I love when a plant has multiple purposes. Speaking of which I knew that you could use chives on a baked potato and it looks pretty but what other uses does it have? Are there any health benefits to chives? I did a little research and figured I would share it with you. Here is what I found.

So…

What can chives be used for?

• Cooking and Baking
• Health
• Landscaping

Chives can be used for a number of things but the 3 basics would be the list I have provided above.

Let’s dig a little deeper…

Cooking and baking with chives

Can you cook with chives?

Yes, you can cook with chives! Like I mentioned I thought that chives were just used as a topping or a garnish. But I was wrong there are lots of recipes that use chives. I did learn that it is best to add the chives in at the end though so you can retain that strong onion flavor.

What foods are the best with chives?

You can obviously put chives in anything that you like an onion flavor but generally, the foods you find chives in the most would be salads, soups, sandwiches, potatoes, and omelets.

What part of the chive do you use for cooking?

When using chives in cooking you will use the stem of the plant. It depends on what you are making but you will usually cut it like the picture shown above.

Is the flower edible?

Yes, it is! A chives flower is generally used in salads. You will just rinse the flower and put it in your salad raw. It will have the same flavor as the stem just a different texture.

Are chives and garlic chives the same thing?

No, chives and garlic chives are not the same things.

Normal chives have an onion flavor. Garlic chives have a garlic flavor. Just like fresh garlic, garlic chives have a very strong aroma. Whereas chives are much more subtle then onions.

How to use chives in a salad?

As I mentioned above you can use either part of the plant in your salad. You will want to wash your chives and after that, you can either cut the stem and put that into your salad or you can put the purple flower in your salad. Both are great. You will want to eat them raw!

Do you need to wash chives?

Yes, you should wash chives. If you grow your own chives you know that they won’t be covered in spray or chemicals. But it is still a good idea to wash your homegrown food.

On the other hand, if you bought your chives then you definitely want to wash them. They will have all the nasty sprays and chemicals on them.

Recipes using chives

You can use chives in really anything that onion would taste good in. But today I will share 5 ideas to get your wheels turning.

1. Chive Eggs (3 ways)

So you technically get 3 recipes here! Deviled eggs are one of our favorite foods around the holidays (or anytime really) and adding the chives really adds another layer of flavor.

Chive deviled eggs

Ingredients

• 1 dozen eggs hard-boiled, peeled and sliced in half
• 5 Tablespoons of mayonnaise.
• 2 Tablespoons of spicy mustard
• ¼ Teaspoon of paprika
• 1 dozen chive stems chopped fine
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients except chives, paprika, and eggs
2. Separate the hard-boiled yolks from the egg whites and place them in the bowl with the other ingredients.
3. Spoon mixture into egg white halves.
4. Sprinkle with Paprika and chives

Eggs with chive flowers

Because of our farm fresh eggs, we tend to consume a lot of eggs around our house. But they can get boring making them the same way all the time. Adding chives to our eggs help make eating eggs a little more exciting.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoons butter
• 2 chive stems with chive flowers
• 2 eggs
• Salt

Instructions

1. In a small pan, heat the butter over medium-low heat.
2. Cut the stems of your chives and leave the flower whole.
3. Place your chives pieces in the heated butter for 30 seconds.
4. Crack the eggs into the pan, add a sprinkle of salt.
5. Continue cooking over medium-low heat until the egg whites are cooked but the yolk is still runny.

Scrambled Eggs with chives

Again this is very simple but the chives give it a new level of flavor.

Ingredients

• Eggs
• Chives
• Bacon, other veggies, cheese, whatever toppings you like

Instructions

1. Prepare other toppings for eggs if using
2. Make scrambled eggs (Scrambled egg tip: keep stirring! never let your eggs sit in the pan)
3. Cut up your chives
4. Put your chives and toppings on top of your eggs.

2. Chive Butter

This seems overly simple but trust me it is so yummy! Herb butter is so good. My favorite way to use it is to melt it on my steak.

Ingredients

• Butter
• Chives

Instructions

1. Soften butter
2. Cut chives
3. Mix chives into butter

3. Loaded baked potato

I know potatoes should be eaten in limitations but they are so yummy. And I promise you will love this one. I mean how can you not?

Ingredients

1. Potatoes
2. Chives
3. Cheese
4. Bacon

Instructions

1. Bake the potatoes.

You can bake your potatoes in different ways but I will share the 2 ways I like to bake mine.

• In the oven

The way I baked potatoes before I owned an instant pot was in the oven. This is my process.

1. Wash potatoes
2. Rub olive oil over potatoes
3. Salt potatoes
4. Poke holes in potatoes with a fork
5. Wrap each potato in tin foil
6. Bake @ 350 for 1 hour

This way takes a little longer but it is so worth it. It makes the skin of the potato so crunchy. But if you don’t have time for this method you can make your baked potatoes in the instant pot and it will work just as well.

• In the instant pot

What’s nice about the instant pot is that you can have your potatoes done so much quicker.

