There are plants that need encouragement. Plants we fertilize. Plants we carefully water. Plants we protect from the weather. Plants we whisper motivational speeches to because they look slightly unhappy... And then there's 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐓. Mint doesn't need a motivational speech. Mint needs 𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒. 😂 If you've ever planted mint directly into a garden bed and thought: "𝐼'𝑙𝑙 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒..." ...you may already know where this story is going. Because mint has plans. 𝐁𝐈𝐆 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬! Fortunately for us, there's a wonderfully simple solution: 🪴 𝐆𝐑𝐎𝐖 𝐈𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐀 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐑! For once, being a container gardener gives us the advantage. 🌿 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫? Mint spreads through underground stems called rhizomes. Those rhizomes travel outward and send up new shoots. One little mint plant can gradually become: 🌿 A mint patch. Then... 🌿🌿 A BIG mint patch. Then... 😳 "𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄?" Give mint open ground and enough time, and it can spread far beyond where you originally intended. Put it in a container? Now you've created a boundary. 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐭. And you get to keep the rest of your garden. 😂 🍂 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 Mint is a perennial herb in many climates and generally appreciates cooler conditions. If your plants have looked a little tired during intense summer heat, cooler late-summer and fall weather may encourage fresh growth. That makes this a great time to: ✂️ Trim tired plants 🌿 Refresh the potting mix 🪴 Divide overcrowded plants 🌱 Add a new mint variety to your herb collection And because many types are cold hardy, established plants may return again after winter dormancy, depending on your climate and variety. 🪴 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐭𝐬 𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫 I know we've been talking throughout Second Spring about combining plants to make the most of container space. Today I'm giving you different advice. 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐭. Why? Because mint can quickly compete with neighboring plants for space.

Container gardeners have one problem that traditional gardeners don't always have to think about: We're going to run out of floor space eventually. 😂 The patio is full. The balcony is full. The deck is full. There isn't room for ONE. MORE. POT. Or is there? Because today we're growing UP. Meet one of my favorite cool-season container crops: 🫛 𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐒! Peas love cooler weather, grow beautifully on a simple trellis, and give us an opportunity to use vertical space instead of taking over the patio. And there's another reason you should consider growing them... If you've never eaten a pea seconds after picking it from the vine, you're in for a treat. 🫛 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥 Peas are cool-season plants. They aren't particularly happy when temperatures soar. Hot weather can slow production, reduce flowering, and eventually bring the pea-growing season to an end. But give them cooler days and chilly nights? 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲. That's why peas can make an excellent Second Spring crop. There's one catch, though. If August is still extremely hot where you live, don't rush them. You may need to wait until temperatures begin moderating before planting. Remember: 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. Your local weather gets the final vote. 🌱 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐞𝐚 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰? Here's where things get interesting because "peas" aren't all the same. 🫛 𝐒𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫 𝐒𝐧𝐚𝐩 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 You eat the pod AND the peas inside. They're sweet, crunchy, and wonderful straight from the vine. Honestly, some may never make it into the house. 😂 🫛 𝐒𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫 𝐒𝐧𝐚𝐩 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 These have flat, tender edible pods and are usually harvested before the peas inside fully develop. They're fantastic in stir-fries. 🫛 𝐆𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 These are the traditional peas you remove from the pod before eating. The pod itself is usually too tough to eat. But those fresh peas inside? That's where the magic is. 🪴 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫 Peas don't require an enormously deep container, but they appreciate room for their roots.

Let's talk about a vegetable that tends to divide a room. Beets. Some gardeners hear the word and immediately say: ❤️ "𝐈 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬!" Others say: 😬 "𝐀𝐛𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐧𝐨𝐭." And some of you are probably remembering a jar of pickled beets from your childhood that you're still trying to forget. 😂 But before the beet skeptics scroll past today's Second Spring post, give me a minute. Because freshly harvested beets are an entirely different experience—and they're fantastic vegetables for container gardeners. Even better? You get TWO edible crops from one plant. The roots AND the leaves! 🍂 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥 Like many of the vegetables we've been planting during our Second Spring, beets prefer cooler growing conditions. Warm August soil can help get them started, while the cooler temperatures ahead provide comfortable growing weather as the roots develop. And just like carrots, cooler weather can help bring out their natural sweetness. That makes late summer into fall an excellent beet-growing window in many areas. 🪴 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐨 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝? Here's more good news. You don't need an enormous pot. For most varieties, choose a container that's approximately: 🪴 𝟏𝟎–𝟏𝟐 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 Make sure it has good drainage and fill it with loose, high-quality potting mix. Beets are developing underground, so compacted soil makes their job much harder. Give those roots room to expand! 🌱 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐃𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 Beets are usually easiest to sow directly into their final container. Plant the seeds about: 🌱 ½ 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 Then keep the soil consistently moist while they germinate. But there's something VERY interesting about those funny-looking beet "seeds." 🤔 𝐖𝐚𝐢𝐭...𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬? Possibly! What we commonly call a beet "seed" is often actually a dried fruit containing multiple seeds. That means you might plant what looks like one seed... ...and several little seedlings pop up! Nothing went wrong. Your beet is just an overachiever. 😂

If lettuce is the king of the fall container garden... Spinach might just be the queen. 👑🌿 It's packed with nutrition, grows beautifully in containers, and absolutely loves the cooler temperatures that make many summer vegetables call it quits. In fact, if you've struggled to grow spinach in the spring, don't give up. Fall may be the season where it finally becomes one of your gardening favorites. 🌿 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥 Spinach and hot weather simply don't get along. When temperatures climb, spinach is quick to bolt, sending up a flower stalk instead of producing those tender leaves we love. But when daytime temperatures begin to cool and nights become crisp, spinach settles in and starts growing the way nature intended. Many gardeners even say the leaves become sweeter after a light frost! 🪴 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫 Spinach has a fairly shallow root system, making it ideal for containers. Choose a pot that is: - At least 6–8 inches deep - Wide enough to plant several seeds together - Equipped with good drainage holes Window boxes, patio planters, and grow bags are all excellent choices. The more surface area you have, the more spinach you can harvest. 🌱 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐆𝐨 Unlike some vegetables, spinach is usually best started directly from seed. Plant seeds about ½ inch deep and keep the soil consistently moist while they germinate. One little secret... If your August temperatures are still warm, try watering the soil with cool water in the evening or providing a little afternoon shade. Cooler soil often helps spinach germinate more successfully. 💧 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐈𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 Spinach prefers evenly moist soil. Too little water can make the leaves tough. Too much water can lead to root problems. Check your containers regularly, especially during those lingering warm August afternoons. ✂️ 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐎𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 You don't have to wait for giant leaves. Baby spinach is incredibly tender and delicious. Simply harvest the outer leaves while allowing the center to continue producing.

I am doing 3 experiments in a class that I am teaching. 1) Go to your pantry and grab your dry beans and regular popcorn kernels (not microwave). Count out 100 seeds of each. Place the seeds between layers of paper towel or old rags and keep the rags damp for 2 to 3 days. What sprouts? 2) Buy mint family cut herbs from the produce department. Mint, Thyme, Rosemary, Sage. As soon as you get them home, place them in water. Leave for a week or so and change the water every few days. Which ones grow roots. 3) Purchase organic chai or other small organic seeds at the grocery store. Press them onto the top of damp potting soil. Mist daily. Does it grow for you. I have some chopped wool/cotton from a mailer cooler. I am going to experiment with that as well. Your water will make a difference. The tap water here is toxic to plants so I use rain water or bottled water. Did this work for you? What were the results? What do you sprout?