Showing posts with label Gardening. Show all posts

Sour Cherry Jam Recipe

Hooray! Can I just tell you how excited I am now that it is cherry season? It means it is the beginning of all my summer and fall canning. And I've got so much planned that I am excited to share with you. First up is Sour Cherry Jam. Have you ever heard of Sour Cherries or Tart Cherries before? They are not easily found in stores and most often at food stands or farmers' markets for a very limited time at the beginning of Cherry Season. Just like their name says, they are sour. They are beautifully bright red and are best used in another creation like jams, syrups, ice cream topping, pies, or dried and not really eaten as a table fruit. You can find dried tart cherries in the grocery stores for about $5.99/lb. At least that's how much they are in the health section of my local Kroger store. 

In Utah, the best sour cherry variety is Montmorency and it is the most common tart cherry grown in the US. It is heary and can withstand more front than sweet varieties because it blooms latest in the spring avoiding late frosts. 

Tart Cherries are perfect for pies or crumbles because they really let you control the sweetness factor  and they hold their shape wonderfully when cooked. These are what are standard for commerical pie filling cherries.  Once you find a source for Sour Cherries you'll be so excited finding ways to use them up. If you need time to decide though, pit them and freeze them because they won't last long fresh and actually really hold up to freezing well.

I happen to have found an old neighbor with a Sour Cherry tree in his yard. I was driving my girls over to a friend's house and I looked out the car window at this tree we were driving by and thought "that looks like a cherry tree" so of course I had to go have a look. Yes I am that type of person. I noticed that the cherries were quite a bit smaller than other cherries and very bright, shiny red so I figured I had just found one of these rare cherry trees. I knocked on the person's door and he was very happy to let me come back and pick as much as I wanted. I hauled my girls back there the next day and we picked 3 grocery bags full and hadn't even made a dent in the tree!

We returned all hot and sweaty from being out in the sun and sure enough when we bit in to one we found out they were tart cherries!

I thought about all the ways I wanted to use them up and we tried Sour Cherry Jam, Sour Cherry Syrup (awesome in my Tart Cherry Lime Mocktails!) and I dried a whole bunch for the kids. 

Making Jam is so easy. Every recipe is different depending on the type of pectin you use. I like the low sugar one and feel like it is plenty sweet. You can even find a no sugar fruit pectin as well. Look for a recipe that has 3 cups of sugar or less for 4 cups of fruit. 

DIRECTIONS  ___________________________________________________________________
First you want to wash, pit and chop the sour cherries and measure the EXACT amount on your pectin box instructions into a sauce pan. (Making jam really is a science so you have to follow the amounts exactly or your jam won't set)

2.  Add water and pectin package into fruit and bring mixture to a full rolling boil on high heat,  which means that it doesn't stop bubbling when you stir it. And stir constantly. (You can also add a 1/2 tsp butter to reduce foaming if you want)

3. As soon as it hits a rolling boil, pour in the sugar called for all at once and return to a rolling boil. Time for 1 minute at a full rolling boil on high heat stirring constantly then remove from heat and skim off any foam. 

4. Ladle quickly into clean glass jars. I like to use the 6 oz jars. You only need 1/8 inch of headspace. Wipe jar rims  and cover with lid and screw on the band to finger tight.

5. Place onto water bath canner rack and lower into the water to cover jars by 1-2 inches. If you need more water, have some boiling water waiting nearby. 

6. Cover the canner and bring water to a gentle boil. Process Sour Cherry Jam 10 minutes (add 5 minutes for elevations 1,0001-3000 ft and 10 minutes if your are at elevation 3,001-6,000 ft above sea level.)

7. Remove jars after alloted time and place upright. (Some people turn jars upside down but you shouldn't do this). Just set on a towel and let it cool completely for at least 24 hours. Check seals by pressing middle of lid with finger. If the lid springs back, it means it is not sealed and you can either refridgerate and use immediately or you can reprocess it again with a new lid if you have any other batches of jam to do. 

