with Teri Knight
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Cool tools for the garden
Once again I dip into my fav magazine and find a perfect Garden Bite as spring approaches.
I’ve talked many times about buying quality tools and how much I love my garden fork. That’s on the list of ‘Most Valuable Tools’ for the gardener.
Also called Digging Fork, this tool is perfect for digging up tubers and other plants where you do NOT want to damage roots. It really helps in loosening … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Spring tips from Northern Gardener archives
One hundred fifty years! That’s how long Northern Gardener has been publishing gardening advice to those of us living in cold climates. Or as I call us, Extreme Gardeners.
They will be sharing tips from the past over the course of this year. Grab a subscription, check out their online blog. I don’t get paid to say this, it’s simply one of the very best resources for “extreme gardeners”.
Today’s archived tips … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Japanese beetle and the deep freeze
The University of Minnesota Extension noted that we had the coldest January we’ve had in 8 years. So how did the Japanese Beetle fare? After all, the little grubs live in the soil all winter. I’m hoping they froze their you-know-whats off…
As temperatures cool off in the fall, the grubs burrow into the soil, about 2 to 6 inches. They’ll tunnel even deeper if the soil gets too cold during the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: The Year of the Lilac
The National Garden Bureau has chosen 2022 to be the Year of the Lilac. You may ask why? Lilacs are among the most carefree spring-flowering, multi-stemmed, deciduous shrubs (or small trees).
They are well-loved for their toughness, reliability, and fragrance. My area has battled some with lilac blight. And another Garden Bite on blight.
That said, lilacs are some amazing shrubs/small trees. There are about 30 species of lilacs, Latin … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Change is gonna come, weather we like it or not!
The only constant thing in life is change and that really follows us into the garden. Whether it’s change WE choose, the PLANT chooses, a hungry critter chooses or the weather!
And this Winter has been all over the place! With drought last year and sustained cold this winter along with mini stretches of really warm temps, we’ll have to see how it plays out in the garden. … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Sod busting – turning lawn into landscape
More and more, a trend is to break up your lawn and fill it with native plants. There are a ton of reasons and I’ve discussed many of them on Garden Bite!
But how should you tackle getting rid of that lawn? The most brutal method is a shovel and your back!
It’s also the best way in terms of cutting up that sod and removing all offending lawn grass. However, … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Garden trends 2022
Some trends for the garden in 2022 include Gardening For Climate Change. If you live in an area prone to wildfires, there are some plants that you really may want to consider. First up are drought tolerant plants, they’re less likely to ignite immediately. Firewise in Minnesota (DNR) has more information that works for any of us. Click on the 50 things you can do to protect your home. Here’s a short list: … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Perennials for shade
All I have is shade, is there any other plant beside Hosta? I’ve heard that so many times. And the answer is still the same. YES! Let’s first evaluate shade. First note that the amount of sunlight does NOT have to be all at one time and the vast majority of us have SOME sun at points throughout the day.
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Bareroot plants
Bare-root plants are typically one to perhaps even 3 years old when dug out of the ground where they’ve been growing. They’re shipped to you with no soil, just moist peat moss around the roots.
Bareroot plants are dormant and prefer to be planted in the cold! You just need to be able to dig a hole in the soil. These plants need to be planted right away. If not, you need to keep them refrigerated … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: More to a salad than lettuce
An article on more to salads than lettuce from the National Garden Bureau really caught my eye. As someone who brings salad to work for lunch nearly every day, I can attest to the fact that there are plenty of greens to spice up your salad and add even more nutritional value.
Arugula is a favorite of mine, it has a great bite and is easy to grow. Plant seed as soon … [Continue reading]