Grow Your Own Vegetables, Author at Grow Your Own Vegetables

One Crop Rotation Rule to Prevent Diseases in Your Garden

Plan your plants to prevent disease in your garden!

When you’re thinking about what to plant where this year, you should be thinking bigger picture—what crop rotations each year will help you prevent the kinds of diseases that wipe out all your hard work and your harvest.

By following a simple rotation rule, you can avoid costly mistakes, protect your harvest, and keep your garden thriving year after year.

Would you rather watch than read? Watch the video at the bottom of this post instead!

Why Crop Rotation Prevents Disease

Planting the same crop in the same spot every year invites trouble. Diseases like black rot (affecting cabbage, kale, and collards), late blight (a common tomato killer), and bacterial wilt (a threat to cucumbers) thrive when crops stay in one place. Rotating crops breaks the life cycle of these pathogens, reducing their impact on your garden.

Group Crops by Family

To effectively use crop rotation, start by grouping your crops into families. For example:

Brassicas: Cabbage, kale, collards
Nightshades: Tomatoes, peppers, eggplants
Cucurbits: Cucumbers, squash, melons

Rotating these families to different beds each year ensures that diseases don’t get a chance to establish a stronghold in your soil.

Shift Beds Annually

Once you’ve grouped your crops, make a plan to shift their location each year. For example, if you grow cabbage in one bed this year, plant cucumbers or another crop family in that bed next year. This movement disrupts the disease cycle and keeps your plants healthier.

Address Inevitable Pests

While crop rotation significantly reduces disease pressure, pests can still pop up. Rotating crops makes it harder for pests to locate their preferred plants. For example, if cucumber beetles find your cucumbers one year, moving cucumbers to another bed the next year forces them to search for their food elsewhere, giving your plants a break.

By rotating crops and shifting beds, you can lower these threats and enjoy a productive, disease-free garden. Take the time to plan your crop rotation now, and you’ll be rewarded with healthier plants and bigger harvests.

Would you rather watch than read? Watch the video below instead!

One Crop Rotation Rule to Prevent Diseases in Your Garden

If you would like more in-depth instruction on planning your garden for success, check out our Crop Planning course. It’s a sure fire way to feel more in control of your garden every time you plant.

Get a great start with Stacey’s Masterclass on YouTube:

Vegetables & Herb Plants 101: Plant Biology and Lifecycle

What crops do you like to rotate? Let us know below!

Delicious Microgreens Recipes!

Have you ever considered how a tiny garnish can transform your meals? Microgreens are not only bursting with nutrients; Plus, they’re also a delightful way to enhance the taste and visual appeal of your dishes. Let’s delve into some tantalizing delicious microgreens recipes!

Microgreens 101: A Charcuterie Adventure

Delicious Microgreens Recipes! Charcuterie

Imagine a canvas of flavors and textures awaiting your creativity. A charcuterie board with microgreens lets you play with taste in ways you might not have considered. Firstly, lay out an array of sweet fruits and jams. Then add tangy pickles and citrus. Be sure to include salty cheeses and nuts.

Pair your charcuterie board with a bitter or spicy microgreen to balance. Specifically, microgreen varieties like kale, purple kohlrabi, mustard, and radish make superb choices. Dive in and let each bite be an exploration of flavors!

Perfect Pairings: Roasted Soup and Microgreens

Delicious Microgreens Recipes! Soup Ingredients

Who knew that the secret to elevating a warm bowl of roasted butternut squash and poblano pepper soup could be a handful of microgreens? The answer lies in their crisp nature, contrasting the soup’s velvety texture. Drizzle olive oil and squeeze lime for an extra layer of flavor. You’ll be surprised at how something so simple can make such a profound difference to your taste buds.

Summer in a Bowl: Melon and Sweet Pepper Salad

Delicious Microgreens Recipes! Melon and Sweet Pepper Salad with Microgreens and Hazelnuts

As the sun blesses us with its warmth, there’s no better way to celebrate than with a refreshing melon and sweet pepper salad. The microgreens add a crisp, refreshing touch that perfectly complements the sweetness of melon and the subtle savoriness of hazelnuts. It’s a dance of flavors and textures that will have you craving for more with every forkful.

