Reference

Gardening Glossary

The words we use on this site and in the planner, plus the general gardening, soil, chicken, and preserving vocabulary around them. Plain definitions, grouped the way you'd meet them.

Planting basics

Start #: A young plant grown from seed, ready to go into the garden. Also called a seedling or transplant. You can grow your own starts in trays or buy them at a nursery.
See also: Start trays Transplant

Start trays #: Shallow containers with small cells, filled with seed-starting mix, used to grow starts indoors or under cover before the garden is ready for them. "Start trays by Aug 6" in the planner means: sow the seed in trays by that date so the plants are big enough to transplant on time.
See also: Start Transplant Bottom watering

Sow #: To plant seed. "Direct sow" means putting seed straight into the garden bed where the plant will grow, instead of starting it in a tray. Roots, beans, corn, and most greens are direct-sown because they dislike being moved.
See also: Direct sow Start trays

Direct sow #: Sowing seed in its final spot in the garden. The opposite of starting in trays and transplanting.
See also: Sow Transplant

Transplant #: Moving a start from its tray or pot into the garden bed. Also the plant itself. Transplanting works for crops that tolerate root disturbance (tomatoes, brassicas, lettuce) and lets you get a head start while the garden is still too cold or too busy.
See also: Start Harden off

Harden off #: Getting indoor-grown starts used to outdoor conditions before transplanting: a few hours outside the first day, a little longer each day, for about a week. Skip it and the sun and wind will scorch soft seedlings.
See also: Transplant

Thin #: Pulling out extra seedlings so the ones left have room to grow. Seed is sown thickly because not every seed comes up; thinning fixes the crowding. Beet and lettuce thinnings are salad.
See also: Direct sow

Succession planting #: Sowing a short row of the same crop every couple of weeks instead of all at once, so the harvest comes in a steady stream rather than one glut. Radishes, lettuce, beets, cilantro, and beans are the classic succession crops. In the planner, "Sow another round" is a succession sowing.
See also: Sow Bolt

Days to maturity #: The typical number of days from planting to first harvest, printed on the seed packet. For transplanted crops it counts from transplanting, not from seed. The planner counts back from your first fall frost using this number, plus a fall factor, to find your last planting date.
See also: Fall factor First frost

Fall factor #: Extra days added to days-to-maturity for fall plantings, because days get shorter and cooler in autumn and plants grow more slowly. The planner uses about two weeks.
See also: Days to maturity

Last frost #: The average date of the last 32°F night in spring. Tender crops go in the ground after it; hardy crops can go in weeks before. The planner's spring dates all count from this anchor.
See also: First frost Hardy Tender

First frost #: The average date of the first 32°F night in fall. Tender crops die at it; hardy crops keep going past it. The planner's fall dates all count back from this anchor. Remember it's an average: half of years the frost comes earlier.
See also: Last frost Growing season

Growing season #: The frost-free stretch between last spring frost and first fall frost. A 100-day season and a 250-day season call for very different gardens, which is why the planner asks for your zip code.
See also: Last frost First frost

Frost-free #: A climate with fewer than one freezing night a year on average, like south Florida or Hawaii. There, cool-season crops become the winter garden and the frost dates are replaced by planning anchors.
See also: Growing season

Planting window #: The stretch of dates in which a crop can be planted and still mature in time. Windows open and close on their own schedule; the planner's job is to tell you when each one is open. Dates are targets, not deadlines.
See also: Days to maturity

Seasons and crop types

Spring garden #: Everything planted in spring: cool-season crops as soon as the ground can be worked, then warm-season crops once frost is past. The "Spring garden" button in the planner selects both.
See also: Fall garden Cool-season crop Warm-season crop

Fall garden #: Crops planted in mid-to-late summer to mature in the cool of autumn, many of them standing in the garden past the first frost. Mostly cool-season crops, plus a last quick sowing of a few warm ones. It's the second planting season most gardens skip.
See also: Spring garden Cool-season crop

Cool-season crop #: A crop that grows best in cool weather and tolerates frost: brassicas, roots, greens, alliums, peas. Planted in early spring and again in late summer for fall. Heat makes most of them bolt.
See also: Warm-season crop Hardy Bolt

