Podcast

CompostingGarden MaintenancePodcast

How To Grow: Composting

Learn some alternative ways to make compost beyond just building a pile. Listen to podcast: I have a confession to make. I'm not an active composter. I'd like to think the piles of organic matter I put together in fall will heat up and break down quickly, but invariably other chores take my attention and they slowly decompose to eventually be useable. This method works, but there are other alternatives for making compost right in the garden for those of us who aren't interested in layering, watering, and turning our compost piles to heat...

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CompostingGarden MaintenancePodcastVegetable

How to Grow: Composting in Place

Learn about composting your garden waste in the garden instead of moving it to a compost pile. Listen to Podcast: Like many gardeners, for years I would diligently clean up the veggie and annual flower gardens this time of year, pulling out dead plants and adding them to my compost pile. But in the last few years I’ve decided to compost in place. Instead of feeding the compost pile, I feed the garden soil in the beds directly. Here’s how it works. Instead of pulling out old broccoli, cabbage, pepper and bean plants, I cut them at the...

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Animals LawnsPodcast

How To Grow: Controlling Moles & Voles

Learn how to identify and control these pesky critters. Listen to podcast: What's eating your lawn? Got holes? If your lawn looks like a war zone, there are many possible causes. Certainly skunks could be digging for grubs or your neighbor's dog digging for fun, but if you see tunnels too, it's time to talk voles and moles. Although they sound alike, these are two very different creatures. Moles are completely subterranean and are carnivores. They feed on earthworms and other soil creatures, not your plants.  Other than forming tunnels...

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Podcast Vines Weeds

How to Grow: Controlling Poison Ivy

Learn about poison ivy, including the best and safest ways to control it. Listen to podcast: For as long as I can remember, each summer I get some amount of poison ivy rash. Poison ivy is best identified by the “leaves of three, let them be," rhyme. It grows as an aggressive ground cover and up trees. I once saw a whole tree enveloped in poison ivy vines. I stayed away! It’s best to avoid contact with leaves, stems and roots since the chemical urushiol can stay active for months on clothes, tools and machinery. So how do you eliminate...

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AnimalsPodcast

How to Grow: Controlling Woodchucks

Learn about woodchucks and the best ways to control them. Listen to podcast: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood? I don't know. But they sure can chuck a lot of my beans, greens, flowers, and carrots. The woodchuck, groundhog, or whistling pig lives in burrows near open fields or woody edges. They also can take up residence under a porch, wood pile, or deck. Out in an open field they won't cause much damage, but if they find your garden, watch out. When my daughter was younger we had a baby woodchuck in...

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PerennialsPodcast

How to Grow: Coral Bells

Learn about growing the part shade loving coral bells for its beautiful flowers and colorful foliage. Listen to podcast: podcast transcript How To Grow: Coral Bells Heuchera spp and hybrids   Other Name alum root   Sun Requirements Part sun, part shade   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Late spring to mid summer in colors such as white, red, pink, and coral   Mature Height x Spread 1 to 2 feet x 1 to 2 feet   Added Benefits attracts beneficials, attracts hummingbirds, native, deer resistant   Coral bells are a great option for...

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FruitPodcast Trees

How to Grow: Cornelian Cherry

Listen to this podcast on how to grow Cornelian Cherry Trees for food and beauty   I just finished pruning my cherry trees. While I love the taste of the sweet and tart cherries we grow, there are a few other cherries to consider for your yard. The Cornelian cherry or Cornus mas is actually in the dogwood family. It flowers very early, with brilliant yellow blooms this time of year. It's a great early season pollen source for bees. Soon after, the red fruits are produced. Cornelian cherry has been a food source in Ancient Greece and...

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GroundcoversPerennialsPodcast

How to Grow: Corydalis

Listen to this podcast on growing and caring for cordyalis perennial groundcover. This spring blooming ground cover often carpets areas under deciduous trees and in gardens with its pink or white blooms. This tuberous plant has been used in Chinese medicine from chronic pain relief. What is this spring beauty? It's corydalis. Corydalis is a poppy family wildflower related to bleeding hearts that grows wild in open areas but also can be cultivated in the garden. The most common and hardiest type has pink or white flowers. I often admire a...

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PodcastVegetable

How to Grow: Cucamelon & Unusual Cucumbers

Listen to this podcast on how to grow cucamelons and other unusual cucumbers. The cucumber as we know it from our salad bowl is, in fact, a 3,000 year old vegetable from India. There are many variations of this melon-friendly veggie; let's look at a few. Most gardeners grow cucumbers for fresh eating in salads and smoothies or to make into pickles. While the fruits are usually elongated with green skin, there are some unusual varieties that are worth growing. 'Lemon' cucumbers grow into small, round, pale yellow balls. Believed to be...

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PerennialsPodcast

How to Grow: Culver’s Root

Listen to this podcast on how to grow Veronicastrum or culver's root in the garden I've been enjoying the late summer, tall perennials in ours and other gardens. Perennial flowers, such as 'Golden Glow' Rudbeckia, Plume poppy and Joe Pye weed, add a nice backdrop to other flowers and put on quite a show themselves. Plus, many of these tall perennials are natives that help wildlife, bees and butterflies. One tall, summer perennial that's getting more attention is a native call culver's root or Veronicastrum. Culver's root grows up to 7 feet...

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