Kale Kale is a relatively easy-to-grow spring and summer planter with a wealth of delicious culinary uses and few problems with pests.
How to grow kale Kale is almost as versatile on the planting front as it is in the kitchen. Fertilize the soil before planting The one thing your kale asks of you is that you give it a nutrient-rich bed to lay in.
Extending the season To keep your kale going strong in the colder months or the first few, at least try adding a row cover. In milder climates, your kale may continue producing leaves through most or all of the winter. Pepper Peppers are warm-season, sun-loving nightshade plants that need frequent watering and high-quality, well-drained soil to flourish. Hardening off pepper seedlings Start by bringing them outside for just an hour or two per day, gradually increasing their exposure to the outdoors.
Fertilization after planting You should provide additional nutrients when your first fruits take shape to help them become robust, healthy fruits faster. How to harvest peppers Pepper harvesting is a fairly straightforward task. Pea The humble pea is much more delicious fresh than canned.
How to grow peas Peas grow fast but have a short growing season, so preparation is key to getting the most out of your crop. Pre-planting work for peas In the fall before your planting, amend your intended pea-plant bed with manure or fertilizer. Sun requirements Peas are more flexible in this department than other plants—4 to 8 hours of sunlight will suit them plenty.
Where to plant peas Peas can be grown in a variety of locations. In a garden bed: Sow seeds directly into the ground, one inch 2. In a raised bed: This is best for those with less-than-ideal soil or a desire for a more visually appealing garden.
In pots or containers: Plant one or two seeds per large planter, thinning if both take root. Harvesting peas Harvesting peas is, luckily, almost as easy as growing them. Time of day matters Harvest your pea pods in the morning. How to harvest Simply pinch off the pods with your fingers or twist them off the stem. How to use peas Depending on the variety you plant, peas can be used in a range of dishes, and they can be enjoyed cooked or raw.
Pod varieties The edible pod varieties are great in stir-fries and salads or eaten raw for a crunchy, nutrient-rich treat. Seed varieties The pea-only varieties can be used as a classic side dish, added to soups, or even canned or frozen if you grow a large crop.
Basil Basil is an easy herb to grow—hot weather, moist soil, and full sun will allow you to reap the benefits of this Mediterranean classic throughout the summer. How to grow basil Basil can be started indoors up to two months before the last spring frost, and it can also be planted directly from seed. Pick the right spot Basil grows best in full sun 6 hours or more of sunlight per day. Harvesting basil Basil should yield constant harvests during the height of summer.
How to use basil Basil can be used in everything from sauces to sandwiches. To enjoy some summer-y basil classics, try your hand at: Tomato, basil, and mozarella salads and sandwiches the basil remains raw Pesto sauce Adding it to tomato sauces and salad dressings. Mint Mint is a hardy, easy-to-grow, full-sun herb that requires little care but constant pruning to thrive.
How to grow mint Mint is refreshingly easy to grow. How to plant mint Mint is typically planted as an already-grown plant, but can also be grown from clippings.
Make mint-flavored iced tea. Make a fresh, hot mint tea: herbalists tout it for everything from stomach ease to anxiety relief. Add your mint to a salad for a summery zing.
Use it in dressings and sauces for a unique flair. Celery Celery is a finicky little plant that likes moisture like we like air, prefers full sun, and requires as long as days to reach maturity. Transplanting celery Make sure your soil is prepared to welcome celery with open arms: there should be generous amounts of fertilizer or compost mixed in before planting occurs. Onion The versatile onion is reasonably easy to grow with nutrient-rich and well-drained soil and a full-sun environment.
How to grow onions The most complex part of growing onions is the soil preparation; after that, a little minor maintenance will yield beautiful bulbs. Fertilize For the best results, mix in generous amounts of manure or compost to your intended onion plot in the fall, then plant in the early spring.
Potato The great potato may not look like much, but it can be grown in almost anything and offers endless cooking possibilities. How to grow potatoes Your potato prep work will be the toughest part of cultivating the famous tuber; take the time to get it right and maintenance, harvesting, and cooking will be a breeze. How to grow corn Corn is often thought of as a largescale farm crop, but you can grow it in a big garden too.
