These taste like if Sour Patch® had a kid with simple ingredients + kept the fiber. I like the big flavor coupled with the little chew. I get to help out at our local elementary school, and the kids go crazy for them every year!

It is a great, simple way to use up some of the rhubarb and not make yet another crisp… but if you’re looking for tips on growing rhubarb or other recipes, I have you covered.

Rhubarb Sour Candy Recipe

Ingredients:

• 4-5 stalks of Rhubarb
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Directions:
Slice the rhubarb lengthwise on a mandolin (I use my thin setting) leaving them as long as you can. This is the putzy part, and I usually save the extras pieces that don’t make nice long strips for making rhubarb sauce or something.

Mix a 1:1 sugar/water solution into a medium sized sauce pan so the rhubarb slices fits easily.

Simmer for 3-5 minutes or until you notice the stalk strips becoming much softer. Then, using a pair of tongs, gently pull out the strips and lay flat on either a dehydrator tray or parchment paper.

Set dehydrator to 140F and let them go for 7-8 hours, or set your oven at the lowest setting (usually 225F) and watch closely after 15 minutes. Remove from dehydrator or oven and let cool completely.

Chop into desired sizes, and store in airtight container for up to 1 week. (But they will be gone before that!)

Let me know if you try this fun “nature’s own” rhubarb sour candy recipe and what you think of it!

Enjoy!
Michelle

The post Rhubarb Sour Candy Strips appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

It can feel like a superpower to be eating from your land as early as May, especially when all you did was rake back a few leaves…

Why Grow Edible Perennials in Cold Climates?

We have an extremely short growing season in Minnesota, under 150 days! So we need plants that can take the freezing cold and then warm up fast, and early spring perennials make it happen.

• Edible perennials make the most of the spring shoulder season here in the north, because even when our air temps are still chaotic and dipping below those freezing points, the soil is slowly, steadily warming. And the roots of perennials use that as their sign to start growing, not the cold above ground air temps.
• Choosing the right location is key to the success of the plant’s life and your harvests. Because these plants will thrive for years to come, think about other trees that will grow and shade in 20 years, or if you’ll be adding onto a deck, patio etc.…
• They are lower maintenance because there’s no need for annual tilling, planting, seed starting, transplanting, etc.
• You’ll get much earlier harvests compared to any annuals you’ve started inside. I know this can seem counter intuitive, but I’ve seen it happen year after year.
• Leaving the roots in the ground for years has huge benefits to the soil health. It of course reduces erosion but also increases the overall count and diversity of the soil microorganisms, which help grow healthier plants.

What Are Edible Perennials?

In this article we’re talking specifically about Herbaceous Edible Perennials. These are plants that come back year after year but die down to the ground every winter. Distinct from all the delicious berry bushes and trees that also produce for years.

Edible perennials that take our colder winters in Zone 4 include asparagus, rhubarb, some varieties of perennial sorrel, kale and spinach, sunchokes, herbs like thyme, oregano, chives, garlic chives, and strawberries. Find your Growing zone in this Interactive Map from the USDA.

Best Early Spring Edible Perennials for Northern Gardeners

Asparagus

One of the first perennials to be harvested from gardens, sometimes as early as late April in my garden. And since these plants can produce steady for over 15 years, you want to be picky about choosing the right location. Plant once for years of nutritious, fresh harvests.

Learn all the planting tips and tricks, plus my favorite ways to eat asparagus in the full length article: Growing Asparagus: Long Lasting Perennial Vegetable

You can actually interplant asparagus with strawberries, another edible perennial listed below…

Rhubarb

You know when almost every old farmyard has a patch still growing it must be hardy, right!

Rhubarb plants can last up to 100 years, but typically more like 20 years and then they need dividing. But other than that, give them sun and decent soil, and they’ll give you years of easy harvests. With over 100 distinct varieties of rhubarb, red does NOT always equal ripe.

Learn how to grow great rhubarb and some of my favorite recipes (from crisps, to savory chutney, in rhubarb shrub mocktails + cocktails, to our new obsession Sour Rhubarb Candy Strips in this article, Growing Rhubarb: Plus My Favorite Rhubarb Recipes

Strawberries

Strawberries mean summer has arrived in my growing zone, as we start harvesting just as school gets out.

Planting a patch of bare root crowns in May is the way to get this crop off the ground.  And speaking of up off the ground, what should you put around your STRAW berries? Straw, lots of straw! That way the berries don’t get dirty, and the runners can root into the loosened soil. There are 3 main kinds of strawberries depending on how and when you want to harvest, June Bearing, Ever Bearing and Day Neutral.

Find out more about varieties and best planting practices, plus my favorite recipes in my deep dive article, Growing Strawberries.

*Combine these perennials to make my favorite freezer jam, Strawberry/Rhubarb!

Perennial Herbs + Greens

There is such a huge diversity of cold hard herbs and greens, especially varieties that can be harvested early in the spring, yes even up north!

From foraging for nettles or cattails, or planting perennial spinach or a perennial kale or sorrel, there are vast amounts of native and cultivated spring greens.

For perennial herbs, remember that basics like chives, garlic chives, oregano, thyme, mint and lemon balm.

Tips for Growing Perennial Vegetables and Fruits Successfully

• Take your time choosing the best location before you plant these long-term investments. Choosing the right location is key to the success of the plant’s life and your harvests. Because these plants will thrive for years to come—long-term investments = big rewards!

• Also, take time to prepare the soil well before planting. I’ll usually weed well and then add in a layer of organic compost to help start off the plants on the right root.

