Winter Sowing Resources from West Cook Wild Ones Linda Walker and Stephanie Walquist It’s cold and snowy out, but you can still do some gardening and prepare for spring! Plant some seeds now, set them outside, and in the spring, you will have many new plants, either for free or for the cost of a […] Continue reading "Winter Sowing Resources from West Cook Wild Ones"
This post was written to address a question about aphids on milkweed. Any of the steps would apply to aphids on any other type of plant, including edibles. (Note the image at the top of the page is of a Lacewing adult, one of the beneficials that you want to attract and keep in your […] Continue reading "Aphids: What to Do?"
Native Plant Container Gardening Over the years, we’ve had a lot of requests from people who want to use containers for native plant gardening. They might have a balcony or reduced space or simply like containers. They want the beauty and biodiversity near them & containers are the way to go. We’ve not always had […] Continue reading "Native Plant Container Gardening"
5 Reasons Why Edible Gardens Need Native Plants by Stephanie W We often get asked if it’s ok to grow natives with edibles, and the answer is yes, as that’s what many of us native gardeners have been implementing with great success. In fact, on a larger scale, many farmers are beginning to experiment with […] Continue reading "5 Reasons Why Edible Gardens Need Native Plants"
Indoor seed starting gives you a jump on the growing season. If you wintersowed your flats outside, and they’ve had enough time outside, you can simply bring them and start the germination process indoors. Or, if you stratified your seeds in your fridge via a medium or paper towel method, you can then sow the […] Continue reading "Indoor Seed Starting"
Putting the Garden to Bed–Wild Ones Style The best time to get ready for next year is now. 1.Get rid of any invasives. 2.As you remove some of these plants, you might bring up hibernating insects like ladybugs and spiders. Tuck them back in the best you can, so they can do their good work […] Continue reading "Putting the Garden to Bed–Wild Ones Style"
What’s in a Leaf Pile? A lot of potential for life is in a leaf pile. Many beneficial (and beautiful) insects overwinter in our yards. For instance, the Katydid (important food source for birds during late summer) and Preying Mantis overwinter as eggs attached to twigs, stems, and/or leaves. Ladybugs and Lacewings also spend the […] Continue reading "What’s in a Leaf Pile, Or Why Not to Do Fall Clean-up"
If you ordered a Monarch Garden Kit or are new to gardening, this “How-to” sheet might be helpful. Monarch Garden Planting Tips Thank you for purchasing one of the Monarch Kits! The plants will need a little TLC for a few weeks while they get settled and their root systems get established. Weve written up […] Continue reading "Monarch Garden Planting Tips"
Hold your rake! Clearing out your garden can backfire. Raking everything out and tossing into yard bags removes the building blocks of soil and destroys beneficial insects (butterflies, moths, fireflies, etc) that found a safe place in your garden during the winter. You can learn more about some of these animals in this post: What’s […] Continue reading "Rethinking Spring Clean-up"
Quick Tips to Tidy the Habitat Garden We understand the difficult balance there can be between having a presentable garden and being ecologically friendly. Although we tend to keep our own gardens through the winter, we still do a little trimming and thinning here and there. Below are some of the strategies we use: If […] Continue reading "Quick Tips to Tidy the Habitat Garden for Winter"