Looking for a unique, personal and affordable gift this holiday season? Consider something from your garden.

Green petals, misshapen flowers, twisted, and distorted leaves that turn yellow or red and tufts of white hairy roots on carrots are symptoms of aster yellows.

Don’t let a tight budget stop you from starting seeds indoors. Get creative and involve the whole family in the process.

Break out your favorite vegetable dip and grab a handful or two of carrots and celebrate National Carrot Day on February 3rd. And add these tasty and nutritional vegetables to your garden plan this season.

Don’t discard those left over seeds from last season. When properly stored, many seeds can last for years, saving you money when you plan and plant this year’s garden.

Don’t throw away that worn and leaky kid’s swimming pool. Instead, put it to work in your garden.

Get a jump on the growing season and save money by creating a growing chart.

Carrots, lettuce, begonia and other small seeds can be difficult to plant at the proper spacing. Reduce wasting seeds and time spent thinning seedlings.

Gather the family in the kitchen, prepare a meal, and sit down to celebrate Eat Better and Eat Together.

No, it wasn’t the ornery neighborhood kids that clipped your new transplants off at the base. It was likely the result of the sneaky cutworm.

Yellowing, speckled leaves and small spider webs are sure signs spider mites have taken up residence in your plants.

Extend your enjoyment of potted and forced tulips, daffodils and hyacinths.

Early planting and unseasonably cool wet springs can cause bean and corn seeds to fail to sprout or fully develop. These seeds either rotted or were damaged by corn seed maggot.

Plants are the easiest way to bring birds into your landscape, but you may want to increase the number and diversity of winged visitors by supplementing with a few feeders.

Recycle your old newspapers into biodegradable pots for starting seeds this year. It is a money-saving activity the whole family will enjoy.

Get rid of the fence dividing you and your neighbors’ yard. Instead create a beautiful garden you both can enjoy.

A tangle of carrots, ill-formed beets, and non-existent radish roots mean it’s time to add thinning to your gardening list.

Boost your garden’s productivity and harvest garden-fresh vegetables all season long.

Add a bit of nutrition to your diet and landscape. Grow a container full of nutritious vegetables for your patio, deck or balcony.

Keep a fresh supply of bone-building calcium growing in your garden all season long.

Parsley is not just a garnish for your meals. This Vitamin rich herb is a great addition to your garden and recipes.

Celebrate Valentine’s Day and National Homemade Soup Day by sharing a bowl of soup with the ones you love. And while you sip some soup, start planning the soup ingredients you’ll grow in this year’s garden.

Reduce your grocery bill this summer by growing a few of your favorite vegetables. And the good news, you don’t need much space to produce enough fresh vegetables for you and your family to enjoy.

Nothing beats fresh-from-the -garden corn on the cob. But this is one vegetable that takes up a lot of space for a small harvest.

Picture this - Your guest reaches over and plucks a sprig of mint from a planter to add to their iced tea or Mojito. Nothing beats the fresh-from-the-garden flavor or fun of ingredients right from your own garden.

Get the whole family involved in growing your own healthful holiday treat. And, believe it or not, it can be quick, easy, nutritional and fun.

Many of us are looking for ways to rid our body of toxins, while improving our eating habits. Asparagus is nature’s own detoxifier and one of the most nutritionally balanced vegetables.

Add a bit of fiber to your garden and diet. Consider growing edible soybeans in this year’s garden.

Make homegrown onions part of your diet. Their flavor is guaranteed to add zest to your meals and their health benefits include lowering the risk of many cancers.

Give them a chill and stop the tears. Cooling your onions and cutting into the root end last reduces the tear inducing impact of the onions sulfuric compounds. And consider improving the flavor and fun by growing your own onions from seed.

I have a quiz for you - What is white, red or yellow, can be eaten fresh, fried or even raw and is one of the most important staples of the human diet. If you guessed potato, you are right.

Add a bit of color and nutrition to your meals with home grown sweet potatoes.

Grow a few healthy snacks for you and your family to enjoy. Carrots have the crunch of chips and crackers without the fat and calories.

It’s time to start reaping the benefits of your spring plantings. So break out the garden fork and get busy harvesting.

Fall is here and that means its time to harvest and select the perfect pumpkin for your garden or Halloween display.

Get the best flavor and longest storage life from your homegrown garlic with proper harvesting and curing.

Break out the garden fork and get ready to start harvesting onions and potatoes.

Sunflowers are a favorite for kids of all ages. Not only are they fun to grow, they’re also great to eat – that is - if you can beat the birds and squirrels to the seeds.

