UPDATE: Registration is now open for the Winter Gardening Fair. Sign in here to register online. (Dec. 16, 2015) One big change is in store for the 2016 Winter Gardening Fair in Cedar Rapids. The venue will move to Coe College, after many years at Kirkwood Community College. A variety of factors influenced the decision, […]
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Tag: Kirkwood Community College
Trees Forever 25th anniversary kicks off...
Trees Forever is marking a milestone this year as the Marion-based nonprofit celebrates its 25th anniversary. Throughout the year, Trees Forever is hosting 25 special events to highlight the accomplishments achieved together with the community in roadside plantings, improving water quality, providing more shade for communities, habitat and so much more. The first anniversary event […]
Registration opens for Winter Gardening ...
With the wind-chill at 50-below zero, this might not seem like the ideal time to think about gardening. But really, there is no better time to dream about what the summer may hold when you have the clean slate that an Iowa winter brings. The Linn County Master Gardeners’ Winter Gardening Fair provides that perfect […]
Viticulture: the most awesome garden too...
I can’t believe I’ve never seen a “Tapener” before now. At our most recent viticulture class at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, we used this handy tool to position young grapevines onto trellis wires. A combination staple gun/tape dispenser, the Tapener is ingenious, and as long as it doesn’t get jammed, is fairly simple […]
Viticulture: Playing with fire
The past two weeks have been busy ones for the Vineyard Management class at the Kirkwood Vineyard in Cedar Rapids. We’ve planted more than 30 grapevines, learned to string trellis wire, attached grow tubes to the new vines and tonight, had our chance to play with fire.
Viticulture: The Curse of the Vineyard
OK, maybe the vineyard isn’t cursed, but the weather seems to be, prompting our viticulture class (or maybe just me) to wonder if we aren’t somehow jinxed. No matter what the weather the day-before or weekend after, all of our class sessions have been plagued with howling winds, frigid temperatures and drenching rain; sometimes all […]
Viticulture 101
We’re only at the PowerPoint stage, but I have a feeling that the Vineyard Management courses I’m taking at Kirkwood Community College will turn into an incredible hands-on experience. Classes, which run from February through September, cover the basics of establishing a vineyard; costs; planting; pruning; trellis construction and more.