• Know your yard’s microclimates.  I like to think about where the snow melts first in a yard and use that microclimate to plant these earliest perennials. They are driven more by soil temperature and will give you a week or two earlier harvests if you pay attention.

Which Edible Perennials Should You Start With?

With gardening you should always grow what you love, and leave the other plants for someone else…

That said, rhubarb is one of the hardiest plants and a great one to start off with. Strawberries and quite easy to grow once they’re established, so they will take a little extra love and watering that first season. All the perennial herbs are great additions to any modern homestead. You’ll be amazed how often you head outside to grab a few sprigs of thyme or oregano to add to a salad or pot of soup…

And that’s really the goal, to get you planting foods that are easy to grow while giving you a big return for your time, garden space and growing season.

Edible perennials just check all the boxes.

Have fun and Dig Into Perennials!

Michelle

The post Best Edible Perennials for Northern Gardens appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

This guest post is brought to us by the legend, Bob Dahm. Many of my Midwest garden friends will know him as “Organic Bob,” which is how I knew him when we first met about 5 years ago.

He has guided our family on our own home lawn re-seeding (with tougher native grasses) and bee lawn areas with great success. This is because he sees our yards and gardens as integral parts of the natural world, not separate from them.

Take it away, Bob –

Why Turf Should Be Replaced

The acreage of lawn in the US is equal to the size of Texas! 63,000 square miles of turf that requires fertilizer, mowing, pesticides and water. In fact, more thank half of our drinkable water is used to irrigate grass. Pesticides, fungicides and herbicides are typically applied at a greater rate than agricultural fields.

These statistics are from Pesticide Action Network and they are one reason many people are looking for alternatives to the traditional Kentucky bluegrass lawn. Most of our grass species in our lawns originated in Europe and Asia. Kentucky bluegrass is from northern Asia! These species evolved in climates like England, where they don’t have our temperature extremes and get twice the rainfall as we do in our climate. Our native plants evolved to thrive in our climate and are much better equipped to care for our pollinators.

Read more on Creating a Wildlife Habitat in your Yard + Garden

Pollinator habitat loss is of very real concern as pollinator populations are at an all time low. A nice, manicured lawn is as a desert to a pollinator. No food, no water, no habitat and long distances between pockets of appropriate habitat are threatening many species of important insects, birds and other pollinating species.

The Rusty Patch Bumblebee (RPB) is one of these species that struggle with habitat loss and decline. In fact, the RPB is on the Endangered Species List because their populations are so low. This designation has called attention to the plight of all pollinators and resulted in the RPB being named the MN State Pollinator, which created a call to action to protect our insect friends.

Turf Alternatives Evolution

The University of MN Bee Lab answered the call by creating the concept of a bee lawn, because many tiny bees and other pollinators could not cross the vast distances to meet up with others of their kind. This lack of connection isolates populations until they lose genetic diversity or simply die off because their habitat is eliminated or contaminated with lawn and landscape chemicals.

The bee lawn introduces flowers into the seas of lawn grass, so that pollinators can move across the landscape. It modestly expanded the food and habitat and made measurable differences in pollinator populations. It also ushered in a new awareness of the serious issue of pollinator decline.

Along with that new awareness came more conservation activity. The MN State Legislature set aside significant funds to educate the public about solutions to pollinator decline and grants to enact these in the ground changes. The program was called “Lawns To Legumes” and over several years, it educated thousands of people in turf alternatives and the benefit of native plants. The grant program enabled hundreds of homeowners to install native plant gardens and alternative turf lawns. Sadly, the program has been defunded, but Lawns To Legumes inspired many more people to install gardens and bee lawns. That trend is continuing despite the funding setback.

One of the ways that momentum is being carried forward is in the explosion of different kinds of bee lawns and pollinator lawns. Twin City Seed, the foremost supplier of bee lawn seed was receiving pushback on the Dutch white clover in the original bee lawn. Conservation groups and supporting scientists discovered research that Dutch white clover was a place where domesticated honeybees interacted with wild bees and transferred diseases to which the native bees had no natural resistance. This was seen as a further stressor on an already troubled group of insects. Twin City Seed came out with bee lawn mixes that included native species and no Dutch white clover.  Now there are many different types of bee and pollinator lawns.

Turf Alternative Options

Alternative turf can mean many things. Some include the typical species of grass in our lawns, while others use native grasses and sedges, (a grass-like plant) and straight up native plant gardens all the way to mini meadows and prairies. The goals are the same for all. Increase habitat for pollinators and reduce the amount of conventional turf grass lawns, that burn up energy and water and contaminate the environment with toxic maintenance chemicals. The amount of change can be small or large, depending on the type of alternative selected.

Bee Lawns

Can be created simply by overseeding and existing lawn with bee lawn seed mix. One and done and you have created a lunch counter for traveling bees. You can also remove you existing lawn and start over by seeding your bee lawn from scratch. This is more work but is a good option if the existing lawn is a weedy mess.

No Mow Lawns

Are a blend of fine fescue grasses that are often found in existing lawns, especially in the shade. In fact, the blends of grass seed that are sold as “shade grass” are made up of these species. The No Mow part comes when the lawn isn’t mowed. The grass grows to about 6” long and lays over in beautiful swirls reminiscent of waves on water. This is the base grass for bee lawns which makes up about 92% of the bee lawn mix. No mow grass can be mowed like a regular lawn, but if left alone, it requires very little water or fertilizer. This is a popular option for steep slopes or out of the way parts of the lawn.

