Two Minutes in the Garden: Gardening Tips, Science, Myths (Empress of Dirt)

Have you heard the one about how you can tell a female bell pepper from a male? Well, that one's just a myth -- fruit isn't male or female. But plants can be.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Grow An Apple Tree From Seed

You'll never prevent weeds from getting to your garden, but there are things you can do to reduce the number you get.

NEW THIS WEEK on Empress of Dirt: Do Oils, Candles, and Certain Plants Keep Mosquitoes Away?

What are cover crops -- and how can you use them in your garden?

Holly is another of the popular plants of the Christmas season -- although they are considered to be invasive in many areas. And maybe just a little toxic too.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Root Pothos Cuttings

Our plants can't live without them, but how do we know that they're getting them? Do we need to feed them to our plants? And what are these essential nutrients?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Make African Violets Bloom & Rebloom

It was common practice to place coarse materials at the bottom of pots. An interesting example of how gardening advice can evolve over time.

An overview of vermicomposting -- worm composting. It provides very similar benefits to the garden as composting, but can be done indoors and stay active year-round, even in colder areas.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Save Seeds: Collecting Seeds From Your Garden Plants

Do nutrients really specialize in one aspect of plant growth, like roots or shoots? Why adding more of one nutrient to your soil, like a phosphorus-heavy bloom booster, often doesn't provide any benefit.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Growing Poinsettias: Year-Round Care & Reblooming Guide

Many plants die every year from overwatering. It's one of the easiest ways to harm your plants -- as you're trying to help them.

READ THE LATEST at Empress of Dirt: Gardening With Kids: 35 Playful & Practical Ideas

New research shows plants can remove dangerous chemicals from the air -- after being genetically modified.

Read more at Empress of Dirt: Do Houseplants Really Purify the Air? Spoiler Alert: No

There's been an outbreak in avian flu this year in much of North America. Do our bird feeders increase the risk of spreading the disease?

MORE FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Choose the Best Birdseed

Compost is great for your garden, but can you have too much of a good thing? What problems could there be if you use too much? Will it harm your plants ... or something else?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Bring Plants Inside: Timing & Debugging Tips

What can you do to avoid getting Japanese beetles in your garden -- or at least reduce the damage they do? And do traps do more harm than good?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Grow a Fall-Winter Vegetable Garden (and When to Start)

Manure from different animals is a popular addition to garden soil but you'll also hear a lot of warnings about its use. And what about using waste from your pets?

Willow water, honey and many others are touted as natural alternatives to rooting hormone. But do they work as well as rooting hormones -- or at all?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Harvest Sweet Pea Seeds

Continuing our look at different types of seeds that you can buy -- or in this case even produce your own, because today we're looking at open-pollinated seeds.

One of the biggest threats our new seedlings face is damping-off. What can we do to improve our odds of avoiding it?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Best Living Plants for Miniature Gardens (Resource Guide)

Bolting can ruin your vegetables in a blink of an eye. You can sometimes avoid it, but it's really just part of the natural lifecycle of plants.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: When to Take Plant Cuttings (Season By Season)

Lots of people love to do it ... many others think it's wacky. Is there any basis for gardening by the phase of the moon?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 5 Smart Garden Uses for This Dollar Store Waste Basket

Also known in many parts of the world as bicarbonate of soda or bicarb soda -- you see it recommended for dozens of uses in the garden. It sounds pretty harmless, but should we be using it around our plants?

READ MORE at Empress of Dirt: Baking Soda in the Garden: Is it Really Harmless?

Whether you're opposed to them or would love to try them, it doesn't matter--you can't have them.

Seedlings need water, but you can give them too much of a good thing.

READ MORE at Empress of Dirt: Seed Starting for Beginners: Sow Inside Grow Outside

Three greens for one brown! Or is that three browns for one green? Two? Or is it 30 to 1?

