Granite State Gardening

Latest Episodes:

Drought Conditions Oct 18, 2022

Show notes

In this bonus episode of Granite State Gardening, Nate Bernitz discusses the drought, both of podcast episodes and rainfall.

UNH Extension’s Home Horticulture Team is Hiring

The Home Horticulture Program Manager leads gardening and landscaping education and outreach for New Hampshire residents. Working in tandem with Master Gardener volunteers, home horticulture staff work statewide to develop educational programming on the ground and in digital channels. Home Horticulture staff and volunteers are a trusted source for New Hampshire gardeners, answering questions, conducting outreach on relevant and seasonal topics throughout the year, and providing engaging horticulture skills-training for the public and volunteers. Topics of focus include ornamental horticulture and landscaping, native plants, and fruit and vegetable gardening.

Learn more at extension.unh.edu/unh-extension-seeks-home-horticulture-program-manager

Resources

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Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Planning and Planting Your Home Fruit Tree Orchard, From Apples and Peaches to Pawpaw Jan 21, 2022

Show notes

From stunning spring blooms to juicy and delicious fruit summer to fall, cultivating apples, pears, peaches, cherries and more is appealing to many New England gardeners and homesteaders. And while growing fruit trees isn’t necessarily easy, thoughtful planning can lead to healthier, more productive and lower maintenance trees for years to come. In this episode of Granite State Gardening, Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz talk about selecting and preparing your orchard site, choosing rootstock and varieties, planting, and care of young trees. The episode's featured plant is pawpaw (Asamina triloba).

Promotions

Listener Survey
NH Farm, Forest and Garden Expo
Webinar: Hydroponics at Home
Webinar: Extending the Gardening Season
Webinar: Propagating Trees and Shrubs in the Winter Months

Resources

Subscribe to the monthly Granite State Gardening newsletter.

Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Transcript by Otter.ai

Supporting Birds In Your Yard and Garden, plus Bareroot Trees and Common Hackberry Jan 07, 2022

Show notes

Supporting birds on your property goes well beyond putting up bird feeders, although they can be helpful and enjoyable. In this episode on supporting birds in your yard and garden, Matt Tarr, Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz talk about why birds need our help, how to assess your property and the needs of birds, and how to meet the needs of wild birds through landscaping choices and other strategies.

· Featured Question: Which landscape plants are best for hummingbirds?

· Featured Plant: Common hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)

· Closing Tip: Purchasing Bare Root Trees

Promotions

· Listener Survey

· NH Farm, Forest and Garden Expo

· Webinar: Hydroponics at Home

· Webinar: Extending the Gardening Season

Resources

· All About Nest Boxes

· Winter Bird Feeding

· UNH Extension’s Wildlife Program Website

· Cornell Lab of Ornithology

· How to make your yard more bird friendly (Audubon)

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Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Transcript by Otter.ai

All things trees! (part 2) Pruning and Solving Tree Problems, Plus Frost Cracks, White Oak and Wood Chips Dec 03, 2021

Show notes

When you see something out of the ordinary with a tree, how do you know if it’s really a problem or just something to shrug off? In part 2 of this 2-part episode on trees, Greg Jordan, Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz talk about pruning a bit to start and then focus most of the episode on a wide array of scenarios and what to do about them (if anything!). If you haven’t listened to part 1 yet, go back and listen to that first.

Featured Question: How to prevent frost cracking?
Featured Plant: White oak (Quercus alba)
Closing Tip: Using Wood Chips

Promotions

Resources

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Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Photo from Wiki Commons

Transcript by Otter.ai

Landscape Trees (part 1): Selection, Planting, Transplanting and Care Nov 19, 2021

Show notes

Growing healthy trees starts with choosing the right plant for the right place, and good planting technique. And with adequate care early in the tree’s life, you’ll be well on your way to the shade, blooms, privacy screening, wildlife habitat, or whatever you’re trying to achieve with the new addition to your landscape. In part 1 of this 2 part episode on trees, Greg Jordan, Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz talk about all this and more. Then look for part 2 (out on December 3), which will focus on pruning and tree problems and solutions.

Featured Question: How to transplant established trees?
Featured Plant: Tamarack (Larix laricina)
Closing Tip: Transporting Trees from the Nursery

Promotions

Resources

Subscribe to the monthly Granite State Gardening newsletter.

Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Transcript by Otter.ai (Pending)

Extending the season and overwintering garden veggies, winter sowing, lovage, and putting the garden to bed Oct 08, 2021

Show notes

No matter what scale you’re growing at, growing veggies later into the fall, and even through winter, may be easier than you think. There’s a spectrum of techniques, from using old sheets to installing a high tunnel and so much in between. Becky Sideman has spent years researching agricultural season extension and experimenting with season extension and overwintering strategies at a small scale, and shares those proven tips and solutions with us on this episode of Granite State Gardening.
Segments

Featured Question: Is winter sowing a shortcut to spring?
Featured Plant: Lovage (Levisticum officinale)
Closing Tip: Putting the garden to bed

Resources

Row covers in the garden from UNH Extension
Low tunnels for beginners from West Virginia University
Season extension techniques for market gardeners from ATTRA

Connect

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Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Fall Gardening for Rewards Next Year: Bulbs, Garlic and Lawns Sep 24, 2021

Show notes

Fall isn’t just for putting the garden to bed, it’s also for investing in next year’s rewards and successes. With thoughtful planting and care, fall-planted bulbs will provide magnificent blooms spring after spring. Likewise, garlic can provide easy rewards come up early summer if they get off to the right start in the fall. And if there’s ever a time to give some attention to your lawn, it’s in the fall when conditions are best for an array of tasks that can really make a difference. In this episode of Granite State Gardening, UNH Extension’s Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz share proven tips and solutions for fall yard & garden efforts with big rewards.

