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Growing Organic Food in Your Backyard

Grow Better Food!
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    • Grow Tomatoes in a Hoop House
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If you grow your own food because it’s better than what you can get in the grocery store, this website is for you.

Grow-your-own is better because it:

  • Tastes marvelous
  • Is healthier
  • Is organic
  • Is safe

But, mainly, SHF readers grow their own because people say WOW! when they put it on the table.

The provenance of food is all important. Knowing how it was grown and who grew it (you) gives you assurance that your food is safe and healthy. Grocery store food can never live up to this.

SHF provides the knowledge

Suburban Hobby Farmer helps give you the knowledge of how to grow food in your backyard. But not just any food. You can grow food that your people will love.

Don’t miss a SHF article. Sign up for the Newsletter by adding your email below.

This Is What You’ll Get

Once every two weeks, on Wednesday, you’ll receive an email newsletter with three links to timely articles.

The email will contain the article titles, short descriptions and the links. And not much else.

You can UNSUBSCRIBE easily at any time by using the link at the bottom of the email.

These articles cover:

  • New food growing ideas that you can try
  • Mistakes I’ve made so you don’t repeat them
  • Sources for free stuff
  • Strategies for dealing with backyard garden problems
  • “How to” tutorials for growing food in your backyard.

You can unsubscribe from the email easily and instantly. I will never send you spam.

You can also change your email address at any time via a handy link on each email.

Don’t want to wait?

If you don’t want for the next Newsletter issue, why not check out some of the most popular articles. See the list below:

Winter Sowing & Cold Frame

Winter Sowing Made Better

It’s April 3 (not really, but let’s pretend) and the temperature still drops below 32 degrees at night, but I’m already eating lettuce. The secret is combining winter sown lettuce in a cold frame or hoop house. Want to know how I’m doing it?
Read More
Tumbling Compost Bin

Do Rotating Compost Bins Work?

I’ve been using tumbling or rotating compost bins for over 10 years. There are advantages and disadvantages to a tumbler over a compost pile on the ground. This is what I know …
Read More
Walls Of Water

Wall Of Water for Tomatoes

Walls O Water, water teepees & season extenders promise to give you more & better tomatoes. Learn the pros and cons of using Walls O Water to extend the growing season for tomatoes.
Read More
Seed Starting Mix

Which Seed Starting Mix is Best?

Seed starting mix can make or break your seedlings. I tested the top OMRI-listed products & was surprised by the result. Read this to learn which one performed best.
Read More
Hoop House Kits Review

Hoop House Kits

Read this comparison of three hoop house kits from leading online greenhouse vendors … including the one I purchased and have been using for three years.
Read More
Soil Block Maker

Soil Block Makers Vs. Paper Pots

Two thrifty and eco-friendly ways to hold the soil when starting seeds indoors are soil blocks and paper pots. Read this comparison of the two methods.
Read More
Get Rid of Gnats

Get Rid of Gnats

A few fungus gnats on vegetable seedlings may seem harmless, but the larvae could be eating the roots. Beneficial nematodes, Neem oil and sticky traps work for getting rid of gnats.
Read More
Downspout Diverters

Rain Barrel Downspout Diverters

I’ve been using rain barrel down spout diverterd for many years now. This handy guide shares what I’ve learned and reviews the most popular diverters. You’ll want to see this article before buying one.
Read More
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Meet the Blogger

Bill Brikiatis

Hello! I’m Bill Brikiatis. I started this website in 2010 to help you get better at growing organic food in your backyard.

I’ve been growing fruits and vegetables for nearly all my life. And I'm over 60.

That’s not to say that I don’t make mistakes. I make plenty, then I write about them so both you and I get better at growing great things to eat.

You can read more about me and Suburban Hobby Farmer on my about page.

Most Popular on SHF

  1. How to Get Free Seeds from the U.S. Government. It's Easy If You Know How
  2. How to Use Chicken Manure Pellets in the Vegetable Garden
  3. Which Seed Starting Mix is Best? I Tested Them
  4. What Are the Benefits of Pruning Tomato Plants?
  5. I've Used a Rain Barrel Downspout Diverter for 10 years. Here's What I Know.
  6. Grow Millions of Cucumbers in a Hoop House
  7. I Shopped for Hoop House Kits. A Review of the One I Bought.
  8. Do Tumbling Compost Bins Work?
  9. Can you plant potatoes in the fall? Absolutely!
  10. What are the Best Potting Benches for Vegetable Growers?

Search This Site for Articles

Growing Tomatoes

Growing Tomatoes

Learn Everything I Know About Growing Tomatoes

Extending the Growing Season

  1. A Hoop House is a Tomato Growing Machine
  2. Coldframe Kits Make It Easy to Extend the Growing Season
  3. Grow a Million Cucumbers in a Hoop House
  4. I Shopped for Hoop House Kits. A Review of the Three I Considered
  5. Growing Salad Greens in Winter. Here's How to Do It
  6. Better Tomatoes with Walls O Water
  7. How to Grow Carrots in Winter
  8. Winter Sowing Made Better

Improving Soil

  1. How to Use Chicken Manure Pellets
  2. Three Important Soil Building Techniques
  3. Grasscycling and Composting Grass Clippings
  4. What is "Deep Litter" in a Chicken Coop?
  5. Why Grow Cover Crop and Which Ones?
  6. Mulching Raised Garden Beds
  7. Five Gardening Ideas from Building Soils Naturally
  8. Should You Use Neptune's Harvest Liquid Fertilizer?
  9. How to Use Aquarium Fish Water to Fertilize Plants
  10. Using Chop & Drop to Improve Your Soil
  11. How to Improve Your Soil
  12. What is OMRI? Why Should Organic Gardners Care?
  13. Winter Ground Covers for Vegetable Gardens

Collecting Water with Rain Barrels & Downspout Diverters

  1. My Automatic Downspout Diverter
  2. Rain Barrel Downspout Diverters
  3. Fixing an Overflowing Rain Barrel
  4. Oatey Mystic Rainwater Collection System / Downspout Diverter

Composting Articles

  1. Do Tumbling Compost Bins Work?
  2. How to Compost Faster
  3. Worm Composting Not So Easy
  4. Worm Composting Not So Easy, Part II
  5. Worm Composting Not So Easy, Part II
  6. Free, 77-page Worm Composting Guide
  7. Grasscycling and Composting Grass Clippings
  8. The Best Worm Food
  9. Making Compost in a Chicken Coop

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