Community Steward
Useful writing on growing food, preserving it, sharing it, and keeping more life local.
7/1/2026
Peppers are the most rewarding warm-season crop you can grow at home. Bell peppers add crunch to salads. Hot peppers turn up the heat on everything from eggs to salsa. This guide covers variety selection, planting timing for Zone 7a, seasonal care, common problems, and harvesting peppers at their peak.
6/30/2026
Eggplant for the Home Garden: Your First Crop From Transplant to Harvest Eggplant is one of those summer vegetables that makes a big statement with very little effort once it gets...
6/30/2026
Why Peppers Deserve a Spot in Your Garden Peppers are one of the easiest warm season crops to grow and one of the most rewarding. They do not demand as much space as tomatoes, they...
6/30/2026
Okra is one of the easiest warm-season vegetables to grow, and it thrives on the summer heat that slows down other crops. This guide covers variety selection, planting for Zone 7a, seasonal care, and the harvesting habits that keep your plants producing all season long.
6/29/2026
Green beans are the workhorse of the home garden. They grow fast, produce heavily, and are forgiving enough for a first year gardener to succeed at. You can plant them in late spri...
6/26/2026
A practical guide to growing winter squash in Zone 7a, from choosing varieties and planting timing to dealing with squash vine borers, curing, and storing your harvest through winter.
6/26/2026
A beginner guide to growing peppers in Zone 7a, from choosing bell and hot varieties through planting, spacing, care, common problems, and harvesting through fall.
6/26/2026
A beginner guide to growing green beans in Zone 7a, from choosing bush or pole types through planting, spacing, harvesting, and common problems.
6/25/2026
A practical guide to growing tomatoes in Zone 7a. Learn variety selection, planting timing, staking and pruning, seasonal care, and how to keep your plants productive through the humid Southeast summer.
6/24/2026
Everything you need to grow your first cucumber plant, from choosing the right type to harvesting crisp fruit all summer long. A practical guide for Zone 7a gardeners.
6/24/2026
Everything you need to grow your first cucumber plant, from choosing the right type to harvesting crisp fruit all summer long. A practical guide for Zone 7a gardeners.
6/23/2026
A practical guide to growing eggplant in Zone 7a. Learn variety selection, planting timing, seasonal care, flea beetle defense, and how to harvest glossy, homegrown fruit.
6/23/2026
A practical guide to growing sweet corn in Zone 7a. Learn planting timing, block spacing, variety selection, seasonal care, and how to tell when ears are ready to pick.
6/21/2026
Summer Squash for the Home Garden: The Most Productive Warm Season Crop Summer squash is the most productive warm season crop you can grow in a home garden. You plant a few seeds i...
6/14/2026
A practical guide to growing peppers in Zone 7a. Learn which types to choose, how to start or buy plants, spacing, care through the season, common problems, and how to harvest.
6/7/2026
A practical guide to growing eggplant in Zone 7a, from choosing varieties at the nursery through the summer harvest.
6/3/2026
Tomatoes are the most rewarding first crop you can grow at home. This guide covers how to choose varieties, plant them, keep them healthy through Zone 7a humid summers, and harvest the freshest flavor of summer.
6/1/2026
Cucumbers are one of the easiest vegetables a beginner can grow. This guide walks through choosing varieties, planting from seed, watering, common problems, and harvesting all season long.
5/25/2026
By early June, the soil has warmed up enough for your best summer crops. This guide covers what to plant in June for a Zone 7a garden, from okra and sweet corn to beans, cucumbers, and sweet potatoes, with timing, spacing, and variety tips.
5/25/2026
Eggplant is one of the most rewarding warm-season crops for a Zone 7a garden. It needs warm soil, steady water, and almost no fertilizer, and a few well-chosen varieties will produce glossy fruit all summer. This guide covers variety selection, planting transplants, pest management, and knowing exactly when to harvest.
5/25/2026
Green beans are one of the most productive and forgiving crops a beginner can grow. They require almost no fertilizer, they grow from seed without any special equipment, and a single row can keep your family eating fresh all summer. This guide covers bush and pole beans, variety selection, planting timing for Zone 7a, common problems, and knowing exactly when to harvest.
5/24/2026
Okra is one of the easiest warm-season crops to grow, but it demands hot soil and patient harvesting. This guide covers everything a Zone 7a beginner needs to know, from pre-germinating seeds to dealing with the mid-summer lull and harvest strategies that keep pods coming.
4/30/2026
Your last frost is passing. Here is what to plant, when to plant it, and how to handle the inevitable late-spring surprises in Zone 7a.