This past spring and summer, a partnership with Scotts Miracle-Gro got me not only off the murder charges pending against me but elevated me to an advocate for accused veggie-killers everywhere. Up until this year, my attempts at a garden left me holding the murder weapon (a cocktail glass in my hand instead of a watering can) and charged with murder and neglect because I had failed to not only plant my garden properly, but didn’t nourish and take care of it as I should. I plead ignorance – I really didn’t have a clue what I was doing.
This year, I partnered up with Scott’s and became part of the Scotts Gro Crew. A tall order, but I felt confident knowing I had the Scott’s team on board to help me with my planning and questions, and of course provide everything I needed for garden and backyard success.
And so we started. Following our resident green thumb contributor Tara Richter’s tips (5 Tips for Beginner Planting), we planted several planters around the back deck and front steps. Scotts Miracle-Gro Moisture Control Potting Mix made a comfortable and nutrient rich bed for our flowers.
We then ensured, as the summer went on, to give our plants a healthy feed of Scotts Miracle-Gro Shake and Feed about every four months (which, let’s face it, means I fed them towards the end of the summer after planting in the late spring). I love our cedar planters we purchased at Home Depot and will probably buy more next year.
Our garden is where we learned the most. After building one raised box garden, we realized we had enough room for two! So, we had two gardens and no real plan on what to plant. So we planted, rather feverantly and carelessly, having some idea on how much sun each garden would get, but no clue on how large some vegetables would grow.
One garden gave us a bounty of peas, lettuce, carrots, peppers, basil and tomatoes. Of those, I wouldn’t plant lettuce next year because of the space it took up and what we got out of it (though, admittedly, it was handy some nights for dinner!) Another garden taught us a lesson. This being that if you plant green beans and they take over the garden growing tall but with little bounty, keeping the package might be helpful so you know 1) what exactly it was that you planted in the first place and, 2) not to buy the same ones next year! Our beans took over most of the second garden and drowned it out, with nothing but greenery in return, and then a few beans at the end of August.
We also learned how to take our grass from brown, dead, and dry, to green and lush thanks to the warm sun, watering, and Scotts Turf Builder EZ Seed. See those patches there from Cali’s “mistakes”? They were gone within weeks with this product!
Now that fall is here, we’ve cleaned out the garden and planters in preparation for next year. I am really proud of how great my flowers were this year – lush, full, and always producing new buds. Who knew that following Tara’s tips on dead heading flowers would pay off as much as it did? We’ll plan our gardens better (we’ll keep the packages when planting seeds!) and have another successful year for both our yard and garden. Scotts products go a long way, so we have tons left for next year as well!
My bff started a big garden this year too! She used SCOTTS lucky for us since she shared so much!
This has totally inspired me. Gardening totally intimidates me, but I feel like I could possibly do it after reading this.
Wow, you did so well. That’s quite the pile of tomatoes.
Way to go! That’s awesome. I’m a plant killer too.
I would love it if someone would plant a vegetable garden for us, but both my husband and I don’t like the heat of summer unless we are out hiking in the very early cooler mornings
Wow! I have to try this!
I like the idea of raised planter beds. I’m going to try one next year and I’ll be following the tips you provided here. Thanks.
Note to self, don’t plant beans next year… as I did nothing in my tiny backyard this year, I do look forward to spring and maybe giving my own green thumb a workout. Thanks for sharing information about Scotts!
I am hoping to move to a house next year great tips for me a beginner
I can’t wait to do my own garden
Looks awesome! I cant wait to try and plant a garden next Summer in our new house 🙂
Looks great! I’ll have to give it a try.
That is such a lovely yard!! We only use Scott’s brand as well!
Scott’s is a great product and has helped me from being a killer as well!! your plants and flowers look great by the way!!
great job – I miss not having a veggie garden in my current location, but I do enjoy the cocktail glass and it can’t even be considered a weapon here as there is no garden!
Gardening can be scary! Maybe I will give it a shot this summer.
We have used Scott’s for years, a brand we trust AND it works! Love your planter too!! 🙂
That’s amazing! I have no green thumb whatsoever but should definitely try thus! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Look at those tomatoes!! Bet they tasted delicious!
Your garden did very well. We had one for two years but last year we didn’t put one in. I miss it but we want to sell in the spring hopefully so don’t need to get a garden ready until we move.
I found I had a large yard when i moved to my house so I had to put something out there. I always wanted to grow veggies and that got me out of the air conditioning to sweat land! Lots of sweat but it has paid off in good eating through fall and some lovely blooms. I love your wooden planters with a nice grouping of plants. I just tried growing eggplant. I have never eaten it but the way it grew I will get used to it! Happy Gardening adventures!
You did well with your tomatoes. Mine did not do well at all this year.
My hubby does some gardening and with the cold July we ended up with a ton of green tomatoes. Your tomatoes look like a successful crop. Scott has some great products out there.
I hope to do a raised vegetable garden next year, it will be a first for me
We moved into our home in May and inherited the previous owner’s garden. It’s run amok and I don’t know how to control it. I planted a few vegetables but they didn’t stand a chance. I think now that the fall is here and most of the plants are dormant, it’s a great time to get out there and tackle it.
My husband swears by SCOTTS MIRACLE GROW. Our flowers and vegetables thrived this year and in the past as well.
Great garden. I used Scotts for my balcony garden this year and it made a huge difference in the amount of vegetable I harvested.
