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Growing Basil Everything You Need To Know

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Growing basil in your garden, raised beds, in a pot or even indoors, is easier than you might think! Having fresh basil anytime you want is great for your kitchen and even has some medicinal purposes. Today we’re talking everything you need to know about growing basil! The only problem I’ve ever had growing basil is using it all!

growing basil in the garden

Growing Basil Everything You Need To Know

Growing Basil Varieties

growing basil

Before we get into the nitty gritty about growing basil in your garden, let’s talk basil varieties. There are types of basil you may never have even heard of, but you should considering adding them to your herb garden.

how to grow basil

Growing Basil Soil Requirements

Basil is a fairly easy herb to grow with very little soil requirements. Make sure your soil in enriched with some good compost, plenty of drainage with a pH of 6 or 7 ( what is soil pH? ).

Growing Basil Planting

I prefer to start my basil plants indoors and transfer them to my raised beds or pots when the soil will stay warm. When starting seeds you only want to lightly cover with soil and keep the soil moist during germination. You can certainly start your basil with an established transplant from a garden store as well. Basil should be planted where it will get at least 6 hours of sun and 12 to 18 inches apart. I have found the more space you give basil, the bigger it gets!

Caring for Growing Basil

Your growing basil should need little to no additional fertilizer as it a light feeder. It likes moist soil but do not let it get soaked too often because this can lead to root rot and fungus. Basil can occasionally have pests like aphids but generally the biggest issue with growing it is making sure the soil isn’t soaking wet for too long.

Growing Basil in Containers or Indoors

Basil will do very well in a container. Make sure your pot can accommodate a large basil plant. The pot should have good drainage as well and be set in an area that gives it the 6 – 8 hours of required sunlight. You can grow more than one variety of basil in a single container if it is quite large.

You can also grow basil indoors! Again you’ll want a larger pot with good drainage. Keep your indoor basil where it will get adequate sunlight – in a windowsill or near a sliding glass door should work if sun comes in for at least 6 hours there.

Your basil plant may require re-potting because they grow quickly and get large. Keep an eye on it.

Harvesting Basil From Your Garden

One of the most wonderful thing about growing basil is the ability to continually harvest the leaves! You’ll want to harvest your basil when you plant is over 6 inches tall and has some leaves to spare. Simply pinch the leaves, gently, from the stem. You can also use scissors but I find pinching goes much faster. You should also pinch off flowers from your basil plant to keep it producing leaves. Pinching the flowers will also encourage the plant to get fuller as well.

You’ll want to harvest all the basil leaves before your first frost! Don’t worry, it is an annual so it will come back!

freezing fresh basil

Storing the Fresh Basil

Once you’ve harvested your basil you’ll need to store what you do not immediately use.

  • Keep Fresh Basil in your fridge is best done by putting them in a mason jar and covering them loosely with a plastic bag. This should keep them fresh for a week or so.
  • Drying and Dehydrating Basil is great for large batches of basil. There are several methods to accomplish this task. See Drying Your Herbs
  • Freezing basil is a wonderful way to preserve the fresh flavor! Wash the leaves then blend in a food processor with just enough water to make it a puree. Pour the basil puree in to ice cube trays and freeze. Once frozen you can pop them out and put them in food storage bags for later use. I recommend using silicone ice trays for this task.

Basil as a Companion Plant in Your Garden

Basil can be a wonderful companion plant for your vegetable garden! Plant near your bell peppers, beans, beets, tomatoes, asparagus, tomatoes, cabbage and eggplants. Basil will make your tomatoes taste even better!

More on companion planting!

How to Use Fresh Basil

Most people think pesto when it comes to fresh basil. And pesto is amazing! But you can use it to make infused oils, in your salads, as a pizza topping, and to add lovely flavor to chicken and seafood dishes. Using fresh basil will always give you the most flavor; much more than dried basil.

See Recipes for Fresh Basil

Growing Basil for Medicinal Purposes 

Basil is said to be a powerful medicinal herb with many uses.

  • Can reduce fevers
  • Anti-inflammatory
  • Antioxidant
  • Reduces pain
  • May be a cancer fighter
  • Fights the development of diabetes
  • Protects the liver
  • Boosts immunity
  • Reduces stress

Learn how to use herbs as medicine!