Tall Fescue

Is also growing in popularity for an alternative turf. Like fine fescue, it requires less fertilizer and water than Kentucky bluegrass, mainly because its roots grow up to 30” deep! Kentucky bluegrass roots only make it to about 8”. Tall fescue has runners on its roots and this feature enables it to grow back after heavy traffic or wild child stampedes. It is often used in sports fields for this reason. It can be overseeded into an existing lawn to toughen it up and make it lower maintenance.

All Native Grass Lawns

Usually consist of buffalo or blue grama grass or both together. These are native species that evolved to flourish in our climate. Because they have evolved in our climate, they are much lower maintenance. The amount of rainfall we receive is just the right amount for them to thrive, once established.

These native grasses don’t need to be mowed, watered or fertilized. This really decreases the carbon foot print of the lawn. In fact, because they have such deep root systems, they will sequester more CO2 from the air and store the carbon in the soil. These deep root systems are why native plants are so low maintenance.

All Native Pollinator Lawns

Use the same grasses, buffalo and blue grama, along with low growing native flowering plants. Blue eyed grass, violets, pussytoes, and many other flowers offer great benefit to pollinators.

Mini Meadows

Are small areas where the lawn has been removed and replaced by seeding native plants. You can also transplant starter plants into this seeded area, either before or after seeding. The best time of year to seed many native plants is when the landscape is dormant, usually November or later. Native seeds need soil temperatures to be below freezing for a number of weeks before they can germinate. Not all of the seeds will germinate in the first or second years. Some may never germinate successfully and may require re-seeding or starter plants. These kinds of meadows are dynamic and maintenance is important while getting them established.

Maintenance will consist of supplementing water when needed and weed control. The best method for weed control is to mow the area a few times per year for the first 2 years. The deep roots of native plants enable them to survive mowing, while weeds cannot tolerate the cutting. There is a saying in native plant circles; “The first year they sleep. The second year they creep. The third year they leap”! Natives spend 2 years growing roots to incredible depths and volume. This supporting infrastructure is key to the success of the plants and provides an incredible advantage over weeds. It’s a bit of up front work to get a mini meadow and can be frustrating but stay courageous. It will become a personal prairie before you know it.

Prairies

Are similar to Mini Meadows, just larger. The existing vegetation is usually killed with herbicide and then seeded. Another method involves seeding into the existing vegetation and mowing it for 2 years and stopping at the third year, much like the Mini Meadow methods. There is an organic herbicide that is effective in killing vegetation without the toxic chemicals. This product can be used to kill grass before any kind of planting.

Pollinator Gardens

Are small native gardens that are used to re-purpose areas of lawns where it is difficult to get good lawn growth. Areas in this category are deep shade, hot patches, slopes, low wet places, shady and sunny boulevards, and unused sections of lawns. Some soils, like clay or sand can be challenging for turf grass, too.

There are native plant communities that will thrive in all of these conditions. There are many pre-designed gardens through organizations like Wild Ones, Metro Blooms and native plant nurseries.

All of the above alternatives to turf will reduce lawn space, especially the weedy parts. They will also create food and habitat for the hundreds of species of pollinators that are teetering on the edge of catastrophe. One small garden or a patch of flowering lawn can make a significant difference for pollinators and the environment, especially if we build a grassroots movement of people who care about pollinators.

Reach out to Bob for guidance on pursuing a sustainable haven for pollinators and shrinking the size of that lawn that is so difficult to maintain.

Contact Bob for your consultation!

Resources

Metro Blooms
Grants, educational resources, pre-designed gardens and more! https://metroblooms.org/

Alt Lawns of Richfield and Bloomington
A Facebook group that is very active locally with lots of expertise.

Wild Ones
A nationwide conservation group with local chapters. Lots of great people and resources.
https://wildones.org/chapters/minnesota/

That is a LOT of great info on making our lawns work for all of us in nature. I love that there are so many turf alternatives that fit different needs. Thanks, Bob!

What takeaways can you use from this info?

Keep Digging In,
Michelle

The post Turf Alternatives: From the Organic Professional appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

Growing under the cover of a low tunnel is the answer to jump start your spring vegetable garden. Most of the veggies shown here were started under a DIY low tunnel.

These temporary structures are basically ‘low to the ground’ greenhouses, hence the ‘low’ tunnel. The simple, arched structures are efficient at trapping passive solar heat and holding it in the soil. In Minnesota we often get snow into April, so the reinforced arches are key to keeping plants happy during spring storms.

Inexpensive and easy to build, low tunnels can be popped up anywhere, so they’re perfect for small space gardens. They also work well with crop rotation, as you can move where you’re growing your earliest crops each season.

Learn about Succession Planting – replanting more crops into the same place, something you can also accomplish when you start earlier.

Of course, you’ll also need to start with the right seeds. Many plants will start germinating at temperatures around 40–45F. For more information on my favorite crops to start early in the season, check out my Substack article on Starting Seeds Earlier.

Low tunnels extend the growing season both in the spring and fall. They can be put up again in the fall to keep cold hardy crops in the garden longer.

You can easily remove all the plastic on planting day once the soil has warmed up, giving you easy access to the soil for better planting.

Soil Temps

Let’s talk about the difference between air and soil temperatures. It is soil temperature that you need to pay attention to for germinating the earliest plants. Luckily for seedlings and plant roots, soil temperatures are way more consistent than air temperatures.

Having a dedicated soil thermometer to track soil temps will help you keep a handle on things. I actually have a few soil thermometers so I can keep them in the soil (which gives more accurate readings) in different places. This helps me track my soil temperatures in different garden beds.

Even after a spring snowfall, the sun can still warm the soil under the clear plastic!

