In this podcast I'll share a few ideas with you on affordable ways to improve your landscape. Then I'll answer gardening questions on rust in the lawn, blueberry bushes and Japanese beetles. I'll discuss how to deal with white flies. I'll finish by talking about Messinger, a plant health regulator.

This week's topic is “big” trees and the proper way of planting them. I'll answer gardeners' questions on planting in challenging situations and non-blooming hydrangeas. I'll follow that with a pest discussion on Japanese beetle, which feeds on 300 or more species. I'll finish with imformation on the American Forests.

I discuss harvesting fresh blooms and preserving flowers from your summer garden to enjoy year round. I answer gardener questions concerning mushrooms in the lawn and how to transplant Russian sage. Next I talk about problems & solutions regarding the golden tortoise beetle destroying leaves of morning glory and sweet potato vine. I conclude with a visit to PreservedGardens.com, a site that offers resources, ideas, helpful tips and links to artists.

I share tips on midsummer care of perennials. I'll answer gardeners’ questions on poor drainage of lawns, moisture loving plants, and rabbit and deer damage on roses and yews. Then Kristin Gies joins me for tips on managing Japanese beetles. I finish off with a favorite product, Mantis Tiller, a great tool for cultivating soil and edging beds.

Spring marks transition in the landscape, I'll discuss a few conifers for your landscape. Then I'll answer gardeners' questions on buying red worms, tomatoes and ant hills and groundcovers shaded by trees. I'll talk Milorganite and soil preparation. Wooly adelgid is the subject of my pest tip. Then I finish with a recommendation of The American Conifer Society and Rich's Foxwillow Pine Nursery, both are great resources for information on conifers.

I give tips on creating an edible landscape by incorporating fruit. Then I answer gardeners questions on hydrangeas that won't bloom and grasshoppers eating apple trees. Next Kristin Gies joins me for tips on eastern and forest tent caterpillars and gypsy moth. I finish by recommending a wonderful catalogue, One Green World for unusual fruiting trees and shrubs.

Tips on creating your own memory and healing garden is the focus of this podcast. Then I answer a gardener's question on ridding hibiscus of whitefly. Then Kristin Gies joins me for tips on managing snow mold. I finish off with a favorite plant, King of Hearts Bleeding Heart - Dicentra x 'King of Hearts'.

A friend's recent wedding inspired me to share with you some ideas on using cut flowers from the garden. I'll then answer a gardener's question on starting trees and shrubs from cuttings. I'll follow that with an update on Emerald Ash Borer. I'll finish with some information on Bayer Tree and Shrub Insecticide.

Spring break is a good time for family fun in the garden! Gardening questions will be posted in next week's podcast. Pest Tip: Bugs! Only 3% are harmful. New Product/Plant: Lois Ehlert from Children's Literature Independent Info and Reviews.

Tis the Season! I'll discuss the ways in which cutflowers, amaryllis or forced spring bulbs help lift spirits during the holiday season. I answer gardening questions on cutting back spirea and planting mums in the garden. The tiny spider mite is the subject of my pest tip. I'll finish with a great holiday gift that the  whole family can enjoy, AeroGarden.

Let's jump start the season.  I'll talk about planting and hardening off transplants. Gardener's questions: What type of small shrubs can I plant in Zone 5? Pest Tip: Corn and seed maggots. New Product/Plant: Wall-o-Water.

I'll cover the basics on house plant care. Treat your indoor garden like your outdoor landscape. Then I'll answer a gardener's question on watering calla lily. The subject of my pest tip is mealybugs. I'll finish with a handy garden tool -  self-watering pots.

I'm going to give you detailed steps on how to move your house plants back in for the winter. I'll answer gardeners' questions on hostas and sedum. I'll discuss watering trees & shrubs with softened water. I'll talk about a favorite tool, Ups-A-Daisy.

My topic this week is trees, with proper care you can keep them healthy for a lifetime. I answer gardeners' questions on raspberries and overwintering containers. I'll discuss problems and solutions for carpenter ants that nest in and decay wood.

Let's continue our discussion on maximizing the harvest, ways to get more produce from small spaces. I'll answer gardeners' questions on soil testing and lawn fertilizers. I'll discuss rose slug in this week's pest tip. Then I'll talk about how to create your own Topsy Turvy tomato planter.

This week I focus on Plant Health Care. This is a method of managing plant problems in a proactive and more environmentally friendly manner. It starts with selecting the most pest resistant plant that is best suited to the growing conditions. This along with proper care can eliminate many problems. I continue with tips on proper diagnosis and assessment of a plant health. We start looking at a variety of management strategies that can help reduce the damage of problem insects and diseases.

Start planting fruits, vegetables and herbs indoors! No matter where you live, you can get started now. I answer gardeners' questions on Illini Hardy blackberry, plants that attract finches and using baking soda for disease control. I'll talk about fungus gnats in this week's pest tip and using Gnatrol with Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) for control.

Listen closely and I'll share with you some interesting history on our most popular garden vegetable, the tomato. Justice Gray stated; "Botanically speaking, tomatoes are fruits of a vine". I answer gardeners' questions on creating a flower bed and wilted annuals and perennials. I finish with a mention of Seed Savers Exchange.

This week’s discussion is on common tomato problems; black bottom, fruit isn’t forming, cracking from the rain, distorted fruit and other diseases and insects. I answer gardeners' questions on black walnut toxicity and pine with red spider mites. Then I'll discuss the Topsy Turvy planter that grows tomatoes upside down.

Many households are going to begin growing vegetables for the first time this year. I'll give you some basics to get started. Then I'll answer gardeners' questions on installing an arbor for trumpet vine and growing onions in the north. This week's pest tip will focus on clubroot of cabbage and other crucifiers. I'll finish with a recommendation of a great vegetable to grow, Eggplant F1 'Hansel' , an All-America Selections winner.