1. Wash potatoes
2. Pour a cup of water into the instant pot
3. Place trivet into the pot
4. Poke holes in potatoes with a fork
5. Place potatoes on top of the trivet
6. Select manual setting; adjust the pressure to high, and set the timer for 14 minutes
7. When the potatoes are done cooking, naturally release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions, about 20-30 minutes.

2. Top the potatoes

Now that you have your baked potatoes you will top them with your chives, cheese, bacon, etc.

In my family, we have to have meat to make a meal. We love bacon but sometimes we need a little more than that. So I will make pulled pork and we will put that on our potatoes. Our favorite is potatoes, pulled pork, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and chives.

4. Chive Pesto

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped fresh, chives
• 2 TBS. slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
• 1/8 cup olive oil

Instructions

1. Mix the chives, almonds, cheese, and garlic into the bowl of your food processor.
2. Pulse until all ingredients are finely chopped.
3. With the machine running, add olive oil to desired consistency
4. Serve on crackers, or slices of toasted bread

5. Chive Vinnegeratte

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 small garlic clove, finely chopped
• Kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar or fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
• Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients together
2. Enjoy over salad

Super simple but so yummy! As I said there are lots of ways to cook with chives. These are just a few but experiment and see what ways you love to eat chives.

Health

I like to think that anything “natural” should have some health benefits. So I did some digging to found out about chives. I wanted to know if chives had any health benefits. And this is what I found.

Since I am not a doctor and I don’t know the science behind this stuff I did some research and found the following information from Medical News today. You can check out their article for even more information. This is just scratching the surface of the health benefits of chives!

Some health facts about chives…

1. Chives are full of nutrients.
2. Chives are low in calories
3. Chives are full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants
4. Chives have vitamin k, folate, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and choline.

So the above list provides the more scientific properties of chives. But what does that mean to us? Well, the 2 most important benefits would be…

1. Cancer Prevention: Chives can help your body fight off cancer
2. Sleep: chives have something in them called choline. Choline is an important nutrient that helps with sleep

Landscape

How pretty are those? As I mentioned my mom gave me a chives plant last year and it not only is great to have fresh herbs at my disposal but it is also pretty in my landscaping.

Are chives and annual or perennial?

Chives are perennial. This means that they will come back year after year. They are very hearty and super easy to keep alive. They grow in a grasslike clump and grow from small bulbs.

Are chives invasive?

Common chives are not invasive but will multiple.

Let me explain what I mean. The common chives will get bigger which is great because you can separate it and re-plant it. But it will not take over the area it is planted in. And it pulls out very easy so if it is getting bigger than you would like than you can just pull part of the plant out.

Do chives like sun or shade?

Chives are super hearty so they will grow just about anywhere you put them. But they will thrive in the sun. So if you have the option do your best to plant them in the sun. And if you are growing them indoors put them in a window that lets in lots of sun.

Do chives keep growing after you cut them?

Yes, chives continue to grow back after you cut them.

When you harvest your chives cut them down to 1-2 inches from the ground. You will be able to cut them about 4 times a year. (Depending on where you live)

How do you stop chives from spreading?

As I said chives will spread. So how do you stop them from spreading? Well, first let’s look at the 2 ways chives spread. Chives spread from…

1. The bulbs
2. The seeds

The first way chives spread is by the bulbs. So your plant will get bigger and bigger each year and this is from its bulbs multiplying. But what about those random patches that started growing?

Well, chives can also grow from the seeds. So if you let your chives bloom and then the blooms wilt the seeds can blow and start a whole new plant.

If you want to stop this from happening you will just make sure to cut down the chives before they can get to this stage. Which if you are wanting to eat the chives you will be doing this already anyway.

Do Chives have deep roots?

No, chives do not have deep roots. Their roots are only about 3 inches deep. Which makes it a breeze to pull out if your plant is getting too big.

Why are my chives yellow?

They are unhealthy. Most likely you tried to transplant them and it was not the ideal time to transplant and they are not liking their new home. The best time to transplant chives is in the fall or winter.

Do chives attract bugs?

No, chives do not attract bugs. Actually, they keep the bad bugs away. Most of the insects that will mess with your plants will not like the smell of chives and will stay away.

What can I plant next to chives?

You can pretty much plant anything next to chives. They are not a very “competitive” plant and do very well with other plants. The best option is to plant them with your other herbs.

What else?

Now we have talked about cooking with chives but what else should we know about chives? or how about we start with the simple question of…

What are chives?

Chives are an herb.

According to science chives are part of the allium family. The allium family also includes garlic, scallions, onions, and leeks. As you can see this family of veggies are known for their strong smell but also are famous for their medicinal purposes.

Chives are a perennial plant and are most commonly found in Europe, Asia, and North America.

Chives are a common herb and can be found in most grocery stores. You can also grow your own without much effort.

There are actually 2 different types of chives. There is the onion chive which is the one that most of us are familiar with. Or there is the Chinese chive which is also referred to as the garlic chive. They are pretty self-explanatory in their flavor and the only other difference would be their leaves. The onion chives have hollow leaves while the garlic chives have flat leaves.

Are chives and green onions the same thing?

No, chives and green onions are not the same things. In the US we sometimes use them interchangeably but they are in fact not the same thing.

