New here? Start with one small thing.

You do not need to know everything about your home and garden. You never will, and you do not have to. You only ever need the next small thing. This page gives you yours, for the place you live and the season you are in.

A tiny seedling with two new leaves — A seedling, two days old

First, the part nobody tells you

You are not behind. There is no schedule you missed, and a garden does not care how old you are or whether anyone in your family ever grew one.

You do not need a green thumb. That is not a real thing. The people who are good at this simply killed more plants than you have, and paid attention while they did it.

You cannot really break anything. The worst that can happen is a plant dies, you are out a dollar or two, and you know one more thing than you did this morning.

And you do not need the words. Nobody is going to quiz you on Latin names. If you can fill a cup with water, you already have the hardest part.

So here is the whole promise of this page. We give you one small, real thing to do, for exactly where you live. Not a course. Not a checklist a mile long. One thing, then you are done for today.

STEP ONE

Tell us where you live.

Just your town, nothing else. Your frost date is the single most useful number in growing anything, and it is different for every place. Set it once, and half the confusing advice on the internet quietly sorts itself out.

Where do you live?

Pick your town above and your first answer appears here.

The only skill you need

Here it is, the whole secret: come back when the season turns. Spring, summer, fall, and winter each ask for a few small things. We will always tell you the next one. You never have to hold it all in your head. That is the entire job. You have already done today's part.

YOUR ACTUAL FIRST THING

Grow something you cannot kill

If you would rather start than just read, here is the smallest real beginning. It works in a single pot on a step or a windowsill, and it is very hard to get wrong. Pick one: a pinch of lettuce or spinach seeds, or a small pot of basil. All three forgive almost everything.

Get a pot with a hole in the bottom, and a bag of potting mix. Any garden centre, hardware store, or even a grocery store has both. Together they cost less than a sandwich.
Fill the pot and water it until water runs out the bottom. Now the soil is ready, not the dry stuff straight from the bag.
Scatter a small pinch of seeds on top. Cover them with a thin layer of soil, about as deep as a seed is wide. Seeds are not fussy. Roughly is fine.
Put it where it gets light. A bright windowsill, a step, a balcony rail. Move it outside only once your last frost, the date above, has passed.
Keep the top of the soil damp, not soaked. A splash every day or two. That is the whole job.

What success looks like

In a week or two, tiny green loops push up out of the soil. That is the moment. You grew something. A few weeks later you are putting your own leaves on a sandwich.

If nothing comes up

It was almost always too dry or too cold, and almost never you. Keep it a little damper and a little warmer, and try again. A fresh packet of seeds costs about a dollar, and the second try nearly always works.

That is the entire craft, shrunk down to one pot. Everything else on this site is just this, made a little bigger and matched to your weather. There is no rush to reach it.

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The whole one-pot starter kit

Everything from the steps above, nothing extra. One tap opens your Amazon cart with the lot, so you can look it over and change anything before you buy.

Add the whole kit to my Amazon cart

A few pots with drainage Small pots with holes and saucers, so water escapes and you can start more than one thing.
A bag of potting mix Light, fluffy soil made for pots. Not garden dirt, which packs down hard.
A packet of easy greens A mesclun mix of lettuces and leaves. You cut what you need and it grows back.
A small watering can A gentle pour for seedlings, kinder than a heavy hose or a tipping cup.

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When you are ready, your year in four steps

No rush, and not today unless you want it. When that one pot has you curious, this is where each season points next. One door at a time, only when you feel like it.

Seeds, a seed packet, and small sprouts — Spring

SPRING

Start a few seeds at the right time.

Growing season

SUMMER

Keep things alive through the heat.

Garden planner

A basket of harvest with falling leaves — Autumn

AUTUMN

Get one last crop in, then rest the beds.

Frost countdown

An open almanac book by a hearth and a frosted branch — Winter

WINTER

Plan next year by the fire.

The almanac

Questions, answered plainly

I have never grown anything. Is this really for me?

Yes. This whole site is built for the first time you try. Start with one thing on this page and ignore the rest until you want it.

Do I have to buy anything?

No. Every tool here is free and needs no account. The kit above is only if you want it.

What if I kill the plant?

You probably will kill a few. Everyone does. It costs a dollar in seeds and teaches you more than any guide. Try again next week.

I do not have a yard. Can I still do this?

Yes. The pot above is all you need. A sunny windowsill or a balcony rail will grow herbs and greens all season. Most of this site works just as well for a balcony as for an acre.

Where do I go next?

Pick the season you are in above and follow that one link. That is the next small thing.