How to grow chard Chard, like spinach, requires thinning post-emergence, but is otherwise a pretty simple leafy green to grow. Sun and weather conditions Chard fares best in full sun although it will tolerate partial , so aim for a spot where it will have six hours or more of uninterrupted sunshine for the best results.
Other weather It can tolerate a great deal of moisture so long as the area is well-drained. Planting Plant your seeds an inch or so apart; when the plants mature to three inches tall or more, separate them so they sit at least 4 inches apart.
Or try indoor planting Low on garden space or experiencing wonky weather at the start of your season? Remember to harvest chard in layers Chard grows in layers inside and outside.
Garden power tools We've reviewed some of the best garden power tools that help you in your garden. Lentil The ever-popular lentil has a variety of culinary applications and is an easy-to-grow, cool-season crop. How to grow lentils The most important step, as always, is to stake out a suitable plot for your new legume venture. Sunlight Lentils grow best in full sun—that means at least hours of full sun access every day.
Soil Lentils love nutrient-rich, well-drained soil; however, like many legume plants, they will make due with most anything you throw at them.
Water Lentils do best in moist soil, although they will tolerate periods of dry soil better than many plants. Starting lentils indoors Lentil plants can also be started indoors about weeks before you intend to transplant. Or grow them in containers If your soil is less-than-ideal or you want to switch things up, lentils can also be grown in containers—but they have to be big ones. Harvesting and storing lentils Most often, lentils are left to harden on the plants for about days, then stored in the same way as dry beans or grains.
How to grow cabbage Cabbage requires care from start to finish, but its nutrient-dense and flavorful leaves are a favorite across cultures. Start cabbage seeds indoors Cabbage can be picky about the weather it tolerates cool, but not cold or hot. Prepare the soil Cabbage plants are heavy feeders—meaning they need a steady flow of nutrients to thrive. Plant them far apart Cabbages can get huge—as large as 3 feet 1 meter in width.
Cabbage pest management Unfortunately, pests and diseases alike love cabbage as much as people do. Remove them when you see them or use a deterrent crop to draw them away. Club root: This nasty fungal infection is spread, predictably, by incredibly resilient spores.
Use crop rotation and disease-resistant cabbage varieties to combat this issue. Endive Endives are Asian-native leafy vegetables that can be grown with minimal maintenance in the spring or fall.
How to grow endive The great thing about endive plants is that their seeds can be planted directly in the ground. Picking the right spot Nonetheless, ideal growing conditions will yield you better-looking and better-tasting endive plants. Sun conditions for endives Endives and their relative, escarole prefer full sun.
Maintenance Endives are relatively labor-free crops but do require some periodic maintenance: their soil should be kept moist, and they fare best with regular fertilizations every weeks. Try endives indoors For the space- or soil-challenged gardener, endives are a great solution. Containers Use a bucket or a large, deep plastic tray with holes in the bottom and plant the seeds in rich, well-drained soil. Harvest Indoor endives are usually ready to harvest within 6 weeks. Watering You can water it from seed and then ignore it for the rest of the season.
Harvesting purslane Harvesting purslane is as effortless as growing it. Re-growth As a plant with weed-like tendencies, purslane is determined. Then: Raw: Add the green leaves to salad for a crunchy, lemon-y zing. How to grow leeks Leeks are like milder, sweeter onions with a smaller bulb at the end and edible leaves. Planting Once you have this down, your leeks are pretty much golden or white, as it may be.
Timing Start your seeds in indoor containers as early as weeks before the last frost to get a head start on their very slow grow time 4 months or more. Transplanting Plant your seedlings after the frost when the ground is soft and easy to work. Maintenance till harvest Leeks are pretty self-sufficient, but they do require a little love and care to keep them at their finest.
Maintaining their cover You can and should add more soil if the white bases start peeking out of the soil as they grow. Water them thoroughly Leeks love moisture almost as much as they love being protected, so keep the soil moist till harvest. Keep them cool and moist Leeks prefer not to be baked, so add a layer of straw or mulch on top of their garden bed in hot weather to help the soil retain moisture and coolness. Cauliflower Cauliflower is a labor of love for the serious gardener: it takes several months to mature, is finicky about temperature, and needs just the right soil and sun conditions to succeed.
