Seeds & Weeds Podcast

In this episode of the Seeds and Weeds podcast, we're sharing our list of the ten plants we think every gardener should grow!
With so many amazing crops to choose from, narrowing it down wasn’t easy — but we selected plants that are reliable, beautiful, productive, and useful in more than one way. Many of these crops offer dual or even triple purposes, giving you food, medicine, pollinator support, and garden beauty all in one plant.
We begin with powerful herbs and flowers like calendula, a cold-tolerant annual that thrives in the garden, self-seeds readily, supports pollinators, and offers both culinary and apothecary uses. We also talk about comfrey, a perennial powerhouse known for its deep taproot, dynamic accumulation of nutrients, and incredible value as a natural fertilizer — along with its traditional medicinal applications. Another standout is echinacea, a native perennial that supports local ecosystems while providing beautiful blooms and versatile medicinal parts from root to flower.
From the vegetable world, we highlight staples like tomatoes and peppers, two of the most popular garden crops for good reason. Tomatoes bring unmatched flavor and diversity, while peppers offer ease of growing, container-friendliness, and a wide spectrum of sweetness and heat levels. We also discuss beans, one of our foundational crops here at the farm — whether pole or bush varieties, beans provide fresh harvests, dry storage staples, pollinator support, and educational opportunities for gardeners of all ages.
To bring in additional perspective, we're joined by Enoch Graham from The Urban Gardener, who specializes in small-space gardening. Enoch shares his favorite compact varieties, including leafy greens perfect for containers, multi-use crops like peas and beets, and quick-growing favorites such as radishes. His approach emphasizes maximizing space, stacking functions, and choosing plants that deliver multiple benefits — a philosophy that aligns beautifully with our own.
Shop Herb, Flower, and Veggies Seeds
https://www.smallhousefarm.com/seed-collection/
Our Totally Tomatoes Episode:
https://seedsandweedspodcast.com/totally-tomatoes/ 
Our recent Episode All About Peppers:
https://seedsandweedspodcast.com/all-about-peppers-in-the-garden-kitchen-and-apothecary/ 
Enoch's last visit to Seeds & Weeds:
https://seedsandweedspodcast.com/jon-jackson-enoch-graham/ 
Check out Enoch's Youtube channel and Let's Get Growing Show
https://www.youtube.com/@theUrbanGardener 
Join our Patreon community!
https://www.patreon.com/c/smallhousefarm
 
 
Support for the Seeds and Weeds Podcast comes from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. Baker Creek offers America’s largest selection of heirloom and open-pollinated seed varieties from around the world – and right here at home. For more than 25 years, saving, sharing, and celebrating heirloom seeds has been their mission and their passion. Find out more at rareseeds.com.
Support the show

In this flavor-packed conversation, we dive deep into the vibrant world of peppers—from seed to harvest, kitchen to apothecary. Timed perfectly for late-winter seed starting, this episode walks you through everything you need to know to successfully grow thriving pepper plants, including seed-starting tips, heat and light requirements, transplanting, and maximizing yields in the garden.
But the journey doesn’t stop at the harvest. You’ll explore how peppers transform in the kitchen—fresh, dried, fermented, or smoked—and how heat levels (thanks to capsaicin) influence both flavor and culinary creativity. We share our personal experiences crafting unique hot sauces and spice blends straight from the garden.
Finally, discover the powerful medicinal side of peppers, including their role in circulation, digestion, and topical pain relief, along with simple ways to incorporate them into your home apothecary.
Whether you love sweet bells or fiery super-hots, this episode is your complete guide to growing, using, and benefiting from one of the most versatile plants in the garden. 🌶️
Dive further with more information:
Planning your garden in 3 Simple Steps (featuring info about seed starting equipment): previous podcast episode: https://seedsandweedspodcast.com/planning-your-garden-in-three-simple-steps/
Seed Starting Tips & Tricks on Youtube: https://youtu.be/pEvbvYLrPa0?si=ZQByYqYKPjktINx4
Tabasco Seed Story on YouTube: https://youtu.be/EJQM_U2v5Zs?si=Wtg8Fh2WZZ-sQSdR
Shop Pepper Seeds in the Small House Seed Collection: https://www.smallhousefarm.com/product-category/seeds/peppers/
Shop Small House Salves made with Capsicum: https://www.smallhousefarm.com/product-category/herbal-body-care/salves/
✨ Join our Patreon community for exclusive content, seasonal herb boxes, and more! ​www.patreon.com/smallhousefarm
Connect with us!
IG: @small_house_farm
FB: @smallhousefarm
 
 
Support for the Seeds and Weeds Podcast comes from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. Baker Creek offers America’s largest selection of heirloom and open-pollinated seed varieties from around the world – and right here at home. For more than 25 years, saving, sharing, and celebrating heirloom seeds has been their mission and their passion. Find out more at rareseeds.com.
Support the show