That's it. It really goes so quickly. One of the best ways we love enjoying our Sour Cherry Jam is by swirling it through a little bit of plain yogurt. In fact, that was one of my tricks to slowly get my babies to start eating plain yogurt.

As an aside, I remember being an exchange student in Germany and trying to buy yogurt and being so confused why it was so sour. I didn't realize what real yogurt was supposed to taste like. Ours is like melted ice cream in the states! Slowly I got used to it and now I love it. If you want to start weaning your family off the high sugar yogurts,  start with 1 tsp of Jam/ Jelly (that is only 4 grams of sugar) and compared to the amount of sugar that is dumped into store-bought yogurt, it is infinitely better. Then slowly I would add less and less til they would eat just plain yogurt with berries mixed in. Try it, it works! 

I hope you find yourself lucky enough to snag some tart cherries this season. There are some U-pick farms as well as farmers' markets where they will be available for about 2 weeks in July.

Happy Canning!

Tiara
- The Provident Princess
Canning & Preserving, Canning and Preserving, Cherries,
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Strawberry Chia Seed Freezer Jam

I am loving summer already. Yes, it's fun having the kids home from school and having tons of fun and crazy adventures; but what I am really excited about is my garden! I transplanted my strawberries last fall because they weren't doing great where they were and now they are producing abundantly. So in honor of my first strawberry harvest this season, I am so excited to share my favorite strawberry freezer jam recipe with you all.


It is so healthy. Made with low sugar and chia seeds for extra protein and fiber. It is delicious on toast. or my oldest loves it on waffles instead of syrup. I also mix it into plain whole milk yogurt for my babies.

This recipe is so fast and such an easy way to save money on organic jam. And if you have been interested in canning but didn’t know where to start, this is the perfect gateway into the world of canning and preserving. I know it can seem intimidating, but try this freezer jam recipe first. It is so easy and fast, and will be the perfect confidence builder to try one of the many other step-by-step recipes I have on the blog. 

Read on for my super easy, low sugar, Strawberry Chia Seed Freezer Jam and stay tuned on the blog for many more healthy, plant-based, low cost, real food recipes and ideas.

Strawberry Chia Seed Freezer Jam
Ingredients:
·        3 cups strawberries, chopped
·        ¼ cup non-gmo sugar or honey -(I know a lot of people love to use honey because of its health benefits but it isn’t worth it to use in this recipe. This recipe gets heated, just for a bit, but it is enough to kill any of the beneficial things in honey. So I use cane sugar and save my raw honey for when it will make a difference. It is non-gmo and way less expensive than raw honey.
·        2 Tbsp ground chia seeds- you can totally use chia seeds whole but I just don’t like the texture or look of all the seeds so I grind mine. About 1 ½ Tbsp chia seeds will make 2 Tbsp ground. Or just use 2 Tbsp whole.
·        1 Tbsp lemon juice- this helps retain color and texture
2 half pint canning jars

Directions     

1. Combine the sugar and ground chia seeds in a sauce pan and stir til equally distributed. (if you are using whole seeds don’t worry about adding them until you add the lemon at the end. With ground chia seeds it helps to add them to other dry ingredients or they will clump and start to gel immediately after being added to a liquid and it is hard to incorporate them evenly. 

2. Add the chopped strawberries to the sugar and chia seeds. Stir around and let sit for 10 minutes. The sugar will macerate the strawberries helping to release their juices making them break up easier.

 3. Turn on heat to medium and gently mash the berries until they break up a little and reach your desired texture. I like some chunks but mostly spreadable.

4. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes until berries are soft.

5. Take off heat and add lemon juice and whole chia seeds if using. Stir til incorporated evenly. 

6.     Pour into half-pint canning jars and refrigerate for 24 hours then move to freezer. Take one out and enjoy over toast, pancakes or yogurt. 

