New study on pesticide use and GMOs

Some environmental extremists discount agricultural research done by universities, because they receive funding from Big Ag and therefore their researchers can’t be trusted. So this news report of a recent study by one of my Washington State University colleagues is doubly important: it dispells this baseless assertion and it provides some significant – and troubling – information about pesticide use and GMO crops.

Briefly, the article links an increased use of herbicides as a result of increased use of GMOs such as Roundup-ready crops.… Continue reading this article “New study on pesticide use and GMOs”

An unwanted bonus in your urban chickens

Longtime reader Ray Eckhart sent me a NYT story on urban chicken eggs and lead contamination.  As I’ve mentioned before on this blog, urban gardeners should have their soils tested for lead, arsenic, and other commonly found heavy metals before they plant edibles.  Chickens that are allowed to peck and scratch in metal-contaminated soils will pass that unwanted load on to you via their eggs.

So test your soils!  It costs a bit of money, but then you know exactly what’s lurking in there. … Continue reading this article “An unwanted bonus in your urban chickens”

Garden Professors – More Efforts on Your Behalf

We’re out there for you, our loyal readers. 

Debunking myths, reviewing the literature, setting people straight, battling blister beetles, flying in balloons… and taking out those pesky deer, one at a time.

Yes, indeed, that is fur in my windshield.

Plant sentience – a slippery slope

I maintain a “Garden Professors blog” group on Facebook, where people can pose questions and make suggestions. Ellyn Shea asked about the trend towards calling plants sentient, especially given the new book by Daniel Chamovitz – What a Plant Knows: A Field Guide to the Senses

Dr. Chamovitz is a respected scientist, and there is no doubt that plants sense and respond to their environment in ways we are still learning to understand. But couching plant responses in language associated with human sentience is a slippery slope. … Continue reading this article “Plant sentience – a slippery slope”

Up, up, and away…

First, let me cue the 5th Dimension.

 

I got a call the other day from the owner of a local hot air balloon company.  They specialize in fall color rides and he wanted to include some info from me about the state of fall color in Michigan this year.  Despite our concerns following this summer’s heat and drought, it turns out this year has been very good for fall color.  I think our color has been a bit more variable than usual with some trees turning early and I’m noticing many maples are dropping pretty leaves quickly once they hit peak.  … Continue reading this article “Up, up, and away…”

When all else fails…

As someone who has had a foot in Horticulture and a foot in Forestry throughout most of my career, people often ask me to compare the two disciplines.  One of the truisms that applies in both cases is, “When all else fails, blame the nursery.”  I’ve seen this following seedling die-offs in industrial forest plantations and I’ve seen it many, many times after street tree or landscape planting failures.  In fact, if you believe some people, tree nurseries are responsible for every plague and pestilence to ever afflict mankind. … Continue reading this article “When all else fails…”

Pennsylvania is for…..Snake Oil?

This year at the Philadelphia Flower Show there were a few groups talking about compost tea.  Meadow Brook Farm, a farm owned by the Pennsylvania State Horticultural Society is one, and another is F2, a company that provides “Scientific Soil Management”.   Apparently they do things that are good for the soil, though the “method” section of their website is a little too vague for me.  They also offer pictures of the results they’ve had with compost tea on a few different projects. … Continue reading this article “Pennsylvania is for…..Snake Oil?”

Why it’s important to prune tree roots before planting

This week I discovered that one of our center’s landscape trees is ready to bite the dust. I was sad – but also happy.  It’s a wonderful teaching moment and if the tree has to give up its life to save others, I guess that’s okay.

As the video will show you, this Japanese maple was planted some years ago with a root circling the trunk.  As both the trunk and root have developed in girth, we’ve reached a point where the trunk is constricted and the weight of the tree is splitting this V-shaped specimen down the middle just like a turkey wishbone. … Continue reading this article “Why it’s important to prune tree roots before planting”

Gone but not forgotten…

Got to spend Friday in the field in northern Michigan visiting growers and seeing some neat stuff: Great fall color, some natural concolor x Fraser fir hybrids and some awesome root systems produced by root pruning.  Unfortunately, like the dog that ate the homework, my camera decided not to part with the images.  I am tracking down replacements and will post an update on Friday.</d

Fall for Ornamental Grasses


I’ve written about ornamental grasses previously – they really are one of the toughest, most useful yet under-appreciated groups of garden plants.  Most provide at least three seasons of interest, but fall is when they really shake their pom-poms.

On a recent conference trip to western Michigan with pal and plantsman Paul Westervelt, we stopped by the trials at Walter’s Gardens of Zeeland – one of the largest perennial propagators (wholesale) in the country.

It was a beautiful, breezy day in their extensive gardens, and the grasses were positively alive with light and motion (and kittens – seven or eight, I think).… Continue reading this article “Fall for Ornamental Grasses”