Growing basil in your herb or vegetable garden is really beneficial. It is a hearty plant that will give you more than enough basil for your dishes all year long!

Growing Rosemary

Growing Giant Basil

Gardening with Kids

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Gardening with kids should be part of our family legacy. Gardening teaches so many wonderful skills, not to mention kids love to eat what they grow! I’d like to share my 10 reasons for gardening with kids and some great ways to get them started.

gardening with kids

Gardening with Kids

I believe a child’s garden should be part of every family’s backyard farm. My youngest daughter has always been in the garden helping; I’ve seen the difference it can make first hand. But for now I’ll share my Top 10 Reasons to get Gardening with Kids. I hope it encourages you to get your children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews out in your vegetable garden very soon!

10 Reasons To Start Gardening with Kids

Gardening with Kids
My daughter, years ago, starting seeds for her garden.
  1. A Child’s Garden Encourages Healthy Eating – when kids grow fruits, vegetables and herbs they eat more of them. They are excited to try produce that, normally they’d have turned up their noses to. Kale is a perfect example, or Swiss Chard; my kids looked sideways at these veggies when I brought them home from the store. But once we had them growing in the garden, that they helped to plant and tend, it was a different story!
  2. Gardening with Kids Teaches Them a Valuable Life Skills – when children garden they learn to provide for themselves. Growing our own food isn’t a skill most modern adults have, much less children. This is something that should be passed on as a legacy of self sufficiency.
  3. A Child’s Garden Teaches Appreciation – When I kid knows first hand the time and work that went into providing the food they are much less likely to waste it. They learn to appreciate the fruits of their labor, so to speak. Many adults find this when gardening for the first time too!
  4. Kids Gardening Means Less Screen Time – In our modern world our children spend a lot of time in front of tvs, computer, tablets and phones. There is nothing like a garden to get the out in nature!
  5. Gardening with Your Kids is Family Time – when parents (or guardians) garden with children you create a special bonding time. This is create face to face time, no distractions. I’ve been able to have some pretty awesome conversations with my kids over soil.
  6. Kids that Garden Will Grow Up And Pass It Down – A child’s garden can become a legacy and a beautiful vintage skill that gets passed down from one generation to another.
  7. Gardening with Kids is Great Exercise – That’s a win-win for both of you! I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that kids these days are not active enough. I’ve seen research that says this generation may be the first to live a shorter life than their parents. I know gardening can’t fix it all but digging, hoeing, building boxes, pulling potatoes…you can get that heart pumping and break a sweat!
  8. A Child’s Garden it Educational – As a homeschool family we look for opportunities to teach outside of the “box”. A garden offers kids a natural learning opportunity. Gardening really is science! From seed growth and photosynthesis to how the soil is alive. Older children and teens might enjoy Gardening for Geeks as a text. For younger children check out this free gardening curriculum. Don’t forget the math of planning a garden and figuring cost of growing vs buying at the store.
  9. Gardening with Kids Teaches Problem Solving – If you are a gardener you know that every beginner has issues. But most of us use our failures as lessons but learning how to fix them; kids will too! They’ll learn from your experience and from doing their own reading and research.
  10. Your Child’s Garden Will Give Them a Sense of Pride – When a kid serves their friends and family a salad full of the vegetables from their garden there is a real sense of accomplishment and pride. There is nothing quite like providing food for the people you love. Not to mention the bonus of sacrificing their time and energy to the benefit of others (giving).
gardening with kids

The Best Vegetables for Children’s Gardens

These vegetables are great when you first start gardening with kids! They are easy to grow, will grow in a variety of spaces and most kids love to eat them.

Radishes 

In my experience, radishes are the easiest vegetable to grow. They’ll grow in boxes and pots too. Radishes are also pretty fast vegetables so they’ll be something to harvest quickly. Because they are a root vegetable you’ll want to start these where you plan to grow them, no transplanting. I know store-bought radishes are not everyone’s cup of tea but there are some amazing varieties that have more mild or sweeter flavors. See Radish Seeds

Carrots

Most kiddos love carrots – a sweet root veggie. No while carrots are pretty easy to grow, they do take some patience because they are slow growing. In my years of gardening I have never found one that grows as fast as the seed packet says it will; but they are worth the wait. I have grown carrots in pots, 6 and 12 inch garden boxes with equal success. And you’ll never have a better tasting carrot than the one you eat right out of the garden! Did you know there are purple carrots? See Carrot Seeds

Tomatoes

Most gardeners will tell you to start with tomatoes as a beginner. They are one of those vegetables (which are actually a fruit) that will grow just about anywhere. Growing tomatoes are good for learning how to prune for growth and you can keep growing the same tomato bush for several seasons. Kids typically like cherry tomatoes but you might be surprised by all the fun smaller varieties that you can grow! We love the Yellow Pear.