Warm-season crop #: A crop that needs warm soil and dies at frost: tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, corn, melons, basil. Planted after the last spring frost. The quick ones can be sown again in midsummer for a fall harvest.
See also: Cool-season crop Tender

Hardy #: Takes a frost and keeps growing: kale, collards, leeks, garlic, spinach, carrots. Many hardy crops taste sweeter after frost because the plant converts starch to sugar as antifreeze.
See also: Semi-hardy Tender

Semi-hardy #: Survives a light frost but not a hard freeze: lettuce, cauliflower, chard, celery, cilantro. Row cover buys them a few extra weeks.
See also: Hardy Tender Row cover

Tender #: Killed by any frost: tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, beans. Planted after the last frost, harvested before the first.
See also: Warm-season crop Last frost

Bolt #: When a plant switches from making leaves to making flowers and seed, usually triggered by heat or long days. Bolted lettuce turns bitter, bolted cilantro becomes coriander seed. Succession sowing and shade cloth are the defenses.
See also: Succession planting Cool-season crop

Annual #: A plant that lives one season: sprouts, flowers, sets seed, dies. Most vegetables are grown as annuals.
See also: Perennial Biennial

Biennial #: A plant that grows leaves the first year and flowers the second: carrots, beets, cabbage, onions. We eat them in year one; seed savers let them stand for year two.
See also: Annual Perennial

Perennial #: A plant that comes back year after year: asparagus, rhubarb, berries, fruit trees, many herbs. Plant once, harvest for years. The backbone of an edible landscape.
See also: Edible landscape Annual

Ways of planting

Sets #: Small dormant bulbs, usually onions, planted instead of seed for a faster, easier crop. The planner says "Plant" rather than "sow" for crops that go in as sets.
See also: Slips Seed potatoes

Slips #: Rooted sprouts grown from a sweet potato, planted into warm soil to grow a new crop. Sweet potatoes are never grown from seed.
See also: Sets

Seed potatoes #: Whole small potatoes or cut chunks with at least one eye each, planted to grow a potato crop. Buy certified disease-free seed potatoes rather than planting grocery-store ones, which are often treated to stop sprouting.
See also: Chitting Slips

Chitting #: Setting seed potatoes in a bright, cool spot for a few weeks so the eyes sprout before planting. Gives an earlier crop.
See also: Seed potatoes

Cloves #: The segments of a garlic bulb. Each clove planted in fall grows a whole new bulb by the next summer.
See also: Fall garden

Bottom watering #: Setting seed trays in a shallow pan of water so the mix soaks it up from below. Keeps the surface from crusting and doesn't wash seed around.
See also: Start trays

Raised bed #: A garden bed built up above the surrounding ground, often framed with wood or block. Drains well, warms early in spring, and saves your back. Filled with a compost-rich mix, it's the most productive square footage in most yards.
See also: Top-dress

Vertical growing #: Growing up instead of out: trellised cucumbers, pole beans, tomatoes on stakes, squash on a fence. Pulls more food from the same footprint.
See also: Trellis

Trellis #: Any structure a climbing plant grows on: netting, a cattle panel arch, a fence, strings from a bar. Keeps fruit off the ground and picking easy.
See also: Vertical growing

Season extension #: Any trick that stretches the growing season on either end: greenhouse, cold frame, row cover, low tunnel, mulch. The greenhouse stage of the flywheel is season extension.
See also: Cold frame Row cover Greenhouse

Cold frame #: A bottomless box with a clear lid, set over a bed. A miniature greenhouse for starting seedlings early and keeping greens going into winter.
See also: Season extension

Row cover #: Lightweight fabric laid over plants or draped over hoops. Holds a few degrees of warmth, keeps insects off, and shades tender seedlings from August sun. Comes in weights from insect netting to frost blanket.
See also: Season extension Semi-hardy

Greenhouse #: A structure that traps sunlight as heat and blocks wind, so plants inside grow as if they were a zone or two warmer. Also where starts are raised and tender perennials overwinter. Ventilation matters as much as heat; a closed greenhouse cooks plants by noon.
See also: Season extension

Edible landscape #: Filling the yard with food-producing plants where lawn and ornamentals would otherwise go: berry bushes instead of boxwood, a grape arbor on the fence, herbs along the walk. The perennial layer of a backyard food factory.
See also: Perennial