Creative Combos: Your Microgreens Journey

You’re now equipped with a few ideas to get started; moreover, the true joy of microgreens lies in their versatility. Don’t hesitate to experiment; find your perfect combo for your delicious microgreen recipes. Add them to your sandwiches, pizzas, or even smoothies. The possibilities are endless and so are the health benefits.

Embracing microgreens in your cooking is not just about a trendy ingredient; indeed, it’s about discovering new dimensions of taste and nutrition in your daily meals. Whether you’re a seasoned chef or a curious foodie, microgreens have something to offer. So go ahead, sprinkle a little green on your next dish and watch it come alive. Bon Appétit!

Want to grow your own microgreens at home?

It’s Easy!

Get Your Complimentary Guide to Growing 6 Easy-to-Grow Microgreen Varieties

Download Your Microgreen Growing Guide

Share how YOU like to enjoy microgreens!

Superfoods to Grow in Your Garden

Why spend a fortune on buying organic superfoods from the supermarket if you can grow them yourself? If you are lucky enough to have a garden in your home, make sure you make use of it and grow nutrient-packed crops that will make a healthy and delicious diet!

Gardening is good for the body and mind alike – taking care of your plants has several proven mental health benefits, while eating organic fresh food is great to keep your body healthy. So, if you have the chance to grow your own crops, why not choose the ones that are the most beneficial for your health? That is right – it’s time to grow your own superfoods!

First, let’s take a moment to understand what superfoods are – these foods (mostly fruits and vegetables) have a very high concentration of nutrients, antioxidants and vitamins, making them fantastic health boosters. However, there is no set criteria to determine which foods qualify for this status – the term “superfood” is essentially an umbrella term for the foods that carry the most health benefits when consumed as part of an otherwise healthy diet. And what else is healthier than homegrown crops?

Plus, growing your own means that you can be sure that your food hasn’t been treated with pesticides, biocides or other harmful chemicals. And the good news is, you can grow a good amount of these superfoods even if you are short on space – as some of them can thrive in pots and containers, without the need for a dedicated spot in your garden.

So what are you waiting for? With the help of this infographic, you can decide which superfoods suit your gardening skills the most, so all you need to do is get planting!

The difficulty levels are indicators of how much time and effort is needed to keep the crops thriving, as well as how sensitive they are to certain weather conditions. Some plants, like peas and zucchini, are more forgiving and can grow even in lower-quality soil. However, plants like blueberry bushes are extremely sensitive to the type of soil they are planted in – blueberries require well-drained and acidic soil in order to produce healthy fruit.

Some of these plants need to be protected during the winter (lemons and fig trees need shelter from the frost), while others don’t tolerate the heat. It is advised to research your preferred plant thoroughly, so you can be prepared for the possible problems and the ways to solve them.

Don’t forget – anyone can become a gardener, so don’t let the difficulty levels discourage you from attempting to grow a higher-maintenance crop – just make sure you have done your research and are willing to spend time in your garden. Good luck and happy planting!

Ready to get your superfood gardening journey going?

Get the Superfood Garden Summit Best Of Collection!

Get 20 of the best presentations from 9 years of Superfood Garden Summits. Featuring the top experts in the farm and garden community you’ll discover key information to help you grow your own superfoods! Form building healthy soil and small space growing to gardening with bees and cultivating herbs for maximum nutrition, this Best Of Collection is here to help you on your Superfood Journey.

Guest Article by: Dóra Pista

Dora Pista is a blogger and hobby gardener, with a passion for healthy eating and cooking. She created the infographic above to help beginner gardeners start their journey into superfood growing.

Find Dora on Facebook, Twitter, and her website.

Share with us the Superfoods you love to grow!

The Best Growing Trays for Microgreen Success

Microgreens are a great crop for so many growers. Whether you’re looking to supplement your vegetable garden, wanting to add fresh veggies to your plate in the winter months, or growing indoors because you don’t have outside gardening space, microgreens are a fun and easy crop to grow. But finding a good microgreen tray can be challenging.

How to Choose a Good Microgreen Tray

A good microgreen tray should be food safe, have drainage holes, be non-porous, not be biodegradable, and be sustainable. In addition to the list above, it’s really helpful if all your microgreen trays are the exact same size and fit perfectly in your drainage tray below so no space is wasted and you can maximize your harvests.

