DIY In-Ground Compost Bin

Bamboo is one of my favorite things to use in the garden. It is prolific and very sustainable, meaning I don’t feel bad cutting it down and using it. I just don’t want it in my yard since it spreads so fast…but the good news for me is that my uncle’s yard is teeming with …

Today I’m talking about 7 easy beginner-friendly houseplants that you probably haven’t heard of. Because these beginner-friendly lists always have the same plants on them! One of the plants I’m spotlighting starts with an X, and I had to look up how to properly say the name several times 🙂 And I’ll probably still butcher …

Today we’re talking about the right way to water your houseplants. I know—it sounds like something so easy that it doesn’t need a tutorial to explain it. But it’s entirely possible you’re watering your houseplants wrong if you’re just getting started. And that’s because there is a massive difference between overwatering, which is something you’re …

I love a simple salad with olive oil as the dressing. And although I really enjoy infused olive oils from a fancy place near where I live, it can get expensive! So sometimes I like to make my own infused olive oil at home. Especially rosemary-infused olive oil. I love the taste and smell of …

Hey all! A few months ago I wrote about choosing a vinyl privacy fence over a standard wooden privacy fence. The fence is gorgeous, easy to keep clean, and doesn’t have any gaps between the slats. But one thing I do miss about having a wooden fence is being able to easily drill into the …

Hi all! It’s been about 8 months since our sunroom project finished up. And I finally feel ready to share it. It’s been slow-going in our new house…but all in all, I think we’ve made some great progress in the year we’ve been here! Here are a few home-related projects I’ve shared about the new …

I have been on a fall bulb kick at the new house. I’ve done articles on How to Grow Allium, How to Grow Hyacinth, and How to Plant Tulips. I’m looking forward to seeing them sprout in the spring—but for now, I have indoor bulbs to tide me over. While you can force many bulbs …

Hey all! Today I’m sharing all about my experience with the Gardyn 4.0, a completely hydroponic indoor gardening system designed to help you grow fresh produce at home. Huge thanks to the folks at Gardyn for sending me a Gardyn 4.0 to review! I’d actually gotten a chance to see one of these gorgeous growing …

My wife has been putting in lots of new garden beds, so we’ve been thinking through how to best and most efficiently water them. Cue: irrigation! She sent me down a rabbit hole for today’s project—our DIY solar-powered rain barrel irrigation system. Last summer my big project was setting up our DIY Smokeless Fire Pit. …

Today we’re talking through planting our mini orchard in our backyard. One of the things I always hear from people who are looking to expand their gardens and increase their self-sufficiency is to plant more fruit trees. So how that we’re somewhere with a little yard, we decided to get some trees in the ground. …

The new in-ground beds we put in this year are putting in some serious work…the first two rows are for asparagus, but I’ve been doing greens and fava beans between those plants. The third row had sweet potatoes in it. But now that I’ve dug those up, it’s time to plant my garlic cloves! I’m …

Learn how to propagate sage from stem cuttings! Sage is one of those plants that you either love or hate the smell of. While I don’t eat a ton of sage, I love the smell of it! And I love growing perennial sage in my garden because it looks great for a large portion of …

Every year I do an update about the changes we’ve made in the garden. This is our third update for this house—here are the first two: And for year 3…well, we really went off the deep end. I thought it was going to be a chill year! And then we added 5 new raised beds, …

If you’ve been hanging around to witness my plant adventures over the years, you probably know that building a greenhouse is truly a dream come true for me. That’s right—we bought the 9×6 Willow model greenhouse from Backyard Discovery! It’s perfect for us, our needs, and our space. And I did a ton of research …

Learn what causes gnats & how to get rid of them! If you have any houseplants, you have probably dealt with fungus gnats. Fungus gnats are teeny tiny black flying insects that are attracted to wet potting soil. My plants are 100% gnat free. Through trial and error, I have developed a personal toolkit of …

All about the gorgeous Scindapsus treubii moonlight! Let’s talk about one of my favorites! If you’re looking to add an interesting new plant to your collection, then the scindapsus treubii ‘moonlight’ might be a good choice. The moonlight’s leaves are milky green with a silver sheen, making them stand out among your other green-leaf plants. …

How to care for holiday cacti…and get blooms! Today we’re talking about holiday cacti, including the Thanksgiving cactus and the Christmas cactus. My Thanksgiving cactus started as a cutting from my own grandmother’s plant, so it’s a really special plant in my collection. Christmas and Thanksgiving cacti can live very long lives, often being passed …

How to help the ric rac cactus thrive! I ordered my first ric rac cactus online many years ago—it’s such a cool-looking plant and was on my wish list for a while. You might hear it called a ton of different names: the fishbone cactus, the zig-zag cactus, or even an orchid cactus. It’s a …

How to care for the unique string of turtles! Have you had a chance to see a string of turtles plant in person? This plant has become very trendy in the last few years, and for good reason. It looks really cool, but it’s a peperomia—peperomia prostrata—which means it’s pretty easy to care for, too! …

I have to admit that spider plants (Chlorophytum comosum) aren’t my favorite. I have had some bad luck with them many years ago despite being really easy to care for. But I wanted to give it another shot after seeing my mom’s stunning spider plant FULL of flowers and babies. It’s throwing new shoots and …