Purple of Sicily Cauliflower Brassica oleracea var. Pusa Meghna Cauliflower Brassica oleracea var. Create the ideal cauliflower environment While your seeds grow indoors, give your cauliflower a head start by preparing the perfect bed.
Sun is key for cauliflower Cauliflower needs full sun 6 hours or more to thrive. Get the nutrients flowing Cauliflower needs nutrient-rich soil to succeed. Mulch, mulch, mulch Cauliflower crops can be ruined by the wrong soil temperatures or extended periods of dry soil. Blanching When the heads look almost ready to harvest weeks before you plan to cut them , tie the outer leaves around the nearly mature heads.
Saving excess cauliflower Too much cauliflower? Alternative growing methods Cauliflower can be a finicky little big thing, so some people opt to grow it in containers for greater control. Broccoli Broccoli is a relatively easy to grow Brassica vegetable that thrives in full sun, well-drained soil, and cooler weather. Early Purple Sprouting Broccoli Brassica oleracea var. How to grow broccoli As with any plant, the most important step to achieving a successful broccoli crop is setting up a broccoli-friendly environment.
Did you know? Asparagus Asparagus is a unique but much-loved vegetable. How to grow asparagus Like its single-season counterparts, the most important thing to do before planting asparagus is to find and prep the right spot for a bed. Create ideal asparagus growing conditions Asparagus has simple tastes: it likes full sun, nutrient-rich soil, and a well-drained place to call home. Creating a nutrient-rich environment In the fall before your spring planting, treat the soil with several inches of compost or manure.
Plant in the spring More specifically, you want to plant as soon as the risk of frost has passed and the soil is loose enough to work. Covered vs. The waiting game: maintaining asparagus You may wait three full seasons before your asparagus is ready to harvest.
Mulch it Toward the end of its first summer—after the plants have had a chance to grow significantly—add a layer of mulch over the thoroughly weeded bed to discourage further weed growth. Then mulch yearly as needed. Remove dead weight Or, more accurately, remove dead growth—limp, dead, or browning foliage can be removed from the plants every fall and as-needed in between. The fun part: harvesting asparagus A few simple asparagus harvesting tips and a little precision will have you harvesting delicious spears for up to three weeks every summer.
How to harvest uncovered green asparagus: To harvest asparagus, use a knife or sharp scissors to cut 6-inch cm or longer spears that are at least as thick as a pencil. Cut them off where the spear meets the soil. When the spears start growing foliage at the top, they are past their prime harvest date—leave these be.
Artichoke The artichoke is a delicacy or just a rare treat in many areas. Purple of Romagna Artichoke Cynara cardunculus var. Violet de Provence Artichoke Cynara cardunculus var. How to grow artichokes Artichokes, left to blossom, are actually beautiful flowers—but what you want to eat are the flower buds. Ideal growing conditions lead to greater harvests First, know that the weather is a huge factor in your artichoke outcomes: in order to get multiple harvests, you need to live in an area with mild winters and summers.
This article was co-authored by Maggie Moran. Maggie Moran is a Professional Gardener in Pennsylvania. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 89, times. When the blackberries come on, you know it's time for summer. Though they grow wild in many areas of the world, the cultivated varieties produce distinctively dark berries that are juicy and sweet, and usually larger than their wild cousins.
You can grow them in most kinds of soil, and in most regions with warm summers and relatively mild winters. You can learn to plant an appropriate variety, train the shoots, and care for your blackberry plants throughout the growing season to give yourself the hardiest crop. See Step 1 for more information.
To grow blackberries, start by finding a sunny planting area and tilling the soil to aerate it. Then, put your plants in holes that are 6 inches deep and 3 feet apart during the fall or spring. Additionally, give them 1 to 2 inches of water each week, and mulch the soil with bark or pine needles in the spring. Next, install a post beside each plant with a crossbar about 4 feet from the ground to encourage growth.
During the first season, remove any weeds, and trim the canes back to about 4 feet in the winter. For tips on how to harvest blackberries, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No. Log in Social login does not work in incognito and private browsers.
