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 Cobalt Blue Press Bookstore, Knightstown, Ind. The Hoosier Gardener will be at the Cobalt Blue Press Book Store in Knightstown, Ind., Saturday, Oct. 31, beginning about 11 a.m. We’ll talk about fall clean up tips, deadly plants and more. The book store, owned and operated by Shannon Cagle and Rick Dawson, is on the National Road (U.S. 40).  Compost pile can be contained in a bin or remain as a heap. Photo courtesy Texas A&M University The Hoosier Gardener talks about making compost Oct. 28 on Fox 59’s Morning News. You can make compost in a free-standing pile, an enclosed bin or in a specially made composter. Compost is nature’s way of turning its waste into a earth-enriching product called black gold. The ingredients occur naturally, but it’s a formula that homeowners can duplicate with ease. Think of compost as a recipe with the ingredients listed below. That’s the way the experts say to do it, but honestly, many gardeners, including myself, just pile up the yard debris and let it go, whether in a heap or bin. read more»  Colorful, diverse crops of potatoes ward off damage from insects and diseases. If you’ve ever wondered why your plants do what they do and what their roles are in our lives, author Michael Pollan suggested some answers in The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s Eye View of the World, his 2001 best selling book. On Oct. 28, a two-hour PBS documentary with the same name will air at 8 p.m. on WFYI-TV, Channel 20 (check local listings for times in your city). The documentary illustrates Pollan’s fascinating theories on how and why plants do what they do as part of their survival. As he did in his book, Pollan focuses on four plants in the documentary, exploring their attributes and human attraction. read more» Indiana Living Green’s Green Scene, noon to 4 p.m., 10/24 @ Garfield Park Arts Center. FREE! Part of 350 Day of Action. 'Miss Kim' lilac has spectacular fall color. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp The frost last night took a toll on some of the plants in the landscape. The exposed coleus took the hardest hit, followed by the impatiens. The tops of the dragon wing begonias also got clobbered. At the same time, the purple on the ‘Miss Kim’ lilac has intensified to a glorious hue.  Coleus takes greatest hit from frost. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp  Tops of dragon wing begonias taken in frost. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp  Nuthatch hugs its tree. (C) Fotolia.com Indianapolis Museum of Art horticulturist Irvin Etienne celebrates trees and how to hug them. Here’s an excerpt: “Today (Oct. 17) is National Tree Hugger Day. In the current mood of people embracing all things green and sustainable, it seems only right we have a National Tree Hugger Day. This event is not just for tree hugger extremist but rather an opportunity for all of us to show a little appreciation for these plants that bring so much joy into our lives. Not sure how to hug a tree?”
 Waxwings are hard wired to dine on berries from native plants. (C) Gimmestock.com When we hear about sustainable landscapes, just what does that mean? Besides reducing or eliminating the use of pesticides, sustainable landscaping includes appropriate plant selections and placement. The idea, of course, is to pick plants that will do well in your particular site, such as a sunny or shady spot, or soil that is wet, dry, heavy clay or sand. And we want a diversity of plants, especially those that play a critical role in our local ecology. These are the native plants that provide food and shelter for birds, butterflies, mammals, amphibians and insects. read more»  Store seed in a cool, dry place. (C) Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp If you didn’t use up all of the garden seed you bought this year, much of it can be stored for use in next year’s garden, depending on the plant species, says Rosie Lerner, a consumer horticulturist at Purdue University and state coordinator of Indiana Master Gardeners. read more» |
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