Hydroponics #: Growing plants in nutrient-rich water instead of soil. In a backyard, a small pond or tank grows floating greens and adds growing space where there was none.
See also: Aquaponics

Aquaponics #: Hydroponics plus fish: the fish fertilize the water, the plants clean it. Duckweed from the pond is a favorite chicken treat.
See also: Hydroponics

Soil and compost

Compost #: Organic matter (leaves, scraps, manure, bedding) broken down by microbes into dark, crumbly, earthy-smelling material. The single best thing you can add to garden soil, and the stage of the flywheel where waste turns into fertility.
See also: Browns and greens Hot compost Finished compost

Browns and greens #: The two ingredients of compost. Browns are carbon-rich and dry: leaves, straw, shavings, cardboard. Greens are nitrogen-rich and wet: manure, kitchen scraps, grass clippings. Roughly two to three parts browns to one part greens by volume keeps a pile working and not stinking.
See also: Compost Carbon-to-nitrogen ratio

Carbon-to-nitrogen ratio #: The balance of browns to greens in a compost pile, about 25 to 30 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen by weight. Too much nitrogen smells like ammonia; too much carbon just sits there.
See also: Browns and greens

Hot compost #: A pile built all at once with the right mix and moisture, which heats to 130–160°F within days. The heat kills weed seeds and pathogens, which is why chicken manure should be hot-composted before it goes on food crops.
See also: Compost Cure

Cure #: Letting finished compost rest for a few weeks after it cools so it stabilizes before use. Also: leaving harvested squash, onions, garlic, or sweet potatoes in a warm, airy spot for a week or two so skins toughen for storage.
See also: Hot compost Finished compost

Finished compost #: Compost that's done: dark, crumbly, cool, and smelling like forest floor, with none of the original ingredients recognizable. Anything else needs more time.
See also: Compost Cure

Deep litter #: A way of running a chicken coop: instead of cleaning the floor bare, you build up several inches of shavings, straw, or leaves, turn it now and then, and keep adding on top. The bottom layers compost in place, warming the coop in winter and suppressing pathogens. Cleaned out once or twice a year straight into the compost bays.
See also: Compost Droppings board

Top-dress #: Spreading compost or fertilizer on the surface of a bed and leaving it there, rather than digging it in. Worms and rain carry it down; soil structure stays intact.
See also: Compost Mulch

Mulch #: Any layer over bare soil: straw, leaves, wood chips, grass clippings. Holds moisture, blocks weeds, feeds soil life as it breaks down, and keeps rain from crusting the surface. Bare soil is the enemy.
See also: Top-dress

Cover crop #: A crop grown to protect and feed the soil rather than to eat: clover, rye, vetch, buckwheat. Sown when a bed would otherwise sit empty, then cut down and left as mulch.
See also: Mulch

Organic matter #: The living and once-living part of soil: roots, microbes, decomposing leaves, compost. It holds water like a sponge, feeds the soil food web, and glues soil into crumbs that let air in. Most garden soil wants more of it.
See also: Compost Soil test

Soil test #: A lab analysis of your soil's pH and nutrient levels, usually through your county extension office for a few dollars. Tells you what to add instead of guessing.
See also: pH NPK

pH #: How acidic or alkaline the soil is, on a scale of 0 to 14. Most vegetables want 6.0 to 7.0; blueberries want it acidic, around 4.5 to 5.5. Outside the right range, nutrients are in the soil but plants can't take them up.
See also: Soil test

NPK #: Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, the three numbers on a fertilizer bag. Nitrogen grows leaves, phosphorus grows roots and fruit, potassium grows overall vigor. Chicken manure is rich in all three.
See also: Soil test Compost

Chickens

Coop #: The enclosed shelter where chickens sleep, lay, and shelter from weather and predators. In a backyard food factory it's also the fertility engine: every bird produces manure and used bedding for the compost.
See also: Run Deep litter Droppings board

Run #: The fenced outdoor area attached to the coop where the flock scratches, dust-bathes, and forages in the daytime. Plan 8 to 10 square feet per bird.
See also: Coop Chicken tractor