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By using our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Cookie Settings. Learn why people trust wikiHow. Download Article Explore this Article parts. Tips and Warnings. Things You'll Need. Related Articles. Article Summary. Part 1. Select a variety appropriate to the climate.
The wild Himalayan blackberry is a tenacious invasive species in some parts of the western United States, but cultivated varieties tend to be juicer, larger, and more firm than wild berries. If you're going to plant some, it makes sense to pick one of these varieties, wherever you live, based on the structure of the cane, its growth pattern, and whether or not the variety has thorns.
There are hundreds of strains and varieties to choose from, but knowing the basic categories will help you to make an informed decision. If you live in a region with very cold winters , it's best to select an erect variety with thorns. These stand up to the elements the best and will provide the most solid-possible base for your climate. If you live in a region with very dry windy summers , it's best to plant trailing varieties, which will stand up to the elements in especially harsh high-desert climates.
Consider the hardiness of trailing or training varieties. Traditional training varieties grow much like the wild blackberry, shooting out suckers and sprawling all over the place, which means they'll need to be trellised with wires and trained along them to control the growth.
Old fruiting canes will need to be removed, but new primocanes new growth will not need to be pruned. Consider the easy planting of upright, erect, or semi-erect varieties. These varieties of blackberry grow more like hedges, and will need to be supported with a T-trellis or a post of some sort.
These varieties are easier to control and contain, but require vigorous pruning, shooting stiff new cane straight from the crown of the plant, rather than trailing along the ground. Many of these varieties will produce fruit in the first year of planting. Thorny erect varieties are the hardiest in cold climates. Weigh the benefits of thornless berries. Trailing, upright, and hybrid varieties are all now available in thorny and thornless strains, meaning that you can make your harvest a whole lot easier on your fingers.
Thornless varieties do tend to be somewhat more sensitive to colder weather, making the thorny varieties a much hardier choice for most climates. Note that thornless varieties are more vulnerable to birds and other pests. Part 2. Select a planting location. Blackberries will grow in most kinds of fertile soil, especially slightly acidic soil between 5.
Especially sandy or clay-rich soil is less desirable. Select a planting location with good drainage and maximum exposure to sunlight to make sure your berries ripen evenly, though some thornless varieties are prone to "sunburn," so some shade isn't a worry in especially sunny regions.
Don't plant blackberries near nightshade , or members of the nightshade family, including tomato, potato, and pepper. This varies by country. Chief executives around the globe say digital is here to stay , the shift to ecommerce is structural , and behavioral changes are permanent.
Focus on creating innovative digital experiences that make life easier for your customers, reinventing traditional shopping experiences for the post-pandemic world, and bringing your brand to life in new ways. Start by making sure your customers can do business with you wherever they like.
Connecting the online and offline worlds allows the customer to choose where they buy. It also allows you to capitalize on their desire for speed and convenience. Local pickup options are faster and cheaper than shipping, and another opportunity to bring customers back to your store and experience your brand in real life. The faster and easier you make it to check out, the more money you can make. The next opportunity is being able to pivot between the digital and physical worlds and provide a truly blended shopping experience.
Augmented reality simulates in-person shopping experiences online by allowing customers to see how a product might look on them or in their home. With AR, customers click on a product and instantly see it overlaid wherever they point their mobile device.
Helping customers better see the size, scale, and detail of your products drives conversions. Use 3D modeling or 3D versions of your products to show product shape and texture from any angle. Combined with AR functionality, 3D modeling creates intimacy with your products by allowing consumers to try before they buy in degree realistic experiences.
While more popular in China , livestream shopping events in the U. Viewers can chat with hosts and stylists, then click on items for purchase. Drive sales by converting traditional shopping or marketing experiences into virtual ones:.
Intimate apparel brand Knix pivoted from its international growth plans when COVID hit and launched digital versions of traditional physical experiences, most notably, a virtual fitting room.
Customers learn how to take their measurements accurately, and find the right size and fit. Knix also hosted a virtual warehouse sale that achieved:. No more workarounds, patches, or hacks: With Shopify Plus, you can run your online store and retail locations with hardware, software, and payments that were made for each other. And unlike marketplaces, you own your brand and customer experience across every touchpoint, synced right in Shopify.
