UW-Extension Master Gardeners must acquire ten hours of continuing education each year to retain Master Gardener certification. Most months, an hour of education is offered prior to our monthly business meetings. In September, our speaker was Patrick Lake from the Oshkosh office of the National Resources Conservation Service. He was an enthusiastic and entertaining speaker. [Continue]
Do you realize how often math is involved in gardening? Here is the answer to the oft-asked question, “When will I ever need math in real life?” Say you want to fence your garden. You measure two sides, add those measurements together and multiply by two to find out how much fencing to buy [Continue]
Some people greet the end of the growing season with sadness while others feel a sense of relief – will those zucchinis never quit??? Here are a few tips to help you make the transition to the off-season whatever your feelings about the imminent change in weather. Continue harvesting vegetables and deadheading annual flowers [Continue]
Perennial plants, those that live for more than one growing season, typically have short bloom periods. They may last a week or two, perhaps up to a month. The trick is to have a variety of plants in the perennial flower bed so that something is blooming all season long. Here are three plants native [Continue]
Over the 18 years I’ve been writing this column, I’ve mentioned the benefits of using mulch in the garden many times. In case you missed it, here it is once more, plus a few new and even more important reasons to keep soil covered. Mulch is a layer of material spread on the surface of [Continue]
A few weeks ago my husband and I were taking our usual morning walk alongside Lake Butte des Morts. While his gaze turns upward toward waterfowl and songbirds, my eyes are drawn to the sides of the trail and the plants that grow there. This particular morning I was stopped in my tracks by the [Continue]
Bee balm is a pretty perennial lavender-colored flower native to Wisconsin prairies. It goes by a few other names including monarda, wild bergamot and Oswego tea. The Latin name is Monarda fistulosa. Another native bee balm, Monarda didyma boasts bright scarlet flowers. Lavender bee balm flowers are about three inches across while the scarlet ones [Continue]
Most gardeners know that earthworms in a garden are an indicator of healthy soil. In fact, worm castings (a/k/a poop) are one of the best fertilizers for a garden. You can buy bags of the stuff and it isn’t disgusting or smelly. It looks like coffee grounds. But there’s a new worm in [Continue]
Weeds. You either love them – no sarcasm here, that would be me – or hate them. I’ll start off by saying that if you take care of your garden weeds in June, you’ll have a much better time of it in July and August. Just like flowers, weeds can be annuals, perennial or biennials. [Continue]
By the time you read this, it will likely be safe to plant flower and vegetable transplants and seeds. Do check the forecast for the next week or so before planting though, just to make sure a cold snap isn’t imminent. Here are a few planting tips. When planting transplants from the nursery, first give [Continue]