Droppings board #: A board or tray under the roosts that catches most of the night's manure. Scraped weekly straight into the compost. Cuts ammonia and cleaning time more than any other coop feature.
See also: Coop Deep litter

Roost #: The bar chickens perch on to sleep. A 2×4 laid flat lets them cover their toes in winter.
See also: Coop

Nest box #: A dark, private box where hens lay. One per four or five hens; external-access boxes let you collect eggs from outside the coop.
See also: Coop

Hardware cloth #: Welded wire mesh with half-inch openings. The only wire that keeps raccoons, weasels, and rats out. Chicken wire keeps chickens in; it does not keep predators out.
See also: Coop Run

Pullet #: A young hen under a year old. Pullets start laying at about five to six months.
See also: Dual-purpose breed

Dual-purpose breed #: A chicken breed that both lays well and grows a worthwhile meat carcass: Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock, Sussex, Orpington, Dominique. Hardy, good foragers, and they breed true, so you can hatch your own replacements.
See also: Pullet

Broody #: A hen that has decided to sit on eggs and hatch them, and stops laying to do it. Useful if you want chicks, a nuisance if you don't.
See also: Pullet

Molt #: The yearly shedding and regrowing of feathers, usually in fall. Hens stop or slow laying during a molt; it's normal.

Chicken tractor #: A bottomless, movable coop or pen. Parked on a garden bed, the flock scratches, weeds, eats pests, and fertilizes; then you move it to the next bed. Closing the loop on wheels.
See also: Run Coop

Scratch #: Cracked grains scattered on the ground for chickens to peck at. A treat and a way to get them turning the deep litter, not a complete feed.
See also: Deep litter

Harvest and preserving

Cut-and-come-again #: Harvesting the outer leaves of greens (lettuce, kale, chard, arugula) and leaving the center to keep growing, instead of pulling the whole plant. One sowing feeds you for weeks.
See also: Succession planting

Storage crop #: A crop grown to be kept for months without processing: winter squash, potatoes, onions, garlic, cabbage, beets, carrots. The fall garden is largely storage crops.
See also: Cure Root cellar

Root cellar #: A cool, dark, humid space (a basement corner, a buried bin, an insulated closet) where storage crops keep for months. The original refrigerator.
See also: Storage crop

Blanching #: Dunking vegetables in boiling water for a minute or two, then in ice water, before freezing. Stops the enzymes that would turn them mushy and dull in the freezer.
See also: Freezing

Freezing #: The easiest preservation method: blanch, cool, bag, freeze. Best for beans, greens, corn, berries, and herbs in oil.
See also: Blanching

Water-bath canning #: Sealing jars of high-acid food (tomatoes with added acid, pickles, jams, fruit) by boiling them in a covered pot of water. Safe only for acidic foods.
See also: Pressure canning

Pressure canning #: Sealing jars of low-acid food (plain vegetables, beans, meat, stock) in a pressure canner, which reaches the higher temperature needed to kill botulism spores. Not optional for low-acid foods.
See also: Water-bath canning

Fermenting #: Preserving with salt and time: sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles. Salt-tolerant bacteria make lactic acid, which keeps spoilage organisms out. No heat, no special equipment, and the food gets more nutritious, not less.
See also: Water-bath canning

Dehydrating #: Removing the water that spoilage needs, in a dehydrator, a low oven, or the sun. Herbs, tomatoes, peppers, apples, and jerky.
See also: Cure

Backyard Food Factory terms

Flywheel #: The five-stage loop this whole site is built around: raising chickens → composting waste → improving soil → greenhouse gardening → protein and vegetables → back to the chickens. Every stage's output feeds the next. Slow to start, hard to stop.
See also: Closing the loop

Closing the loop #: Connecting outputs to inputs so nothing leaves the yard: manure becomes compost, compost becomes soil, soil becomes food, scraps become feed. The opposite of buying fertility in a bag and hauling waste to the curb.
See also: Flywheel

Food factory #: A yard laid out on purpose so its stages feed each other with as little hauling as possible: coop beside the compost, compost beside the beds, kitchen a few steps from all of it. "Factory" means designed for output, not accidental.
See also: Flywheel Closing the loop

Planting Planner #: The free tool on this site that turns your zip code into frost dates and a dated to-do list for the crops you grow, with optional Sunday reminders when there's something to do.
See also: Last frost First frost Planting window

