Karen O’Connor Mother Earth Gardens Buying a fresh-cut holiday tree that is grown sustainably continues to be a better choice than a buying a plastic one, but have you considered a living tree? The display of a living holiday tree means making the most of the season, because the tree …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Environmental Horticulture Most of us value our lawns for their various environmental, recreational and aesthetic benefits. However, when we mismanage or neglect our lawns we diminish or destroy these benefits. As it happens, with a few maintenance and schedule adjustments, most every homeowner …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Environmental Horticulture Composting is the microbial process whereby organic yard wastes are converted into to a highly desirable, organic, soil-like material. Gardeners have used compost for centuries to increase soil organic matter, improve soil physical properties, and supply some of the essential nutrients …
Bernie Waibel Seward Neighborhood Group – Minneapolis Many folks don’t realize that pollutants exist in our yards, on our roofs and in our streets. Rainbarrel use keeps storm water from washing these pollutants into the streets and then into the nearest lake and river: our streets are truly our streams. …
Kurt Miller, Katrina Edenfeld Anything you can do to make your environmental footprint a little smaller on this earth is always exciting. Many countries lack a consistent source of water or have a reliable source of water that is too expensive to utilize. So far in Minnesota, many of us …
Anna Wasescha Farm In The City There is little agreement about the definition of a community garden, probably because the most important goal of such places is to create a healthy community rather than a healthy crop of flowers, vegetables or fruit trees. Betsy Johnson of Garden Futures in Boston …
Kirsten Saylor GardenWorks Program Manager A community garden is any space where plants are grown and maintained by a community to meet the needs of that community. It can serve many congruent purposes, often with community building being a central need. They can be designed for any or all of …
Kelle Carter Seeds of Change.com Many people think of organic gardening as growing without the use of pesticides or herbicides. This is obviously a fundamental part of organics, however, what many do not understand is that it is more than simply a switch from conventional chemicals to OMRI (Organic Materials …
Tessia Melvin City of Shoreview The emerald ash borer (EAB) is an exotic beetle native to Asia which attacks and kills ash trees. The adult EAB measures 0.5 inch and can be recognized by its sparkly green coat and purplish red abdomen. However, it’s the larvae that have been damaging …
Felicia Parsons Horticulturist Bees require two components in their habitat: somewhere to nest and flowers from which to gather nectar and pollen. Native plants are undoubtedly the best source of food for native bees-because plants and their pollinators have coevolved-and they serve honeybees well too. Use local native plants or …
Meleah Maynard Master Gardener Everyone I know who grows flowers likes to bring them into the house, at least every once in a while. Fresh flowers always look great for the first few days, so it’s hard to imagine what all the fuss is about when people go on about …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Horticulture Home flower and vegetable gardening can be a fascinating and rewarding activity involving the whole family. There is hardly anything more rewarding than walking out to your gardens and harvesting fresh vegetables for your stir fry and cutting a few stems of …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Environmental Horticulture Over the last 150 years many midwestern tallgrass prairies and natural woodlands have been converted to residential housing, agricultural fields, municipalities, shopping centers, parking lots, roads and highways. In the process, this development has consumed large areas of natural plant and …
Meleah Maynard Master Gardener I know people who love winter and I think they’re weird. Yes, fine, winter has its good points, like fires and s’mores, but as a gardener who loves to be outdoors, all that white-on-white iciness gets to me after awhile. Happily, there are plenty of landscaping …
Ami Voeltz Do It Green! Magazine There are many ways to think about how to keep our environment healthy in our communities and our yards. Water is often at the top of the list for most of us. Now there an easy way to find resources on protecting water quality …
Karen O’Connor Mother Earth Gardens Buying a fresh-cut holiday tree that is grown sustainably continues to be a better choice than a buying a plastic one, but have you considered a living tree? The display of a living holiday tree means making the most of the season, because the tree …
Patrick Hamilton Do It Green! Magazine As I prepare this article in early May, the plum trees in my front yard and boulevard are in full bloom. Each branch is dense with innumerable white flowers and their fragrance surrounds me when I step outdoors or open a window. Looking up …
Laurie Voeltz Apprentice on an organic CSA farm in Portland, OR Growing your own food is such a simple idea. It makes sense that people should try to be more self-sufficient, self-sustaining and simplistic in this multi-national, corporate owned, complex world. And what could be simpler than having a garden? …
Meleah Maynard Master Gardener If you like to cook, there’s really nothing like walking out into the garden and snipping a bit of fresh basil and oregano to add to your spaghetti sauce. But even if your gardening space is limited to a few sunny window ledges, there are still …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Environmental Horticulture Even though many of our favorite indoor plants originate in more tropical areas of the world, most are fairly adaptable to indoor environments. Houseplants provide living spaces with greenery and other colors, and they provide opportunities to learn to care for …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Horticulture Even though many of our favorite indoor plants originate in tropical areas of the world, most are fairly adaptable to indoor environments. Houseplants provide living spaces with greenery and other colors, and opportunities to learn about plant care and growth. A study …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Environmental Horticulture Over the past couple of decades there has been ever-increasing scrutiny of the products utilized for controlling pests in our home yards and gardens. That scrutiny is largely based on our growing safety concerns regarding those products, especially pesticides, to adversely …
Ellen Sandbeck Laverme’s Worms Domestic vermicomposting is the art of using captive earthworms to transform kitchen waste into earthworm castings (aka poop). Those in the know often refer to earthworm castings as “black gold”. Vermicompost is extremely lively; it contains more than 100 times as many beneficial bacteria and fungi …