I will pick up Scotts next year when we put a garden in
Beautiful garden , I will use Scott’s next year for sure
We’ve used Scott’s products for many years and they’re excellent. We’ve always had flower gardens, but next year I’d like to try planting a few tomato plants too, yours look so delicious! Thanks very much for the tips and inspiration!
I so agree with your thoughts on veggie gardening. we are still sort of experimenting, and have given up on some items in favour of others that produce well, and that our family enjoys eating. We do well with tomatoes and carrots. I’d love to grow peas!
beautiful!! i want my own garden. In the spring i am going to have my mom over and she is gonna help me get it started and show me the way lol
Beautiful job! I love your flower boxes too.
very nice your gardens look great!
My husband has been using this product for awhile now and has had good results with this.
My garden did not do so well this year. Next year I’m for sure going to use some Scotts products.
I think I will use Scotts next year, I would love to have better results with my flowers. And your raised bed looks like a good idea for me, too.
We have those bald patches too from our dog, maybe I’ll try Scott’s next spring!
I use Scott’s Miracle Grow all the time and it really does seem to help the garden grow better! Your cedar planter looked really pretty!
Your garden and flowers look great.
I love the upkeep of this garden. I’ve always wanted to grow and maintain a sustainable garden plot!
I do use Scott’s products and it is not your fault- there are many factors involved when plants don’t grow as well as we would like.
I’ll have to give Scott’s a try next year. My garden didn’t do so well this year.
I will have to try this next year now that the kids are a bit older maybe I will have time to garden a bit more and not chase them back into the yard constantly!
Well done!! Our garden turned out pretty great this year! Between my parents garden and my own…..vegetables were in abundance! We donated a fair bit too!
I used to have a green thumb , not anymore , i seem to kill everything now , but this would so help thanks for sharing , Great Job 🙂
beautiful garden mine never looks that good.
My garden didn’t do so well this year. Hopefully it will next summer
beautiful garden mine never looks that good.
My garden didn’t do so well this year. Hopefully it will next summer
I love growing my own garden. Being able to plant my own veggies is pretty sweet.
This has inspired me to garden again. Veggies that you grow yourself are so much better than store bought
What an amazing garden and plants you had! I swear by Scotts Miracle Grow! Amazing results!
My garden did really well this year! It looks like yours did as well! I use a fertilizer once every few weeks as well and I think it makes all the difference!
Looks great! I’m already looking forward to gardening next year .. lol .. going to be a long Winter!
I have been using Miracle Gro for years,it’s an amazing product that actually works!
Great tips! Thanks for sharing!
Hubby built us two raised bed this spring,we also planted beans but we only managed to get one meal out of them so we will not grow them next year!
We have a tree in our backyard and scott’s is the only product that grows back their tried so many seed types but it was there grass seed that finally survived!
We love Scott’s products for our lawn and garden and flowers. Your flowers and plants looked amazing, as does your sweet dog.
Never tried this – I am not a natural at growing things, so maybe this will help!
I have no green thumb what so ever but this post has given me hope and taught me that a great potting mix and with some TLC maybe I have a chance for next year. My husband is pretty good with the fruits and veggies growing though, so I’ll probably continue to leave it up to him 🙂
wow thats awesome. I wish i knew how to garden. Great looking tomtaoes.
I love gardening and using my own herbs and vegetables when coking. I cant wait for spring.
I’ve never had a green thumb. It’s been totally black all my life. My husband, on the other hand, can make anything grow.
looks like a plentiful harvest. I leave all the gardening to BF, he’s the one with the green thumb
I absolutely LOVE gardening , unfortunately i don’t have the room so I use pots to garden . Green peppers, tomatoes and strawberries grow great in pots btw 🙂
I love gardening. I’ve always had a green thumb. I don’t let the hubby near my garden, or he will kill it, lol. Looks like you had a good harvest this year. I will have to try this product out for next year. Thank you for the great post.
Wow that looks amazing! Great job!
I have never in my life planted a garden, I have no experience whatsoever! So I would’ve carelessly planted as well, with no idea how large certain plants would grow. I suppose it is trial & error, but in any case, you have some gorgeous looking veggies there, so it all worked out!
wow that’s awesome! we have a garden in our backyard. I love picking fresh cucumbers and tomatos
Such a great idea!
HA! Love the title of this post, I didn’t know what to expect! Your lawn looks great! I would love to have a garden, I might try it one of these years lol
I have not done a veggie garden in a few years, it really is a lot of work to do! Where i live the racoons and squirrels are so bad they eat the flowers before the veggies have a chance 🙁
Well, you’ve convinced me! I’m going to try Scotts Miracle Gro this spring. I’ve been struggling with my garden for the last few years (like since we moved into this place!). I’ve got to try something different with it this time!
We always use Scotts Miracle Gro in our garden as well as on our grass. It makes it easy to be successful and the envy of the neighborhood . Can’t wait for spring again when everything comes alive.
Looks like you have a better green thumb than we do lol
Raised planter beds are great & for seniors especially
Oh thanks for all these tips. I am planning to start a vegetable garden next year – I need all the help I can get!
that’s pretty cool seeing a crop of freshly grown vegetables ready to eat
We only use Scott’s products on our gardens!
It’s trial and error…but sounds like you are learning and doing great! What an awesome thing for children too. My brother has an amazing garden ever year and now is into fruit trees! Our back yard is small and very shady so I gave up. Sticking to planters here! I will try the EZ Seed on the spots my dogs create.
Your garden did really well by you! I love being able to pick produce from the garden! Ours is on a balcony, but still gives us some good food!
Might be time to try again – using Scott’s products this time !!