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Uncle Josh Gardens 🌱 Master Gardener & Fruit Tree Grower 🏡 | Homesteader 🌾 | Tech Enthusiast 💻 | 10 Years of Growing

10/27/2026

🍎 Have you ever run into this issue?

Imagine waiting years for your apple tree to produce, only to discover you chose the wrong variety! 😳

Low chill apples like Anna and Dorsett Golden are great for warmer climates, but early blooms can be vulnerable to late spring freezes. ❄️🌸

That’s why checking chill hours, bloom timing, and local frost dates is so important before buying! 🌳

Have you experienced this with your fruit trees? 👇

10/23/2026

🍠 Do you prune your sweet potato vines, or just let them go wild? 🌿

I might have made a HUGE mistake this year! 😳 My sweet potato vines escaped my raised bed and spread nearly 30 FEET into my lawn! 🤯

While all those extra leaves help fuel growth, the vines can also root along the ground and potentially produce smaller sweet potatoes outside the bed.

Next year, I might try growing them vertically instead! 🌱

🍠 Did I help my harvest or hurt it? We’re about to find out!

10/22/2026

🥬 What’s your favorite lettuce to grow? Let me know in the comments! 👇

☀️ If you garden in the South, you know the struggle of growing romaine lettuce only to have it bolt before you can harvest it! 🌱

This year, I’m trying three more heat tolerant varieties!

🥬 Red Sails: Beautiful red leaves packed with anthocyanins, the antioxidants responsible for that gorgeous color!

🥬 Buttercrunch: Sweet, tender, buttery leaves with better heat tolerance than many other butterhead varieties!

🥬 Super Jericho: A romaine type bred for hot climates that can handle warmer temperatures before bolting!

🌱 You can find seeds for all three from my friends over at Park Seed Gardening, along with their BioDome Seed Starting System, which is one of my favorite ways to get seedlings started indoors! 🌿

Which of these would you grow in your garden? 👇

10/21/2026

🌲 Did you already know the truth behind this gardening myth? 🤔

For generations, gardeners have believed that pine needles make soil acidic, especially around blueberries! 🫐 But science tells a different story!

While fresh green pine needles are slightly acidic, using fallen brown pine needles as mulch won’t significantly change your soil’s pH.

And they’re one of my FAVORITE free mulches! 🙌

✅ Retain moisture
✅ Suppress weeds
✅ Regulate soil temperature
✅ Add organic matter

I’ve been using pine needles around my fruit trees for over 10 years, and you can’t beat FREE! 🌳

💬 Have you been using pine needles as mulch, or were you avoiding them because of this myth?

10/20/2026

What are some cool ways YOU split kindling? 🪵🔥

After all the great suggestions on my last video, I decided to try three different tools for splitting kindling without swinging a hatchet!

🪵 Froe: Traditionally used to split wooden shingles, but works great for kindling too!

🔨 Kindling Cracker: A stationary blade that lets you split wood using a hammer instead of swinging an axe.

🪓 Hatchet & Hammer: A method suggested by several of you! While it gives you more control, I’m not a fan of striking metal against metal due to the risk of flying chips.

My favorite of these three might just be the kindling cracker!

Which method would YOU use? Or do you have another trick I should try? 👇

10/19/2026

🌳🍎 What else do you look for when buying fruit trees?

Fall is one of my favorite times to plant fruit trees, but not all trees at the nursery are created equal! 🍂🌱

Here are 6 things I look for before buying:

🍐 Pollination: Some trees need a compatible partner to produce fruit, while others are self fertile.

👍 Size: Bigger isn’t always better! I prefer younger trees with trunks around the thickness of my thumb or smaller.

🌿 Branch Angles: Look for wide, strong branch angles instead of narrow ones that could split later.

🌳 Graft Union: Check for a healthy, well healed graft without damaged or problematic stubs.

🪴 Root Flare: Make sure the tree isn’t buried too deeply in its container.

🔎 Overall Health: Check for damaged branches, pests, and diseases, and ALWAYS research the variety before buying!

💚 A little research now can save you YEARS of frustration later!

10/18/2026

🌳✂️ What pruning questions do you have? Drop them in the comments! 👇

My Black Tartarian cherry tree lost its central leader, but that doesn’t mean it’s done growing! 🍒

I’m training a new leader to take its place, removing dead branches, and cleaning up old stubs to encourage healthy growth. 🌱

🍒 Sweet cherries can be trained with a central or modified leader, depending on the shape you’re after.

💡 Pruning tip: Winter pruning can encourage vigorous spring growth, while summer pruning is often better for controlling size. For cherries, though, major pruning is generally safer during dry summer weather to reduce disease risks!

😂 And yes, I completely mispronounced the cherry variety in the video! It’s actually called Black Tartarian (blak tar-TAIR-ee-un)!

Would you keep this cherry tree tall or prune it to stay short? 🤔

10/17/2026

What are you planting in your fall garden, and where did you get your plants? 🌱🥦

You might be OVERPAYING for your garden plants! 🤯💰

I picked up an ENTIRE tray of vegetable seedlings for just $20 at my local nursery! That’s nearly HALF what I’d pay at a big box store! 🙌

🥦 Cauliflower
🥬 Cabbage
🌱 Mesclun mix
🥬 Pak choy

Some packs even have multiple seedlings you can carefully separate to get MORE plants for your money! 💚

Not only did I fill several garden beds for $20, but I saved time starting seeds and supported a local business! 🪴

🐈 And of course, my lazy garden supervisor was there to help!

Next time you’re shopping for plants, check out your local nursery first! ❤️

10/16/2026

Did you train your fruit trees this year? 🌳🍑

Just ONE growing season can make a huge difference! 🙌

Training branches to grow at roughly 45° angles helps create stronger structure, improve sunlight and airflow, reduce disease pressure, and make harvesting easier! ☀️🍎

I like using soft straps and cinder blocks to gently pull branches into position. 🧱 Just remember to use a loose loop around the branch so you don’t damage the bark or restrict growth as it thickens!

My peach tree now has that classic open vase shape, with no central leader and beautifully angled branches! 🌳

Of course, Ms. Fig had to supervise! 🐈😂

Have you tried training your fruit trees? How did it work out? 👇

10/15/2026

Are you splitting kindling? 🪵🪓 What’s your favorite method?

Here are 3 easy ways to turn cedar logs into kindling! 🔥 Each method has its advantages, but I prefer combining them for better control and less effort.

💪 My favorite method? Laying the wood on its side! It gives me more control and makes splitting smaller pieces easier. However, using a scrap piece of wood to hold the log upright seems like one of the safer options for keeping your hands away from the hatchet!

🙌 Huge shoutout to Gorilla Carts for the awesome cart and Fiskars for the hatchet! Both have been great additions to my firewood setup!

🔥 Good kindling makes starting a fire so much easier!

👇 What’s your favorite way to split kindling?

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Tempe, AZ
85281, 85282, 85283, 85284, 85285, 85287

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