Keeping the theme of new plant varieties, I'd like to discuss some newer shrub and tree introductions. Johnson's Nursery and Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs have some exciting new varieties. I'll follow that up by answering  gardeners' questions on growing radicchio and removing cattails and restoring lake shoreline. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources offers some great information on Aquascaping on their website.

Photo courtesy of Proven Winners - www.provenwinners.com

In this podcast I'll be focusing on the larger group of evergreen shrubs and selecting the right cultivar that fits in your landscape. Then I'll answer gardeners' questions on ground ivy in the lawn, ant hills, using vermiculite in square foot gardening and building a raised spiral herb garden. My pest tip centers on pine needle scale. I'll finish with a tip on growing a vertical garden.

Spring marks transition in the landscape, I'll discuss a few conifers for your landscape. Then I'll answer gardeners' questions on buying red worms, tomatoes and ant hills and groundcovers shaded by trees. I'll talk Milorganite and soil preparation. Wooly adelgid is the subject of my pest tip. Then I finish with a recommendation of The American Conifer Society and Rich's Foxwillow Pine Nursery, both are great resources for information on conifers.

Helpful information and instruction on how to prune trees is the focus of this podcast. I'll then answer gardeners' questions on Zone 5 wedding flowers and spindly seedlings.  My pest tip centers on anthracnose and spur blight on raspberries. I finish by recommending a great addition to any garden library, Small Perennial Gardens: The Know Maintenance Approach by Roy Diblik (ISBN: 978-1-887632-00-3).

In this podcast I'll talk pruning - why, when and how to prune. Then I'll answer gardeners' questions on garden therapy for the autistic and a dried-up Harry Lauder's Walking Stick. I'll then provide tips on dealing with winter kill of roses. I'll finish with recommending a great book, The Enabling Garden: Creating Barrier-Free Gardens by Gene Robert (ISBN: 0-87833-847-0).

In this podcast I'll discuss the aftermath of drought and how we often forget about the framework of our landscape - our trees. I answer gardeners' questions on bringing hibiscus indoors for the winter and planting seeds. Multicolored Asian lady beetle is the subject of my pest tip. I then finish with a product to help get your newly planted trees off to a good start - Treegator®

In this podcast I'll discuss black walnut and juglone toxicity. A great resource is The Ohio State University's factsheet Black Walnut Toxicity to Plants, Humans and Horses.  I answer a gardener's question on using wood or leaves as mulch or compost. The May pest European pine sawfly is the subject of my pest tip. I'll finish with a product designed to make your landscaping chores a little easier, the LG-Bagz-It.

Learn how leaves turn fall color and capture the magical moments of autumn - the cool crisp air, vibrant colored leaves, and a bountiful harvest. I answer gardeners' questions on mushrooms in the lawn and potentilla buds. I'll discuss seasonal needle drop of conifers. I'll finish with a fascinating plant, lion's ear or Leonotis leonurus. It looks like “beebalm on steroids”.

My topic this week is trees, with proper care you can keep them healthy for a lifetime. I answer gardeners' questions on raspberries and overwintering containers. I'll discuss problems and solutions for carpenter ants that nest in and decay wood.

This week's topic is “big” trees and the proper way of planting them. I'll answer gardeners' questions on planting in challenging situations and non-blooming hydrangeas. I'll follow that with a pest discussion on Japanese beetle, which feeds on 300 or more species. I'll finish with imformation on the American Forests.