When the COVID-19 pandemic hit last year, many plant sales went online or were suspended for the season. At least one of those returns to an in-person sale in 2021, with the Linn County Master Gardeners annual plant sale set for 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, May 8, at the American Legion Post 298, 625 […]
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Category: gardening
Connecting Good Friday planting to potat...
Gardening folklore that calls for planting potatoes on Good Friday could create issues with the crop-devouring Colorado potato beetle, according to at least one Iowa gardener. The organic gardener said he has successfully avoided the voracious beetle by waiting until around June 1 to plant his potatoes. Planting early almost ensures that the Colorado potato […]
Bracing for an early frost in Iowa
UPDATE Oct. 15, 2020: If you escaped the frost so far this fall, take heed tonight, as temperatures are expected to dip below freezing for much of the eastern third of the state. Forecasts this week call for possible frost in Iowa from Thursday night, Oct. 1, into Friday morning. According to Iowa State University […]
Last gasp: Derecho and drought-stressed ...
Crabapples and other trees that typically bloom in the spring might be giving their last showy display this September. Related: How to care for trees that survived Iowa’s derecho windstorm Some of those trees severely damaged in Iowa’s Aug. 10 hurricane-strength derecho windstorm, and further stressed by drought, can be seen blooming in Cedar Rapids […]
Naked Ladies: a flower out of sync?
Among the most reliable perennials in the Midwest are surprise lilies, also known as Naked Ladies and a host of other names. But, 2020 — a year full of unwelcome surprises — seems to have spawned another twist. Typically, the flowers are like clockwork. See them in one yard across town and you can be […]
Controlling Japanese beetles during annu...
Like clockwork, the bane of many gardeners has made its annual comeback. Japanese beetles are known to devour hundreds of varieties of plants, turning leaves into skeletal “lace,” and raspberries, which are just about to ripen in Eastern Iowa, are among their favorites. Rather than use synthetic chemicals to control the ravenous beetles, alternatives include […]
Changes in store for summer garden walks...
UPDATE: July 16, 2020 — Organizers have decided to cancel the 2020 Project GREEN Open Gardens Weekend in Iowa City. “We’d hoped to postpone it and do something in September,” chairwoman Beth Cody said, “but decided that with the uncertainty of this year, it would be best to just wait until next year.” Original post: […]
Traditional flower of Memorial Day flour...
By Cindy Hadish/Homegrown Iowan What started as a hobby has grown into something much more for Mary and Brian Grimm. “I’d call it an addiction,” Mary said of the couple’s 700 different varieties of peonies planted at their acreage in rural Lamont, in northeastern Iowa. When they relocated from Strawberry Point in 2011, the Grimms […]
Historic Brucemore garden inspires partn...
Two Cedar Rapids nonprofits have joined forces to provide fresh produce to help people in need. Volunteers with Feed Iowa First will prepare, plant, tend and harvest a specialty garden on the grounds of Brucemore, a National Trust for Historic Preservation property at 2160 Linden Drive, SE. Produce will be distributed through Feed Iowa First […]
Czech gardening legend of the Three Froz...
When temperatures climb in early spring, gardeners can be tempted to get everything in the ground, but in the Midwest, it’s best to heed a warning brought here generations ago by Czech immigrants. Known under various names, including the Three Frozen Kings, the three icemen – tři ledovi muži – or Three Ice Saints, Three […]