All your hard work and effort is paying off with a bountiful harvest.

Make your holiday meals just a bit more special, decorative, fun, and nutritional with homegrown garnishes.

Don’t let going gluten-free get you down. Include some fresh-from-the-garden vegetables to add flavor to your gluten-free meals.

Heat up your meals and improve your health by adding a few hot peppers to your garden and meal plan.

Save energy and money by growing your own air purifier.

Whether you garden with your own children or those of family and friends consider making a portion of your landscape kid friendly.

Put your creativity to work and get your favorite youngster excited about gardening.

Have a bit of fun and stretch your gardening muscles with kitchen scrap gardening.

Get the most flavor and nutritional value from your garden-fresh vegetables with proper harvesting, storage and preparation.

Take advantage of weekends, holidays and school vacations to get the children in your life involved with vegetable gardening.

What can you grow in a dark damp location? Mushrooms, of course.

The holidays are filled with lots of delicious foods and sweets. But now is the time to resolve to grow your own vegetables and eat healthier in the New Year.

As you thumb through catalogues or peruse online seed sources your wish list may be growing. Check your seed inventory before placing your final order.

Make a difference one row of vegetables at a time.

Double your harvest without increasing your garden space. Try planting short season vegetables like lettuce, radishes and beets between long season vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, okra, cabbage, and broccoli. When the short season veggies are ready to harvest, the longer season larger vegetables will need the space.

Don’t let cold soil and late spring frost delay the start to your garden season.

The soil has finally warmed and it is time to get pumpkins, melons, squash and cucumbers in the ground.

Are you like me and always squeeze in that extra tomato plant, another row of beans or that one left over pepper plant? It seemed like a good idea at the time. But now you have more produce than you need.

Try a bit of preventative care in this year’s garden. You’ll increase your landscape’s beauty and productivity with less work on your part.

Don’t throw away or recycle those fast food containers just yet. Reuse them when gardening indoors and out.

Don’t drag that Christmas tree to the curb. Give it a second life in your landscape.

Cut trees make great windbreaks in the landscape. Strategically place discarded Christmas trees on the windward side of rhododendron, boxwood and other broadleaf evergreens to reduce problems with winter burn.

Grow the main ingredient for a classic, delicious, and family favorite – rhubarb pie.

Carving pumpkins is a fun Halloween tradition. But don’t let those pumpkin seeds go to waste; try roasting them into a healthy snack for you and your family to enjoy.

As you pack away the garden hose, tools and other supplies don’t forget about the left over seeds. Proper storage can extend their life - and that means you need to buy fewer seeds next season.

Be a part of history and save money when planting next year’s garden. Collect and save the seeds from your favorite heirloom tomatoes this fall.

Be a part of history and save money when planting next year’s garden. Collect and save the seeds from your favorite heirloom tomatoes this fall.

Increase seed starting success and fun with the sealed lid method my friend and horticulturist Bob Polomski learned from his father.

The last Saturday of January is National Seed swap day. So gather your gardening friends, seeds and catalogs and throw a garden party.

Whether you are trying to start plants from seeds, get your African violets to bloom, or keeping your indoor plants alive, a bit of extra light can help.

Get rid of the fence dividing yours and your neighbors’ yards. Instead create a beautiful garden you both can enjoy.

Do you have trouble properly spacing the small seeds of carrots, radishes or lettuce? It's easy to end up with half the package in one short row. This is a waste of seed and time spent thinning.

Don’t panic if your garden plans are bigger than the available planting space. I have some space saving techniques that can help you get the most out of your landscape.

Expand your indoor and outdoor garden by taking cuttings from your favorite plants.

Keep your green thumbs busy starting new plants from kitchen scraps.

Extend the gardening fun and save money by starting your plants from seed.

Don’t let the calendar stop you from gardening. There is still time to plant vegetables for you and your family to enjoy.

Fall has many of us scrambling to protect plants from frost, move tropicals indoors or finish harvesting our vegetables. Be sure you collect a few green tomatoes to ripen indoors.

Try a Native American tradition of planting corn, squash and beans - the three sisters’ method - together in your garden this year.

You waited all season for that first red ripe tomato only to discover less-than-perfect fruit. But don’t worry, you can still have a great harvest and improve things for next season.

Celebrate “What’s on my Plate Day” and surprise your family with a plate full of nutritious vegetables. Serve ‘em cooked up as ratatouille, chopped and mixed in a stir-fry or tossed in a tasty salad.

The National Garden Bureau has declared 2013 the Year of the Watermelon.