Wildlife – Garden Bite: Recent Episodes
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Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: A Northern Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants and Pollinators
I am so excited to share this new book with you. I received a copy from the publisher to review and, I have to say, I am more than happy to report “A Northern Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants and Pollinators, creating habitat in the Northeast, Great Lakes and Upper Midwest” by Lorraine Johnson and Sheila Colla, is even better than I anticipated.
Sharing knowledge on ALL things in … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Assessing wildlife damage on plants
The weather was warm enough to start shoveling out the 4 ft. pile next to my back door to melt!
I’m now wearing a brace on my elbow. BOY that stuff was frozen! And then…
I’ve been continuing to tread lightly in my gardens but I DID see life!
Have you been assessing wildlife damage? I have damage on nearly all my shrubs and even some perennials.
Rabbits, voles and squirrels can all … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: For the Birds
There are some awesome native plants to attract birds to your landscape.
These plants are vital in that they attract insects the birds need to feed their young. Natives also serve as safe nesting sites and perches. I’m sharing some from my friends at Prairie Moon Nursery. Of course, since the birds love them for insects it’s only natural that the pollinators dig them too!
An early blooming tree would be the Downy Serviceberry … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Buckthorn, bunnies and blue pee
Years ago, I lived on 5 acres in Lakeville, MN. While wandering through the woods, I discovered smurf blue stains in the snow! The property had been a “farm dump”.
After cleaning up a bunch of barbed wire, old farm implements and plastic toys, that blue stain was worrisome. I knew it wasn’t mouthwash that I’d spit out or what I called “Blue Juice” back in my traffic reporting days, out in the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Prairie up – your lawn converted
Many years ago I interviewed Benjamin Vogt on his book “A New Garden Ethic’. Last December I mentioned his latest book, “Prairie Up – an Introduction to Natural Garden Design”. It was just released last Tuesday, January 24th.
Vogt is a native to Minnesota, growing up in the western suburbs when they were NOT suburbs. He talks about when, during an exploration of the undeveloped land, a flock of geese flew … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Birds are feeding!
It’s full-on winter in much of the country. Last week I talked about ice and snow collected on our trees and shrubs and whether to knock it off.
I admit, the snow DOES look lovely resting on those branches. The birds feeding on some fun ornaments made of seed is also lovely to watch.
Note: the video I have isn’t formatted well for this space so I had to delete it. It’s on my … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: The case for the Northern long-eared bat 2023
I’ve written before about White Nose Syndrome and the Northern long-eared bat, and their situation is getting much worse. The US Fish & Wildlife service just announced that, starting in January of 2023, the state of Minnesota will reclassify the Northern long-eared bat from “threatened” to “endangered”.
In a press release, the Director said, “White-nose syndrome is decimating cave-dwelling bat species like the northern long-eared bat at unprecedented … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Preparing your trees and evergreens for winter
The blend of winter sun, wind, temperature fluctuations, snow and ice can make for a deadly combo for some of our trees and shrubs.
And there’s critter crunching too. Wildlife needing sustenance during winter may gnaw on your nannyberry and other woody plants, especially young plantings under 3 years old. Tree wraps and guards can help substantially with that AND are a pretty decent guarantee against sunscald.
Sunscald happens when the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: November to-do’s 2022
It’s November 1st! Weather at this time of year is a crapshoot. Some days still light jacket worthy (for some) other days get out the parka! I actually rode my motorcycle on October 29th… I didn’t even have to wear chaps!
An important part of the clean-up process is debris removal. I just took my spent annuals to our City waste site along with downed Black walnut branches and my massive sunflower stalks! The two … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: The Poweshiek Skipperling – the Endangered
The Star Tribune has been doing a series on endangered native species. I was shocked to read this line from their latest article on the Poweshiek skipperling, “This prairie butterfly suffered one of the most sudden and complete population collapses of any species in North American history”. Let THAT sink in.
According to the U.S. Fish and wildlife service, these small butterflies were once found in native prairie in Manitoba, North … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Tips to protecting and feeding birds as winter approaches
Last week I talked about bird feeders and squirrels. Today it’s about WHAT to feed those birds as winter comes roaring in… at some point.
To offset the white of winter, or the bleak brown, it’s the BIRDS that help us through. And this is OUR time to help THEM through with plenty of nutrition! Contrary to what I’ve heard some people say, feeding the birds in winter … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Preparing for migratory birds
The monarch and the birds are beginning their migration very soon if they haven’t already. I’ve had plenty of finches at my rain garden and munching on the seeds of the sunflowers I grew this year.
