Friendly tips and forgiving plants for the gardener wannabe.
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Confession: I’m a black thumb. I don’t want to be, but despite my enthusiasm for growing things, my best laid (garden) plans don’t end up looking like the pretty renderings in the downloaded how-tos or magazine pages.
But I’m working on it. Last year when I was writing a gardening story, my expert, Farmer Andrea Bushre of NanBop Farm in Cadillac, got me excited about the two old, raised beds I was resuscitating. With her inspo I chose a host of tomatoes (including sweet Sakuras and San Marzanos, which I froze and enjoyed all winter), greens, cucumbers and squash.
By and large, the veggies were a bust—mold, failure to thrive, bunnies, you name it, all cemented my black-thumb status. But Andrea sees it differently.
When I asked her what leads to garden failure, she explained it this way: “Well, failure is part of gardening—it’s baked into the process and that’s how you learn. We fail all the time and pivot to do something different. People think if one thing fails, they can’t do it, it doesn’t work for them. But that’s not true, and that’s not gardening or farming in general—things will fail. You just try something different.”
Read Next: Ask Farmer Andrea: Low-Maintenance Veggie Gardening
So, my powdery mildew on the cucumbers? Just a sign I needed to change how I watered. The tomatoes? They longed for a sunnier spot, so they’ll get to move to a southeast-facing trellis. The greens will stay put—they rocked it all summer long, enjoying the cooler shade and the protective barrier of marigolds that kept out pests.
Black thumb mistakes are learning in disguise, connecting you even more closely to your land and setting you up for your next gardening success.
Below, Andrea shares her best tips for black thumbs.
Farmer Andrea’s 6 Best Pieces of Advice
- Avoiding the most common mistakes gardeners make: “What I see most is overwatering, and not knowing if the crops require a certain amount of sunlight and not realizing what your plot really receives. Once you get a schedule set and understand your garden’s exposure, you’re well on your way to happier plants.”
- How to handle pests: “Pest pressure is a thing! If you plant lettuce, you’re going to attract rabbits, deer and any other hungry critter. But marigolds, garlic and onions will help deter pests. Experienced gardeners use those crops as a fence, like planting marigolds as a perimeter. Marigold bonus: they attract loads of pollinators to your garden.”
- Keep an eye on the long game: “A successful garden may require a year or three until you begin to understand what grows best and how to keep it happy.”
- Plant in pairs: “Companion planting is huge for encouraging growth, preventing pests and maximizing growing space. Marigolds with lettuce deter pests. Tomatoes can pair with lettuce or low-growing flowers, for pollination and maximizing space. Beets love to be next to cucumbers—the cucumbers can grow vertically and leave room for the beets, which create cover that chokes out weeds. Garlic on the perimeter, or scallions, any alliums in general deter deer and bunnies.”
- Choose easy seeds: “The easiest thing I ever tell anyone to grow is radishes or lettuce. Any sort of mixed lettuce is foolproof, as long as you’re watering regularly it will always perform. Here on the farm, we use encore mix; a mix of Romaine, oak leaf and bibb lettuce. You can sow these from seed, starting now, although they may need a frost blanket once in a while if nights get super cold.”
- Plant hardy starts: “Snap peas and beans will pretty much perform like crazy. Squashes of any kind will almost ALWAYS get beetle damage and mildew or mold, every time—but they are prolific and worth the risk. I always plant a lot knowing we’ll lose some. But hey, that’s all part of the adventure.”