A

Annual #: A plant that lives one season: sprouts, flowers, sets seed, dies. Most vegetables are grown as annuals.
See also: Perennial Biennial

Aquaponics #: Hydroponics plus fish: the fish fertilize the water, the plants clean it. Duckweed from the pond is a favorite chicken treat.
See also: Hydroponics

B

Biennial #: A plant that grows leaves the first year and flowers the second: carrots, beets, cabbage, onions. We eat them in year one; seed savers let them stand for year two.
See also: Annual Perennial

Blanching #: Dunking vegetables in boiling water for a minute or two, then in ice water, before freezing. Stops the enzymes that would turn them mushy and dull in the freezer.
See also: Freezing

Bolt #: When a plant switches from making leaves to making flowers and seed, usually triggered by heat or long days. Bolted lettuce turns bitter, bolted cilantro becomes coriander seed. Succession sowing and shade cloth are the defenses.
See also: Succession planting Cool-season crop

Bottom watering #: Setting seed trays in a shallow pan of water so the mix soaks it up from below. Keeps the surface from crusting and doesn't wash seed around.
See also: Start trays

Broody #: A hen that has decided to sit on eggs and hatch them, and stops laying to do it. Useful if you want chicks, a nuisance if you don't.
See also: Pullet

Browns and greens #: The two ingredients of compost. Browns are carbon-rich and dry: leaves, straw, shavings, cardboard. Greens are nitrogen-rich and wet: manure, kitchen scraps, grass clippings. Roughly two to three parts browns to one part greens by volume keeps a pile working and not stinking.
See also: Compost Carbon-to-nitrogen ratio

C

Carbon-to-nitrogen ratio #: The balance of browns to greens in a compost pile, about 25 to 30 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen by weight. Too much nitrogen smells like ammonia; too much carbon just sits there.
See also: Browns and greens

Chicken tractor #: A bottomless, movable coop or pen. Parked on a garden bed, the flock scratches, weeds, eats pests, and fertilizes; then you move it to the next bed. Closing the loop on wheels.
See also: Run Coop

Chitting #: Setting seed potatoes in a bright, cool spot for a few weeks so the eyes sprout before planting. Gives an earlier crop.
See also: Seed potatoes

Closing the loop #: Connecting outputs to inputs so nothing leaves the yard: manure becomes compost, compost becomes soil, soil becomes food, scraps become feed. The opposite of buying fertility in a bag and hauling waste to the curb.
See also: Flywheel

Cloves #: The segments of a garlic bulb. Each clove planted in fall grows a whole new bulb by the next summer.
See also: Fall garden

Cold frame #: A bottomless box with a clear lid, set over a bed. A miniature greenhouse for starting seedlings early and keeping greens going into winter.
See also: Season extension

Compost #: Organic matter (leaves, scraps, manure, bedding) broken down by microbes into dark, crumbly, earthy-smelling material. The single best thing you can add to garden soil, and the stage of the flywheel where waste turns into fertility.
See also: Browns and greens Hot compost Finished compost

Cool-season crop #: A crop that grows best in cool weather and tolerates frost: brassicas, roots, greens, alliums, peas. Planted in early spring and again in late summer for fall. Heat makes most of them bolt.
See also: Warm-season crop Hardy Bolt

Coop #: The enclosed shelter where chickens sleep, lay, and shelter from weather and predators. In a backyard food factory it's also the fertility engine: every bird produces manure and used bedding for the compost.
See also: Run Deep litter Droppings board

Cover crop #: A crop grown to protect and feed the soil rather than to eat: clover, rye, vetch, buckwheat. Sown when a bed would otherwise sit empty, then cut down and left as mulch.
See also: Mulch

Cure #: Letting finished compost rest for a few weeks after it cools so it stabilizes before use. Also: leaving harvested squash, onions, garlic, or sweet potatoes in a warm, airy spot for a week or two so skins toughen for storage.
See also: Hot compost Finished compost

Cut-and-come-again #: Harvesting the outer leaves of greens (lettuce, kale, chard, arugula) and leaving the center to keep growing, instead of pulling the whole plant. One sowing feeds you for weeks.
See also: Succession planting