Cheers, 

PP
Canning and Preserving, Cooking From Your Garden, Food,
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Easy Windowsill Herb Garden


One of the little luxuries I love having in my kitchen is fresh herbs. It really make such a difference in giving your meals that little fragrant pop they need. But buying fresh herbs from the store is so expensive. And you only ever need a little bit for a recipe, so the rest just languish in the fridge until finally getting thrown away. Or is that just me? I hate wasting money on things like that.

Growing your own herbs is a no brainer that solves both these problems. Having inexpensive fresh herbs available and in only the amount you need.  I've been wanting a windowsill herb garden for awhile but hadn't gotten around to it. I saw these super cute herb planters at Crate & Barrel the other day and felt inspired. But not $30 inspired, no matter how cute it was.

The point to having fresh, organic herbs at my fingertips is to save money. So I searched around and found this one at Ikea for $9.99. I like it so much better. The added wooden base makes it more interesting. And, it was on sale! There is also a really similar one here if you don't have an Ikea near you.

If you've never grown plants before, don't be nervous. Herbs are the easiest thing ever. All you have to do is find a sunny windowsill. I give you a few more tips in helping keep them alive below.


But first, we need to assemble the garden. I don't sow my seeds directly in the planter. They need drainage. You can find these plastic seedling planters and saucers at any garden center or nursery for less than a dollar each. This was the smallest set I could find on Amazon (10). Maybe make a couple extra to give as Mother's Day presents!

They have drainage holes in the bottom and the saucer to catch anything that drips. And they are pretty nifty for letting you know how much water your plant needs. I just pour water til I see it start leaking into the saucer.

You can buy your herbs already started from a nursery but that will run you about $1.50-3.50 per herb depending on what size you get. A packet of seeds is about a dollar but you can usually find them Buy 1 Get 1 Free and grow them yourself. (Just stick the rest of the packet in the freezer until you need to grow some more.) You will definitely need patience but it is so fun to grow them all yourself.

I would pick 3 herbs that you use a lot and start there. Parsley, Basil, Cilantro, Chives, Mint, Dill, Thyme, Rosemary, Sage, there are so many options to choose from.

I chose Flat Leaf Parsley, Dill and Basil. Cilantro would have been on the list because I use it all the time, but I have a plant out in my garden that survived the winter that I can use. Yea! So when my dill gets too big, I will try to transplant it outside and trade it out for a pot of cilantro to last for next fall/winter.

If you are growing your herbs from seeds you will also need to buy a good organic potting mix. No use trying to grow organic herbs in Miraclegro. I really like this BlackGold brand and you can find it in most stores.


Follow the directions on your packet. You won't want more than 2-3 plants growing in your pot or they will get too crowded and not grow well. I would start with 5 seeds and then thin to the best 2 or 3 when the first true leaves appear by snipping the stem down to the soil.


If you bought your herbs from a nursery, just transfer them over and add more soil if needed. Place saucer underneath and give it a good drink til you can start to see water come out the drainage holes.



Place pots in the planter and put in a sunny window to enjoy! I love how it really brightens up my kitchen counter and instantly brings color to any dish. Just snip some off next time you need something and enjoy your super flavorful and hyper fresh herbs. We loved our parsley on Jambalaya Pasta last night.

Jambalaya Pasta
If you feel like you are not getting through your herbs fast enough before they need to be trimmed again then check out my post on preserving parsley here. I also love making pesto when I need to use up a bunch of basil. Stay tuned for the recipe.

Plant Care Tips-
Water- 2-3 times a week. I usually do Mondays and Thursdays. Stick your finger in the potting mix, if it is damp 2 inches down, it doesn't need any more water. If you accidentally pour too much water in, relax. The saucer will just keep the excess until the plant wants to suck it up. If you are growing from seeds, you will need to water every day until the shoot appears and the roots grow longer. Keep the soil moist.

Dirt- I know it might sound like a good idea to use dirt from your yard to fill the pots. It's free and easy but dirt is alive. There are many different ecosystems living in there. If you remove it from its natural environment you are also removing it from its natural predators and some bacteria or diseases could spread and get into your food or your house plants. A good, organic potting mix is worth the splurge.

Proper Pruning
It may seem counter intuitive, but pruning actually promotes growth.