These are green onions

Green onions have long green stalks and white bulbs. Green onions have a mild onion flavor and are used raw or cooked. They start growing in the spring and carry on through the summer. They are part of the Allium schoenoprasum species.

My favorite way to use green onions would be as a topping on Mexican food.

These are chives

Chives have green blades, hollow stalks, and practically invisible bulbs. They have an onion flavor but it is very weak. Chives are generally used as a garnish on things like eggs, potatoes, and salads. You can cook chives but they are commonly eaten raw. Just like green onions, they will start blooming in the spring and continue into the summer. Chives are in the Allium fistulosum species.

I have found that chives are best when used as a garnish on hard-boiled eggs.

Are chives still good after they flower?

Yes, chives are still good after they flower. We talked about this a little already but you can use the stems and the flower for eating. Most people use the stem and you can use the stem before the flower comes but you can also use the flower as well.

Try it for your self and see which you prefer.

Can you freeze chives?

Yes, You can freeze chives.

This is awesome because they are so nice to have all year long and my plant produces more then I can eat fresh. Freezing chives is very simple. Here is how you do it.

1. Chop chives
2. Wash chives
3. Place in freezer bags
4. Freeze

Frozen chives will last indefinitely in the freezer. But they will most likely start losing their flavor and quality at 4-6 months.

How to store chives?

There are multiple ways to store chives. I already mentioned the freezer but I wanted to mention some other ways you can store chives.

1. Freeze dry

This is so cool I had no clue you could do this! So all you do to freeze-dry chives is…

• Chop chives
• place on a cookie sheet
• Put the cookie sheet into the freezer
• Remove cookie sheet when chives are dry and brittle
• Store in an airtight jar in a cool dark place for up to 6 months.

2. Refridgerator

There are 2 ways to store chives in the fridge

1. Keep chives in a resealable plastic bag. They will last this way for about a week.
2. Place the stems standing up in a glass filled with a few inches of water and cover the tops of the stems with a plastic bag.

3. Dehydrating

So first of all Dehydrators are awesome. If you don’t have one and like to store food for yourself then you should seriously consider getting one. I have a whole article talking about what we do with ours and what one we have. You can check it out here.

Okay, now how to dehydrate chives.

• Put your chives on the dehydrator trays.
• Put the temperature to 95 Degrees
• Keep the chives in the dehydrator for 2 hours

How to use dried chives?

First of all, let’s talk about the amount. How much-dried chives equal fresh?

1 tablespoon fresh chives equal 1 teaspoon dried.

So you can use dried chives in anything you would use fresh for. For example, you can put dried chives in mashed potatoes, Eggs, Etc. You will obviously just want to use the suggested conversion amount I have provided above. But the fun thing about cooking is that it is up to your own taste buds. So play around with it and see what you like.

Now, what about taste? Do dried chives taste the same?

This is clearly going to be an opinion based answer. But Dried chives taste like straw. They don’t have much flavor and the texture is not the best. But don’t take my word for it try it for yourself. You might not mind it.

The nice thing about dried chives is that they last for up to 3 years. So if you have some that you need to store its worth a shot preserving them in this way. But I would suggest the other methods of storing for sure.

The other thing about drying your chives is that with this method they will lose some of their nutrients. So yes, drying your chives is not the ideal option but I wanted to let you know that it is still a way to preserve your chives.

How long do chives last?

If you are growing your own chives I would recommend that you let them grow for as long as possible without cutting them down. I’m sure it’s not that best way but I let mine stay out there and just cut them down as needed and have never found that it affected them to stay out longer.

But if you can’t let them stay outside or you are buying them fresh how long will chives stay fresh? Well, it depends on the method. Let’s look at the different methods real fast.

• Freezer= 4-6 months
• Freeze dried= 4-6 months
• Refriderater= 1 week
• Dehydrated= 2-3 years

As you can see dehydrated will definitely last the longest. And honestly, there are ways you could use your dried chives and still reap the benefits of the flavor but not deal with the nasty texture. One way would be to make a powder out of your dried chives for salads or as a topping for potatoes. And if you don’t like it no big deal. Chives are very cheap or free if you grow them yourself.

Conclusion

You did not know you could do so much with chives, did you? I sure did not! Chives were one of those things that I never thought much about until I had one simple question which led me to more questions and then I went all into learning about chives. I hope this was helpful to you and that you learned a few new ways to store chives and a few random things as well.

It is so awesome learning about the things that We can grow and the ways they can help our bodies and add flavor to our favorite foods. If you know of someone who has some extra chives see if they would mind if you took some to start growing your own. It is an easy way to add another thing to your garden/landscaping/homestead that will get you closer to becoming self-sufficient.

I most likely will not ever become 100% self-sufficient and I’m okay with that. But I strive to do as much on my own as I can and even though something likes growing chives might seem small, it’s all the little things that start to add up. And before you know it you will be growing all your own food.

Also, a side note when it comes to herbs I never seem to have them at the exact time I need them so when I grow them I am sure they will be there when I need them. Well Unless my animals or kids get to them first!

If you want some more gardening helps make sure to check out some of my other articles!

First of all…

1. Plan smart

Let me start out by saying that you can make the most of your garden if you take the time to plan it out well.

