with Teri Knight
Click on the link below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: The beasts are back – Japanese beetles return (and some good news)
The beasts are back. I found my first Japanese beetles on my native Leadplant. Grabbed him, squished him. Then I wandered over to my roses and found 2 more. Two days later, there were 10 of them munching on the last of the roses on my ‘Music Box’ rose.
I’ve armed up with my bucket of soapy water.
Japanese beetles feed on the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Trees for allergy sufferers
Last week I talked about how allergy season is growing. Climate change, with it’s warming temperatures earlier in the season has meant that trees are triggered into flowering earlier. Today I want to talk about trees that are less likely to cause the ah-choos.
As mentioned, trees are the biggest contributors to allergy season. Some trees are monoecious, meaning that individual trees produce both male and female flowers. Other trees are known as … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness in the garden
Sunday we celebrate Independence Day. But this year, again, is different for Americans. The pandemic is slowed but the scars remain and the call to remind ourselves of our Declaration of Independence: paraphrased, We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all people are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Drought tolerant perennials
While my area had some rain, still, it wasn’t nearly as much as the plants would have liked. There are some hardy, tolerant perennials I want to share.
Let’s begin with yarrow. One of my favorites for dry times and long lasting flowers. I have red yarrow now and it started flowering last week. Butterflies love to perch on it.
From ‘Moonshine’, with it’s silvery foliage and yellow flowers to red and pastels, these are … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Dividing iris
Are your irises rising out of the ground? They’ve been left alone for years and are now fighting for room!
Generally it’s a good idea to divide your iris every 3 to 4 years. Dividing iris should be done 4 to 6 weeks after blooming, so sometime between July and August according to the University of Minnesota Extension. This year, 2021, it may be earlier since our plants have been blooming a little earlier with … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Climate change and allergies
If you have allergies, it’s probably felt like a long season… and it is. Yup, another issue you can associate with climate change. The wave of over 90 degree temperatures we’ve had has done more than make our lawns crunchy and our annuals wilt, it’s told other plants to kick into action and start producing… early!
Which means POLLEN! According to the Harvard School of Public Health, pollen counts have been increasing over the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Lawns and drought
Lawns are looking rough and we haven’t even made it to JULY!
Kentucky bluegrass, which is what most lawns are, can start turning brown after about 7 days without water.
This browning appearance is the grass going into dormancy in order to survive the drought. Some leaf tissue will die, but the base and roots of the grass are still alive and will green up when water returns. (I’m hopeful, because I might as well … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Garden bed renewal
Sometimes you just have to start over. I know, it can be painful but pulling out plants that have become overgrown and loaded with weeds is sometimes easier than trying to pick through it.
When I first bought my home in 2012 it was a mess. I ripped out the overgrown mess and,the spent, spirea, siberian iris and hosta. When a garden hasn’t been tended for a while, which is what happened when I bought … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Hummingbirds
The little garden jewel, the hummingbird, the bestower of Joy…
Hummingbirds have long been a part of traditional western cultures. They represent joy and tenacity. The hummingbird’s wing movement, which uses the up stroke as well as the down stroke for power, appears to be the sign for infinity. They also symbolize eternity. In Caribbean cultures, it is believed that hummingbirds represent those we love who have passed on. So if you see a hummingbird, perhaps that’s … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min Garden Bite radio show: Weeds in the vegetable garden
The heat wave those of us in the Upper Midwest have experienced has been mostly okay for our tomatoes, peppers and herbs (so long as we watered them).
But that means it’s been pretty good for the weeds too!
I just weeded yesterday! HA!
Lightly cultivating is a way to get those annual weeds but the perennial weeds are more industrious, their roots tend to break off underground and just make more! Hand … [Continue reading]