Dakota Gardener: A gardener bids farewell with 10 lessons learned

By Emily How, Horticulture agent

NDSU Extension – Ward County

I've had the opportunity to garden in North Dakota for the past four years. Looking back on my time here, I have a few lessons to share.

1. Learn to love cool-weather crops. North Dakota’s short growing season means creative thinking. One way to achieve a longer growing season is to use cold-weather crops. Vegetables such as radish, broccoli and spinach can tolerate the cool weather at the beginning of the season. Other crops such as buttercup squash, carrots and kale do well at the end of our season – some even get a bit sweeter after a light frost.
2. August is an enjoyable month. Coming from Texas, I can say that August is not considered very enjoyable. In our gardens, we are either pulling out heat-damaged plants or adding shade cloths to prevent damage. In North Dakota, August is prime time to harvest a lot of your produce.
3. Be patient in the spring. You can plant too early. Sometimes, with certain plants, you can take a gamble and win. Other times, you lose a plant or two.
4. A hungry deer will eat anything! It doesn’t even matter how many marigolds you plant or how high your fence is. Enough said.
5. Grapes do grow here. This was fun to discover, and I have since added five grape vines to my yard: three Valiant varieties and two Blanc varieties. Though the fruit is small and has a large seed, the flavor is amazing, and it produces great juice and jelly.
6. Sungold tomatoes are the superior tomato. The North Dakota State University Variety Trials introduced me to so many wonderful varieties that I enjoyed growing, including the Sungold cherry tomato. This little orange tomato is like eating tiny bursts of sunshine and has become one of my favorite tomatoes.
7. Dill grows like a weed. If you ask my friends what advice I have given them about gardening, it would be “do not plant dill in your garden.” Dill can quickly become an unwanted plant. It produces large quantities of seeds and spreads easily in the wind. You can usually count on a volunteer plant (or two) coming in from the wind, or you may have a friend who can provide you with all your dill needs.
8. Summer is too short to grow a plant you don’t love. For example, if you don’t know, I hate beets! I do not plant beets in my garden; instead, I leave space for something new and different that I haven’t grown before. This year, it was the Beaufort Sweet Potato.
9. Bees sleep in sunflowers. This was a fun morning garden surprise.
10. The people have the best insight. The best lessons I have learned, from varieties to techniques, have come from talking to the people of North Dakota. Sharing stories about gardens has led to new ideas for trellising, as well as the realization that a garden problem was more recurring than I thought. Best of all, it has led to great connections, laughter and some good zucchini bread!

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you and your community over these years. As I leave North Dakota for a new state, I’ll carry with me the gardening lessons, friendships and memories I’ve gained along the way. Keep growing, keep sharing and, most importantly, happy gardening!

NDSU Agriculture Communication – Sept. 29, 2026

Source: Emily How, 701-857-6444, emily.how@ndsu.edu

Editor: Dominic Erickson, 701-231-5546, dominic.erickson@ndsu.edu