How to care for hoya linearis as a houseplant Today we’re talking about a plant I first got as a cutting…and then got rid of…and then re-bought when I saw a larger plant for sale locally. It’s a hoya linearis! I seem to love hoyas more and more every year. While the linearis variety is …

All about silver sword philodendron care Today we’re talking about the silver sword philodendron—aka philodendron hastatum ‘silver sword.’ When I first got this plant, I had never seen one in person. I really only see them occasionally popping up in plant nurseries where I live for higher prices. So when a friend of mine told …

Learn how to make a plant propagation box It’s been plants out the wazoo over here lately. It’s spring, meaning it’s propagation season! So what better time than now for me to share my moss propagation box setup? A plant propagation box is basically a way to create a small greenhouse for your propagations. It …

Caring for the mildly dramatic calathea Dottie I’ve written about general calathea care tips in the past, and I’ve tried many times to swear off calatheas Because they are a bit higher maintenance than some other plants. They are beautiful, though. Especially Calathea Dottie with her deep green and hot pink leaves. According to the …

Elephant ear plants are one of my favorite plants to decorate our patio with. I sometimes plant them in the ground, too—and they can get quite large! Regardless of whether you plant them in the ground or in pots, you’ll likely need to dig up your elephant ear bulbs in the fall if don’t live …

Learn how to dry or preserve eucalyptus branches I have an article all about how to care for potted eucalyptus that’s one of my most popular. I love growing eucalyptus in pots every year—and based on the number of emails I get about eucalyptus, you all do, too! As we near the end of growing …

Hey all! Today I am adding another hoya to my hoya care guide arsenal—the hoya obovata. One of my favorite plants in my whole collection! The obovata’s thick, flat, round, succulent-like leaves make it truly stand out. Each leaf is deep green with a gray/whitish “splash” variegation on them. It climbs and vines, making it …

How to care for the lovely philodendron white knight It’s time for a philodendron white knight care guide! White knight has lovely deep red stems that look a lot like pink princess philodendron stems. The leaves, however, are a deep green with bright white variegation. Not ivory, not cream. Bright white. While it has traditionally …

Hi all! Today I’ve got an outdoor build for you—I’m sharing the steps for how I made an outdoor console table using a combination of wood and concrete pavers. I love using concrete pavers for outdoor builds to help keep them sturdy and to keep costs down. I did a DIY Patio Coffee Table Made …

Today I am sharing all about how to hang flower pots on a fence, deck, or just about any other vertical wood surface—specifically how to hang terracotta flower pots. Terracotta flower pots are so cheap, easy to paint if you want to, and come in a variety of sizes to meet all of your gardening …

Our DIY behind-the-sofa skinny console table…with power! I have yet to share a full post documenting the basement finishing project we took on. I have a lot of photos and content to sift through first! I did share a post on Our Review of the Flooret Modin Flooring we put in the basement, and that …

A step-by-step tutorial for preserving insects in resin There is a lot of overlap between bug people and plant people. I’m a plant people, but I am not a bug people. I am actually a bit squeamish about bugs, even the ones I know are beneficial. But I’m on the East Coast, which means we …

I am really excited to share something a bit different today…a post about how to raise black swallowtail butterflies! Our focus this year has been largely on adding butterfly-friendly plants to the garden, so we’re swimming in caterpillars. Identification The black swallowtail—otherwise known as the eastern black swallowtail, American swallowtail, parsnip swallowtail, and papilio polyxenes—is …

Today’s post really gets back to basics, because I’m walking you through how I start my seeds indoors. If you’re wanting to start gardening and starting some seeds, you might be a bit intimidated. I know I was. In this post, I’ll walk you through what you need to know to start seeds without a …

How to grow gorgeous alocasia odora Alocasia odora is probably the first elephant ear plant I ever grew. It’s definitely a “gateway” elephant ear plant because it’s so easy to find in garden centers in nurseries. You’ll often find it either as a potted patio plant or a corm (similar to a bulb). Odora is …

Today we’re talking about how to propagate basil from stem cuttings. It’s a super easy thing to do if you want to enjoy fresh basil for your whole growing season. And you can continue chopping and propping basil stem cuttings pretty much indefinitely, meaning you really only need to buy basil once! I know herbs …

Our DIY landscaping progress & a Vego beds review! I’m home from work and puttering around this week, reading and whatnot. I figured it’d be a nice time to go through some of my blogging backlog. And one of the things on my list was my yearly yard post. This is our second summer in …

This post was sponsored by Cricut. I’ll be honest—I have traditionally not loved working with stencils because I find it super hard to get clean paint lines. No matter how hard I try to paint carefully and how much tape I use to hold them in place, there is always paint bleeding and smudging. However, …

The pink princess is easier to find than ever! And pink princess philodendron care is a breeze. Learn about this gorgeous pink-variegated plant, including how to keep it pink, pricing, reverting variegation, and more. Let’s finally talk about pink princess philodendron care! Hey plant people! I am finally getting around to writing a pink princess …

It’s been a while since I have designed something from scratch myself and made it! I am not terribly great at using the 3D modeling software SketchUp, but I am trying to get better at it. So I thought a potting bench would be the perfect project to practice on. It might have taken me …