Hawthorns
I have been working as a landscape maintenance professional now for more than 10 years and each year get more exciting. One thing that never changes is how my customers feel about their hawthorn trees. They love them! And I am not surprised at all. Hawthorns in Kansas seem to embody the spirit of strength, […]
Plants for Miniature Gardens
Miniature gardens (often referred to as fairy gardens) are a very popular method of introducing gardening to those who do not have the space or time for large scale landscape, as well as helping to spark the imaginations of a generation of children who do not have the resources available elsewhere. Miniature gardens need small […]
Delightful Switchgrass
As far as Kansas native grasses go, switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) is one of the most recognized and most utilized. Little bluestem is the Kansas state grass, but switchgrass is much more used in landscapes. Switchgrass can be used for screening, specimens, massings, and is even utilized as a crop for the bio-fuel industry. This native […]
Time for early spring planting!
As March 17 rolls around, here in northeast Kansas, people are getting excited about planting in their gardens and landscape. While the weather may be a little cold yet for planting flowers out, it is an excellent time to put in those early season vegetables. By now, your garden has been prepared for spring planting […]
Rhizosphaera Needle Cast of Spruce
Every year it amazes me how much information our brain can hold. The more landscapes I go to see, the more things I realize I have yet to learn. This past summer I started consulting in Atchison, KS after we added a garden center there. One of the first jobs I went to had a […]
Kentucky Coffeetree
Growing up in North Central Kansas, I developed a love for large, tough shade trees to give rest from the intense summer heat. Although originally a prairie, my grandparent’s land is dotted with trees they collected seed for in their travels across America. They had me identify and catalog their tree species one year and […]
Winter Blooms
I asked my teenage daughter what she would want to read about if she were a gardener and her first response was: “What blooms in winter?” What does bloom in winter? In Kansas and areas north, very little to nothing at all. Winter is defined as a period of time between solstices, from December 20 […]
Winter Evergreen Maintenance
This week I went to an old landscape along the Missouri River. It was filled with evergreens. Old, mature dwarf Alberta spruces, boxwood hedges, screens of arborvitae, and the occasional holly filled the landscape with green color year round. I was there to consult on the landscape-many of the evergreens had issues. I saw fungal […]
Oak Itch Mites
Oak Itch mite has become a serious pest over the last 3 years, with outbreaks in Kansas and 7 other states. First discovered in Kansas in 2004, they have become quite a problem for those working and spending time outdoors. The mites feed mainly on the larvae of the Oak Leaf Fold Gall Midge. […]
