Dirty Data is a real-life look at building a backyard garden from the ground up — experiments, mistakes, wins, and everything in between.
Hosted by a working mom in the IT field, this podcast blends practical backyard gardening with a tech-driven way of thinking — testing what works, tracking results, and figuring it out in real time.
If you’ve ever wondered whether gardening is actually worth it, how to make it fit into a busy life, or just want an honest, no-perfect-results journey… you’re in the right place.
🔗 Links to Instagram, YouTube, and gardening tools that I use : https://linktr.ee/dirtydata.gardening
My Garden Is Officially Entering the “Please Send Recipes” Stage
The garden is finally producing—and now I need recipe ideas.
In this episode of Dirty Data, I share my latest harvest totals, including 18 yellow squash, 2 cucumbers, multiple harvests of green onions and cilantro, and an update on what’s coming next in the garden.
I also talk about:
Cilantro bolting as Mississippi temperatures rise
Baby tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash developing
A bell pepper that should be ready soon
What I’m learning from beans and peas
Blossom end rot and the impact of inconsistent watering
How the garden’s return on investment is starting to become real
And most importantly, I’m asking for your help.
What are your favorite squash recipes? What are your go-to cucumber recipes? Share your best casseroles, salads, pickles, and family favorites.
Follow along on Instagram and YouTube at @dirtydata.gardening for videos and updates from the garden.
9 May 2026
The Garden Is Officially Producing: Harvests, Baby Tomatoes, and the Cucumber Takeover
In this episode of Dirty Data, the garden officially moves from setup mode to production mode.
I share my first meaningful harvest of the season, including seven yellow straightneck squash, fresh cilantro, dill, and green onions. The Better Boy and Celebrity tomatoes are now setting baby fruit, and the cucumbers are producing heavily—while also trying to climb onto the tomato plants.
I also talk about the blossom end rot issue that affected my squash, how that problem appears to be improving, and the mixed pepper row experiment that should produce a combination of jalapeños and bell peppers.
The radishes are up, but germination was a little spotty, and I still don’t see the shoulders forming yet. And with an unusually rainy and cooler-than-normal start to the season, I’m beginning to wonder how weather patterns will impact yields this year.
This episode is a real-time look at what happens when a backyard garden starts producing—and what the data is already revealing.
Follow Dirty Data
* Instagram: @dirtydata.gardening
* YouTube: Dirty Data Gardening
* Linktree: dirtydata.gardening 
Topics Covered
* First harvest of the season
* Better Boy vs. Celebrity tomatoes
* Cucumber trellis management
* Squash blossom end rot
* Mixed jalapeño and bell pepper row
* Radish germination concerns
* Rainfall and temperature effects on garden production
23 Apr 2026
What Actually Works? Fertilizer, Empty Space, and Real Results
It’s finally happening… 👀
Baby squash and cucumbers are showing up, tomatoes are flowering, and now we get to see what actually produces.
In this episode, I’m breaking down the real experiment behind my garden:
* Testing 5-5-5 vs Tomato-tone vs fish emulsion
* Already going through 4 lbs of fertilizer (and what that means for cost)
* Filling empty space with radishes to maximize production
* Comparing raised beds, grow bags, and in-ground planting
With fertilizer costs potentially rising, this season isn’t just about growing food—it’s about figuring out what it actually costs to grow it.
I’m tracking everything… and we’ll see what wins.
Follow along for real results, not guesses.
📸 Instagram: dirtydata.gardening
🎥 YouTube: Dirty Data Gardening
15 Apr 2026
I Think I’ve Been Watering My Garden Wrong
Everything in my garden looked fine…
…but I was still doing (at least) one thing wrong.
I’ve been watering every 36 hours, just trying to stay ahead of it—but once I actually checked the soil, I realized that approach wasn’t working the way I thought it was.
In this episode of Dirty Data, I break down what changed, what I’m seeing across different parts of the garden, and why I’m moving away from a fixed watering schedule.
I also share:
• First real harvests
• Green onion “ROI”
• A few plant failures
• A pepper control plant
• Fence progress
If you’re gardening—or thinking about starting—this is where things start to shift from guessing to actually paying attention.
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📲 Follow along on Instagram: @dirtydata.gardening
🌱 Real data. Real garden. Real results.
8 Apr 2026
Seed Starting Data: What Worked, What Failed, and Why My Germination Dropped
🎧 Dirty Data -episode 3
In this episode of Dirty Data, I break down exactly what happened during my seed starting process—and what the data is already telling me.
I started 97 pods using a Jiffy greenhouse and heat mat, tracked my germination rate (74%), and quickly realized that not all plants performed the same.
Some categories thrived—like squash and tomatoes—while others, especially peppers, struggled with much lower success rates.
I also share the real reasons behind some of my failures, including how overplanting and inconsistent monitoring impacted my results.
Plus, I now have an unexpected experiment: comparing a store-bought pepper plant to the ones I grew from seed.
And for the first time, I harvested something from the garden—and it made it straight to the dinner table.
This episode is all about early insights, honest mistakes, and how I’m already adjusting my process moving forward.
🔗 LINKS
Bstrip indoor greenhouse - https://amzn.to/48xyumq
VIVOSUN heat mat - https://amzn.to/41RWqgD
Jiffy 72 cell greenhouse kit - https://amzn.to/4t9kF5W
📸 Follow along on Instagram @dirtydata.gardening for real data, visuals, and garden updates
🗒️ Some of the links above are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
6 Apr 2026
The Data Behind My Garden Setup (Costs + Decisions)
🎧 Dirty Data – Episode 2
In this episode, I break down how I built my garden setup—from raised beds to grow bags to in-ground planting—and what it actually cost before growing anything.
I also walk through what I didn’t fully understand going into it… and what I’d do differently.
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🔗 Links from this episode
Raised Beds (what I used):
Sacia Metal Raised Garden Bed
https://www.wayfair.com/outdoor/pdp/arlmont-co-sacia-metal-outdoor-raised-garden-bed-w110346718.html?piid=1180393966%2C1180393941
Grow Bags (better version I switched to):
https://amzn.to/3Qm2nzT
Retractable Water Hose (worth it):
https://amzn.to/4cdCXMt
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💰 Quick cost snapshot
• Fence: $590
• Raised Beds: $322
• Soil (bulk delivery): $200
• Tools + Water Setup: $200
• Grow Bags: $166
👉 Total: ~$1,478 before harvest
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🎙️ About Dirty Data
Backyard gardening meets real-life experiments—with a data-driven approach.
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🔎 Disclosure
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
3 Apr 2026
Dirty Data Episode 1: Is Gardening Actually Worth It?
I planted about 35 purple hull peas today… and realized I have no idea if any of my gardening is actually worth it.
I’ve been gardening in my backyard for a while now — building beds, buying soil, planting different crops — and I enjoy it. But I’ve never tracked it well enough to know what I’m really getting out of it.
As someone who works in IT, has a doctorate in computer science, and teaches data analysis, that didn’t sit right with me.
So this is where it starts.
In this episode, I’m kicking off my “Dirty Data” experiment — tracking cost, time, and yield in my backyard garden to figure out what it actually produces… and what it’s actually worth.
This episode is the starting point.
Next, I’ll be tracking growth, harvest, and real-world value.
Let’s see what the data says.
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