D

Days to maturity #: The typical number of days from planting to first harvest, printed on the seed packet. For transplanted crops it counts from transplanting, not from seed. The planner counts back from your first fall frost using this number, plus a fall factor, to find your last planting date.
See also: Fall factor First frost

Deep litter #: A way of running a chicken coop: instead of cleaning the floor bare, you build up several inches of shavings, straw, or leaves, turn it now and then, and keep adding on top. The bottom layers compost in place, warming the coop in winter and suppressing pathogens. Cleaned out once or twice a year straight into the compost bays.
See also: Compost Droppings board

Dehydrating #: Removing the water that spoilage needs, in a dehydrator, a low oven, or the sun. Herbs, tomatoes, peppers, apples, and jerky.
See also: Cure

Direct sow #: Sowing seed in its final spot in the garden. The opposite of starting in trays and transplanting.
See also: Sow Transplant

Droppings board #: A board or tray under the roosts that catches most of the night's manure. Scraped weekly straight into the compost. Cuts ammonia and cleaning time more than any other coop feature.
See also: Coop Deep litter

Dual-purpose breed #: A chicken breed that both lays well and grows a worthwhile meat carcass: Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock, Sussex, Orpington, Dominique. Hardy, good foragers, and they breed true, so you can hatch your own replacements.
See also: Pullet

E

Edible landscape #: Filling the yard with food-producing plants where lawn and ornamentals would otherwise go: berry bushes instead of boxwood, a grape arbor on the fence, herbs along the walk. The perennial layer of a backyard food factory.
See also: Perennial

F

Fall factor #: Extra days added to days-to-maturity for fall plantings, because days get shorter and cooler in autumn and plants grow more slowly. The planner uses about two weeks.
See also: Days to maturity

Fall garden #: Crops planted in mid-to-late summer to mature in the cool of autumn, many of them standing in the garden past the first frost. Mostly cool-season crops, plus a last quick sowing of a few warm ones. It's the second planting season most gardens skip.
See also: Spring garden Cool-season crop

Fermenting #: Preserving with salt and time: sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles. Salt-tolerant bacteria make lactic acid, which keeps spoilage organisms out. No heat, no special equipment, and the food gets more nutritious, not less.
See also: Water-bath canning

Finished compost #: Compost that's done: dark, crumbly, cool, and smelling like forest floor, with none of the original ingredients recognizable. Anything else needs more time.
See also: Compost Cure

First frost #: The average date of the first 32°F night in fall. Tender crops die at it; hardy crops keep going past it. The planner's fall dates all count back from this anchor. Remember it's an average: half of years the frost comes earlier.
See also: Last frost Growing season

Flywheel #: The five-stage loop this whole site is built around: raising chickens → composting waste → improving soil → greenhouse gardening → protein and vegetables → back to the chickens. Every stage's output feeds the next. Slow to start, hard to stop.
See also: Closing the loop

Food factory #: A yard laid out on purpose so its stages feed each other with as little hauling as possible: coop beside the compost, compost beside the beds, kitchen a few steps from all of it. "Factory" means designed for output, not accidental.
See also: Flywheel Closing the loop

Freezing #: The easiest preservation method: blanch, cool, bag, freeze. Best for beans, greens, corn, berries, and herbs in oil.
See also: Blanching

Frost-free #: A climate with fewer than one freezing night a year on average, like south Florida or Hawaii. There, cool-season crops become the winter garden and the frost dates are replaced by planning anchors.
See also: Growing season

G

Greenhouse #: A structure that traps sunlight as heat and blocks wind, so plants inside grow as if they were a zone or two warmer. Also where starts are raised and tender perennials overwinter. Ventilation matters as much as heat; a closed greenhouse cooks plants by noon.
See also: Season extension

Growing season #: The frost-free stretch between last spring frost and first fall frost. A 100-day season and a 250-day season call for very different gardens, which is why the planner asks for your zip code.
See also: Last frost First frost

H

Harden off #: Getting indoor-grown starts used to outdoor conditions before transplanting: a few hours outside the first day, a little longer each day, for about a week. Skip it and the sun and wind will scorch soft seedlings.
See also: Transplant

