Homemade from the gardener is still possible even if your garden is under snow.  Tips on gifts that are sure to please novice and advanced gardeners and fit into every price range from seeds to cuttings, plants and indoor gardens. The key to affordable gifts everyone will love is sharing your gardening know-how, resources and creativity. Plus, tips on seed saving, problem gardens and dealing with pesticides.  Visit www.wbu.com for directions on making simple bird feeders to give as gifts or make for fun family activities.

This episode features tips attracting birds and butterflies to your garden. Then I answer a gardener's question on lichen on a rose tree. Kristin Gies joins me for tips on controlling disappearing bulbs. I finish off with a new plant, My Monet Weigela - Weigela florida ‘Verweig’. For more information about this plant, visit Spring Meadow Nursery.

Holiday plants like poinsettias and cyclamen are the focus of this podcast. Then I answer gardeners’ questions on non-bearing bittersweet and winter protection for rhododendrons. Next Kristin Gies joins me for tips on ridding your holiday plants of fungus gnats. I finish off with tips on using Oasis foam for your holiday floral arrangements.

I give tips on creating and delivering the perfect holiday cut flower arrangement. Then I answer a gardener's question on mushrooms growing in a lawn. Next Kristin Gies joins me for tips on protecting your pets from poisonous holiday plants. I finish by recommending a wonderful catalogue, Logee’s for unique garden gifts.

Tips on creating festive holiday decorations from your own backyard. With time and budget restraints we are all looking for ways to enjoy the holidays and stay within our budget. The answer is in your own backyard. Tips on creating wreaths, arrangements and luminaries from landscape prunings. Plus, recommendations on caring for a ficus tree and a gift good for gardeners and the environment. For more information on this holiday gift, visit the American Forests website.

In this podcast I'll cover some fun holiday facts. And whether it's a pine, spruce or fir, I have a few tips on caring for your Christmas tree.

The focus of this podcast is the 2010 Northwest Flower & Garden Show in Seattle, Washington. There I found many wonderful garden accents that not only serve a function, but provide beauty to the landscape. You can find photos of my trip in the February Gallery of What's Blooming. I'll then answer gardener's questions on Osage orange.  With that I'll give a little historical significance on this tree. A great website to follow up on the history of American trees is historictrees.org. I'll talk Cedar Apple Rust in my pest tip. Then, I'll finish with a great tool for digging, planting, weeding and soil prep -  the Hoedag.

This podcast is dedicated to children and how to inspire and engage them in the garden. Then I answer gardeners’ questions on columbine with sawfly and rust on junipers. Next Kristin Gies joins me for tips on getting rid of dame’s rocket. I finish by recommending great gardens to visit with children: W.J. Beal Botanical Garden at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan; The Morton Arboretum just outside Chicago, Illinois and Longwood Gardens in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Gardening can be fun with children, create a theme, accessorize and enjoy the harvest. I'll answer gardeners' questions on Japanese knotweed, and what type of fertilizer to use on raspberries & rhubarb. Pest tips: soldier beetles. New Product/Plant: Book: Nature Printing with Herbs, Fruits and Flowers by Laura Donnelly Bethmann. ISBN-0-88266-929-X.

Gardening tools make wonderful gifts for the holidays. Consider trowels, handpruners, houseplants, gloves, Ups-A-Daisy or a self watering can. I'll answer gardeners' questions about non-blooming calla lilies and a crooked tree. Pest tip: scale insects on houseplants. Visit Cool Springs Press for gardening books.

This podacast is for moms - and those who love them!

I'll give you great gift ideas for Mother's Day to accompany a bouquet of flowers. I'll answer gardeners' questions on controlling pests on apples, calendar of garden chores and new plants for spring. I encourage all of you to take advantage of National Public Gardens Day. Scheduled for Friday May 7, 2010, National Public Gardens Day will showcase the contributions of public gardens with special events and activities for schools, families, and thousands of visitors at many of the APGA's 500 member institutions. It's a great excuse to stretch your legs and enjoy the beauty of a public garden near you.

Fall is here and that means its time to harvest and select the perfect pumpkin for your garden or holiday display. In this podcast I offer tips on selecting the best possible pumpkin. I'll explain how to use the seeds for a healthy treat or a creative art project. Besides carving I'll detail other creative ways to work pumpkins and other garden plants into your Halloween or other holiday displays. My pest tip covers one of the good guys - the garden spider. I finish with a mention of a great book for your gardening library, "The Nonstop Garden" by Stephanie Cohen and Jennifer Benner.

I discuss creating beautiful bouquets, holiday gifts, and making lasting memories of your summer garden by harvesting and drying flowers. I answer gardener’s questions on First Blush Euphorbia (Euphorbia epithymoides) and tomato plants with yellow and brown leaves. I talk about problems and solutions regarding the unpleasant situation of poison ivy. Lastly I suggest a book on pounding flowers that’s a very useful resource.

Over the past year I have tried to incorporate ideas for family fun.  In this podcast I'll remind you of a few of these and other ideas for homemade holiday gifts.  Then I'll answer gardeners' questions on moving Black Hills spruce and rust on Pricilla hollyhocks.  I then offer tips on Christmas tree care.  I'll finish by discussing self watering systems for you Christmas tree.

In this podcast I'll offer ways to help celebrate National Get Outdoors Day on June 12, 2010. It's a great excuse to get the whole family outside and involved in a number of fun activities. Garden with the kids, go on a bug hunt, volunteer at a local park or community garden or measure the biggest tree in your neighborhood. Visit the American Forest website for tips on measuring trees. I'll answer listeners' questions on yellow leaves on roses, a hydrangea with brown leaf margins and when to apply corn gluten. My pest tip covers strategies for dealing with ants. I finish with a mention of a new product for roses and other ornamentals, JAZ sprays.

I'll discuss the history and legend behind Christmas trees, holly and mistletoe, the three most popular holiday plants. Then I'll offer tips for woes on Norfolk Island pine and keeping pets safe. For a list of what plants are toxic, visit the ASPCA website at aspca.org and keep your pets safe throughout the holiday and years to come.

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.