Katrina Edenfeld If you are planning to start a vegetable garden or if you have one already, you may be wondering what’s in your soil and is it healthy enough to grow food in it? The University of Minnesota (UMN) Soil Testing Laboratory offers tests for lead as well as …
Malcolm Burleight Master Gardener There is a significant lag between the annual amount of sunlight we receive and the temperature we experience. Mid-March gets as much sun as mid-September but the temperature difference is at least 30°F. Growers can get a jump on the season by taking advantage of this …
Ellen Telander Winsted Organics Farm Cutting the grass not only takes time and effort but it can also significantly impact the environment, depending on the type of lawn mower you currently use. An easier option, for those that can, would be to invest in a sturdy fence and let animals …
Angie Hong East Metro Water Resource Education Program Here in Minnesota, shoreline living is not limited to the rich and famous. According to the MN DNR, Minnesota has 11,842 lakes and 69,200 miles of natural rivers and streams. We have over 13 million acres of lakes, streams, and wetlands, which …
Here is a list of native prairie plants that would be appropriate for most urban gardens in the Minneapolis area. The key is to buy plants that are gathered from local seed sources. You can get a prairie in a can at Menard’s that includes little bluestem, or an aster …
Ami Voeltz The Twin Cities Green Guide Most of us enjoy and appreciate a nice-looking yard, but lawns do more than just look good. They absorb and hold water, helping to reduce storm runoff and protecting water quality. Lawn care, however, can create environmental problems. One of the biggest problems …
Sara Grochowski Do It Green! Minnesota Gardening is not an exact science and nature is certainly not organized. Forests do not grow with neat rows of trees spaced at exact distances, lined with bushes and shrubs and colorful patches of wildflowers. However, without human interruption, Mother Nature shapes the landscape …
Bob Dahm Organic Bob, LLC Lawns originated in the Middle Ages, around castles, as a place for defensive and community activities like archery practice and grazing sheep (not recommended simultaneously!). Nowadays every home is a castle; unfortunately these village greens do not come with a mob of peasants to do …
Meleah Maynard Master Gardener If you’re reading this, I imagine you’re somebody whose mind is already open to trying things that others might find kind of, well, strange. But there’s a limit to such openness of mind. My limit is hair. Rest assured, I’m not going to suggest you sprinkle …
Theresa Rooney Hennepin County Master Gardener Mother Nature has a mind of her own…as do the insects and animals, especially when it comes to our own backyard. In general, using a more natural option to control pests lasts longer and only affects the targeted insect or animal. Using stronger chemicals …
Robert Mugaas University of Minnesota Extension Educator, Environmental Horticulture Come springtime, gardeners of both the diligent and the lackadaisical sort can be found with their hands in the dirt. Whether their hands are a half-inch or a half-foot into the soil depends on whether they began their garden through seed …
Elizabeth Storey Friends of the Mississippi River Rain gardens are in full bloom. The natural beauty and practical benefit of a rain garden makes it a popular choice for home landscapers who want to do their part to improve water quality. Many people do not realize that rain carries pollutants …
Katrina Edenfeld If you live in an older home, you might wonder if it is safe to grow food in your yard. There could be lead in the soil from paint chips that have washed off the exterior of your home, or leaded gasoline may have contaminated the soil areas …
Dave Stack Do It Green! Magazine Rain gardens are a great way for both the do-it-yourself homeowner and the large corporation to help reduce, or nearly eliminate, rainwater runoff from their property. Reducing urban runoff improves water quality in lakes, creeks, rivers and oceans. Rain gardens, large or small, also …
Marty Bergland Wright County Master Gardener, Author of “Grow, Harvest, Eat: Essential Herbs from Garden to Table” Seed saving is an environmentally sustainable, economical, and educational activity for all age groups, gardeners, and food lovers. With a few basics, you can save seeds from your own garden or community garden …
Kristin Thiel Do It Green! Magazine There is a frightening loss of seed and plant diversity worldwide. It is up to us to practice and encourage others to conserve. It is important to make sure your seeds are: Certified Organic – Verified by Independent Agencies Open-Pollinated – Self-Reproducing, Non-Hybrids GMO-Free …
After harvesting veggies from our gardening earlier this week, I peeked in my bag and thought, wow, it’s like a picture perfect rainbow – bet it tastes just as good. This thought then led me to think, it’s like you can ”Taste the rainbow”… mmmm. Sure, maybe I borrowed the …
Theresa Rooney Hennepin County Master Gardener The American Dream includes a house surrounded by an emerald green lawn. Where did this preoccupation with the perfect lawn originate? Some believe that our need for open spaces with a few trees began with the very start of mankind on the African Veldt. …
Katrina Edenfeld If you’ve ever explored a vegetable seed rack, you’ve probably noticed an array of choices. However, there are three basic types of seeds: Hybrid varieties have been bred for particular traits such as growth pattern or disease resistance. They have been hand-pollinated, and are patented, often sterile, genetically …
cleanairgardening.com In the late 1980s, a study by NASA and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) was conducted to find ways to purify the air for extended stays in orbiting space stations. The study resulted in excellent news for homeowners and office workers everywhere, because it concluded that common …
Kathy Swenson Do It Green! Magazine Tucked away in South Minneapolis is one of just two Victory Gardens nationwide still in active use. The gardens at Dowling School in Minneapolis and the Fenway Victory Garden in Boston are the only two remaining gardens left of the approximately 20 million nationwide …
Carl Hoffman Horticulturist It is often said that over-watering is the number one killer of houseplants. On the other hand, depriving them completely of water will have the same disastrous result. Understanding the appropriate amount of water to give to your plants can be confusing. Some people consider it a …
Kristin Thiel Do It Green! Magazine I grew up in urban suburbia, where food is known as that stuff that appears to sprout wrapped in plastic right on grocery store shelves. Interestingly, because this is how urbanites so often find their food, it makes the occasional encounter in the wild …