Here are a few steps to help you properly plan your garden…

1. Choosing your Crop

The first step is choosing your crops! This may sound simple. But put a little thought and effort into it. Think about the things that you eat the most of and the things that would cost the most if you had to buy them. If you have to cut things out because of lack of space in your garden make them the things you can get cheaply at the store and plant the things that are more expensive to buy. I personally grow…

• Green Beans
• Tomatoes
• Peppers
• Lettuce
• Spaghetti squash

2. Making Calculations

Now that you know what you want to plant. Make your calculations. Either take the measurements of your current garden or decide how large a garden you will be making. Once you know how big of a space you are working with, draw it up. Almost like a blueprint of a house draw what you want your garden to look like and where the plants will be. Now I understand that there are totally different personalities out there. If this is too much for you just draw something super simple. It really does not have to be that detailed.

But I would encourage you to at least draw up something. It really does help in the planning process. And it will help you to see where things should go. For example, make sure your plants that “crawl” get put on the outside of the garden so they don’t overtake your other plants. I say this from experience 

Another aspect when planning is keeping room in between the rows. When you are planning how much space you need I would highly recommend keeping enough room in between the rows for a tiller.  You can get a small tiller so the rows don’t need to be that big. But trust me on this one! It will save you SO much time on weeding. And the tiller gets the soil turned up better than we can by hand. This has been a lifesaver for me!

3. Buying the best plants/seeds

Next, you will need to buy your seeds. Now I would recommend getting organic heirloom if you can. You might not know this, but if they are not heirloom you can not use the seeds again and if a plant happens to come back the next year it will most likely not produce. And part of being self-sufficient is not having to continue buying things year after year right? RIGHT! If you can’t get organic heirloom its not the end of the world it is just helpful if you can. If you have amazon prime you can get seeds and have them to your door within 2 days! I highly recommend it!

2. Think Vertical

Do you have a fence in your yard? or maybe a trellis? You can take advantage of that and plant around your entire yard. I mean if you have a fenced in yard you could for example have a years supply of beans just from that! And you have not even used any of your “garden space” yet. How cool is that?

There are also quite a few benefits to grow vertically as well.

1. Increased yield
2. Better pest control
3. It looks pretty
4. Create privacy
5. Ease of harvesting

So I mentioned growing beans but I wanted to give you a list of different things you can grow vertically.

• Peas of any sort
• Pole beans
• Cucumbers
• Winter and Summer Squash
• Tomatoes

I personally am all for using as much wasted space as possible and turning it into food. I mean why have a perfectly good fence go to waste? or a yard that you have to spend time and money mowing? Why not turn it all into food for your family? Speaking of which next I want to talk about edible landscaping…

3. Edible landscaping

I love a beautiful yard and gorgeous plants around my house but why not use some of that space for food? My house has a huge area around it that is landscaped. I did not know what to plant in it and it was getting overtaken by weeds. So in the burm next to my house, I planted strawberries. The plant is cool looking and how awesome to be able to walk out my front door and have freshly grown strawberries? I would encourage you to take a look around your own house and see if you have a similar situation. Maybe you could even redesign your landscaping to plant some food for next year. A great thing to plant near the house is herbs. So that when you are cooking you can just walk out the door and grab fresh herbs.

Another thing is your yard. Even if you live in the city and only have a tiny yard why not turn most of it into a garden? I mean what is the point of having all grass? You literally just spend money and time cutting it. And for what? Why not have an awesome garden where you can provide for your family?

You could also have pretty planters outside of your house but instead of growing flowers grow food. So many herbs look super pretty and so you can use it as something to look nice but also something that will provide food for you and your family.

Something like this

4. Plant in unique areas

Look around your house and see if there is any other area that you could turn into a garden. Do you have a patio? Put up a trellis and grow some vertical plants. Or make the whole patio into a garden. You will not only create food for your family but also a relaxing area for your family to spend time together.

5. Alternate planting

Another way to make the most out of your garden is to plant multiple times in a year. There are certain plants that do not take as long to grow so once you know what you want to plant you can plan accordingly and plant at least 2 times in the year. I actually have a chart of all the vegetables and how long they take to grow. You can check that out here.

Q & A

I wanted to take a little time and answer a few more questions. And as always if you have one that I missed please leave it in the comments and I will do my best to answer it!

How can I increase my garden yield?

Well, I already mentioned alternate planting and I would have to say that would be your best bet. But there are also others ways to help your garden out. A few of those ways would be…

• Fertilizer

Make sure that you are treating your soil right. Whether you have access to good compost or manure make sure you are doing something to help out your soil. The first year I had my garden it gave me an awesome yield and I did nothing to the soil but every year after the yield has gone down and that is because my soil is getting depleted and I have not done a good job helping the soil. Right now I am working on chicken composting. I will be writing about my experience soon. So keep an eye out for that post!

• Water

I know this is obvious but it is something I often forgot to do. What works well for me is to put a sprinkler in the garden. Then all I have to do is turn the hose on. It is recommended that you water at night or in the mornings as this is “most natural” for the plants. Just make sure that you are not overwatering. I have made this mistake as well. You just want to dampen the soil.

