Before the daffodils bloom and the first turn of the soil, I consider a shortlist of what I aim for this gardening season. Add More Native Plants They are more adapted to the environment and thrive year to year, require less watering once established, and are more likely to benefit pollinators and other wildlife. More … Continue reading
Filed under Trees and Shrubs …
Last Bittersweet Days of Winter
The ending of winter can be a bittersweet transition to spring. Maybe these days are a chance for uninterrupted reading opportunities, time to think about new season plants or time to prepare. For now, let’s think about bluebells, other blue flowers, a podcast, and bittersweet vine. Virginia bluebells grow on the Northern Plains! The striking blue … Continue reading
Tree Bark-Wrinkles in Time, and Other Winter Details
Last season’s yarrow reappears after snow on this below-zero day. Today we’ll look at end-of-winter visages in nature that we missed until now. Evergreen needles show fine detail. Ready-made snowballs—free. There are so many bark details to re-discover this winter while trees remain undressed. An easy way to see a variety of trees growing in … Continue reading
Dream a Garden Space
February can be the creative start to your personalized garden space. The cozy indoors with lots of photos of your landscape or a stack of gardening magazines with pictures that show aspects of spaces you are attracted to is a place to begin. Collect images that show your space as it is and the look … Continue reading
Not What You Might Think
We walked the dog this morning at a temperature of – 6 degrees F. The only one smiling was the dog. Most trees we see along the path are deciduous, dormant, and leafless, waiting for spring. Hats off to evergreens that live through the roller coaster winters on the Northern Plains. A common ornamental evergreen … Continue reading
For the Birds
From early December on, seeds, berries, and insects become harder to find after the growing season. Some bird enthusiasts provide supplemental feeder food that draws them closer for observation. Sometimes turkeys are the clean-up crew. While having coffee on the deck last summer, a motionless hummingbird perched on a plant container trellis for a moment. … Continue reading
PostScript to Fall
Mild Fall weather has been a treat in this region. Colors have been beautiful, including those of red maples, barberry, and prairie grasses. More needs to be learned about the variation in Fall color in maples. The more intense the red of maple in a season may show its all-out effort to get more nutrients … Continue reading
Dibbles and Bits
(1) This season, the maple tree shows where we are in the Fall wrap-up of outdoor gardening at Plant Exchange. The tree’s leaf color progresses to red but is not fully there yet, even with the extra time and extended mild temperatures this mid-autumn. Some leaves are red, many are yellow, and some are already … Continue reading
Not Just Another Lowly Plant
Some plants around us aren’t featured these days in greenhouses. Wind and birds may propagate them in vacant lots. We may consider them as weeds. In their understory way, they may contribute their part in ecology and sometimes have attributes that become beneficial. Amur maple may be pruned as a shrub or grow naturally as … Continue reading
Midwest Plant Breeder Hans Hansen
Flowers and foliage in yards and public spaces have been beautiful this season! Where do the new bright colors and variety of leaf patterns originate? At Plant Exchange, we’ll focus on one plant breeder who may have introduced a yellow False Indigo, Hosta, coral Monarda, pink Phlox, or red hibiscus you have seen growing nearby. … Continue reading
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