“Too often I see students growing in trays that aren’t safe to grow food in or trays that don’t support microgreen growth. A good microgreen tray set up can mean the difference between a healthy harvest or a failed batch.” – Crystal Meserole, Commercial Microgreen Grower.

The Micro-Dream Tray

Recommended by commercial microgreen grower, Crystal Meserole, these trays are truly one of a kind! So many of the trays on the market are downright junk and you’ll be lucky if you get two plantings from them. Not these trays! Meet the most amazing microgreen tray on the market.

A perfect size for the home grower, these 5×5 inch trays are listed on their site as ‘Ultra-Durable, Top-Quality BPA Free Plastic Trays…Will last multiple seasons’. This is a serious understatement!

“I bought a batch of 800 of these microgreen trays 5 years ago. After 5 years, I still have most of them in near perfect condition. They’ve been in and out of kitchens, gone through dozens of wash and sanitize cycles, and just as many plantings. These trays are the most superior trays on the market.” – Crystal Meserole

Because these trays are all uniform, you can hone in on the seed amount you need for each planting. No more winging the amount or having to measure different amounts for different sized trays.
While the taller 5×5’s are best for larger rooted greens such as pea, nasturtium, and sunflower shoots, their shallow 5×5 mesh trays are best for small rooted crops like broccoli, kale, amaranth, and more. Don’t let the mesh fool you, these shallow trays are equally durable.

These extra strength 5×5 trays (called 801 inserts in the commercial world) are made of heavy-duty, BPA- free, FDA-grade, polypropylene plastic and guaranteed not to warp or break.

“These trays are so easy to use and clean. I can’t imagine growing my microgreens without them.” – Crystal Meserole

Perfect for Multiple Varieties

Not only are these trays safe and durable, they’re great for anyone wanting variety! Fitting eight 5×5 trays to one 1020 flat, these trays reduce environmental waste, AND save you money.

The design provides better drainage than competing trays, saving you even more with reduced crop loss. As an added bonus, they can be run through most dishwasher cycles with no problem. Say goodbye to flimsy non-sustainable trays for good with Bootstrap Farmers’ superior quality 5×5 Microgreen Trays.

In addition to your 5×5 trays with drainage holes, you’re going to want a flat with no holes to catch water draining out below. Use these for the deeper micro trays and these ones for the shallow mesh trays.

Humidity Domes

Bootstrap farmer also makes a seriously durable dome to fit over the 1020 flats to protect your seeds while they germinate. And the openings in the top allow you to slowly adjust your baby microgreens to your indoor environment.

From safety and durability to maximization of space, Bootstrap Farmer microgreen trays are where it’s at for anyone who wants to grow microgreens as a crop. Whether you’re a home grower or commercial grower, these trays are far superior to anything else we’ve found on the market. See for yourself! Get the 1020 flat and dome starter kit here and the microgreen 5×5’s here.

Share Your Thoughts!

How do you like these microgreen trays?

Microgreen Garden… indoors, fast, & DELICIOUS!

Do you have limited TIME and SPACE but want to grow fresh food? You can still grow! Learn to grow your own microgreens. The healthy fast food with flavors galore!

Check out two of my students who are are busting the myth that you need a lot of time and space to enjoy homegrown food. It’s just not true!

Even if you only have a closet or a few shelves, you can get TONS of fresh, flavorful greens on your plate.

Try the nutty flavor sunflower shoots in your next salad, spice up your soup with purple radish microgreens, or add a sprinkle of fennel atop your favorite meat dish—the flavors are truly endless!

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The best part about growing microgreens? It takes just a few minutes each day! You could have a non-stop supply of fresh greens, if you grow your own microgreens. 😉

A lot of people wonder what you can grow as a microgreen. They’re unsure about what plants can be eaten as a microgreen. An easy general rule of thumb is that if you can eat the leaves of that crop, then you can eat it as a microgreen. There are hundreds of possibilities.

What’s more is that there are endless ways to use microgreens. From adding a bit of tart to your salad with red veined sorrel, dusting your pasta with that fresh micro basil (because we all know dried basil just doesn’t cut it!), or adding a handful of that cilantro kick to your southwestern soup, microgreens are one of the most versatile crops you can grow.

Want to try your hand at growing microgreens?

Get Your Complimentary Guide to Growing 6 Easy-to-Grow Microgreen Varieties