They're the world's most abundant animal. Almost all of us have nematodes in our gardens. They do a lot of good for the soil but some of them can badly damage your plants.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Cure Winter Squash for Storage

You can buy nematodes to apply to your lawn or garden to control a wide range of insects. How do beneficial nematodes control pests?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Clever Ways to Fill Tall Raised Beds & Save On Soil

Halloween is nearly here and always brings the question: can I eat my Halloween pumpkin?

Read more at Empress of Dirt: Are Halloween Pumpkins Edible?

Starting off a look at seeds: why they're important and how they form in most of the plants in your garden.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: 40 Unique Container Gardening Ideas

Blue flowers do exist in nature, but not in many of our most popular flowers. And it's even been a struggle for scientists to create them.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Great Fall Weather? Get These Garden Jobs Done

Whether solitary or social, there's something for you in gardening -- from new university research.

Butterflies have putting on quite a show in California this week -- possibly a billion of them.

We may not like it, but frost definitely plays an influential role in gardening.

You could put your tree out for recycling -- or try one of the 25 creative projects from our list.

READ MORE at Empress of Dirt: 25 Creative Ways to Reuse Christmas Trees

Lots of people enjoy moon gardening. Should you be joining them?

Some years, the colors are more vibrant than others. Same trees, same place and time. Why so much variation?

SIGN UP for our fall email series at Empress of Dirt: Get Your Fall Garden Ideas and Turn Over a New Leaf

Talking to plants -- lots of people do it and some insist that it helps plants grow. Is there evidence to support this?

Read more at Empress of Dirt: Does Talking to Plants Really Help Them Grow?

They're sold as an alternative to pesticides to kill a wide range of insects. But will they make a difference to your garden or lawn? And are they safe to use?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Why Your Garden Needs Mulch & How To Do It Right

In permaculture circles, they're called dynamic accumulators -- plants that accumulate above average levels of particular nutrients in their leaves, which we can then add to compost piles, use as mulch or in other ways make the nutrients available to our plants. Do they work?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Grow Leafy Greens Indoors at Home (Simple & Fast Method)

Carrots are one of the most popular vegetables to grow in the garden, and you can get them in a range of sizes and a rainbow of colors.

ALSO FROM Empress of Dirt: How To Grow Carrots Indoors At Home In Flower Pots

AND: How To Grow Fairy Carrots In Jars

Saving seeds can be simple ... or complicated depending on how ambitious you get. What are some of the challenges you may face saving seeds?

MORE from Empress of Dirt: Getting Started With Seed Saving (Flowers, Fruit, & Vegetables)

Millions of birds die every year after crashing into windows. Can we lower those numbers?

Avocados are very popular, but the seeds usually get thrown out. Is eating them a good idea?

Read more at Empress of Dirt: Are Avocado Seeds Safe to Eat?

Somebody must like those mulch piles at the base of trees -- you see them everywhere -- but gardening experts have a different opinion.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: Phenology: Using Nature's Signs & Signals

Everybody loves heirlooms, although there are different ideas about how the term should be applied.

You don't want to throw it out and replacing it every year can be pricey. Can you reuse your potting mix?

Related story at Empress of Dirt: 5 Recipes for Blending Your Own Soil Mixes

Lots of stories about how it's been a great year for acorns in many areas. Why is there so much variation from year to year?

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: How to Make Crispy Baked Veggie Snack Chips

We know seeds are important for gardeners, but much of the world's nutrition also comes from seeds.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: Seed Starting for Beginners: Sow Inside Grow Outside

Can you really give your plants the water and nutrients they need through their leaves from sprays instead of through their roots from the soil?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Easy Way to Grow Ginger Root Indoors

Starting a series on mosquitoes and what we can do so they're less of a problem for us in the garden.

Flowers, leaves and stems need healthy roots to thrive. And how far from the trunk do a tree's roots extend?

POPULAR THIS WEEK at Empress of Dirt: 4 Easy Ways to Overwinter Geraniums (Pelargoniums)

Is household vinegar really a harmless and effective herbicide?