Basil- After the seedlings have their first 6 true leaves, prune to above the second set. From then on, every time it has 6-8 leaves again, prune back to the 1st set of leaves. Pinch off any stems that look like it is going to flower. That will make your basil bitter if allowed to flower.

Chives-  To harvest, just cut straight across. Like you are cutting grass. They probably won't grow out of control like some herbs. Pairs so well with eggs, using in compound butter or tossing raw on soups salads or potatoes.

Cilantro/ Parsley- Once the plant is 6 inches high, begin pruning by trimming the outer leaves down to the bottom of the stem. Don't cut the inner leaves. These will continue growing and producing more stems. You can eat the stems. They carry so much flavor, making them perfect for flavoring soups/ broths or sauces you will blend. I use mine all the time in guacamole and eggs, I just mince very small.

 Dill- I love dill. My favorite is to use it to garnish Borscht. It tastes so good with beets, fish (especially salmon), yogurt sauces and of course pickles. I've got a killer pickle recipe I will be posting this summer so stay tuned!

Mint- Young leaves have more flavor so the key to keeping mint at its best is frequent harvesting. I love to use mint leaves in my ice water. It is so refreshing. Just make sure when you trim to make sure there is still at least 1 set of leaves on the stem.

Oregano- This herb does better outside because it likes to sprawl. If you are dead set on it, just make sure you trim it back often so it doesn't have a chance to get woody.

Rosemary- Rosemary is a beautiful plant and grows straight up so it's perfect for an indoor garden. Just cut a couple inches off from the top leaving leaves below to keep growing.

 Thyme- Thyme is such a hardy plant. Both for cooking in high heat and for staying alive. Basically make sure you never cut below the first leaves and you'll be fine.

Last but not least. Never trim more than 1/3 of a plant at any given time or it will go into shock and may not recover.

I hope you feel inspired to make yourself an herb garden to enjoy fresh herbs at your fingertips any time you need. Leave a comment below and let me know which herb you find yourself using the most.


PP
Basil, Cooking From Your Garden, Dill,
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How to Teach Gardening Skills to Your Kids

  • Enjoying the last of our garden carrots
  • Oh, the family garden.
  • Or what was supposed to be the family garden, that everyone was supposed to help out with. But somehow turned into a solo project for you.
  • So how do you dig yourself out of this project?
  • Here are a few tips to re-engage your kids or begin teaching your children how to garden. And love it.

  • Focus on Fast Growing Plants

  • Your children probably don't have enought patience to wait the whole growing season to reap the rewards of say, a big pumpkin. They will need a little instant gratification. Or as instant as it gets when it comes to gardening.
  • It doesn't matter what it is you plant at first. Your children will just be thrilled to see the first leaves and stems sprout from the seeds they planted.
  • Lettuce grows very fast and continues to grow until it gets too hot. Other fast growing plants are: spinach, radishes and zuchini.

  • Plant Things They Like

  • Once your children have seen the fruits or their labor begin, they will work hard to be able to sample them. Grow food that your family likes. Great ideas are sugar peas, strawberries, tomatoes and carrots.
  • Gardening is so much more fun when the results are tasty.

  • Give Children Ownership of a Specific Area

  • You can instill a sense of pride in your children if they have ownership of a certain area. It is also easier for them to keep up on the maintenance of the garden if they know exactly what they need to do.

  • Give Your Children Their Own Tools

  • One of the things that seemed to make the biggest difference in my children's attitude and willingness to work in the garden is when they had their own tools. I bought them garden gloves, a trowel shovel and a weeding tool. The first pair of gloves I bought were just cheap cloth ones I found at the grocery store. They weren't great, they slipped a lot and were hard to maneuver around tiny weeds so I would recommend something like these that have microfoam on the outside. Not only do they grip much better, they also keep out water which the cloth ones did not. Leather ones would also be really durable and water resistant too. Both of these options are only a dollar or two more than the cheaply made ones I first got but will last and work so much better.

