Episode 300: The Questions You Keep Asking (and What the Research Actually Says)

We made it to 300 episodes! And to celebrate, I’m doing something a little different. I went looking for the questions home gardeners are asking most, the ones showing up in Reddit threads, Facebook groups, university extension Q&A lines, master gardener helplines, and my own DMs and emails, over and over and over again. Then I went to the research: university extensions, peer-reviewed horticulture studies, and land-grant university publications, to find the best science-backed answers available. The result is this episode, ten of the most common gardening questions, answered with evidence, nuance, and a little bit of real-world gardener perspective from someone who’s been doing it for over 20 years and with a degree in horticulture. Whether you’ve been listening since episode 1 or you just found me today, this one is for you.

Let’s dig in.

• University of Maine Cooperative Extension — How Often Should I Water My Vegetable Garden?: https://extension.umaine.edu/gardening/2020/07/14/watering-a-vegetable-garden/
• Utah State University Extension — Water Recommendations for Vegetables: https://extension.usu.edu/yardandgarden/research/water-recommendations-for-vegetables.pdf

• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension — Common Tomato Plant Problems and How to Fix Them (May 2026) https://hpj.com/2026/05/06/common-tomato-plant-problems-and-how-to-fix-them/
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension — Why Are My Tomato Leaves Curling? https://agrilifetoday.tamu.edu/2022/05/05/why-are-my-tomato-leaves-curling/
• University of Maryland Extension — Key to Common Problems of Tomatoes https://extension.umd.edu/resource/key-common-problems-tomatoes

• University of Maryland Extension — Blossom End Rot on Vegetables https://extension.umd.edu/resource/blossom-end-rot-vegetables/
• NC State Extension (Pender County) — Why Are My Squash Rotting? (2024) https://pender.ces.ncsu.edu/news/why-are-my-squash-rotting/

• Oregon State University Extension — Improving Garden Soils With Organic Matter (EC 1561) https://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/ec-1561-improving-garden-soils-organic-matter
• Oregon State University Extension — How to Use Compost in Gardens and Landscapes (EM 9308) https://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/em-9308-how-use-compost-gardens-landscapes
• University of Maryland Extension — Soil to Fill Raised Beds https://extension.umd.edu/resource/soil-fill-raised-beds/

• Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension — Fertilizing the Vegetable Garden (revised March 2026) https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-323/426-323.html
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension — Fertilizing a Garden https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/library/gardening/fertilizing/

• Utah State University Extension — Creating Sustainable Home Gardens: Organic Pest Management https://extension.usu.edu/utah4h/research/organic-pest-management
• South Dakota State University Extension — Organic Pest Control Methods (2025) https://extension.sdstate.edu/organic-pest-control-methods

• Illinois Extension — Sow, Grow, Rotate: How Crop Rotation Promotes Gardening Success (Jan 2024) https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2024-01-05-sow-grow-rotate-how-crop-rotation-promotes-gardening-success

• Illinois Extension Good Growing — Harvesting Vegetables: When and How to Pick Your Vegetables for Best Quality (June 2024) https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2024-06-28-harvesting-vegetables-when-and-how-pick-your-vegetables-best-quality
• Iowa State University Extension — Vegetable Harvest Guide https://yardandgarden.extension.iastate.edu/how-to/vegetable-planting-and-harvesting-times

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