Résultats lu par "Mike McGrath" dans Toutes les catégories

Are you ready to start your seeds? Howard Shapiro from Seeds of Change joins us to discuss the all-organic offerings their new catalog. During the Question of the Week, Mike tackles a potentially stinky topic: Skunks can tear up lawns in their search for food, and they're very fond of sub-letting spaces underneath unsuspecting homeowners. Mike will explain how to safely evict them without unwanted incident; and how to erase that smell if you or your pets do get sprayed.

This is the time of year when many people hear the tap-tap-tapping of woodpeckers on their chamber wall. What are they doing there? "Probably not eating bugs" says woodpecker expert Dr. Jerry Jackson, biology professor at the Florida Gulf University in Fort Myers, Florida.

Are you being eaten alive by summer insects? Chiggers and no-see-ums can burrow their way into your summer fun, but this week on You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath helps you get these pests under control. And of course, we'll have chemical-free answers to all your gardening questions.

Blossom end rot is the cruelest problem that can strike tomatoes, turning the fruits black just as they ripen up. Mike McGrath will reveal how eggshells can save your love apples AND crisp up your cucumbers! We'll also discuss some other tomato problems that won't be cured by eggshells, and offer solutions for those, too.

Many gardeners spend a lot of time fighting weeds, like chickweed and purslane, in their landscaping. Mike McGrath offers a surprising solution for dealing with these foes: serve them for dinner! Many plants we view as weeds are tastier and healthier than some of the vegetables we grow in our gardens. He'll discuss which varieties to look for, what their nutritional value is, and how to prepare them.

Are the leaves on your poor plants stained, splotched, and smudged? Besmirched, blemished, and blotched? Host Mike McGrath will discuss the dread diseases that cause spots to appear, and how you can prevent the problem - without any sprays, chemical or organic!

The time to plant garlic is fast approaching! On this week's You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath explains how to preserve this year's garlic harvest and grow the best plants next year and for many seasons to come. And of course, chemical free answers to all your garden questions.

Honeybees are vitally important to our food supply - and they're gravely endangered! This week on You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath will talk to the author of a new book about honeybees and their decline. Plus: How to grow a garden that will help save those bees; and chemical free answers to all your garden questions.

Do you have insects that look like bees that are nesting in the ground? Watch out- they're probably yellow jackets. This week on You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath will explain how to safely eradicate their dangerous underground nests. Plus your fabulous phone calls. And of course, chemical free answers to all your garden questions.

Wisteria can often be the vine of disappointment when it comes to blooming. Some of our listeners tell us about wisteria plants they have had for decades that have grown big and tall, but have never bloomed. Mike McGrath will explain how to get these stubborn beauties to bloom, and how to keep their vigorous growth under control.

Do you feel like growing some unusual offerings in your garden this year? Exotic flowers, heirloom varieties, or strangely-colored vegetables maybe? We'll hear about the eclectic selection in the quirky J. L. Hudson seed catalog. And to make sure your seed-starting endeavors are off to a good start, Mike will go over his Seven Secrets of Successful Seed Starters. He'll also reveal a cure for the dreaded disease that often claims over-watered seedlings.

Goats as gardeners? Sacramento Refuge Manager Kelly Moroney tells us about nature's furry weed whackers. Then, a lot of gardeners misunderstand peat moss. Host Mike McGrath will help you get a better idea of what this remarkable natural substance can do to help your plants.

The stuck-tight scale pest can be a persistent problem on plants indoors and out, and their highly effective waxy coating completely protects them from natural and chemical pesticides. Mike McGrath will explain how to tell if your problem really is scale and go over the treatments that do work against this well-protected pest.

You may have heard rosemary being called "the herb of remembrance", but two top researchers say that many other easy-to-grow edibles are also capable of helping prevent or reverse age and Alzheimer's related declines in mental function. Mike McGrath will reveal the top 20 plants you can grow in your own garden to prevent "brain drain".

Just in time for Valentine's Day (and with plenty of time for Mother's Day) professional flower grower Alina Alvarez joins us to discuss a new line of Fair Trade certified cut flowers. She is the CEO of InBloom Inc. The sale of these flowers directly benefits the Ecuadorians and Columbians who grow them. Plus, during the Question of the Week: Figs aren't just tasty; they contain more calcium than milk, more potassium than a banana, and more fiber than any other fruit!

Nationally acclaimed garden writer Barbara Damrosch joins us to talk about her new book The Garden Primer: The Completely Revised Gardeners' Bible. Together with her husband, Eliot Coleman, Barbara runs the famous Four Season Farm in Maine (fourseasonfarm.com). During the Question of the Week, Mike tackles questions related to vegetable gardening. With grocery prices rising steadily, many people plan on growing some of their own food this season.

The holidays are coming, and Mike McGrath will help you avoid some of the prerequisite panic by going over great gift suggestions for gardeners. Most of these ideas have been contributed by our listeners, but Mike adds some of his favorite critter-and weed-defeating gifts, and a brand-new suggestion that has become a staple in his collection of gardening gadgets. We'll also hear about an interesting tip concerning festive paper whites!

Homegrown tomatoes are the treasure of summer! But, if you plant them in the same spot year after year, soil-borne wilts will attack your precious plants. This week on You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath will tell you your options for keeping your tomatoes healthy, even when the growing space is too tight to rotate. Plus: are you envious of plants that you see in the yards of friends, families and neighbors?

Is your garden inundated with ladybug look-alikes? This week on You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath discusses how to control the Mexican Bean Beetle - an unwanted cousin of one of our favorite insects. Chemical free answers to all your garden questions, plus your fabulous phone calls!

Do you use wood chips, "triple premium shredded bark", dyed mulch, root mulch, Right Dress or other forms of wood mulch near your home or car? Penn State Professor Don Davis will explain how these mulches can breed nuisance fungi that ruin those expensive items with impossible-to-remove stains - and what you can use safely instead. Plus how to handle grasshoppers, and the secret behind "locusts".