How do you prepare the soil for a vegetable garden?

Like I mentioned the first year of having a garden is fairly easy but whether your garden is new or old I would recommend the following steps…

1. Till

Make sure you till your garden before planting. This will get the soil loosened and ready for the seeds.

2. Fertilize

Lay down a layer of fertilizer. If you can get your hands on manure or chicken compost this will be your best bet.

3. Water

I know it sounds odd to water it when there is nothing in the ground but I would get the ground damp before planting. This just helps when it comes time to plant.

What vegetables can be planted in raised beds?

First of all I wanted to take a moment to tell you why I loved raised beds. For starters they are great because you can take care of them so much more easily. You don’t have to bend over as much and you can just sit next to them to take care of them. Speaking of which the care will be much simpler because the weeds will be kept at bay. The watering will also be much less because the soil will be so much better. Why you ask? Well because the soil will not always be stepped on it will be compacted way less. And they will save you if you have soil issues. My garden did great the first few years but this last year the bottom section of my garden is holding water and when we get a lot of rain it will drown my plants. A raised bed is the perfect solution here!

Okay, onto the actual question…To be honest you can grow just about anything in a raised bed. But there are certain plants that tend to excel above the rest.

1. Potatoes

potatoes grow well in raised beds because of the good loose soil. And as I mentioned above you can take so much better care of the veggies in a raised bed so this will obviously result in a better crop. You can also keep the hills taken care of better in a raised bed.

2.Onions

Onion’s do great in a raised bed because their growing season is longer. So since the soil in a raised bed is warmer you are able to start your onion crop sooner in the season. They also like loose moistened soil just like potatoes.

3.Tomatoes

Again, tomatoes like the good well watered soil and will thrive in this environment.

4. lettuce

Lettuce does not do well in soil that is to wet. So the raised bed does a great job with lettuce and leafy greens because it drains so well. Lettuce also does well with the warm soil that you get with a raised bed.

5.Root veggies

Root veggies such as carrots can be very tough to keep up with. The weeds have a way of overtaking the crop. When you put them in a raised bed they will be easier to weed and take care of.

Composting 101

Composting is a huge part of having a successful garden so I wanted to take some time to answer the most asked questions about this subject. As always if I missed a question please feel free to leave your question in the comments.

Can you add compost after planting?

Absolutely! You don’t have to continue to fertilize throughout the year but it will only help to add good fresh soil to your plants. Especially if you see they are struggling a bit.

When should I add compost to my garden?

Honestly, if you have compost you can add it anytime throughout the year. But it is ideal to put it in right before you are going to plant. I have chickens so I am getting compost continuously so I just add it in whenever I have it.

How can I speed up my compost?

If you have your own compost pile that is awesome! My compost pile is currently in with my chickens and they do the work for me. I just have a section in the chicken area where I dump everything and they work through it and make it into compost. So my answer would be if you have chickens to do it that way. They seriously turn it into compost in a matter of days. If you don’t have chickens then just make sure you are keeping it small, and turning it over as often as possible. Seriously though if you have chickens they do all the work for you! It’s the best.

How often do you turn your compost pile?

It is recommended to turn your compost every 3-4 days. But like I said my chickens do the work for me so I don’t even have to think about it. It is a win-win because they have all the benefits of eating out of the pile and then turning it into compost.

What is the ratio of brown to green in compost?

It should be 2:1, green to brown. Just to give you an idea…Green composting items would be things like Grass clippings, kitchen scraps, and things like that. Brown would be wood shavings, leafs, straw Etc.

What should I not put in my compost pile?

I am personally not super picky with what I put in my compost pile, but there are certain things that you should not add to your pile. I have provided a list of things I would suggest you not add to your pile and the reasons why.

1.Large Branches

In theory there is nothing wrong with large branches but the bigger the item the more time it will take to break down. So if you are wanting your compost pile to be more efficient I would suggest that you put smaller items in the pile. If you can you can take the big branches and put it through a wood shaver. This is a great job for your kids. If you do not have a wood shaver then I would avoid adding the branches to your pile.

2. Treated Wood

This one is kind of self explanatory. Treated wood has chemicals in it that you don’t want in your plants.

3.Coffee and Tea Bags

Coffee and tea grounds are great for your compost pile. But you just want to make sure that you remove them from the bag as you don’t want that to be a part of your pile.

4. Cat and Dog Poop

This one might surprise you because you know that you want manure as part of your pile. So why not cat and dog poop? Well cats and dogs can have parasites in their poop and you don’t want that as part of your pile.

I hope this helped in your composting journey! I tried my best to answer the most commonly asked questions!

How to make the most of your garden

Now that we have gone over how to maximize your garden I wanted to give you a few tips for making the most out of what you have…Because obviously if you don’t have a large garden you will want to make the most of what you have, am I right?

1.Plan

Whether you are just planting a garden for the first time or you have put in a garden for years planning needs to be the first thing that you do! I mean you can’t just throw a bunch of seeds in the ground and hope for the best, right? You need to decide what veggies and fruits you and your family enjoy and if you will just be eating them fresh or preserving some for the winter. Personally, I can a lot of the produce from my garden! I love to have my own canned goods for the winter. But I am aware not everyone is able or wanting to can.