Zucchini

The hardest thing about growing zucchini is what to do with it all! With a good harvest we can usually share quite a bit with neighbors, friends and family; because we get tired of it. I recommend starting your zucchinis inside about 4 – 6 weeks before you’re ready to plant them outdoors. We often the Black Beauty variety. See my tips on growing summer squash. 
Be sure to check out these amazing zucchini recipes for your harvest!

Bell Peppers

Bells are a wonderfully sweet pepper that kids usually love to eat. They are truly an easy vegetable to grow too! They typically do well in warmer weather and ours have survived the the long hot Phoenix summers! They also come in a wonderful rainbow of colors, though that does not really change the flavor in my opinion. See Bell Pepper Seeds

family gardening with kids

Tips for Gardening with Kids

  • Make it fun – they are more likely to do it again if you have fun with it.
  • Set goals together – decide what your goals are for your garden. Maybe a salad or salsa garden only to start?
  • Keep it simple – sometimes just starting a simple herb garden is best. Don’t feel like you need a dozen square foot garden boxes!
  • Keep it organic – your children really don’t need exposure to any pesticides!
  • Order some seed catalogs to look at together. See Seed Catalogs You Need!
  • Plant what you eat first – sure I encourage variety and trying new things but the first few veggies should be ones they eat already.

Further Reading for Your Child’s Garden

Here are a few books you may want to consider as you dive into gardening with your kids.



Gardening in January

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Gardening in January? Well sure! Well, sort of…

Gardening in January doesn’t always mean actual planting, unless you live in Phoenix where it is a great month for planting and harvesting! But you can use January to get you and your garden ready for the spring!

gardening in january

Gardening in January

Right now I know many of you are covered in snow and/or ice right or both. Maybe winter time gardening is the last thing you’re thinking about; but you’d be surprised to know there so much you can do to prepare for the best spring garden ever!

Use my tips for gardening in January to get prepared for the best harvest you’ve ever had. Try them all or focus on 1 or 2 that you can do right away and come back to the rest. I know when I’m unable to be out in my little garden I miss it. I hope these ideas help you to feel more connected to your homestead and garden during the cold months. Happy Gardening my friends!

Wait! Have you considered building a cold frame for ACTUAL winter gardening? A cold frame is a simple bottomless box with windows facing the sky. It is a smaller version of a greenhouse. Cold frames are built about a foot or two from the ground and are set over a group of plants. A transparent window or roof is on its top to allow light to get to the plants. SEE: HOW TO BUILD A COLD FRAME

Gardening Indoors In January

You just might want to try you hand at growing inside the house in January. With the right window light and indoor temps you can actually be gardening in January in your home. SEE: 14 VEGETABLES YOU CAN GROW INDOORS AND HOW TO GROW HERBS ALL YEAR LONG.

Winter Composting

I know many people will say winter is NOT the time to start a compost. But there are some great ways to keep or start composting in January. Consider starting your own vermicomposting “farm”. There are lots of great DIY tutorials for creating a vermicompost but you can also buy a ready-made kit reasonably. Not ready for worms in the house? How about a kitchen composting system? SEE: KITCHEN COMPOSTING TIPS

Get Your Garden Soil Ready

January gardening can simply be making sure that your soil is ready for planting. This is a great time to test your soil! With your beds or fields getting a planting / growing break, this is a great time to see how the soil is doing. Knowledge is power, and knowing your soil’s pH will help you decide how to amend your soil accordingly.

You can purchase your own Soil pH Meter.  Preparedness Mama also has a great article on testing your soil without a kit, that you’ll want to check out.