  • Work Along Side Your Kids

  • Work is always more enjoyable if you are doing it with someone else. Children will be more willing to work if they have the company of their parents and siblings.
  • This is also a great time to have meaningful conversations with your children. Kids will talk more about things that are bothering them when they have something else to focus on.

  • Keep it fun and non-stressful

  • Don't get too ambitious. Start small. Everyone will get burned out and resist gardening if the area is too overwhelming. You can always add more space the next year if you find that your family handled this year well.
*This article originally appeared on https://familyshare.com/258/how-to-teach-gardening-skills-to-your-kids 
Family, Garden Tips, Gardening,
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How to Plan a Garden

  • There is nothing better than eating fresh, flavorful food grown from your own garden. When you take a bite of your first summer-sweet strawberry grown in your own backyard, you'll know exactly what I mean. This is what strawberries are supposed to taste like. Their flavorful, juicy bursts of goodness will bring a smile to your face. Grocery store produce that's been stored in a cooler for months, with its bland taste and waxy exterior, just doesn't compare to what you can grow at home.
  • Unfortunately, many of us have absolutely no idea how to go about planting a garden. As many would-be gardeners have discovered, it takes more than just a bit of dirt and some water to grow award winning produce. Here are a few tips to help get your garden blooming in no time.

  • Decide what kind of foods you like

  • The idea of planting foods that grow easily is tempting. But if you don't like what you plant, then you won't eat it. Ask your family what kinds of fruit and vegetables they like, and plan from there. Also, check if those plants will grow in your area. A great resource is the USDA's plant hardiness zone map.

  • Find a good location for your garden

  • Once you know what kind of plants you can grow, you will need to find a place to establish your garden. Make sure that it gets plenty of sun and adequate water.

  • Prepare your garden's soil

  • Your plants will have their best chance of being successful if they are planted in rich soil. There are many ways to amend your soil. Compost, fertilizer, and potting soil amendments are just a few of your options. Find the option that works best for the produce that you are planting. Various websites, such as this one, offer suggestions to help you get started.

  • Follow Instructions for Planting Times and Depths

  • All plants have different planting and growing seasons as well as specific depths that the seeds need to be planted. Make sure you follow the directions on the package.

  • Start Small

  • If this is your first garden, don't over do it by planting every type of vegetable known to man. Choose a few you like and start there. You don't want to overwhelm yourself with too much to manage the first year. Make it enjoyable. If you want to expand the next year, that would be the time to do it. 

  • Consider Fruit Trees

  • One last tip is to consider planting a fruit tree or two. Trees are a great option because they only need to be planted once, but they continue to produce fruit year after year with minimal maintenance.
  • Gardening can be an entertaining hobby that pays for the time you spend by providing you with cheap, high quality produce. If you're willing to make the commitment and do your research, then you too can enjoy the bounty of a homemade harvest from you very own backyard!
Comment below and tell me what you are planning to grow this year!





*This post first appeared on familyshare.com 
https://familyshare.com/325/how-to-start-a-gardening-project
Gardening
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How to Plant Garlic

I am really excited to share this post today. It's all about how to grow garlic at home.

Growing your own garlic is so easy! Anyone can do it. Seriously.

Have you ever had some store-bought garlic so long that it started to sprout? Perfect, you're halfway there. If you just stick that clove in the ground and it will grow into a head of garlic next summer.

Now is the perfect time for planting bulbs; flowers or garlic. Anytime after the weather turns cooler in the Fall is a great time to plant. You just need make sure you plant before the ground freezes. Luckily, with how weird the weather has been this winter our growing/planting season has been extended.

Charlotte and I spent a wonderful morning in the garden and it was so fun having her help me with the planting. Though of course she just wanted to dig them all out afterwards.




Directions:
All you need is a head of garlic from the store. Just the regular kind you buy to cook with.

Break apart the head of garlic to get the individual cloves. One clove will grow into an entire head of garlic next year. One of my friends brought me home some popular garlic from a recent trip to California. I'm really excited to plant it. It's been so hard not to use it all because it is so delicious, I hope it grows well here. Fingers crossed.