Growing Under Cover

Covering right on the surface of the soil will help hold in a little heat, but bringing that covering up off the ground so the sun’s rays get trapped inside helps even more. Angling the plastic towards the sun or having it arched will allow in the most heat. The thickness of the plastic (called poly in these applications) makes a difference as well. The thicker the poly, the better insulation value it has, but it might reduce the percentage of light coming through.

Building a DIY Low Tunnel

First: Gather Materials

Remember to use what you have on hand and only buy what you need.

• 18”-24” sections of ¼” Rebar or any solid ¼” stake (I use 6 in my 4X8 beds)
• 8-10’ sticks of ½” PVC (I use 4 in my 4X8 beds) $3/piece
• 3-6 millimeter thick plastic sheeting usually called Poly (I use roughly 10’ X 16’ sheets for my 4X8 beds) (10’x100’ 4 mil poly $31)
• Large Binder clips or PVC Clamps
• Scrap wood or logs to secure plastic snug to ground
• Hammer
• Twine or zip ties

Next: Instructions

1. Start by finding the dimensions of what you want to cover, and pound in ¼” rebar every two to three feet along the perimeter, angling it into the bed just slightly. You’ll want it to stick out a few inches above the ground.
2. Then slide the ½” PVC over the rebar, arching from one side of the bed to the other. If you want a little lower tunnel, you can usually bury the PVC into the ground a bit, or cut off a few feet to make extra low depending on what your needs are.
3. Secure an extra piece of PVC (or a bamboo stake, etc.) along the length of the top to stabilize the low tunnel and help keep it from collapsing after heavy snow. Tie with twine or secure with zip ties.
4. Cover with 3-6-ml poly; I usually use 4 mil. Rolls of plastic typically come in 8-10’ wide rolls. The width of your bed and how tall you want the tunnel will determine how wide your poly needs to be. For our 4’ wide beds, the 10’ wide works great as we make our low tunnels pretty tall.
5. You can use binder clips or specialized PVC clamps to keep plastic in place along the top of the arched PVC. You can also dig the poly into the soil or use anything handy like scarp lumber or landscape bricks to hold it down along the bottom.

*This structure does bring plastic into your garden, but it can be reused for many seasons to come. We’ve been using the same materials for six years now. Also, it completely removes the plastic you would be using if you bought the produce in a store instead of growing it at home—not to mention the carbon cost of shipping the produce, etc…

Using a DIY Low Tunnel Throughout the Season

The basic structure can be used throughout the season to support insect netting (like below) and shade cloth as needed. I find myself popping these up in different formations all the time.

You will have to watch temperatures closely, especially on sunny days, as low tunnels are quite effective at collecting and trapping the sun’s heat. I’ve had air temps jump to over 100F by mid-morning even with outside temps in the 30s F. So, remember to vent these structures as needed. Opening one or both ends is very effective at quickly reducing temps.

**And if you don’t have time/interest in building a low tunnel, try turning a clear plastic tote upside down. They work wonders for warming a little space for planting early lettuces or peas!

Cheers to growing more food in the same space, and getting in an earlier succession and harvests just by growing under a DIY low tunnel!

Dig In,
Michelle

The post DIY Low Tunnel appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

I have many other private gardening and homesteading classes scheduled for Local Garden Clubs and Master Gardeners as well. If you are interested in having me speak, I am taking reservations for next winter and spring now. Please email me at michellenbruhn@gmail.com if you’re interested.

You can also see a full list of my class topics HERE.

2026 Public Gardening Classes + Events Calendar

Jan 10^th 9am-1pm
WBL Farmers Market
at the WBL High School Details Here

Feb 4^th 6-8pm
DIY Herbal Salve Making Class  
at Anchor Coffee House Register HERE

Feb 9^th 6:30-8pm
Companion Planting
at Mendota Heights Garden Club
(No Registration needed, at the Historic Du Puis House)

Feb 14^th  9am-1pm
WBL Winter Farmers Market
at the WBL High School Details Here

Feb 17^th 6-8pm
Companion Planting for the Home Gardener
Mahtomedi District Center
Mahtomedi Garden Club Register HERE

Feb 27^th 1 – 2pm
Companion Planting
on the Green Thumb Stage at the Minneapolis Home + Garden Show

Feb 28^th   1 – 2pm
Companion Planting
on the Green Thumb Stage at the Minneapolis Home + Garden Show

March 3^rd 1-2pm
Herb Gardening
at the Hudson Garden Club at the Phipps Center
RSVP with kswisherhhgc@gmail.com

March 4th
Seed Starting
on Twin Cities Live

March 18^th 6:30-8pm
Vegetable Garden Planning
at Anchor Coffee House Register HERE

April 8^th   6:30-8pm
DIY Grow Your Own Salad Bowl Class
at Anchor Coffee House Register HERE

May 18^th   6-8pm
Vegetable Garden Design
at the Lakeville Area Garden Club

Dig In,
Michelle

The post Forks in the Dirt Gardening Classes + Event List appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

OK, so I have a thing for books…

Gardening “How To” books, Ecological Gardening books, Permaculture, No Dig, Companion Planting, Preserving, Homesteading… I’ve read a lot of books. And, not all of them earn a place on my bookshelf.

Nothing quite compares to flipping open to a page to find that bit of info, recipe or inspiration. Below are some of my most loved Garden and Local Food books.

Each of the books listed below would make great gifts, and a welcome addition to any gardener, homesteader, or foodie’s library!

If you’re looking for more gifting ideas, I’ve gathered my favorites HERE.