With analytics at your fingertips, stay on top of growing trends in your business across in-store and online sales. Powered by Shopify POS, you have all the tools you need to manage your business, market to customers, and sell everywhere. With the cost to fulfill orders soaring , brands must turn fulfillment into a strategic asset. Fulfillment must be smarter, closer to the consumer, and automated. The majority of consumers in the U. Proprietary data from Shopify shows the number of brands offering free shipping has increased 5.
To answer consumer demand while maintaining profitability, brands are setting free-shipping thresholds. Three-quarters of U. Many will also pay a premium. The focus is on zero-waste packaging , where all materials are used, reused, or recycled. Minimalist packaging , reduced package sizes , and redesigned shipping cases are also high priorities. Are you ready to buy environmentally friendly products even if they cost a little bit more?
The unboxing video era almost guarantees your packaging will be seen by shoppers researching your brand and products. Packaging influences purchasing decisions , inspires customers to recommend your product , and can increase customer retention. It must simultaneously impress consumers and meet their desire for sustainability. Complex consumer demands have coincided with rising shipping costs.
The shift to ecommerce has resulted in shippers operating at peak levels for the majority of Worldwide, FedEx announced an average 4. UPS is also charging more: Its new chief executive has prioritized aligning pricing with the value the company provides.
Ecommerce is also making order profiles more complex: Distribution centers are fulfilling smaller DTC orders faster to meet aggressive cutoff times and shipping deadlines. Sourced from Kardex Remstar. The global nature of trade, though strained by U. Purchasing power is shifting from the U.
With Asia Pacific as ground zero for ecommerce, fulfillment complexity is compounding for brands selling cross border. Even more challenging, consumers increasingly expect free returns. Returns are also rising as more online shoppers "bracket" their purchases, buying multiple versions of a product with the intention of returning some items.
Brands have little choice but to creatively reimagine fulfillment. Around the world, businesses are prioritizing fulfillment to fight rising costs and meet consumer expectations.
And that creates innovation and pricing pressure on the establishment of providers. Fulfillment networks are expensive to build, so brands are partnering with third-party logistics providers 3PLs to tap into their vast fulfillment networks.
Businesses are now focused on improving order fulfillment productivity, improving picking and handling processes, and streamlining inventory management. Sourced from Shopify. In protect your margins from rising costs and give customers everything they want—fast, free, sustainable, and branded shipping—by improving your fulfillment capabilities.
Choose a 3PL with a vast network of strategically located fulfillment centers in the regions you want to ship to. This allows you to stock the right merchandise at the right location so orders can be shipped faster and routed more efficiently. A fulfillment partner should be able to:. Inventory management is key to building an efficient fulfillment network. Your inventory management system should accurately forecast demand so that inventory can be purchased, replenished, and managed effectively.
This saves time, expedites fulfillment, and reduces shipping costs. Automate returns to instantly give customers store credit, pre-fill return labels, and support self-serve returns. You can also use an automated returns solution to segment and track serial returners, then modify the promotions they receive to protect margins.
Put returns on autopilot with:. Instead of returns, consider incentivizing customers to exchange products or accept store credit. Click-and-collect commerce in the U. Some brands are taking fulfillment into their own hands by offering local delivery.
Local delivery is faster than traditional shipping, provides more work to your retail workers, and gives you full control over the customer experience. Customers can choose to pick up their orders or have them delivered from their nearest retail location. Scale your business with shipping and fulfillment services that put your brand and customer experience front and center.
Deliver world-class shipping with preferred rates from trusted carriers, or take advantage of Shopify Fulfillment Network, the most advanced, robotics-driven fulfillment centers in the world to help high-volume businesses fulfill quickly and affordably. And you can deliver your best service close to home with local delivery and pickup. Cut the uncertainty of third-party services with hands-on delivery to nearby customers.
Or let online customers skip the shipping rates and checkout lines to pick up orders in store, curbside, or at other convenient locations. In a world where marketplaces dominate, and search is often unbranded, brand building has never been more important—or more difficult. Half of all global ecommerce sales occur on marketplaces , and the sheer volume compels brands to participate.
