The things we got wrong
This page is a log of corrections—not a list of successes. It exists because gardening mistakes are how you learn what works, and because the first time you trust a tip and it fails, you deserve to know it won’t happen again.
A site that publishes its own corrections is rare enough to be worth trusting. Here’s how we found them, who fixed them, and what we changed so you don’t have to repeat them. The reader’s time is the only currency that matters.
Three we had to fix
These are the three failures that shaped how this site works today. None were intentional, but all taught us something that stuck. The log isn’t finished—just the first three entries.
The wrong soil pH chart
- 1Misleading pH ranges for tomatoes
For months, the tomato-growing guide listed pH ranges of 6.0–7.0 as ideal, based on a secondhand source. Real-world tests showed stunted growth in our trial gardens—until we cross-checked with USDA data. The chart stayed up for six months before anyone noticed. Janelle Kaminski caught it while troubleshooting a volunteer’s failed harvest.
- 2Overly aggressive pruning advice
The basil care page advised cutting stems back by ⅔ after flowering, a method that worked in controlled greenhouses but killed half the plants in home gardens. The tip remained for eight months before a reader’s photo of a withered plant flagged it. Janelle Kaminski updated it after testing with three different pruning ratios in her Ohio garden.
- 3Incorrect seed depth for lettuce
The lettuce guide said to plant seeds ¼ inch deep, but our trial showed they needed no covering—just firm soil. The mistake sat for four months before a subscriber’s email (forwarded to the contact page) pointed out the discrepancy. Janelle Kaminski verified it with seed catalogs and adjusted the guide immediately.
What those three changed
These failures forced three rules into place: every plant fact must cite a primary source, every tip must be tested in at least two real gardens, and corrections must be logged before they’re fixed. The log itself was added last—because admitting mistakes is the hardest part.
Rules that came from mistakes
- 1. Source every claim (from the pH chart error)
- 2. Test in real conditions, not just greenhouses (from the basil pruning mistake)
- 3. Log corrections before publishing fixes (from the lettuce depth oversight)
The people behind this
Janelle Kaminski is the founder and editor of *Flower And Grow*. She’s the one who signed the corrections above—not because she’s perfect, but because she’s the only one who can admit when the site got it wrong.
The log exists because gardening is about trial and error, and the errors belong to the people who made them.
Keeping a log like this is uncomfortable. It means owning up to the times you led readers astray, even when you didn’t mean to. It’s easier to pretend mistakes don’t happen, but that’s how bad advice spreads.
Janelle writes this page in her grandmother’s old notebook, where the margins are already filled with crossed-out notes from her own failures.
One mistake not in the log: the time she overwatered a batch of marigold seedlings until they rotted in their trays. She blamed it on the rain, then on the soil mix, then on herself for not checking the drainage holes. The real lesson?
Even the people who write about plants still learn by watching them die.
If you find something that doesn’t add up, the contact page is where to say so. No email address needed—just the details, and Janelle will add it to the next log.
There will be a next one
This list isn’t finished. The next correction could be about a mislabeled herb, a seasonality error, or a tip that worked in one climate but not another. If you spot one, the contact page is the place to tell us.
We’ll fix it, log it, and learn from it—just like we did with the first three.
The guides are grouped by category: Advice, Aphids, Blooming, Companion Plants, Container Gardens and Diseases.