Basil is a sun-lover. Indoors in winter, it often doesn’t get enough light even in a bright window. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬: * + hours of strong light (more is better) * Ideally a south-facing window * Or a small grow light if winter light is weak 𝐒𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭: * long stems with big gaps between leaves (“leggy”) * leaves stay small * plant leans hard toward the window 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐱: Move it to the brightest spot you have and rotate it every few days. If it still stretches, a basic grow light turns basil from “meh” to “wow.” 𝐑𝐮𝐥𝐞 #𝟐: 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐋𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐬 𝐒𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐨𝐠𝐠𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐢𝐥 Most indoor basil deaths come from roots staying too wet. 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐬: * evenly moist soil (not bone dry, not swampy) * a pot with drainage holes (non-negotiable) * a lighter potting mix that drains well 𝐒𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫: * yellowing leaves (especially lower ones) * droopy plant even though soil is wet * a musty smell from the pot 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐱: Water thoroughly, let excess drain, and empty the saucer. Then wait until the top 1 inch of soil feels dry before watering again. 𝐑𝐮𝐥𝐞 #𝟑: 𝐏𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲, 𝐏𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐎𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 (𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐈𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐲 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥) If you don’t pinch basil, it grows like a skinny little tree. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨: * Once basil has 3–4 sets of leaves, pinch the top stem right above a leaf set * This forces it to branch into two stems… and then four… and then eight… 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞: ✅ take from the top to encourage branching ❌ don’t only pluck the biggest bottom leaves (that makes it leggy) 𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐱: Make “pinching” part of your routine—every time you use basil, give it a little trim. 𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬 “𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐨𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥” 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 (𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐬) * Basil loves warmth. Keep it away from cold window glass at night. * If your basil came from the grocery store, it may be multiple plants crowded together. Splitting into a couple pots can help. * Basil is a light hog. If you’re only going to use a grow light for one herb… basil is the best candidate. 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: What’s your biggest basil struggle indoors right now?

Winter is the season of good intentions… and stubborn garden myths. 😄 If you’ve ever felt unsure about what you can do with containers during the colder months, this post is for you. Let’s bust a few common winter container gardening myths—so you can garden smarter (and keep enjoying your pots year-round). 𝐌𝐲𝐭𝐡 #𝟏: “𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫.” 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝! You can grow plenty, just not everything. ✅ Great winter container wins include: * microgreens * lettuce + leafy greens * green onions * herbs like chives, thyme, parsley (with decent light) * indoor grow-light shelf gardens Even outdoors in mild climates, cool-season greens can keep going. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞: Winter gardening shifts from “sun + speed” to “light + patience.” 𝐌𝐲𝐭𝐡 #𝟐: “𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐫𝐲.” 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐟-𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝! The air is drier… but most plants still need less water in winter. Why? * lower light = slower growth * cooler soil near windows = slower drying * roots drink less when temps drop 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞: Many winter plant problems are actually overwatering, not underwatering. 𝐌𝐲𝐭𝐡 #𝟑: “𝐈𝐟 𝐚 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐲.”. 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝! Drooping can mean: * too much water (roots struggling) * cold stress from windows * dry air stress * shock from repotting * pests 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞: Always check the soil before watering. Droop is a symptom, not a diagnosis. 𝐌𝐲𝐭𝐡 #𝟒: “𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬.” 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝! A simple grow light can be the difference between: “my herbs barely survive” and "I’m snipping fresh basil and lettuce in January.” You don’t need an expensive setup. Even a small, basic light over a shelf can make winter gardening feel possible. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞: Light is usually the limiting factor, not your skill. 𝐌𝐲𝐭𝐡 #𝟓: “𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐱 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐚𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬.” 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝! If light is low and the plant is resting, extra fertilizer can stress it. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞: In winter, focus on: * adequate light * correct watering * stable temps * a little humidity help (if needed)

January is sneaky. It feels like the garden is on pause… but it’s actually the perfect month to set yourself up for an easier, more successful growing season. Especially for container gardeners. This isn’t a “spend 6 hours planning” kind of post. It’s a quick-start checklist you can do in small bites...15 minutes here, 20 minutes there and still feel wildly more prepared. ✅ 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟏: 𝐃𝐨 𝐚 𝟓-𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐞 “𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤” Grab a note in your phone or planner and answer: * What grew really well for you last year? * What struggled (and why, if you know)? * What did you wish you had grown more of? * What did you grow that you didn’t even use? This one step saves you from repeating the same frustrations. ✅ 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟐: 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 (𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭) Make a quick tally: * How many pots do you realistically have space for this year? * Any you’re not using because they’re cracked, too small, or annoying? * Do you need a couple of “workhorse” sizes (like 5–10 gallon) for bigger crops? 𝐏𝐫𝐨 𝐭𝐢𝐩: Most people plan for more plants than they have containers for. This is where the chaos begins. 😄 ✅ 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟑: 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 “𝐓𝐨𝐩 𝟓” 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐬 To keep planning simple, choose 5 main things you definitely want to grow. Examples: * tomatoes * peppers * lettuce/greens * herbs * cucumbers * strawberries * dwarf beans * flowers for pollinators You can always add fun extras later, but picking your top 5 first keeps you focused. ✅ 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟒: 𝐃𝐨 𝐚 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 “𝐒𝐮𝐧 + 𝐒𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞” 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 Container gardening success is mostly: 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 + 𝐩𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐢𝐳𝐞 + 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲. Ask yourself: * Which spots get the most sun (balcony, patio, porch, brightest window)? * Which spots get morning sun only? * Which spots are shaded? * Any spots blasted by wind? If you want to be extra organized, take one photo of each growing area and label it: “Full sun / partial / shade.” ✅ 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝟓: 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐝 + 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 Now match your top 5 to what you’ll use: * What you’ll grow from seed (easy + fun) * What you’ll buy as starts (time saver)