Creating holiday decorations is one of my favorite tasks, once Halloween is over. For several years now I have been using the native plants in my backyard to create holiday arrangements for my church, my home, and as a selling item to my landscape customers. Creating these native arra

I have been thinking a lot about prairie landscapes and using natives in our landscapes. For Father’s Day, I went hiking at the National Tallgrass Prairie Preserve by Strong City, KS. This prairie is one of the most beautiful places in the world, and there is always something blooming

Grimm’s Gardens believes that knowing where your natives come from is important.  We are grateful for all the work that Elliot and Applied Ecological Services, Inc. have put into tracking and labeling their native plant sources.  This is why we chose this company to supply most

Recently I was asked by different folks to provide some info on plants for both honeybees and pollinators. Yes, both have different needs for housing and their larval stages and both are treated differently by the general public. However, they all have very similar requirements for ne

After joining the Northeast Kansas Beekeeper’s Association last spring and taking their quick course on beekeeping, I was rewarded with new knowledge and interest in both honeybees and pollination. I have since joined Bee Chat in Hiawatha, KS, a group dedicated to studying honeybees a

Each year I become more and more aware of the need to plant host plants for our native butterflies, moths, and pollinators. As a maintenance supervisor, I am one of the lucky few in our area that get to see landscapes transform through the year, as well as being able to evaluate lands

Spring is always a busy time of year. For me, it is filled with many houses waiting to be cleaned up with plants trimmed back, leaves blown out and ponds cleaned. Even with all the pressures of landscape cleanups, I still find time in the evenings and weekends to spend time enjoying t

Growing up in North Central Kansas, I was always aware that Nebraska was only a short drive, but we never went there. I was made to believe from my peers and classmates that to like Nebraska was to go against Kansas. It didn’t help that when a kid I met from Nebraska, a big time Nebra

Recently, I went hunting wildflowers in North Central Kansas, near the tiny villa of Huscher. My family is from the area and I have permission to walk the 100 plus acre pasture they rent out. While I was wandering through the native grasses and stumbled across a little thin plant with

Again I return to using native plants in the landscape. This is an ever growing concern, as we are seeing the loss of pollinators and native songbirds in our region. The loss of songbirds is felt by bird watchers and gardeners alike. How many of us put out birdseed in the winter month

Last spring I went to a conference in Lawrence, KS and was inspired by Dr. Chip Taylor of KU’s biology department. In 2005, Dr. Taylor created a program to develop “Monarch Waystations” across the United States. The goal of the program is to educate the public on the importance of but

There something so simple and calming about the prairie. Growing up in north central Kansas, I knew too well the heat and drought of the plains states.  Even in the shade of the wooded creek bottoms near our house, it was sultry and hot. Later, when I lived in Manhattan, KS, a quiet w

Native Grasses Living in the Great Plains regions brings all sorts of joy-the ability to grow a wide variety of plants, wide open spaces, and grasses blowing in the wind. Here we have the luxury of being able to enjoy some of the prettiest grass in the country, with little or no input

Friend or Foe? Today we identified a caterpillar on our Baptisia or Blue False Indigo plants. This cute critter is known as a Genista Broom Month.  It gets its name from the Broom Plant, Genista, in which it feeds.  It is native to the United States and is prominent in the Southern U.

Summer is here and the heat is on! Over the course of the last two summers I have noticed the good and the bad of perennials in my gardens. I don’t have an irrigation system, and I rarely water after planting, even when it gets hot. My plants seem to perform in the heat, really thrivi