Renee's Blog

Preparing And Making Lavender Sachets

Lindsay shows you how to clean and prepare your lavender and make lovely, fragrant sachets for gifts as well as home use.

Protecting Veggie Beds from Birds, Squirrels & More

Lindsay shares her techniques for creating a bird proof garden bed that also keeps out other creatures.

Harvesting And Drying Lavender

Lindsay demonstrates how to harvest and dry your own aromatic lavender from homegrown plants to use for crafting projects.

Planting Tomato Seedlings Into The Garden

Lindsay Del Carlo, Trial Garden Manager, shows how to plant tomato seedlings in the ground after starting them indoors.

Dividing Spearmint Plants

How to care for perennial spearmint that has survived the winter in a container, so that it can flourish for years to come.

Starting Tomatoes From Seed

Start tomato seeds early indoors. Lindsay covers store bought and recycled containers, soil mix and planting techniques.

Moving Baby Tomato Seedlings To Larger Pots

When and how to "pot up" or replant tiny tomato seedlings into larger individual containers so they can grow successfully until ready to plant into the garden.

Renee’s Sweet Pepper Bliss Recipe

Pepper and onion harvest has never been more delicious. Watch Lindsay Del Carlo prepares Renee's favorite sweet pepper and onion dish.

How To Harvest And Dry Paprika Peppers

Enhance your dishes with homegrown paprika peppers. Lindsay shares tips on how to harvest and process homegrown paprika and get the tastiest results.

Juicing Nutritious Homegrown Wheatgrass

Juicing nutritious wheatgrass is as easy as using a blender. After having grown a batch at the trial garden, Lindsay harvests and juices it in just a few minutes. Boost your daily nutrition by growing and juicing wheatgrass at home....

How To Harvest And Prepare Padron Peppers

Watch as Lindsay shows how to harvest and prepare Spanish Padron tapas peppers for enjoyment straight from the garden.

Harvesting and Preparing Edamame

Learn how to harvest and prepare easy to grow Edamame beans straight from your garden.

Extend Your Growing & Harvest Season

Wherever you garden, from the northeast and high mountain elevations to the mild climate west and the balmier southern states, the spring and summer growing season often seem just too short. Use the following tips and techniques to reap the...

Harvesting Your Herbal Tea Hibiscus

Learn all about our variety of herbal hibiscus and how to harvest and dry it for tea.

Planting Vegetables In Containers

Planting vegetables in containers has never been more productive. Trial Garden Manager Lindsay Del Carlo explains how to get the best yield out of container vegetables with easy to follow techniques. 

Organic Growing: Prepping Garden Beds

Easy step by step prepping instructions for flower garden beds.

Harvesting Celeriac (a.k.a. Celery Root)

Celeriac is a European staple that's gaining popularity in U.S., Lindsay Del Carlo guides viewers on when to harvest this delicious root vegetable.

How And Why To Thin Carrots

Lindsay shares her tips for abundant carrot harvests by explaining how and why to thin twice.

Warm Up With Hearty Soups

When the weather is cold and the days are short, there are few meals that can be as satisfying and comforting to both body and spirit as a full flavored bowl of hot home made soup for lunch or dinner....

Supporting Big Tomato Vines

We grow many tomato varieties each and every summer in the trial garden and we've tried many different methods of supporting the tall, vining indeterminate* varieties that grow heavy with fruit and foliage at maturity. For example, we used traditional...

Cutting Zinnias For Bouquets

Make beautiful zinnia bouquets and regrow more flowers by following tips from Lindsay Del Carlo, Trial Garden Manager. Shop For Zinnias Now

Cutting Basil For Lasting Harvests

Lindsay shares her expert techniques for extending basil growing season.

When To Harvest Your Sweet Corn

How to tell when sweet corn is ready for harvest with Lindsay.

Season’s End Harvests For Holiday Treats

Fall is the time of year to begin preparing your favorite foods for the fall and winter months ahead. Happily, the last summer garden crops can provide a wealth of raw ingredients for scrumptious desserts and holiday sweet treats. With this...

Renee's Favorite Pumpkin Recipes

Fall means harvest time in the garden and calls for warm comfort food in the kitchen. When you grow your own pumpkins, it’s always great to have some new ideas for how to make delicious use of them. Here are...

Beth’s Guide for Growing the Cucurbit Family

We get many questions from gardeners about members of the cucurbit family, so our expert Garden Advisor, Beth Benjamin, has summarized her advice for successfully growing these mainstay garden vegetables. Planting: When you plant is important: all members of the...

When and How to Harvest Winter Squash

Lindsay shows how to harvest, store and cook winter squashes.

Harvesting and Drying Onions

Lindsay demonstrates how to harvest, dry, and store onions.

Harvesting and Storing Dried Beans

Learn how to harvest, winnow and store your Heirloom Cannellini Bush Beans.

Visit Renee's Trial Garden with P. Allen Smith

Renee and P Allen Smith discuss why they garden and visit Renee's trial garden to show a wide variety of salads and demonstrate how to grow delicious baby leaf mesclun mix from seed.

Selecting Edible Flowers

Renee discusses the many different edible flowers you can grow from seed and how to use them in everyday cooking. Moving to the kitchen, she makes delicious, colorful Herb & Flower Blossom Tea Sandwiches.

How to Start and Grow Sweet Peas

Unique types of sweet peas and how to grow them!

Incorporating a Cover Crop: Method #3

Growing Sweet Peas in the Midwest

It’s unfortunate that sweet peas have a reputation for being difficult to grow in the Midwest, because these lovely flowers offer both exquisite perfume and a wide range of colors from pastels to vivid hues. True, growing sweet peas in...

All About Sweet Peas

The graceful beauty of annual sweet peas with their ruffled blossoms, soft texture and glowing colors makes them one of the most irresistible flowers. Their scent is an exquisite perfume of orange blossoms and honey, surely one of the most...

Sowing Sweet Peas Directly Into The Garden

In mild winter climates, where the ground does not freeze, sweet pea seeds should be fall-sown directly into the garden from September through November to grow strong root systems and then bloom in spring. If you do not get your...