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”
-Cicero

Gardening + Homesteading Books

Small-Scale Homesteading by Michelle Bruhn + Stephanie Thurow
First, our book… full of inspiration + information to get you started on your homesteading journey! Chapters on Gardening, Preserving the Harvest, Keeping Chickens, Maple Sugaring, and Healthy Home Projects!

Plant Partners by Jessica Walliser
This is the perfect Science-based primer to help you understand the power of companion planting.

No Dig Gardening + Compost by Chares Dowding
This is the bible of No Dig Gardening written by the guru himself. Step by Step. Charles makes you feel like this is attainable because it really is! His Compost book upped my garden game in many ways!

Gaia’s Garden by Toby Hemenway
This really is the OG accessible permaculture book, and was the first I read on Home Scale Permaculture. Describes how to create self-sustaining backyard eco-systems naturally.

Year-Round Vegetable Gardener by Niki Jabbour
Extend Your Seasons and succession planting garden game.

Teaming With Microbes + Nutrients + Fungi by Jeff Lowenfels
A guide to tending the soil food web on a new level.

Buffalo Bird Woman’s Garden by Gilbert Wilson
This is a compilation of stories interpreted by Wilson from Buffalo Bird Woman. I’ve gleaned both practical “How To” knowledge along with a deeper appreciation of how Indigenous people were able to work with nature to grow good food.

Cookbooks

The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman
Game changer cookbook for how we look at our local foods and how we eat them.

The Perennial Kitchen by Beth Dooley
This book talks about how food provenance adds a depth to the dishes that starts and ends with the soil. Full of delectable recipes.

Attainable Sustainable Pantry by Kris Bordessa
Shows us how to make the most of our garden’s bounty and make so many staples on our own from basic ingredients.

Freeze Fresh by Crystal Schmidt
THE go-to guide on freezing your home grown produce, with techniques and recipes galore.

Can It & Ferment It  + Weck Home Preserving – by (my coauthor) Stephanie Thurow
My first books on fermentation, and I keep going back to the recipes time and again!

The Farmer and the Chef by the Minnesota Farmers Union
Written as a love letter to Minnesota farmers and the amazing foods they produce, it weaves stories and seasonal recipes to feed your soul.

Root Cellaring by Mike + Nancy Bubel
A book not on cooking, but on keeping your produce viable as long as possible with old storage techniques for the modern age.

Nature-Lover Ecology Books

Braiding Sweetgrass + Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Love letters to the reciprocal nature of nature written by an Indigenous botanist.

Bringing Nature Home by Doug Tallamay
A classic on how native plants bring back native wildlife of all sorts, and how we can rewild our yards.

Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants by Sam Thayer
The most comprehensive, photo-saturated book on foraging in the Midwest.

The Story of More by Hope Jahren
An eye-opening book about the behind-the-scenes science of climate change. A YA version was just released!!

For Fun

The Garden Maker’s Book of Wonder by Allison Vallin Kostovick
Fun mix of projects, tips, and appreciation for gardens, what they produce, and how to PLAY with them.

And of course, my TBR pile just keep growing, and I couldn’t be happier to spend the winter cuddled up with a good cup of tea in front of our wood stove and a GOOD BOOK!

Cheers to books in the winter so we can better Dig In come spring!

-Michelle

The post Best Gardening + Homesteading Books appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

Sustainable gardening is all about creating a living system that supports itself, nurtures the environment, and…  actually gets easier for you over time. It’s the sweet spot where ecology meets practicality.

When you plan to manage each precious resource—from water, soil, sun, and plant matter—you’ll see the soil grow richer each year and the workload become more manageable. The garden will start to function like the ecosystem it is rather than feel like a chore.

For Minnesota gardeners and especially organic, permaculture-minded homesteaders, this mindset fits beautifully with our distinct seasons, rich glacial soils, and wildly resilient native species.

 What “Gardening for Sustainability” Means

At its heart, a sustainable garden mimics natural ecological processes: nutrient cycling, water retention, biodiversity, and energy efficiency. Instead of relying on constant outside inputs—synthetic fertilizers, new soil and/or compost each spring, excessive watering—it becomes a semi-closed loop. You feed the soil, and it feeds everything else. It also means welcoming in beneficial insects to pollinate and organically manage pests in your garden.

You can look at sustainable gardening as having three pillars:

• Environmentally Regenerative
  You build soil instead of depleting it, conserve water, support pollinators, and reduce waste. Ways to build soil include: compost, cover crops, companion planting, and no dig gardening methods. This is the most important step, so spend time getting to know how soil life works to grow great plants.
  
• Personally Sustainable
  A garden becomes truly sustainable when you can keep up with it year after year without burning out. That means knowing your own limits and starting with right-sized beds, low-maintenance systems, and design choices that invite the garden do more of the work. Setting a goal or intention for your gardening helps some people feel accomplished.
  
• Climate Conscious
  First, do no harm. Look at your space as part of nature, not separate from it. Growing foods adapted to your specific climate reduces inputs and increases resilience. For me it keeps gardening joyful in my Zone 4 roller-coaster weather. Using the right plant for the right place will grow healthier plants and save you from digging up fails after years of limping along.

Setting Up Your Garden

Plant in Zones:
Think of your whole garden in terms of zones, the way Permaculture does. Zone 1 is closest to your home, where many people grow herbs and greens, plants that require regular tending and that your regularly want to harvest. Think in concentric circles moving out from there for how often you visit that part of the garden.

Plant Vertically:
Maximize the crops you can grow by growing up. This makes the most of sunlight, soil, and reduces the space you have to tend.