You only want to plant the biggest ones because they will yield the biggest crop next year. Just save the small ones to use in the kitchen.

Go out to your garden and turn the earth under. Basically just loosen up the dirt and add in any compost you might want to.

Once your dirt is turned over, dig holes 6 inches apart all the way around and about 3-4 inches deep. If you don't have raised garden beds you might want to think about leaving space for a walkway depending on how many cloves you plant.

I use a stick like this to dig. I feel a little like a cave woman digging in the dirt with a stick but hey, it works. And Charlotte loves it too.


Next stick your garlic clove in the ground with the point sticking up. You will want the top of the garlic about 2 inches from the top of the dirt once you fill it in. And, doesn't everyone garden while juggling a baby? Charlotte is learning young.

 
Cover and repeat for all remaining cloves.  I like to dig one hole at a time because my dirt is really loose and falls back into the holes easily making it harder to go back and stick the cloves in. But you could dig all your holes first, then stick in all the garlic cloves, then cover all at once.

You're done.

See what did I tell you? Easy! And you'll love cooking with your homegrown garlic next year.

Tips:

  • you may want to put a layer of mulch like leaves over the dirt to help insulate the garlic over the winter.
Gardening, How to Plant Garlic, How to's,
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How to string and hang dry jalapeno peppers

How to string and hang dry jalapeno peppers
Are you wondering how to use extra jalapeno peppers or how to make your own crushed red pepper flakes? This summer I grew 6 plants of jalapeno peppers and 6 anaheim peppers so even after making all my salsa, apricot jalapeno jelly and enchilada sauce, I still had about a gazillion peppers I needed to find a way to preserve. You can cut them up and dehydrate your peppers (see my post about dehydrating bell peppers). But I was already using my dehydrator on some eggplants so I decided to do it the old fashioned way.

All you need is a needle and some strong thread. Wash all your peppers first, then after you thread your needle, tie a knot at the bottom of your thread tail which will act as an anchor for the rest of your peppers. Grab your 2nd pepper and poke the needle not through just the stem or it will break when it dries. You need to poke it through the green base just under stem so you have a thick, solid foundation. Now pull the needle and slide the pepper all the way down to the one that you tied around the knot. It works best if you alternate which direction it is facing, left/right, front/back. And follow all the way up the string. You don't want too many. They are heavy at first. I think 20-25 worked great. Once done find a well ventilated area and hang for a few weeks.

After your jalapenos are dried, you can leave them on the string in your kitchen. They really are so pretty. Or you can take them off and put them in a plastic bag still whole. Or what I think is the best is to make your own crushed red pepper flakes out of your dried jalapeno peppers. Normally crushed red pepper flakes have cayenne peppers in them which makes it pretty hot. Using just jalapenos tames it a bit which is nice if your family is like me and can't really appreciate a lot of heat. Homemade crushed red pepper flakes can be used in anything that just needs a little kick

FYI- you can see in the picture I was experimenting by using some green jalapenos that hadn't turned yet. I was trying to see if they would dry more mild if they were green but they all ended up turning red anyway.
dehydrating, Food, Gardening,
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Another Reason to Grow and Preserve Your Own Food

My husband sent me a 60 Minutes piece about the Flavoring Industry and the methods they use to make our food taste good. I think it is a must see for everyone.

We all know chemicals are added to our foods. I mean what do we expect when right on the label it says 'artificial flavorings'?

But the thing I found most interesting in this clip is that the 'natural flavorings' in our food aren't necessarily from the source we think it is. For example, a flavorist mentions that they procure a 'natural strawberry' flavor from the gland of a beaver! You don't even want to know where that gland is located.

That just grosses me out.

I don't like thinking about all the junk that is added to our processed food to make it palatable. I mean there are many times I have bought something that said natural flavorings because I thought it meant it would be better for my family.

Now I realize we are all being manipulated.