· Featured Plant: Glory-of-the-snow (Chionodoxa species)

· Closing tip: food preservation basics

Resources:

· Naturalizing bulbs

· Protecting bulbs from wildlife

· Growing garlic

· National center for home food preservation

· Using Manure in the Garden event

Connect with us at @askunhextension on Facebook and Instagram and subscribe to the monthly Granite State Gardening newsletter.

Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Transcript by Otter.ai

Supporting Animals and Sustaining the Land in the Backyard and on the Homestead Aug 27, 2021

Show notes

There’s been a noticeable increase in interest from landowners in backyard livestock, from laying hens to pigs and sheep. Whether you just have a little bit of outdoor space or a lot, incorporating animals may be a viable option – and undoubtedly many of you already have. While this episode is not a comprehensive how-to guide to raising backyard livestock, this conversation with UNH Extension dairy, livestock and forage field specialist Elaina Enzien weaves together an exciting array of topics relevant for raising animals on a small scale. After listening, you might be inspired to not only learn more and dig deeper, but bring some more animals onto your property.

Featured plant: jimsonweed (Datura stramonium)

Join us on Saturday, September 25 at Wagon Hill Community Garden in Durham, NH for a workshop on using manure in the garden.

Background reading:

· UNH Extension resources on backyard livestock

· Teach Cows to Eat Weeds: The Science, the Steps and the Reasons why Cows Shout Eat Weeds

· Manual of Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Agriculture in New Hampshire

· Manure Management for Small and Hobby Farms

One correction: At one point in the episode, Elaina referred to cattle, goats and sheep as monogastrics. A listener pointed out that ruminants is a more accurate term - and he's absolutely right! So we're issuing this correction.

Vines in Northeast Gardens and Landscapes Jul 30, 2021

Show notes

At any particular time, a vine can be your worst nightmare or can steal the show in your garden. Vines are unruly by nature, growing in ways other plants simply can’t. Vines can serve many purposes, both aesthetically and even functionally such as softening and breathing life into the outside of otherwise pedestrian structures. Yet they’re largely underused in the garden and much maligned outside of cultivation. In this episode of Granite State Gardening, UNH Extension’s Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz explore the good, bad and always fascinating world of vines, beginning with the bad and transitioning to the oh so good. Enjoy, and brighten up our email inbox with your most beloved vines. And check out the resources below to dig in deeper on some of the topics we touch on.

· Featured Plant: Cup and saucer vine (Cobaea scandens)

Resources:

· Growing Grapes: https://extension.unh.edu/resource/growing-grapes-new-hampshire-fact-sheet

· Fruitless wild grapes: https://extension.unh.edu/blog/fruitless-wild-grapevines

· Oriental bittersweet: https://extension.unh.edu/blog/invasive-spotlight-oriental-bittersweet

· Native trees, shrubs and vines with wildlife value: https://extension.unh.edu/resource/new-hampshire%E2%80%99s-native-trees-shrubs-and-vines-wildlife-value-chart

· Invasive species in NH: https://www.agriculture.nh.gov/publications-forms/documents/prohibited-invasive-species.pdf

· Poison ivy: https://extension.unh.edu/blog/what-can-i-do-get-rid-poison-ivy-my-yard

· Growing kiwiberries: http://www.noreastkiwiberries.com/production-guide/

· University of Illinois resource on vines: https://web.extension.illinois.edu/vines/intro.cfm

· University of Maryland resource on vines: https://extension.umd.edu/resource/vines

Cover image by Lorianne DiSabato, under used under Creative Commons 2.0

Connect with us at @askunhextension on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and subscribe to the monthly Granite State Gardening newsletter.

Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Transcript by Otter.ai

Growing in Tough Spots and Situations Jul 09, 2021

Show notes

All gardeners and home owners face challenging conditions and tough situations that require careful plant selection and a thoughtful approach to bring their landscaping vision to life. In this episode of Granite State Gardening, UNH Extension’s Emma Erler and Nate Bernitz share proven tips and solutions for growing in many of those locations, including dry spots, wet spots, slopes, shade, compaction, foundations, driveways and even contaminated soils. Hopefully you don’t have all of these issues, but undoubtedly your property has some.

· Featured Plant: Sweet-fern (Comptonia peregrina)

Resources:

· What perennial groundcover can I plant on a sunny slope that is difficult to mow?

· What can weeds tell me about my garden soil?

Attributions:

Cover Art:

Sweet Fern - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Comptonia-peregrina-foliage.jpg

Sten Porse, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Connect with us at @askunhextension on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and subscribe to the monthly Granite State Gardening newsletter.

Email us questions, suggestions and feedback at gsg.pod@unh.edu

Transcript by Otter.ai

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