Seasonal Garden

Peppers need 8–10 weeks indoors before transplant. Tomatoes need 6–8. Starting both in March puts Zones 5–7 on schedule — but the exact week depends on the zone, and getting it wrong costs 2–4 weeks of harvest. Across USDA Zones 5 through 7, average last frost dates fall between late April and late May. That … Read more

A mild afternoon means nothing if the soil is still cold, wet, and slow. Iowa State Extension notes that cool-season vegetables that are direct-sown can go in once soil temperatures reach about 50°F, and it explicitly warns not to work garden soil when it is overly wet. That matters because early spring failures are often … Read more