2. Put in a fence around your garden!

Thankfully the animals did not totally destroy my garden but I did lose everything around the edge of my garden. I would recommend at least putting in a short fence to keep out the bunnies and small animals. But if you are close to woods you might need a tall fence for deer and such. My garden is at the edge of some tall grass so I usually just get the little animals coming out of the grass.

As I said If you are working with very limited space you want to protect it as much as possible. And if your space is small it should not be hard to put a fence around it.

3. Put enough space in between your rows for a tiller.

Weeding stinks! So a trick my gardening pro neighbor taught me was to plant with enough space in between the rows to fit a tiller through. Now I know this might waste some of the space but it is totally worth it! And If you have a small tiller you do not need to leave that much space. Trust me it will save SO much time.

Depending on the size of your garden this might not be possible. But if you can I would highly recommend it. You will be surprised at how much it will help you. I am not talking about a massive tiller just a small one. If you want to know what I recommend here is a post I wrote.

4. Get the family involved

Get your kids out there! I have little kids so it can be stressful to have them help. I mean half the time they pull out the veggies and not the weeds…But it is so important that we teach our kids about these things. And they need to know responsibility and hard work at a young age. My husband and I want our kids to know where their food comes from and have them know how to raise their own food.

We home-school and this is a great practical lesson for them. I am all about getting my kids outside and away from those screens! I am a little old fashioned and wish those stinking things did not exist…Well not really I can’t live without my smartphone. Anyway, I hope you the best in your garden! I hope you and your family can work together to become more self-sufficient!

5. Preserve your crop

Now I understand that you might not have enough crops to do this. But if you are able to it is a huge help for the family. Having canned fruits an veggies for the year is so great! And if you followed the tips I have provided you should be able to make the most of what you have so you should have enough to can and put away for the winter!

6. Get a head start

You can make mini greenhouses in your house to give your plants a head start. You can do this with old fruit containers or a rotisserie chicken container. This is also really fun if you have little kids in the house. You can make this a special project for them to work on and help them to learn how plants grow!

7. Weed and Water

So I know this seems obvious but I have a tendency to get lazy and will forget to weed and water my garden. And this really does take a toll on the plants. Again, i know that this is common sense but I just wanted to through that out there. If you are like me then you need to set a reminder to water the garden. What I usually do is use a sprinkler for the garden and just turn it on for a few minutes at night. Just don’t forget about it and leave it on. I have totally done this. And As far as weeding don’t get overwhelmed. Something I like to do is work on it for a few minutes a day. And hey if you have a smaller garden this should be plenty to keep up on it.

Final Thoughts

I hope that this was helpful to you and that it gave you some great ideas on how to maximize your garden. But I am just figuring this out along side of you so if you have some ideas that I have not mentioned I would love to hear them. Please leave me a comment with all of your ideas and or any questions you might have that I forgot to address. We are all on this journey together and I love getting ideas from others.

Happy Homesteading!

~Courtney

The first step is choosing your crops! This may sound simple. But put a little thought and effort into it. Think about the things that you eat most and the things that would cost the most if you had to buy them. If you have to cut things out because of lack of space in your garden make them the things you can get cheaply at the store and plant the things that are more expensive to buy. I personally grow…

• Green Beans
• Tomatoes
• Peppers
• Lettuce
• Spaghetti squash

2. Making Calculations

Now that you know what you want to plant. Make your calculations. Either take the measurements of your current garden or decide how large of a garden you will be making. Once you know how big of a space you are working with, draw it up. Almost like a blueprint of a house draw what you want your garden to look like and where the plants will be. Now I understand that there are totally different personalities out there. If this is too much for you just draw something super simple. It really does not have to be that detailed.

But I would encourage you to at least draw up something. It really does help in the planning process. And it will help you to see where things should go. For example make sure your plants that “crawl” get put on the outside of the garden so they don’t overtake your other plants. (I say this from experience

Another aspect when planning is keeping room in between the rows. When you are planning how much space you need I would highly recommend keeping enough room in between the rows for a tiller.  You can get a small tiller so the rows don’t need to be that big. But trust me on this one! It will save you SO much time on weeding. And the tiller gets the soil turned up better than we can by hand. This has been a lifesaver for me!

3. Buying the best plants/seeds

Next you will need to buy your seeds. Now I would recommend to get organic heirloom if you can. You might not know this, but if they are not heirloom you can not use the seeds again and if a plant happens to come back the next year it will most likely not produce. And part of being self sufficient is not having to continue buying things year after year right? RIGHT! If you can’t get organic heirloom its not the end of the world it is just helpful if you can. If you have amazon prime you can get seeds and have them to your door within 2 days! I highly recommend it!

4. Starting your seeds early

Now if you want to get a head start I would suggest that you plant your seeds early. If you happen to have a greenhouse..go you! I do not! But you can still start seeds early in the house! I just recently saw that you can make your own mini greenhouses out of old strawberry containers or a rotisserie chicken container. How fun is that? And what a cool way to get the kids involved at an early age. They can help plant the seeds and watch them grow until they are ready to go outside. This step is optional! It will definitely give you a head start..But your garden will work just fine if you start them outside!