Unlock the secrets to a low-maintenance, high-yield garden. Gardening expert and author Charlie Nardozzi shares how his book The Continuous Vegetable Garden helps growers maximize harvests while reducing time and effort. 
From perennial vegetables and self-seeding crops to succession planting, overwintering, and season extension, this episode delivers practical, approachable techniques to help gardeners enjoy fresh food from early spring through late fall—no matter their garden size or experience level.
Learn more about Charlie and order his book: 
https://www.gardeningwithcharlie.com/
Sign up for Charlie's gardening webinar:
https://www.gardeningwithcharlie.com/webinars/the-continuous-vegetable-garden-webinar/
Order The Continuous Vegetable Garden from Amazon:
https://amzn.to/4qj15SG
Support for the Seeds and Weeds Podcast comes from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. Baker Creek offers America’s largest selection of heirloom and open-pollinated seed varieties from around the world – and right here at home. For more than 25 years, saving, sharing, and celebrating heirloom seeds has been their mission and their passion. Find out more at rareseeds.com.
Support the show

In this first episode of Season 4, we dive into the art and science of herbal extracts—simple, powerful ways to turn the plants you grow, forage, or purchase into food, medicine, and everyday remedies. Explore how the dormant season is the perfect time to slow down, take stock, and work with herbs in the kitchen and apothecary.
This episode breaks down four essential extraction methods—water, fat, alcohol, and vinegar—explaining what each one extracts best and how to use them in real life. From teas, syrups, jellies, and broths to infused oils, salves, tinctures, fire cider, and oxymels, you’ll learn how to pull flavor, color, minerals, and medicinal benefits from plants using accessible, at-home techniques.
Along the way, the conversation is filled with practical tips, seasonal inspiration, and creative ideas for reducing waste, using garden leftovers, and crafting herbal remedies that support stress, sleep, digestion, skin health, and more. Whether you’re brand new to herbalism or deepening your practice, this episode offers approachable guidance and plenty of encouragement to experiment.
If you’ve ever wondered how to get more from the plants in your life—or how to start building your own home apothecary—this episode is a cozy, empowering place to begin. 🌿

✨ Links mentioned in this episode:
Make the Perfect Cup of Herbal Tea https://youtu.be/2q452gOBY3k?si=9XwommsPz5Cgjzpq
Making a Herbal Salve https://youtu.be/Rdq-ccoiBdg?si=-LS-ECsz4o3isv9O
Make Fire Cider https://youtu.be/yUYsSSHdygU?si=4Fwl-aZZDUuOJok8
 
Shop for Herbal Tinctures: https://www.smallhousefarm.com/herbal-tinctures/
 
Harvest Spruce Tips with us! https://youtu.be/qT0GRRM7zXY?si=xboRaEFR7JkXEK56
 
✨ Join our Patreon community for exclusive content, seasonal herb boxes, and more! ​www.patreon.com/smallhousefarm
Connect with us!
IG: @small_house_farm
FB: @smallhousefarm
Support for the Seeds and Weeds Podcast comes from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. Baker Creek offers America’s largest selection of heirloom and open-pollinated seed varieties from around the world – and right here at home. For more than 25 years, saving, sharing, and celebrating heirloom seeds has been their mission and their passion. Find out more at rareseeds.com.
Support the show

✨ Celebrate the Season of Rest and Reflection ✨
In this Winter Solstice special of Seeds & Weeds, we slow down, look back, and dream forward. As the longest night of the year arrives, we reflect on a season of growth—both in the garden and beyond—celebrating milestones, lessons learned, and the rhythms that guide a life rooted in the land.
This episode weaves together solstice traditions from around the world, personal highlights from a banner year for the podcast, and an exploration of juniper, the evergreen herb of winter. Discover juniper’s medicinal magic, cozy culinary uses, and how it can support respiratory health, sore muscles, and seasonal rituals—plus a festive juniper mocktail (or cocktail) recipe to toast the returning light.
Thoughtful, grounding, and inspiring, this episode is an invitation to pause, honor the quiet of winter, and plant seeds for the year ahead. 🌲❄️
Seeds & Weeds recap:
Most downloaded episode of season 3 (2025) : All About Lemon Balm + Mulch in the Garden: https://seedsandweedspodcast.com/summer-solstice-2025-special/

We also mention this great episode: Let’s Chat w/ Jere Gettle: https://seedsandweedspodcast.com/jere-gettle-baker-creek/

GoodPods Podcast of the Month in November 2025!
Bevin received the Seed Stewardship Award in January 2025 from the Central Indiana Seed Swap. Make a plan to attend this awesome event in 2026 if you're in the area. More information at https://hcmga.org/central-indiana-seed-swap
2025 was the year for Herbs in Every Season, which was released in March. We celebrated all year with our Patreon community by crafting seasonal boxes built around the book and inspired by its recipes and content. Get your copy here: https://www.smallhousefarm.com/product/herbs-in-every-season/
✨ Join our Patreon community for exclusive content, seasonal herb boxes, and more! ​www.patreon.com/smallhousefarm
Connect with us!
IG: @small_house_farm
FB: @smallhousefarm
 
 
Support for the Seeds and Weeds Podcast comes from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. Baker Creek offers America’s largest selection of heirloom and open-pollinated seed varieties from around the world – and right here at home. For more than 25 years, saving, sharing, and celebrating heirloom seeds has been their mission and their passion. Find out more at rareseeds.com.
Support the show