The Slow Harvest Companion

Color slowly. Rest deeply.

Slow Harvest is fifteen botanical portraits of the plants we grow and eat, from garlic and heirloom tomatoes to lavender and chamomile. This page is its quiet companion: the story behind each plant, how to grow it yourself, and a few small rituals for winding down.

Get the printable Companion Edition, $6.99 →

How to use this page

Each page of the book has a QR code that brings you here. Find your page below, read its story while you color, and try the "grow it" note when the season comes around. Nothing here is homework. It's an invitation to slow down.

Page by page

1 · Heirloom Tomatoes

The story. An heirloom is a variety whose seeds have been saved and passed down for generations, often within a single family. Many carry names like Cherokee Purple or Mortgage Lifter, each with its own history.

Grow it. Start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last spring frost, then plant out once nights stay warm.

2 · Garlic

The story. Garlic is one of the few crops planted in fall and harvested the next summer. It spends the winter quietly rooting under the soil.

Grow it. In October, plant single cloves pointy end up, about 2 inches deep. Harvest in early summer when the lower leaves turn brown.

3 · Kale & Rainbow Chard

The story. Kale gets sweeter after a frost, as the plant turns starches into sugars to protect itself from the cold.

Grow it. Sow in late summer for a fall and winter harvest. Pick the outer leaves and the plant keeps growing.

4 · Heirloom Carrots

The story. Carrots once came mostly in purples and yellows. The bright orange we know today became popular in Europe centuries later.

Grow it. Sow directly in loose, stone-free soil and keep it evenly moist until the feathery tops appear.

5 · Beets

The story. Slice a beet and you'll find rings, like a tree. Both root and leaves are edible, so nothing goes to waste.

Grow it. Each wrinkled "seed" is a cluster of seeds. Thin seedlings to 3 inches apart and eat the thinnings as greens.

6 · Winter Squash & Pumpkins

The story. Winter squash is harvested in fall but named for how long it keeps. Properly cured, many varieties last for months.

Grow it. Give vines room to roam. Cure harvested squash in a warm, dry spot for about two weeks before storing.

7 · Peas on the Trellis

The story. Peas are one of the first crops of spring and love cool weather. (Ornamental sweet pea flowers are for looking, not eating. Garden peas are the ones you eat.)

Grow it. Sow as soon as the soil can be worked in early spring, with a trellis for the tendrils to climb.

8 · Onions & Shallots

The story. Braiding onions by their dried tops is an old way to store the harvest, hung somewhere cool and airy.

Grow it. Plant sets in early spring. Harvest when the tops flop over, then dry them before braiding.

9 · Radishes

The story. The speediest crop in the garden: some radishes go from seed to plate in about four weeks.

Grow it. Sow a short row every couple of weeks in spring and fall for a steady supply.

10 · Lettuce

The story. Seen from above, a head of lettuce forms a natural spiral, one of the garden's quiet geometries.

Grow it. Lettuce prefers cool weather and light shade in summer. Cut outer leaves to keep it producing.

11 · Peppers

The story. Sweet peppers and fiery chilies are the same species. Most green peppers simply haven't ripened to red, yellow or orange yet.

Grow it. Peppers love heat. Start indoors early and wait for warm soil before planting out.

12 · Eggplant

The story. Eggplant is a cousin of the tomato and potato. Its name comes from early varieties that were small, white and egg-shaped.

Grow it. Plant in the warmest, sunniest spot you have. Harvest while the skin is still glossy.

13 · Basil

The story. Pinching off basil's flower spikes keeps the plant focused on producing leaves.

Grow it. A sunny windowsill works year-round. Harvest from the top to keep it bushy.

14 · Lavender

The story. Lavender has been tucked into linens and pillows for centuries for its calming scent, a natural fit for a bedtime book.

Grow it. Full sun and well-drained soil. It's drought-tolerant once established, and hates wet feet.

15 · Chamomile

The story. Those tiny daisy-like flowers are what goes into chamomile tea, one of the oldest bedtime rituals.

Grow it. Easy from seed and often reseeds itself. Pick the flowers when fully open and dry them for tea.

Coloring tips

  • Paper: Print on bright white 8.5x11 paper, or cardstock (65 to 110 lb) for colored pencils.
  • Layering: Build color in light layers instead of pressing hard. Blend with a lighter shade or a colorless blender.
  • Pace: One page per evening is plenty. That's the point.

Listen

Slow Harvest is also becoming a sleep podcast: the stories of the plants we eat, told slowly enough to drift off to. Episodes are on the way. Email us and we'll send the first one the night it airs.

Grow what you color

Plan your own slow harvest with Plotline, our free garden planner. It shows what you can still plant this season where you live.

Our bedtime ritual picks

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