Companion Plant:
This kind of planting uses plants natural tendencies to support each other. This could by using different nutrients, having different roots depths or attracting or repelling beneficial or pest insects. Adding companion flowers and vegetables can be an organic gardener’s best friend!

Compost:
Setting up a compost bin/area when you start your garden will enable you to replenish the nutrients that came out of the soil—and keep them recycling right on your property—eliminating or at least reducing the need to bring in more fertilizers. Plus you’re keeping organic matter out of landfills!

How to Keep the Garden Sustainable for YOU

Enthusiasm is a renewable resource… but only if you protect it. I encourage you to seek out and be mindful of what brings you joy in the garden. Is it the planning, the planting, tending, harvesting, or cooking with the foods you’ve harvested?

Here are a few reminders I’ve found help me stay excited season after season.

• Only grow foods you (and your family) genuinely love
• Take some time off over winter—follow nature’s lead and rest
• Plant more perennials than annuals as the years go by
• Automate when possible: seed starting timers, drip irrigation
• Give yourself permission to scale up slowly, or not at all
• Celebrate “good enough” rather than striving for perfection
• REST and dream during the off season

A sustainable garden should be a joy, not a judgment.

And truly, there’s no magic formula or step by step plan—because each garden is a unique combination of the gardener and their goals and the location; including the soil, sun, and micro-climates.

How lucky are we that we get to work with whatever nature has in store for us and learn from it what will grow best outside our doors.

Cheers to more gardening for sustainability this season for all of us!

Dig in,
Michelle

The post Gardening for Sustainability appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

This is such a warming soup. I’ve made a few variations in the past but have settled on this as a family favorite. I recently made this for a recovering friend, and I think it’s a perfect hug in a jar.

I also recently harvested all of these main ingredients from our suburban homestead here in Minnesota. Yes, even the ginger. So this soup sums up my most recent fall harvests in one bowl.

And as with all soups, this recipe is a jumping off point. A half cup more or less of any of the main ingredients is not going to ruin this soup. It is lighter and brighter than the more common butternut squash soup, but it certainly looks like that other orange fall soup. I am always looking for ways to sneak in more protein, so of course I add white beans to this soup. Adding beans to any blended soup gives it a creamy, thicker consistency along with all the other health benefits.

More of my Hearty Homestead Soup Recipes HERE

I prefer it without the pinch of cinnamon that many recipes call for. Instead, I like a little underlying heat so I swap in a pinch (or two) of cayenne instead. Sometimes I add a dash of curry powder too. I’m also not vegan, and prefer it with chicken broth. If you want to make it vegan, swap vegetable broth for the chicken broth and add some nutritional yeast. This soup has so many melding flavors that the exact broth isn’t as important.

Carrot, Sweet Potato, and Ginger Soup Recipe

• 1-2 Tbsp olive oil to sauté
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1-2 inch knob of ginger, peeled and chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 tsp fresh thyme (1 tsp dried)
• 1 tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground white pepper
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• ¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper (can omit)
• 5-6 cups carrots (10-12 medium carrots) scrubbed, chopped
• 2 cups sweet potato (1-2 medium sweet potatoes) peeled, chopped
• 1-2 cups white beans (I use frozen shelling beans)
• 4 cups chicken broth (can sub veggie broth + a dash of nutritional yeast)
• 10 oz of a 14 oz can of coconut milk (go ahead and use all of it if you want, I just think using all of it makes it too sweet)

Instructions

• In a large deep pot add oil and warm, sauté onions until translucent.
• Add garlic, ginger, thyme, salt and pepper and let the spices ‘bloom’ for a few minutes.
• Add chopped carrots and sweet potatoes and cover with broth, adding water to cover if needed.
• Cover and cook at a solid simmer for 30 minutes until all veggies are soft and ready for the blender of your choice.
• Options: potato masher for a chunkier soup, immersion stick blender for an in between consistency, or a table top blender for a silky smooth soup. Let cool slightly if adding to blender.
• Add soup back to pot, warm and add coconut milk.
• Garnish with a little coconut milk, thyme and cayenne as you prefer.

This soup holds in the refrigerator for a week, but I bet it won’t last that long…

I love that I can use this recipe with carrots straight out of the garden or when I find them months later, still in the refrigerator. And I get the same great flavor, but without worrying about the perfect crunch.

Let me know if you love this soup as much as I do.

Dig In,
Michelle

The post Carrot, Sweet Potato + Ginger Soup Recipe appeared first on Forks in the Dirt.

Fall is in the air. Cooler days brings the unmistakable shift in our gardens as the growing season winds down. It’s tempting to grab your rake, pull every plant out by the roots, and “tidy up” before winter hits.

But if you’re aiming for a healthier garden and less work next season, it’s time to embrace no dig garden clean-up. No dig gardening is more than just a trend—it’s a smarter, soil-loving way to garden. And when it comes to fall cleanup, the no dig method gives your garden a natural boost while cutting your workload. Win-win.

What Is No Dig Gardening?

No dig (or no-till) gardening is exactly what it sounds like: you minimize digging or tilling your soil. Instead of turning the earth, you build rich, living soil by layering organic matter on top—think compost, mulch, and plant material. This protects the structure of the soil, keeps the microbial life thriving, and suppresses weeds.

Why does that matter? Because soil isn’t just dirt. It’s a living ecosystem full of microorganisms like fungi, bacteria, worms, and insects that work together to keep your plants healthy. When you dig or till, you disrupt that balance. When you leave it alone, good things start happening.