Hardware cloth #: Welded wire mesh with half-inch openings. The only wire that keeps raccoons, weasels, and rats out. Chicken wire keeps chickens in; it does not keep predators out.
See also: Coop Run

Hardy #: Takes a frost and keeps growing: kale, collards, leeks, garlic, spinach, carrots. Many hardy crops taste sweeter after frost because the plant converts starch to sugar as antifreeze.
See also: Semi-hardy Tender

Hot compost #: A pile built all at once with the right mix and moisture, which heats to 130–160°F within days. The heat kills weed seeds and pathogens, which is why chicken manure should be hot-composted before it goes on food crops.
See also: Compost Cure

Hydroponics #: Growing plants in nutrient-rich water instead of soil. In a backyard, a small pond or tank grows floating greens and adds growing space where there was none.
See also: Aquaponics

L

Last frost #: The average date of the last 32°F night in spring. Tender crops go in the ground after it; hardy crops can go in weeks before. The planner's spring dates all count from this anchor.
See also: First frost Hardy Tender

M

Molt #: The yearly shedding and regrowing of feathers, usually in fall. Hens stop or slow laying during a molt; it's normal.

Mulch #: Any layer over bare soil: straw, leaves, wood chips, grass clippings. Holds moisture, blocks weeds, feeds soil life as it breaks down, and keeps rain from crusting the surface. Bare soil is the enemy.
See also: Top-dress

N

Nest box #: A dark, private box where hens lay. One per four or five hens; external-access boxes let you collect eggs from outside the coop.
See also: Coop

NPK #: Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, the three numbers on a fertilizer bag. Nitrogen grows leaves, phosphorus grows roots and fruit, potassium grows overall vigor. Chicken manure is rich in all three.
See also: Soil test Compost

O

Organic matter #: The living and once-living part of soil: roots, microbes, decomposing leaves, compost. It holds water like a sponge, feeds the soil food web, and glues soil into crumbs that let air in. Most garden soil wants more of it.
See also: Compost Soil test

P

Perennial #: A plant that comes back year after year: asparagus, rhubarb, berries, fruit trees, many herbs. Plant once, harvest for years. The backbone of an edible landscape.
See also: Edible landscape Annual

pH #: How acidic or alkaline the soil is, on a scale of 0 to 14. Most vegetables want 6.0 to 7.0; blueberries want it acidic, around 4.5 to 5.5. Outside the right range, nutrients are in the soil but plants can't take them up.
See also: Soil test

Planting Planner #: The free tool on this site that turns your zip code into frost dates and a dated to-do list for the crops you grow, with optional Sunday reminders when there's something to do.
See also: Last frost First frost Planting window

Planting window #: The stretch of dates in which a crop can be planted and still mature in time. Windows open and close on their own schedule; the planner's job is to tell you when each one is open. Dates are targets, not deadlines.
See also: Days to maturity

Pressure canning #: Sealing jars of low-acid food (plain vegetables, beans, meat, stock) in a pressure canner, which reaches the higher temperature needed to kill botulism spores. Not optional for low-acid foods.
See also: Water-bath canning

Pullet #: A young hen under a year old. Pullets start laying at about five to six months.
See also: Dual-purpose breed

R

Raised bed #: A garden bed built up above the surrounding ground, often framed with wood or block. Drains well, warms early in spring, and saves your back. Filled with a compost-rich mix, it's the most productive square footage in most yards.
See also: Top-dress

Roost #: The bar chickens perch on to sleep. A 2×4 laid flat lets them cover their toes in winter.
See also: Coop

Root cellar #: A cool, dark, humid space (a basement corner, a buried bin, an insulated closet) where storage crops keep for months. The original refrigerator.
See also: Storage crop

Row cover #: Lightweight fabric laid over plants or draped over hoops. Holds a few degrees of warmth, keeps insects off, and shades tender seedlings from August sun. Comes in weights from insect netting to frost blanket.
See also: Season extension Semi-hardy

Run #: The fenced outdoor area attached to the coop where the flock scratches, dust-bathes, and forages in the daytime. Plan 8 to 10 square feet per bird.
See also: Coop Chicken tractor

S

Scratch #: Cracked grains scattered on the ground for chickens to peck at. A treat and a way to get them turning the deep litter, not a complete feed.
See also: Deep litter