5. When do you want your harvest?

Be thinking about when you want to harvest. I generally plant a little later and therefore don’t get a harvest until about September. But this totally depends on what you are planting. So just make sure to look at the labels and see how long things take and plan from there. You can plant things at different times so that you are not overwhelmed all at one time. I did that last year unintentionally. The animals ate some of my beans so I replanted them and then was able to harvest the beans at different times..which ended up being really helpful! You don’t have to have a huge gap in between your planting times! a few weeks is fine.

6. Get the kids involved

Depending on the size of your Garden it can be a big job. You not only have to plan, but you have to create the garden space,till the garden, plant the garden and than keep up with it all summer. I would highly recommend getting your kids involved. This is a great way for them to learn where their food comes from and the work that goes into it. This is a great way to teach them that food does not just magically show up on the store shelves! Kids of any age can help! I even have my 3 and 5 year old help. Just make sure you are guiding them so that they don’t rip out all the plants thinking that they are weeds.

The benefits of canning

I am sure that you already know why you want to can, but I just wanted to share with you why I  personally take the time and effort to can, here is a list of my top 5 reasons I choose to can…

1. Saving money
2. Convenience
3. Health
4. Getting the kids involved
5. Becoming more self-sufficient

Let me expound on them a bit…

I am a pretty frugal person and like to save money where I can. Now you might not think that canned veggies are expensive BUT if you think about it they add up! I mean, yes you can maybe get a can of veggies for a $1 but if you have a larger family you will need at least 2-3 cans a meal. So if you eat veggies just at one meal a day you are looking at spending almost $100 a month on canned veggies! What?!?! And those are canned not fresh! Fresh veggies are WAY more expensive. So just by canning your own veggies, you can save your family at least $1200 a year!

Now let’s talk about Convenience…I for one hate menu planning! Who’s with me? I LOVE knowing that I have all the veggies I will need to be stocked in my pantry for the whole year. And if something happens you have a stocked pantry! As I have mentioned I am not a crazy prepper person. But you never know what life will throw at you! I mean your husband could lose his job…and how nice is it to have food on hand in case you need to fill in a bit?

One of my favorite topics! Health. When you buy canned veggies you are most likely not getting the most healthy option. First of all the can along is bad for you and I can almost guarantee your produce is not organic. If you do get organic you will have to pay a much higher price! I am a huge advocate in doing things myself. When I can my own veggies I know exactly how my produce is grown and taken care of. I know that is was not sprayed with chemicals and that is was not pumped full of junk. Did you know that a lot of produce from the store is pumped full of crap to make them “look” more appealing? Crazy!

Get your kids involved! I strongly believe that our kids should have the responsibility in and around the home. Have your kids help you plant and take care of the garden. Depending on their age they can be a very big help in the whole process. If they are young have them help pick out the plants and assist in planting. Use it as a learning experience. Help them to understand how plants grow.

It is such a privilege to be able to teach our kids how to plant and grow their own food. If your children are older they should take more responsibility. Have them do most of the work with guidance from you! It is so great to not only be able to grow your own food but to be able to teach your children self-sufficiency in the process!

Speaking of self-sufficiency…

That is our next point. My families goal in homesteading is to become as self-sufficient as we can. Now we are far from 100% self-sufficient. But I am trying to take it a step at a time and do more and more each year. It is so rewarding to do as much as possible on your own. I believe that we should do things more on our own and not rely so much on the stores and the big chains! I assume if you are homesteading than this would also be one of your goals as well. Therefore to me, I love that I can plan my garden and have produce for the whole year through canning! It is so great to be able to have pretty much all my veggies put away for the year! One step closer to not needing the grocery stores! YAY!!

Conclusion

Now don’t let this all overwhelm you! It is actually pretty manageable and fun. I never thought I would be one to love gardening but I DO! It is so nice and peaceful being outside in the garden. And It is so rewarding being able to provide this food for my family. I hope this was a help to you when it comes to preparing your garden to can! You will not regret growing your own food and having a year supply of veggies, sauces, and salsa at a moments notice!

If you are looking to plant a garden to just have fresh produce during the summer I would suggest having a 200 square foot garden. If you are looking to can I would suggest having a 600 square foot garden. 

Whether you are just planting a garden for the first time or you have put in a garden for years planning needs to be the first thing that you do! I mean you can’t just throw a bunch of seeds in the ground and hope for the best, right? You need to decide what veggies and fruits you and your family enjoy and if you will just be eating them fresh or preserving some for the winter. Personally, I can a lot of the produce from my garden! I love to have my own canned goods for the winter. But I am aware not everyone is able or wanting to can. So I will show you how to plan for both…

Planning for canning…

If you are planning to can your produce to last you for the whole year you will clearly need a large garden. As I mentioned above a 600 square foot garden would be ideal. But I know that some people do not have that much space to work with. So Just plan with the space that you have!