Lear how to Build a No Dig + Hügelkultur Garden Bed

Fall No Dig Garden Clean-Up 101

Fall is the perfect time to practice no dig garden clean-up techniques. Instead of yanking everything out and starting from bare soil, here’s what you should do instead:

1. Cut, Don’t Pull

Healthy annual plants like broccoli, beans, or sunflowers? Don’t pull them up by the roots. Cut them back at soil level, and leave the roots in the ground.

Why? Those roots are full of organic matter. As they break down over the winter, they feed soil microbes and create natural channels that help aerate the soil. Worms love them. Fungi thrive on them. And your soil structure improves by what the decomposers leave behind. It’s the ultimate set-it-and-forget-it garden technique.

2. Remove Diseased Plants

If any plants showed signs of disease—like blight or wilt—go ahead and remove those completely. But don’t toss them in your compost pile until you know more about what the disease is.  I regularly add plants with powdery mildew to my compost pile, as that fungal disease need living plant matter to survive.

Most other diseases are best for the burn pile or the county composting site that keeps their compost piles monitored and hot enough (140-180F) to kill the soil borne pathogens.

3. Chop and Drop

If your plants are healthy but sprawling, you can chop them into smaller pieces and leave them right on the garden bed. This “chop and drop” technique turns your old plants into mulch, slowly decomposing over the winter and feeding the soil naturally. The best known plant to do this with is Comfrey, as it decomposes quickly and adds tons of nutrients to the soil.

It also gives beneficial insects like beetles and spiders a place to overwinter. A tidy garden might look nice to us, but messy is beautiful to pollinators.

4. Add a Layer of Compost or Mulch

After you’ve cut back your plants, top your garden beds with a layer of shredded leaves, leaf mold or straw—about 1 to 2 inches thick. Organic mulch not only protects your soil from erosion and weeds, but it also insulates all that microbial life underground. Think of it like tucking your soil in for the winter.

Consider planting a Fall Cover Crop to add nutrients and living roots to your soil.

5. Leave the Leaves (In Moderation)

Fallen leaves are free mulch, rich in carbon and beneficial nutrients. Rake them into your garden beds, especially around perennials. They’ll break down slowly and improve soil structure.

Just don’t smother your plants—aim for a light, fluffy layer so air and water can still move through. I’ll often run over leaves with my mower to help shred them to avoid creating a mat of impenetrable leaves.

A Special Nitrogen Note

Leaving the roots of legumes like beans, peas, clover, and vetch will add serious amounts of nitrogen to your soil as well. These plants form a symbiotic relationship with Rhizobia soil bacteria to form nodules of nitrogen. It is especially important to leave the roots of these plants to keep the fixed nitrogen in the soil.

Below is a photo of an edamame root with fixed nitrogen nodules.

Why Fall No Dig Cleanup Works

When you follow no dig practices in the fall, you’re playing the long game. You’re building a living, breathing soil system that supports plant health, holds moisture, and fights pests—naturally.

Here’s what you’ll notice next spring:

• Looser, richer soil that’s easy to plant into.
• Fewer weeds, since you didn’t expose dormant weed seeds to light.
• Better moisture retention, thanks to improved soil structure.
• More worms and beneficial insects, doing the hard work for you.

All that, and you didn’t even break a sweat digging.

Less Work, Healthier Garden

Fall is the time to slow down, reflect, and let nature take the lead. No dig gardening honors that rhythm. So this season, resist the urge to rip everything out and make it look “perfect.”

Instead, cut back healthy annuals at the base, leave the roots in the ground, and layer on compost and mulch. You’re not just cleaning up your garden—you’re investing in it.

Let the soil rest. Let the microbes work. Try gardening more like a forest…

And when spring rolls around, your garden will be more than ready to thrive—with less effort from you.

-Michelle

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But then a light bulb popped on.

These were not a waste—just a different stage of the plant.

I didn’t have to toss these overripe beans into the compost. I could leave these to grow and save them as dried beans. I could eat them or save them to plant for more beans next year.

It was a sublimely empowering moment. One I want you to have too!

I got lucky by stumbling onto starting with one of the easiest vegetable seeds to save. For the first few years I saved mostly bean varieties and native flowers. Over a decade later, I’m still experimenting with saving new seeds. Which is why I’m well suited to pass the torch: if I can do it—you can too!

Why Save Seeds

• It connects you with nature
• You can help sustain biodiversity
• Saves real money
• Plants become better adapted to your local climate
• So let’s get started by saving the right seeds
• It connects you to your food
• Seeds are beautiful!

Beginner Seed Saver Tips:

• Save seeds on a dry day
• Save seeds from only the healthiest plants
• Save seeds from heirloom + open pollinated plants
• Have envelopes ready and labeled

Heirloom vs. Hybrid Seeds

You may have heard about the difference between heirloom and hybrid varieties. One of the inherent values of an heirloom plant’s strength lies in its ability to reproduce itself. A bonus is that plants started from saved seeds regrown in the same location tend to produce plants better suited for the exact location they are grown in each season. this is called local adaptation. A plant is said to be fully adapted after about seven years. Nature truly is amazing!

It is worth starting by finding out if the plants growing in your garden are heirloom or hybrids. Seeds from hybrid plants will not re-grow the same plant. They will likely revert back to one of the two plants that were combined to make the hybrid.

Seed Types

Seeds come in several types. Here’s what each name means.