SEE:

Awesome Soil Amendments for Your Garden
Improving Soil Without  Compost Pile
The Best DIY Soil Mix
How to Use Orange Peels for a Better Garden

Are Your Tools Spring Ready?

Gardening requires that our tools are ship shape and ready to go for spring. What better to evaluate your gardening tools than January? Do you need clippers? Or do the clippers need sharpening? Are new shovels or hoes in order? And wait…do your beds need any repair?

Many of the big box stores will have sales on gardening supplies because they need to get the stuff moving in the winter. Also check out yard sales and Craigslist for awesome winter deals.

SEE: GARDEN TOOLS EVERY BACKYARD FARMER NEEDS

January Gardening – Planting the Mind

LOL – ok that sounds a little crazy but all I mean is that you can use this time to educate yourself. There is always something to learn about backyard gardening! Here are a few of my favorite gardening books to check out!

The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible
The All New Square Foot Gardening
The Vegetable Gardener’s Container Bible
Gardening for Geeks

Get Your Gardening Calendar Ready

Maybe this is your first garden or you just need to refresh your memory for your zone.

Plan out your planting calendar now so you are ahead of the game in the spring. Be sure you know your planting zone!

Map Out Some New Space

January gardening should definitely include re-evaluating your space. Do you have it organized? Do you need to make some adjustments for light? SEE: MAXIMIZING YOUR GARDEN SPACE

Order Your Seeds

Now that you’ve planned, educated, mapped out your garden in January – you are ready to order seeds! I highly recommend Seeds Now – Non-GMO Seeds.

SEE: SEED CATALOGS YOU NEED TO KNOW!

Start Some Seeds Indoors This January

Get your spring veggies off to an early start. Many vegetables will do great with transplanting from indoor starters to your boxes and beds. Just make sure that you don’t do this with root veggies as they don’t take well to transplanting.

SEE: FRUGAL DIY SEED POTS (CHEAP & FREE)

Do you feel ready to dip into a little gardening in January? I hope my ideas and tips give you some ways you can start. I love my garden in every season and the month of January is no exception. You can do so much to be spring-ready right now! Please let me know if you have any questions by leaving a comment below. And feel free to share your tips and ideas for January gardening.

Be sure to see How to Have An Amazing Backyard Garden for even more information!

14 Vegetables You Can Grow Indoors in the Fall and Winter

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Vegetables you can grow indoors – and you don’t need a greenhouse to do it! You don’t have to leave your love of gardening on the back burner during colder months or because of limited space! So grab that shovel!

If you love gardening but your weather doesn’t allow for it in the fall or winter you’re going to love this list. Even if you’re an apartment dweller looking to grow a few fresh veggies; these are vegetables you can grow indoors in the fall and winter. You can also grow herbs indoors, see How to Grow 8 Awesome Herbs Indoors All Year Long.

Vegetables You Can Grow Indoors

Why Grow Vegetables Indoors in the Colder Months?

Well if your love of gardening can’t be forgotten in the cold months then you’ll love having an indoor garden. Not to mention you can still enjoy freshly harvested vegetables! Here in Phoenix, the cooler months are my best OUTDOOR gardening time and I often grow more delicate vegetables indoors during the summer months where we can get temps in the 120 degrees F.

For those of you that live in truly frigid areas you can grow vegetables indoors and increase your gardening season or garden all year round!  If you don’t want to have a garden in your house, you could build a Cold Frame Garden.

What Equipment Do I Need To Grow Vegetables Indoors?

  • Really you don’t need a lot of special equipment, unless you don’t have a window with good sunlight.  The best thing you can do is find a window that offers 4 – 6 hours of consistent sunlight. If that isn’t possible then you can invest in some grow lights to make sure your vegetables get enough light for growth.
  • You also want pots that do not leak (no fabric pots indoors). Make sure you get pots that collect water in the bottom or you have some sort of drainage overflow reservoir.
  • Quality seeds are starters – I recommend Seeds Now for Organic, Non-GMO, Seeds.
  • I’ve included a list of the best vegetables to grow indoors in the fall and winter, below. These are the vegetables that I have found will grow really well inside with good window light.

14 Vegetables You Can Grow Indoors in the Fall and Winter

Arugula

This spicy salad green does particularly well indoors. The more light it gets the more production you’ll see. The great thing is you can cut arugula and it will come back again over and over. Just about any pot will do as long as the drainage is good. Check out Roquette Arugula.