Not that I blame them.. I mean lets face it. Food that is creamier, saltier and fattier usually tastes better. They want to make what sells. But for me, I want to know what is in my food and have it come from the real thing.

So not only did this clip make me feel really good about all the food that I have preserved myself, it made me more determined to grow as much as I can next year.

I'd love to hear what you all think after watching this.

Tweaking Tastes and Creating Cravings
Gardening, Preserving Your Harvest
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Planning Your Garden - Step 2

Raised Garden Boxes
I know I've been MIA lately. Having a new house and new baby leave me with surprisingly less time than I expected. I have a bunch of half finished posts saved but by the time I get on the computer to finish one another idea pops into my head and I work on that 'til my baby wakes up and I have to save it half finished 'til the next time...It's a vicious cycle.

This is a quick one though.

I just had to show you all what my amazing husband made me over Mother's Day weekend.

I love watching my hubby while he's working with power tools, it's so manly!

He researched all about raised garden boxes and found out that you are supposed to use either redwood or cedar because they stand up better to the outdoor elements and will last a lot longer than other woods. 

The second step to planning a garden is deciding where you are going to have it and how much place you need to grow what you want. 

My husband and I chose a place with really good sunlight and decided how much space we needed. We figured 2 4x8' boxes would be enough.

I really wanted to have a raised garden. 

Having  a raised garden is great. If you are like me and have horrible soil in your backyard you probably don't want to try amending all the dirt in your yard to be garden friendly. It would be a pain and way too expensive. 

With a raised garden boxes you can choose a specific amount of space that you need and just amend that soil. We are buying a 50/50 top soil/ compost mix and having it delivered. This way I won't have to pull my hair out just trying to get my dirt ready for planting and can focus my limited time into maintaining an already fertile garden.

Here are some other pros to having a raised garden:

They also allow your soil to stay more aerated which allows your plant roots to grow easier since the dirt isn't being compacted by you walking across the ground. 

Water can drain easier.

Your plants can be spaced closer together since you don't have to worry about walking space.

It is easier on your back. This is a huge bonus for me because I have a bad back. With the dirt we are bringing in my garden will practically be weed-free so I won't have to spend a lot of time bent over weeding and when I do need to lean over it isn't as far as the ground is.

And the best part is that you can produce up to 2 times as many crops in the same space as an ordinary garden would be able to.


Don't they look great? Now all they need is some dirt and I can get planting!
Garden Boxes, Gardening, Planning a Garden,
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Planning Your Garden- Step 1

You can plant anything in your garden, but it doesn't mean just anything will grow there. 

So before you start running away with ideas of what kind of vegetables and fruits you would like in your garden, you need to find out which plant hardiness zone you live in. The USDA divided North America into 11 hardiness zones. 

These zones provide a guide in figuring out which plants will grow and survive in your location and minimum annual temperatures. The National Gardening Association has a great zone finder tool. Just  type in your zipcode and it will tell you what zone you live in and also gives you a lot of helpful resources like a regional report with helpful hints suited to your area and a tool to help you find plants that grow in your zone.

Tips:
  • Just because the map says you live in one zone doesn't necessarily mean that you only can have plants rated in that zone. If you have a lot of snow cover in the winter the ground stays warmer so you can probably grow plants that are rated for a high zone since their roots will be well insulated. Also keep in mind your summer temperatures, length of days, soil moisture and drainage and elevation as these can affect plant choices too.
  • Your hardiness zone number does not tell you when you can plant your garden. You need to go by your first and last freeze/frost dates. This gardening website has a really user friendly frost date finder tool with more in-depth information. 
Based on these tools I found out that
  • I live in hardiness zone 6B and that each winter, on average, my risk of frost is from October 26 through April 22. Almost certainly, however, I will receive frost from November 14 through March 25. I am almost guaranteed that I will not get frost from May 20 through October 7. My frost-free growing season is around 187 days. 
This information is going to be what I use to plan my garden. More on that next week. Until then, check through some lists of which plants will grow in your area.
Gardening, Planning a Garden, Plant Hardiness Zones
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