Season extension #: Any trick that stretches the growing season on either end: greenhouse, cold frame, row cover, low tunnel, mulch. The greenhouse stage of the flywheel is season extension.
See also: Cold frame Row cover Greenhouse

Seed potatoes #: Whole small potatoes or cut chunks with at least one eye each, planted to grow a potato crop. Buy certified disease-free seed potatoes rather than planting grocery-store ones, which are often treated to stop sprouting.
See also: Chitting Slips

Semi-hardy #: Survives a light frost but not a hard freeze: lettuce, cauliflower, chard, celery, cilantro. Row cover buys them a few extra weeks.
See also: Hardy Tender Row cover

Sets #: Small dormant bulbs, usually onions, planted instead of seed for a faster, easier crop. The planner says "Plant" rather than "sow" for crops that go in as sets.
See also: Slips Seed potatoes

Slips #: Rooted sprouts grown from a sweet potato, planted into warm soil to grow a new crop. Sweet potatoes are never grown from seed.
See also: Sets

Soil test #: A lab analysis of your soil's pH and nutrient levels, usually through your county extension office for a few dollars. Tells you what to add instead of guessing.
See also: pH NPK

Sow #: To plant seed. "Direct sow" means putting seed straight into the garden bed where the plant will grow, instead of starting it in a tray. Roots, beans, corn, and most greens are direct-sown because they dislike being moved.
See also: Direct sow Start trays

Spring garden #: Everything planted in spring: cool-season crops as soon as the ground can be worked, then warm-season crops once frost is past. The "Spring garden" button in the planner selects both.
See also: Fall garden Cool-season crop Warm-season crop

Start #: A young plant grown from seed, ready to go into the garden. Also called a seedling or transplant. You can grow your own starts in trays or buy them at a nursery.
See also: Start trays Transplant

Start trays #: Shallow containers with small cells, filled with seed-starting mix, used to grow starts indoors or under cover before the garden is ready for them. "Start trays by Aug 6" in the planner means: sow the seed in trays by that date so the plants are big enough to transplant on time.
See also: Start Transplant Bottom watering

Storage crop #: A crop grown to be kept for months without processing: winter squash, potatoes, onions, garlic, cabbage, beets, carrots. The fall garden is largely storage crops.
See also: Cure Root cellar

Succession planting #: Sowing a short row of the same crop every couple of weeks instead of all at once, so the harvest comes in a steady stream rather than one glut. Radishes, lettuce, beets, cilantro, and beans are the classic succession crops. In the planner, "Sow another round" is a succession sowing.
See also: Sow Bolt

T

Tender #: Killed by any frost: tomatoes, peppers, basil, squash, beans. Planted after the last frost, harvested before the first.
See also: Warm-season crop Last frost

Thin #: Pulling out extra seedlings so the ones left have room to grow. Seed is sown thickly because not every seed comes up; thinning fixes the crowding. Beet and lettuce thinnings are salad.
See also: Direct sow

Top-dress #: Spreading compost or fertilizer on the surface of a bed and leaving it there, rather than digging it in. Worms and rain carry it down; soil structure stays intact.
See also: Compost Mulch

Transplant #: Moving a start from its tray or pot into the garden bed. Also the plant itself. Transplanting works for crops that tolerate root disturbance (tomatoes, brassicas, lettuce) and lets you get a head start while the garden is still too cold or too busy.
See also: Start Harden off

Trellis #: Any structure a climbing plant grows on: netting, a cattle panel arch, a fence, strings from a bar. Keeps fruit off the ground and picking easy.
See also: Vertical growing

V

Vertical growing #: Growing up instead of out: trellised cucumbers, pole beans, tomatoes on stakes, squash on a fence. Pulls more food from the same footprint.
See also: Trellis

W

Warm-season crop #: A crop that needs warm soil and dies at frost: tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, corn, melons, basil. Planted after the last spring frost. The quick ones can be sown again in midsummer for a fall harvest.
See also: Cool-season crop Tender

Water-bath canning #: Sealing jars of high-acid food (tomatoes with added acid, pickles, jams, fruit) by boiling them in a covered pot of water. Safe only for acidic foods.
See also: Pressure canning

Missing a word? Tell Erik and it'll get added.