Read more at Empress of Dirt: Does Vinegar Really Kill Weeds?

They've become very popular as an alternative to plastic cling wrap. We've got a step-by-step guide.

Read more at Empress of Dirt: How to Make Beeswax Wraps | Plastic-Free Food Storage

The best ways to improve your chances of avoiding damping-off -- and how basic plant care and seed starting mix help.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: 40 Funny, Cute, Sarcastic and Sentimental Garden Signs

We know the properties we'd like the soil in our raised beds to have -- what should we put in the mix to get them?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 7 Unfortunate Garlic Growing Mistakes You Can Avoid

It's a tradition that goes back over a century and now has 80,000 people participating across the western hemisphere.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: Create a Garden Art Birdbath Planter

They're tiny but can cause big problems for your plants -- indoors and outdoors. How can you improve your odds of avoiding them, and what can you do once you have them?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Best (Cheap & Easy) DIY Tags For Indoor Seedlings & Plants

Even if you plan on sticking with soil, hydroponics tells us a lot about plants -- and soil. And if it appeals to you, then it's a way to grow plants year-round.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How To Grow Swiss Chard Indoors (Seed to Harvest)

There are more species of rust fungi than any other plant pathogen. Once you have it, there's not much you can do about it, but you can make things more challenging for the rust.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 10 Spectacular Fast-Growing Flowers

You want to know what your garden soil pH is, but -- as with soil texture -- it's not because you're going to change it.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: How to Choose a Bird Feeder

You could just put the tree out for recycling -- or try one of the creative projects we've listed.

Read more at Empress of Dirt: 25 Creative Ways to Reuse Christmas Trees

It's been a hotly debated issue for years: does it improve drainage in your containers if you first add a layer of gravel or some other course material to the bottom? Some new research puts it to the test.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 10 Surprisingly Simple Garden Tips You Might Be Overlooking

U.S. regulators want more information about the safety of sunscreen ingredients. Is is still safe to use sunscreen?

Why does my compost pile smell so bad? It shouldn't -- and it can be fixed.

Most countries use a confusing and outdated NPK labelling system for fertilizer packages. What do the numbers mean? Depending on where you live, it's probably not what you think. And why is a "balanced fertilizer" not so balanced after all?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: When to Take Down Hummingbird Feeders in Fall

Are you using a balanced fertilizer in your garden? It may seem like a simple and effective way to provide nutrients to your plants, but it could also cause problems for your soil and for the environment.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Indoor Seed Starting: Best DIY Setup on a Budget

Part one of our look at poison ivy -- what it is and what it can do to you if you touch it.

For a long time we had a good explanation for why leaves change colour. Now we're a little less certain.

SIGN UP for our fall email series at Empress of Dirt: Get Your Fall Garden Ideas and Turn Over a New Leaf

The cuticle is where your plants interact with the world. Among many roles, they largely control how effective plant sprays are.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 20 Beautiful Backyard Pond Ideas For All Budgets

Millions of people have bought the book over the last 40 years. Is square foot gardening something you might want to try in your garden?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 12 Creative Crafty Uses for Slow Cookers

Tiny bits of minerals in your soil are going to make a big difference in your garden -- and it's easy to find out your soil texture.

READ MORE at Empress of Dirt: What's Your Soil Type? Try This Easy Test

Digging, no-digging, double-digging -- it's a contentious issue in gardening circles with many people holding quite emphatic views on all sides.

When your prevention efforts fail -- and they will -- then what? It helps to know a few things about the weeds you're trying to remove.

POPULAR THIS WEEK on Empress of Dirt: How to Make Decorative Garden Art Balls

Some of our vegetables are fruits, most of the nuts we eat aren't nuts and our berries aren't berries -- but a tomato is.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: Starting a Garden From Scratch (Yearly Photos)

Continuing our look at what you need to provide your seeds in the stages leading up to germination.

