Honeysuckle vines – the beautiful and the bad


Mon. Oct. 7, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Honeysuckle vines – the beautiful and the bad

I have two outstanding honeysuckle vines.  

The one below is covering an iron sculpture… 

They grow like crazy and offer beautiful trumpet like flowers that attract hummingbirds late into the season. 

Then come these lovely berries…

…but as I was looking up information about those berries, I was stunned to find so much differing and confusing information on whether the berries are toxic. They most definitely are for CERTAIN kinds. … [Continue reading]

Best time to fertilize your lawn


Fri. Oct. 4, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Best time to fertilize your lawn

Although most plants are shutting down right now, your lawn is actively growing.  Fall is the time when lawn grasses use their energy to spread and develop deeper root systems instead of above ground blades.  The best time to fertilize your lawn now to late October.

Using a slow release nitrogen fertilizer, the actively growing plants will use some of the nutrients now and save the unused nitrogen in the frozen soil  … [Continue reading]

October perennial care


Thu. Oct. 3, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: October perennial care

 Last year at this time, we had some crazy wild weather where I live in southeastern Minnesota.  I cited the Old Farmers Almanac which said our Upper Midwest weather for the winter of 2018/19 was supposed to be a little warmer and drier. That wasn’t even close, so I’m not even going to hint at a prediction for this coming Winter!! If you’d like to see what the Almanac says, you can click on that  … [Continue reading]

Bird loss


Wed. Oct. 2, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Bird loss

I was astonished when I heard a report that North America has lots nearly 3 billion birds since 1970. Smithsonian Magazine reports that a study in Science Journal says in less than half a century, the avian population of the continent has declined by some 29 percent, or more than one in four birds.

For the first time, researchers found that threatened species aren’t the only birds suffering population loss. In fact, common birds—including sparrows and  … [Continue reading]

Itoh peonies


Tue. Oct. 1, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Itoh peonies

Apparently I’m late to the game but I had never heard of an intersectional peony, also known as Itoh peony. This plant is a cross between a garden peony and a tree peony. Here’s more on Itoh Peonies from the American Peony Society

The combination means a longer bloom time and a sturdier peony. In 1948, a Japanese plant breeder,Toichi Itoh, achieved what no one else could, the perfect combination that are now called  … [Continue reading]

Planting peonies


Mon. Sep. 30, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Planting peonies

Now’s a great time to plant peonies!  These hardy long lived herbaceous perennials are pretty as specimen plants or borders.

Give them full sun and good drainage. (Although the above beauty was in part shade)  Dig a hole 1 1/2 feet wide and 2 ft. deep, add organic matter such as leaf mold, peat moss or compost.  Plant the peony with it’s “eyes” up no deeper than 2 inches below the soil surface (this is really  … [Continue reading]

Kids gardens and games


Fri. Sep. 27, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Kids gardens and games

There are still so many beautiful flowers doing their thing in our landscapes! I’m loving the neighbors zinnias. My asters and liatris are blazin’.

My blackeyed susans are on their way out but that means they’re ripe of another project.

While the older kids have returned to school, there’s time for some fun with the littlier people in your house! The National Garden Bureau shared some fun ideas involving kids, gardens and games!  … [Continue reading]

Cucumelons and Fish peppers


Thu. Sep. 26, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Cucumelons and Fish peppers!

I’m pretty fortunate. I have listeners who will often share their bounty with me! So far this year I have had the sweetest corn on the cob ever, delicious Yukon gold potatoes and fresh edamame!

And then came the cucumelons and fish peppers. First the darling little cucumelons. Turns out Etsy sells a ton of these by various sellers. Click to find some!

Bridgette dropped those off for me saying our local nursery down  … [Continue reading]

Seeds to sow


Wed. Sep. 25, 2019

Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Seeds to sow

Fall sowing of the seeds of spring germination. It’s a doable deed and you can get a deal to boot! There are some native plant nurseries that have select seeds on sale to sow now and you’ll see results as they spring up next season! What are those natives? 

Prairie Moon Nursery, based out of Minnesota, supplies native plants and seeds to the Upper Midwest. They can hook you up, as well as other  … [Continue reading]