Blog Archive

Good Growing 2016

Horticultural Pet Peeves

Good Growing
There are some things I need to get off of my chest and what better place to vent, than a news column. In a profession from astronaut to zookeeper and all careers in between, we learn and do tasks, which in our mind, are the best practices. Imagine you are a professional shower tile installer, and...
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Get Growing with Cool Season Vegetables

60 degree days have already arrived even though the next day the temperatures fell back into the 30's, but spring is definitely on its way. Even my tulips are up out of the ground a few inches and it won't be long before the tulips will be in bloom. Not only does the thought of spring flowers make...
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August Gardening To-Do List

August is right around the corner and by the time you're reading this it may well already be here. There are still gardening activities that we can do in August, one of which is relaxing and enjoying our gardens! Continue to water all your plants especially when we aren't getting any rain. Drought...
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Cool Weather Attracts Wildlife Inside

Chirp, chirp, chirp. In my mind, the hum of crickets chirping away outside is very relaxing. In the spring we open our windows and sleep with the soothing sounds of the night outside. Chirp, chirp, chirp. Something changes when that lone cricket enters our house. Instead of a nighttime symphony, we...
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Feeding Caterpillars and Butterflies

The other day a friend posted a picture on Facebook from a walk showing a young Monarch caterpillar happily munching away on some milkweed. I immediately ran out to my little patch of common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) in hopes that I would see some Monarch caterpillars enjoying a plant...
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What is Your Land Ethic?

"We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." –Leopold 1938 What is your land ethic? It is a question to ask of us humans these days. Our ethic toward the land...
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Don't Move Firewood

Good Growing
In mid-October, I walked around marveling at the outstanding color of one of our earliest trees to exhibit excellent fall color, the ash (Fraxinus spp.) And I realized, for many homeowners, this might be the last time they can enjoy the spectacular fall display of an ash tree. What I am...
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Summer at the Creek: Cultivating our future in conservation

It was a hot late-summer day. A yellow school bus plodded away, leaving a cloud of dust in its wake. Songbirds sang while the leaves rustled, patiently holding on till autumn called them from their perch. The forest was still, as the crunch of leaves beneath hopscotching squirrels echoed on the...
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Spectacular Spring Bulbs

I was out shopping the other day and what greeted my eyes – stands of spring bulbs for sale. Then you stop to look at the calendar and realize that it's almost the end of September and that the perfect time to plant spring bulbs is right around the corner. Bulbs are awesome and amazing plants to...
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Plant a Tree

April is almost here and the last Friday in April is celebrated as Arbor Day. Arbor Day was first declared by J. Sterling Morton in January of 1872 to be recognized on April 10, 1872. That day it's estimated over 1 million trees were planted in Nebraska. The Governor of Nebraska officially...
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Trying New Things

The other week, a colleague of mine and I began a youth program called Junior Master Gardener – Learn, Grow, Eat & Go! It's a curriculum that was developed by Texas A&M to help youth learn about gardening, plants, healthy eating, and getting up and moving. One of the great things about the...
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Growing in 2016

It seems we blinked and 2015 is behind us and 2016 burns bright with opportunity and chances to garden, enjoy plants, learn and grow in a new year. One of the things I love about horticulture and gardening is that there is always something new to discover, to learn about and to experience. The...
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Poinsettias Have Arrived

I was at the store the other day and sure enough, Poinsettias are out and about. Usually without fail at some point I will come home with one, it's pretty much an annual guarantee. If you are like me and fall for the pretty poinsettia and bring it home, there are some basics to poinsettia care that...
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