Now’s the time to clean out those bird feeders, get rid of the old bird seed and refresh them. Bonni, the bird expert, does not recommend anything but vinegar water to clean them. Do not use bleach or … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Neonics and deer
A couple of weeks ago an article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper caught my eye with the headline “Majority of deer exposed to toxin”. State biologists tested the spleens of road kill deer and those sent in by hunters. 94% had concentrations of neonicotinoids. More from MPRNews.org.
But it gets worse, nearly two-thirds of those deer had higher concentrations than a threshold found to potentially lower fawn survival and cause deformities.
Neonics started … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Fall allergies and monarch migration
Tis the allergy season.
Ragweed, often confused with Golden Rod, is blooming now.
Elm and something called chenopods are in the medium range right now. Chenopod is a type of weed like amaranth, lambs quarters and pigweed.
Late blooming perennials are peaking right now and the bees and butterflies are ALL over them. I’ll take the sniffles if I can have some Painted Lady butterflies! They’re on my sedums and chives I let … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: Trees and shrubs for pollinators
We generally think of annual and perennial flowers when we consider pollinators.
Trees and shrubs are a huge component of pollinator habitat. The University of Minnesota Extension notes their seasonal interest as well as providing food AND shelter.
Shrubs can be planted in groups or alone, with fruit or without. I have 3 carpet roses or pavement roses that are loaded each year with bees. They’re easy care and provide pollen abundantly earlier … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: The benefits of bats and birds
While some may scoff, bats have benefits. You may not feel that way as you battle one inside your bedroom, however, before killing it, capture it and set it free. Then look for the place in the bats are coming in and seal it up!
A bat in the house? What to do by Wildlife Removal USA.
Let’s talk about what bats DO do… not what you’re thinking! This is the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio/podcast show: What’s keeping birds from your landscape?
I have been so fortunate to get quite a show from the variety of birds in my landscape. From Downy woodpeckers to Blue Jays to Chickadees, Catbirds, several Cardinal couples, finches and more.
This spot is excellent for bird watching. the french lilac gives birds a place to sit, honeysuckle vine has been planted to attract more hummingbirds. My neighbor’s Oak tree is great cover, there’s my crabapple to the left not … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min Garden Bite radio/podcast: Painted Ladies and Red Admirals
I love seeing the butterflies flitting about. Monarchs have been given lots of attention but there are a couple of other types of butterflies that deserve some love.
My Northern Gardener magazine highlights 2 of them. I love Painted Lady.
They are more fascinating as they are found everywhere but Australia and Antarctica. Their migrations are big enough to be spotted on radar! Rhonda Fleming Hayes explains in the article that this is … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Audible gardens – for the birds
With the exception of hummingbirds, most of us plant gardens for beauty, fragrance and taste, not thinking too much about songbirds.
Birds sing for 2 reasons, for territory and for mating. Native plants attract native insects which native birds eat. Seed eaters tend to go for native grasses and flower heads.
Follow this LINK for the bigger picture from the UofMN. And more on a native plant list HERE. These lists … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Who is in that cocoon?
Discovered on April 19th, 2022 hanging on my ‘Candy Corn’ spirea… WHO is this?
Since the season is so late there were no leaves on the shrubs so the cocoon was very visible. I reached out to my listeners and found that it is, hopefully, the Hyalophlora Cecropia moth. In fact, I had several share their OWN stories of these moths.
This moth grows to 6 INCHES! It comes from a family of … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Earth Day 2022
Today is Earth day. Northern Gardener magazine had an insert last month with the 7 ways to Garden Greener. Today seemed a PERFECT day to share some of those ideas.
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Nourish your soil with what’s on your property. Don’t haul those leaves, spread them on your garden beds for mulch. Compost your other plant debris!
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Pick Perennials. Once established they use less water and fertilizer than annuals.
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Put your plants where they want to be.
… [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Mole or vole?
Moles or voles, neither is great in the landscape. Voles are common in yards. They eat grasses and roots and leave trails. We usually see their small surface tunnels winding through lawns right after snow melt. Voles love munching on small trees and shrubs, they can be a problem with newly planted plants that don’t have protection in winter.
Large vole populations can most effectively be reduced using toxic baits. There are some available … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Assessing wildlife damage on plants
The weather was cold, windy, snowy, rainy and then some sun came out. You may have also gone out and took a look at your small trees, shrubs and even perennials. Assessing wildlife damage.
Rabbits, voles and squirrels can all strip bark. They may also leave small tooth marks on the wood. University of Minnesota Extension wildlife specialist, John Loegering, says if the bark is stripped all the way around a branch, that … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: April Fools Day and busting garden myths
It’s April Fools day! To celebrate, let’s pull some tall tales out of the Garden Myth bucket.
Wound dressing is one of the top myths.
