a bit but….don’t dally!

On a September day in 2023, community members gathered at the Keep Growing Detroit Farm to witness the formal announcement of the city’s first director of urban agriculture. Tepfirah Rushdan, who had long been involved in Detroit’s farming scene as a farmer, educator and advocate, was a natural fit for the position.

Spider Plant Takeover I was warned that spider plants can get out of control, but I had to find out for myself... The prolific spider plant