Disclosure

Honesty is the soil this whole site grows in. Before you dig into our planting guides, design roundups, or plant care tips, we want you to know exactly how The Tended Garden works behind the scenes — how we fund the site, when we accept products or partnerships, and how that never changes what we actually tell you. This page lays it all out plainly, no fine print games.

Editorial Independence Comes First

Every article we publish, whether it is a side yard makeover roundup or a guide to keeping a fern alive indoors, is written and shaped by our own experience and research. No advertiser, brand, or sponsor gets to preview, edit, or approve our content before it goes live. If a plant, tool, or product does not perform well, we say so — even if it happens to be from a company we have worked with before. You can read more about how we research, fact-check, and write in our Editorial Policy, and get to know the people behind the site on our About Us page.

Affiliate Links and Commissions

Some links on The Tended Garden — for example, links to seed brands, garden tools, planters, or grow lights we recommend — are affiliate links. This means that if you click through and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission. This comes at absolutely no extra cost to you; the price you pay stays the same whether you use our link or not.

We only recommend products we would genuinely suggest to a friend standing in our own backyard or plant room. Commission potential never determines whether something gets recommended — usefulness, quality, and real-world performance do. For the full breakdown of how these partnerships work and which networks we participate in, see our dedicated Affiliate Disclaimer.

Sponsored Content and Partnerships

Occasionally, a brand may sponsor a post or ask us to feature a product as part of a paid collaboration. When that happens, we label it clearly — usually with a note at the top of the article stating it is sponsored or created in partnership with a brand. We do not run "disguised" ads dressed up as organic articles. If you are a brand or business interested in working with us, our Collaboration page explains how that process works and what we require in terms of honesty and disclosure.

Sponsorship never buys a good review. If a sponsored product does not hold up in our garden beds or under our grow lights, our readers hear about it, plain and simple.

Gifts, Samples, and Free Products

From time to time, companies send us gardening tools, seed packets, planters, or décor items to try out — sometimes with no obligation attached, sometimes as part of a review request. Receiving a free product never guarantees positive coverage. We test these items the same way we would test something we bought ourselves: in real garden beds, on windowsills, and through a few seasons when possible, before forming an opinion.

If a specific post was made possible by a gifted product, we note that within the article itself, so you always know the context behind our take.

Our Opinions Stay Our Own

Whether we are ranking side yard landscaping ideas, comparing stair railing plant hangers, or walking through beginner vegetable garden layouts, the opinions expressed are ours, formed from hands-on experience, trial and error, and plenty of research. We are not required to give positive feedback in exchange for products, links, or partnerships, and we never accept payment specifically to write a favorable review.

Results in gardening always vary depending on climate, soil, sunlight, and care — so any recommendation we make is a starting point based on our own conditions and experience, not a guaranteed outcome for your space. For broader context on how we frame advice and its limitations, our Disclaimer goes into more detail.

How This Fits With Our Other Policies

This Disclosure page works alongside several other policies that govern how the site runs. Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle any personal data, our Cookie Policy covers tracking technology used on the site, and our Terms of Use outline the rules for using our content. If you engage with us on social platforms, our Pinterest Disclaimer and Community Guidelines explain what to expect there, and our Image Credits page details how we source and credit photography used across the site.

Questions About This Disclosure

We would rather over-explain than leave anything vague. If something in this page is unclear, or you want to know whether a specific post involves a paid partnership, affiliate link, or gifted product, reach out any time at [email protected]. We are happy to clarify, and we take these questions seriously because trust is the whole point of a site like this one.

Thanks for reading closely enough to care about how things work behind the scenes — it is exactly the kind of attention that keeps a garden, and a website, honest.