• Open Pollinated
  Any plant that is pollinated naturally by the wind or pollinators. Seeds will produce true-to-type (stable) harvests the following year.
• Heirloom
  Seeds that are open pollinated and have been grown and stable for at least 50 years.
• Hybrid
  Two different plants’ pollen is crossed to produce replicas. Seeds saved and replanted from a hybrid will likely produce characteristics of one or both parents but probably won’t match your previous harvest. Denoted with an “F1” on seed packets.
• Cultivar
  A standardized variety bred for particular traits including uniformity, such as ‘Green Zebra’ tomato.
• Grex
  Seeds that have been crossed multiple times with similar plants. They show genetic variations within a predictable range. Increased resiliency from a small sample of seeds. (More on Grex Seeds HERE.)
• Landrace
  Adapted to a region, from non-standardized, genetically diverse, open pollinated seeds. These are grown to bring out possible genetic variations.

Note: A plant can be all of the following: landrace, grex, and open-pollinated. Heirlooms produce true to type so they can be a landrace and open pollinated but not a grex.

Save only the Very Best Seeds

Save seeds from the best plants in your garden—selecting these ‘top performing’ plants will build seed and plants for next year.

This is how us humans domesticated and increased our harvests from wild seeds over the centuries—but it is still worth doing over a few years. After over a decade of saving pole beans mine produce better than the original packet I bought.

Do not save seeds from diseased plants or plants that didn’t thrive in your garden.

Patience with Nature

One thing to keep in mind when starting to save seeds is that we’re really just helping nature along. Waiting long enough for Mother Nature to do her work is a big part of the initial learning curve.

Both waiting for the seed to be ripe enough on the plant and waiting long enough for the seed to be fully dry enough to put into storage!

Plants will tell you when their seeds are ready. They give you signs, like color changes or simply starting to fall off the plant. Lettuces, for example, are like dandelions with their seeds; it becomes obvious.

Not all seeds are as showy with their seed ripeness, which brings me to Heritage Farm Field crew Leader, Rochelle’s advice, “spend a little time learning about the plant you are saving seeds from. Each crop has some specific information on how to work with it—but don’t be afraid to mess up. There are so many easy plants to start with.”

Easy-to-Save Seeds

Saving Pea + Bean Seeds

These two have such similar saving techniques we can talk about them together. Save bean and pea seeds on the plant and let them mature rather than eat them.

After harvesting these seeds I usually leave them in their pods in a paper bag  to dry further in a dry closet until I happen on them in winter and then shell them out, keeping them in paper envelopes or bags. I always say I’m going to be more intentional this season- but if that’s all I’ve done, and it has worked in the past you know you can handle this, too.

At the end of the season, watch for bean rust while waiting for beans to dry on the vine.

Over winter watch for little black bugs (bean weevils) emerging from the bean pods.

Saving Tomato Seeds

The good news on saving tomato seeds is that you get to save your seeds and eat your tomatoes too! Tomato seeds are ripe the same time as their fruits—yay!!

To harvest seeds, just squish out the juice and seeds into a jar.

There are two main schools of thought on how to best save tomato seeds. 

Fermenting then drying -or- just drying.

Anyone who’s eaten a tomato probably knows about the little gelatin glob that encapsulates each seed. This gelatin helps the tomato seed to hold off on germinating by keeping it protected. This layer of protection keeps seed from germinating to quickly.

I like to get rid of the gel by fermenting it away before drying, but some think that drying alone breaks it down enough. To ferment tomato seeds, simply squeeze the tomato seeds + juice into a jar and let sit on a counter for 2–3 days. Rinse and strain off the juice until only the seeds are left. Then transfer them to paper towels/paper plates.

I use both methods as the season allows, but do think I get better germination with fermented seeds.

Tomatoes may cross-pollinate with each other, so if you are serious about saving these, plan on growing different varieties on opposite ends of your garden.

Saving Bell Pepper Seeds

Sweet peppers are one of the simplest seeds to save. The hardest part for northern gardeners like myself is getting the peppers to full maturity in our growing season. But luckily, you just harvest the fruits when fully ripe. You don’t have to wait until they are over-ripe to collect viable seeds.

Simply separate seeds from the ribs, careful not to break the seed coating. Dry on a paper towel for a week or so, then store in a paper envelope.

Saving Lettuce Seeds

Patience is key when saving lettuce seeds. Start your plants early and let them bolt. Bolting is when the plant sends up flower stalk that blooms and eventually sets seeds.

Then your job is to wait as the tight flowers SLOWLY turn to white fluff—and dry on the plant before harvesting the seeds. The final seed heads remind me of showy little seed poofs just like dandelions.

The trick is to catch these seeds at full maturity but before they drop to the soil. If I can remember in time, I try to wrap my seed lettuces in a mesh bag so they can continue to ripen on the plant. Then I chop the plant stalk late into the fall after the plant has died back. That way I can harvest as much seed as possible without it falling to the ground. Lettuce will self seed this way as well.

These are also seeds that you need to wait for dry weather to harvest. You can shake into a bowl or bucket, then blow away the fluff and chaff (extra plant material). One plant will give you enough seeds to share with your entire neighborhood, or a local seed library!

Click HERE for how to save these annual flower seeds.

Seed Storage

It is recommended to store them in a glass jar or plastic bag. Air-tight containers will hold seeds viable for longer; you just need to make sure they are fully dried out before sealing to avoid growing mold instead of more food.

I mostly keep them in paper bags or paper envelopes (or glass jars), but always in a cool, dark area.

This SEED VIABILITY CHART from High Mowing Organic Seed Co. shows the typical time that different seeds stay viable for best germination rates.

Seed Savers Exchange is a great place to start if you want to buy savable seeds.

I hope this quick overview inspires you to try and save some seeds—for the first time, or save some new seeds…

What questions do you have? What seeds are you most likely to start saving?

Dig In,
Michelle

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