Step number 1: Plan the size of your garden

I have land to work with so having a large garden is not a problem for me. But before you can pick what plants you want, you need to know what size garden you will have. This is your “foundation” so to speak. You can’t start a project without a foundation, right? SO, in the same way, we can’t plan a garden without our foundation. I would suggest planning your garden on a piece of paper. Draw it out so that you can see what you have to work with. That leads into…

Step number 2: Picking your plants

Now that you know what you have to work with size wise you can choose which plants you want. Just for sake of illustration, I will be sharing with you my garden plans. But make sure you plan accordingly for the state you live in. I live in Michigan by the way!

Okay, so when choosing what I want in my garden I think about the things that we eat the most of and that cost the most to buy. I try to utilize my space as best as possible. For example, onions are very cheap and take up a lot of room in the garden. So I try to use that space I something that will cost more if I had to buy it. Does that make sense? The things I plant in my garden are…

1. Green Beans
2. Tomatoes
3. Peppers
4. lettuce
5. Spaghetti Squash

Now, this might not sound like much but I am able to can enough green beans for the entire year and make all of my own tomato products. ( salsa, tomato sauce, tomato paste, ETC.) The spaghetti squash will last for a good 3 months in a cold dark place and the lettuce we just eat fresh…

It honestly is hard to tell you exactly how many plants you will need. Because every family is different. I have little ones so obviously, they are going to eat much less than if I had teenagers. But for my family I plant…

• 2 20 foot rows of beans
• 15 tomato plants
• 10 pepper plants
• 1 row of lettuce
• 1 row of spaghetti squash

This seemed to be the perfect amount for our family. But you will need to play around with it depending on what your families needs are. Another aspect you want to think about is when you want to do your canning. Do you want to harvest everything at once? Or would it work better to spread it out? Personally, I think it is nice to have things ready at different times. Especially if you are not canning and only eating it fresh. Which leads to our next question…

Planning for fresh produce

If you are planning to just plant a garden for fresh produce than you will not need nearly as many plants. As I mentioned before try to your best to plant things at different times so that you can harvest your produce at different times. Now they don’t need to be drastically different times just try to space them out a few weeks at a time.

This post would be forever long if I posted every item separately, so I think the Square footage I mentioned above is a good thing to go by. So for a family of 4 plan on making a 200 square foot garden. But if you don’t have the option to have that big of a garden than just plan accordingly. Maybe choose less of a variety so that you can have more of what you love.

Freezing your overabundant crops

How many of us know people who have way too many of one thing? I can’t even begin to tell you many times I have been offered zucchini. Now It’s not a bad thing to have extra but think beforehand how you can best utilize your plants if you have an overabundance.

I used to think that zucchini was gross and what would I do with it? But over the last few years, I have found so many yummy ways to eat it and I now freeze it for a later date! You can do this with anything that you did not get a chance to can. I prefer canning because it is so nice to have the food ready and not have to remember to thaw it out, but sometimes I don’t have the time to can! So I throw it in a bag and boom I’m done.

Get a head start

You can get an early start on your gardening season by using a greenhouse. If you are lucky enough to have a full-fledged greenhouse, go you! I do not…But you can make mini greenhouses in your house to give your plants a head start. You can do this with old fruit containers or a rotisserie chicken container. This is also really fun if you have little kids in the house. You can make this a special project for them to work on and help them to learn how plants grow!

Keep track

The information I have shared with you is what has personally worked for my family. But you might need to make some changes for your family. It is important that you keep records of what you do so that in future years you can tweak things so that you can make your garden better and better each year.

I have been gardening for a while now and keep thinking of better ways to fit in more veggies and use the space as wisely as possible. And what plants work well in your soil. I tried corn and it totally failed in my soil. Even though it did great in my neighbor’s yard…Yah plants and soil are weird…

….That being said make sure that you are flexible. Things will not be perfect! Far from it actually. There are many things that work but also a lot that will not. You might plant enough but lose some to animals or bugs. Or forget to water them Don’t give up though! Just try again! We are always learning!

A few extra tips 

1. Put in a fence around your garden!

Thankfully the animals did not totally destroy my garden but I did lose everything around the edge of my garden. I would recommend at least putting in a short garden to keep out the bunnies and small animals. But if you are close to woods you might need a tall fence for deer and such. My garden is at the edge of some tall grass so I usually just get the little animals coming out of the grass.

2. Put enough space in between your rows for a tiller.

Weeding stinks! So a trick my gardening pro neighbor taught me was to plant with enough space in between the rows to fit a tiller through. Now I know this might waste some of the space but it is totally worth it! And If you have a small tiller you do not need to leave that much space. Trust me it will save SO much time.

3. Get the family involved

Get your kids out there! I have little kids so it can be stressful to have them help. I mean half the time they pull out the veggies and not the weeds…But it is so important that we teach our kids about these things. And they need to know responsibility and hard work at a young age. My husband and I want our kids to know where their food comes from and have them know how to raise their own food.

We home-school and this is a great practical lesson for them. I am all about getting my kids outside and away from those screens! I am a little old fashioned and wish those stinking things did not exist…Well not really I can’t live without my smartphone. Anyway, I hope you the best in your garden! I hope you and your family can work together to become more self-sufficient!

~Courtney