We used to think that trees, like humans, needed some sort of “bandaid” after they’ve been cut. Not so, in fact, there are times that those wound dressings may even inhibit the plant’s ability to heal itself. Tars, emulsions and waxes can dry and crack. … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: The Year of the Lilac
The National Garden Bureau has chosen 2022 to be the Year of the Lilac. You may ask why? Lilacs are among the most carefree spring-flowering, multi-stemmed, deciduous shrubs (or small trees).
They are well-loved for their toughness, reliability, and fragrance. My area has battled some with lilac blight. And another Garden Bite on blight.
That said, lilacs are some amazing shrubs/small trees. There are about 30 species of lilacs, Latin … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Pussy Willows for early Pollinators
I talked last week about some new 2022 Spring bloomers. Today I’m focusing on our native Pussy willows! This native shrub provides some of the earliest flowers which means pollen for our native bees! The foliage is also host to native butterfly caterpillars.
Pussy willows are fast growing, up to 15 to 20 feet tall and prefer wet sites but will tolerate a wide variety of soils. These shrubs are either … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Dead trees for life!
I was snowshoeing with friends when one of them pointed out a ‘snag’ and said, “you should write a garden bite about that”. So, Lisa, I did!!
You may wonder what the heck is a snag? It’s a dead tree left upright to decompose naturally and it’s a fantastic cover for wildlife while also providing food.
According to the National Wildlife Federation, Dead trees provide vital habitat for more than 1,000 species of … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Bird & Butterfly garden
Who loves seeing songbirds, hummingbirds and butterflies in their garden? I think it’s safe to say that most every gardener does!
Some basics they need include food, water and shelter. Supplying a bird feeder, houses and birdbaths is a great start but food is a priority.
A natural food source will bring them to your landscape while enhancing the beauty for you!
As you ponder those plants in the catalogs on a snowy day, … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Bird love in Winter
Wow, I hope you are surviving our roller coaster of cold arctic air! As I write this, the temperature is 6 below zero but tomorrow is supposed to be 30 above. And then the deep freeze comes again.
How on Earth do our wild birds stay warm? Ruffling their feathers is number one. Most of our birds look twice as chubby in winter as in summer due to fluffing their feathers to provide insulation. … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Nativars
Reading my favorite magazine, Northern Gardener, I came across an article titled ‘Nativars’ by the Editor, and a friend of mine, Mary Schier. These are plants which are cultivars of our native plants. There are a LOT of them.
Think coneflowers alone and you’ll think of plenty from that native purple one.
The question posed in the article is how much a native plant can be changed and still perform it’s environmental functions like providing food … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Birds and their many benefits
A couple of weeks ago I talked about the benefits of bats and birds. I want to add to the list of birds that bring joy AND munch on those unwanted pets.
Take the adorable wren! These energetic, perky little darlings are fun to watch with the bonus of them munching on ground bugs like beetles, caterpillars, grubs, snails and my recent nemesis, ANTS!
They’re picky about where they hang out. Some tips … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: The benefits of bats and birds
While some may scoff, bats have benefits. You may not feel that way as you battle one inside your bedroom, however, before killing it, capture it and set it free. Then look for the place in the bats are coming in and seal it up!
A bat in the house? What to do by Wildlife Removal USA.
Let’s talk about what bats DO do… not what you’re thinking! This is the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: The unwanted houseguest – mice
Oh sure, he looks cute but the destruction and, egad!, waste left behind by these little creatures is NOT something you want in your home. Here are some “fun” facts about mice you can use for trivia!
- As cold seeps in, so do mice
- Gestation period is just 19 days
- They can have 6 or more babies per litter
- They can have 13 litters a year
- That’s a minimum of 78 mice
- Where
… [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Perennial seed picking and the plea to leave those perennials standing
I leave my perennials up for winter for a couple of reasons, winter interest for me and food and shelter for the birds.
I had a goldfinch munching early on the seeds of my coneflowers and blackeyed susans.
The chickadees are picking away at them too. I still have berries on my honeysuckle vines that, last year, the cedar waxwings went wild for. They devoured all the … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Mischief night and nature’s nocturnal creatures
On the east coast the night before Halloween was called “Mischief Night” when the “other” kids pulled pranks on their neighbors.
But what mischief might lurk in the garden at night? The top prankster would have to be the raccoon!
They’re really cute and really naughty! From tossing our garbage to making their home in our uncapped chimneys, they are a nuisance to say the least. The MN DNR on Raccoons. … [Continue reading]
Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Protecting and feeding birds
Last week I talked about bird feeders and squirrels. Today’s it’s about WHAT to feed those birds as winter comes roaring in… at some point.
To offset the white of winter, or the bleak brown, it’s the BIRDS that help us through. And this is OUR time to help THEM through with plenty of nutrition! Contrary to what I’ve heard some people say, feeding the birds in winter is a good idea. Birds will … [Continue reading]