Virtual marketplaces are one of the fastest ways to scale globally. They also help smaller businesses fulfill orders more efficiently. But brands often perceive marketplaces as a necessary evil : driving sales, but pressuring margins.
Brands have long been concerned about ceding customer relationships and data to marketplaces. And those fears might become reality. Despite these concerns, transaction volume compels brands to have a marketplace presence. With the purchase journey increasingly beginning on Amazon, consumers search by categories, benefits, and reviews. Search, according to analysts, has become the new brand :. Worldwide, shoppers are increasingly spending with their values.
Your leaves will grow firm, drooping and curling down towards their stems, starving for oxygen if you overwater them. You can try increasing the temperature from the lights and your airflow if you are growing indoors to speed up water absorption. You can also poke some holes in the soil with a pencil to give them some oxygen. Your plants may also require a better drainage system. The serrated edges of the leaves will begin to curl up if they are exposed to too much natural or artificial light.
To alleviate these issues, decrease the intensity of your lighting and increase air circulation with fans to help your indoor plants recover. Hang a large cloth, sheet or build some other source of shade for your outdoor plants. Water them in the early morning and late evening to help them retain water and recover from outdoor heat and light stress.
Again keep in mind that you are more likely to run into most of these issues if you are using inorganic methods. The compost teas we will teach you to brew will help prevent these deficiencies as well by adding extra nutrients and microorganisms to naturally unlock the organic fertilizers you buried deep down in your grow pot. You will still want to consistently check the pH of the water you give the plants even if you are utilizing organic methods. Boron and copper deficiency are often triggered by water with a pH content above or below the ideal 6.
Manganese deficiency is typically triggered by pH content that is too high. Molybdenum and nitrogen deficiency are specifically triggered by pH that is too low, so use water that is pH-balanced at 6. Compost teas are the organic way to add fungi and other microorganisms to the soil surrounding your growing cannabis plants.
These fungi and microorganisms break down the nutrient-fertilized soil at the bottom of your grow pot so the big hungry reefer roots can easily absorb them during the plants vegetation and flowering periods. The fungi and microorganisms in your compost teas and organic soil provide an extra advantage as organic deterrents to other pests such as spider mites, whiteflies, and thrips.
Spray a mixture of neem oil on the tops and bottoms of your leaves to keep these pests away. The stem of the plant will grow thicker and begin growing more nodes where new branches with more serrated leaves as it continues to vegetate. Your ganja will eventually slow down its upward growth and start filling out with more nodes and branches.
Calyxes will start to emerge at the nodes where the branches meet the stem of the plant. Allow your plants to veg out for 4 to 6 weeks in order to grow 4 to 6 different leaf branches. Check the instructions that come with the seeds for your specific strains to determine when to trigger their flowering phase. The plant is ready for flowering once it is standing strong and well nourished at your desired height. Most seeds you buy should be feminized unless otherwise indicated, however you should stay vigilant and check for male plants anyway since they will pollinate and ruin the cola buds you want to harvest off of the female plants.
The sex of your cannabis plants will reveal themselves after roughly 10 days of flowering conditions. You will potentially begin picking up to half of the buds off of the plants to begin drying, curing and smoking them before the whole tree is ready to be cut down and fully harvested.
The curing process breaks down the left-over chlorophyll in the buds which will make your marijuana taste like grass or old hay. Curing also decreases the chances of mold forming on your marijuana. It is possible to yield multiple harvests from the same cannabis plant by rejuvenating or re-growing it. They should start showing signs of new growth within 2 to 6 weeks.
Some of the new growth will look like mutations and it will need to be pruned before you re-trigger the flowering phase 10 days after you trim it by reducing light back down to 12 hours.
Many growers will rejuvenate their favorite plants and keep them exposed to no less than 16 hours of light every day in order to make them perpetually vegetate as mother plants from which clones can be endlessly grown.
Do you have all the stages of the marijuana growth cycle memorized? Do you know all the ingredients and steps for making cannabis compost, super soil, and compost teas by heart?
Becoming an organic ganja farmer is a step by step process.
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