READ MORE at Empress of Dirt: Seed Starting for Beginners: Sow Inside Grow Outside

Lots of water? YES! Bleach? NO! Antitranspirant sprays? Probably not.

It's the time of year when many people think of ways to eat healthier in the new year. And that may include a low-carb keto diet.

READ MORE at Empress of Dirt: How to Give Up Sugar with the Keto Lifestyle

Physically and mentally, gardening has been shown to promote our health and well-being -- as exercise, an outlet for creativity and learning, relaxation, and more.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 45 Ridiculously Simple & Helpful Eco-Beneficial Garden Tips

Freezing temperatures are on the way -- what can you do to keep your pond fish alive and well through the winter?

READ THE LATEST at Empress of Dirt: Beginner Watercolor Painting with Painterly Days

pH is a measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions -- why is this important for gardeners?

Can you really burn the leaves of your plants by watering them in the midday sun?

CatBibs, bells, and other ways to reduce the number of birds killed by pet cats.

Fall is a great time for planting trees, but when is it too cold and too late in the season?

Read more at Empress of Dirt: When is it too Late to Plant Trees in Fall?

For decades, baits have been a popular way to deal with slugs, but there are concerns about their impact on wildlife and the environment. Do any of the suggested home remedy alternatives work?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 10 Beginner Garden Tips That Avoid Bloopers (Great & Small)

Lots of people love to do it, others have a hard time taking it seriously. Much of the growth in popularity in moon gardening over the last century is due to the influence of Rudolf Steiner.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Plant Patents and Home Gardens: What You Need to Know

There are better, safer alternatives to get any benefits baking soda may provide.

Most of us used to rake and bag our leaves in the fall, but there are better alternatives for our garden.

Read more at Empress of Dirt: 5 Excellent Reasons to Stop Bagging Fall Leaves

Over the last 200 years, earthworms have gone from being despised by gardeners to being loved as signs of healthy soil. Many gardeners now even raise worms in their houses to create vermicompost. But it's not all rosy.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Simple Trick to Save the Best Seeds from Your Garden

One of the key ways we manage our compost pile is making sure we get a good mix of carbon and nitrogen.

Read more at Empress of Dirt: Composting 101: Slow & Fast Methods

It can be daunting to take snips to your plants, but in no time it will be second-nature.

Did fruits and vegetables have more minerals and vitamins in our great-grandparents' days?

New research suggests that plants can not only hear, they can respond to sounds quickly.

The usual advice given to gardeners is not to store potatoes in the fridge. But is this good advice and what is it based on?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: Get a Better Spring Garden With These Fall Tasks

Something seems to be going on around walnut trees, but is it poison in the soil or something else?

READ THE LATEST at Empress of Dirt: Gardening With Kids: 35 Playful & Practical Ideas

Gardeners bring a lot of plastic home from the store and much of it doesn't get used for very long.

Recent stories may make you think the answer is no. It isn't.

Some plants have developed flowers that send a message to pollinators -- hey come check this out, you won't be disappointed.

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 14 Birdbath Planter Ideas for Your Garden

Hybrids don't have the best PR among seeds, but they can provide traits you're just not going to find in plants grown from open-pollinated seeds.

There'll be a lot of gifts being given over the next few weeks. If you're looking for ideas, we have some!

Read more at Empress of Dirt: 20 Essential Gifts For Garden Nerds

Variegation is very highly sought after, both in houseplants and for the garden. What is variegation and what challenges can it create for gardeners?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: 17 Flower Seeds to Sow Mid-Summer

In the fall, we may scramble to bring some plants indoors or cover them -- while others will make it through the winter fine. What do frost and cold temperatures do to plants?

NEW FROM Empress of Dirt: How to Preserve Fall Leaves and Wildflowers with Beeswax

Thursday is Thanksgiving in the U.S. -- the only holiday we have that's based, in part, on growing vegetables.

READ THE LATEST from Empress of Dirt: Homemade Peanut Butter Suet (Easy Recipe)