Bell & Hot Peppers 

Another wonderful vegetable you can grow indoors are bell and hot peppers. You’ll need to make sure you have a rich soil with lots of nutrients, and of course good drainage. I use my DIY Soil Mix. Depending on the size of your pot you will want to put 3 – 4 seeds in each container. Your peppers do need temperatures above 65 degrees to grow and the more sunlight the better!

Check out the variety of sweet peppers available (even purple bells!). For those of you that like some heat – grow some spicy peppers in your indoor vegetable garden.

Carrots

Carrots, a root crop, does surprisingly well as an indoor crop. You want to use deeper containers for growing indoors. You’ll want a loose soil that drains well. Be patient with your indoor carrots and wait until the tops are showing above the soil. Consider growing shorter varieties like the Little Fingers or Chantenay. 

Eggplant

Eggplants do great in containers if you give them the right conditions. Because eggplants are a flowering veggie you really need to choose a warm sunny place for them. The mini varieties like the Round Mauve will do great in a pot!

Kale

Love it or hate it, kale is a healthy green that will do well growing indoors. You’ll need a large pot to let the leaves spread out. You can expect smaller leaves than what you’d expect in your outdoor garden; but still packed with nutrition. If you harvest the outside growth and leave the inner alone you can harvest multiple times from the same plants.

My personal favorite is the Lacinato or Dinosaur Kale but the Dwarf Kale can also be a great choice for an indoor vegetable garden.

Lettuce

When growing lettuce indoors you’ll want to choose leafy varieties over the head lettuce. The great thing about leafy greens is they grow in as little as 4 – 5 inches in depth! I really love the gourmet / mesclun mix for a tasty salad!

Mushrooms

There are many types of mushrooms that do awesome growing indoors. You’ll find black and white oyster and even shiitake mushroom kits make growing mushrooms indoors very easy.

Potatoes

Potatoes generally do well outside in the cold weather but if you’re looking to keep your garden completely indoors, they’ll grow there too. I recommend using the tall gardening bags made for growing potatoes and using a rich potting mix that is light; dense soil will give you smaller tubers. Be sure to invest in good quality seed potatoes too.

Radishes

Like carrots, radishes can do very well in pots and containers indoors. You’ll want to choose radishes that are rounder, opposed to the longer varieties.  Check out the champions and the Easter egg – great flavor and color.

Spinach

Like other leafy greens, spinach will do well growing indoors with good soil and plenty of light. Spinach tends to be a slower growing veggie so give it time to develop. One variety to consider is the New Zealand Spinach.

Sprouts

A great way to get a lot of nutrients in a small package, sprouts! They are great in salads but I like them on sandwiches too. You can grow sprouts without any soil. I like my sprout kit for counter top growing.

Swiss Chard

One of my favorite garden vegetables. It is pretty cold hardy but doesn’t like a freeze. So bring that Swiss Chard indoors. Keep in mind that your indoor chard will be significantly smaller than the leaves and stalks you get growing outdoors. But with continual harvesting the indoor crops are worth the effort.

Not only is Swiss Chard delicious but it will add beautiful color while your growing an indoor vegetable garden!

Tomatoes

Yes, you can grow tomatoes indoors. I recommend you choose cherry tomato types like Cherry Chocolate or Black Cherry tomatoes.

Growing an indoor vegetable garden in the fall and winter will bring you fresh veggies and joy all season long!  Happy Gardening!

Growing Borage For Home Health and Garden

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Growing Borage may be the single best thing you do for your home and garden this year! Growing Borage is fairly easy and it is a powerful herb for healing and companion planting. And if that isn’t reason enough, growing Borage adds a touch of whimsy and beauty to any garden. It never fails to attract friends and family that wander out to my garden. I want to show you how to grow Borage, without it taking over; and using it effectively for your home, health and garden.

Growing Borage For Home Health and GardenGrowing Borage For Home Health and Garden

How to Grow Borage…wait what is Borage?

Borage is an herbal plant with bright blue flowers. This Mediterranean native herb also sometimes called a starflower, bee bush or bee bread. It is used in medicinal purposes as well as many garden uses….

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