From vodka in the water to I.V. tubes in the trunk, there are lots of urban myths about how to take care of your cut Christmas tree. Chal Landgren, a Christmas tree specialist with Oregon State University Extension Service, busts those myths with answers to some common questions. Q. How do I know a
Plants that bravely bloom in winter come into color when we need it most, so take advantage and plant plenty. Many gardeners are familiar with late-winter bloomers like forsythia and crocus, but Oregon State University Extension experts suggest planting less-common trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants for all eye levels of the garden. Some of the
No one likes to be told “no,” but sometimes you’ve got to buck up. Even the most seasoned gardener will admit to at least one or two bad habits. You know who you are; you haven’t cleaned your shovel all season. Well, we’ve gathered the expertise of eight of our Oregon State University Extension Service
Don’t hang up your gardening tools just yet. There’s still plenty to do. “It’s easy to forget gardening as we transition into fall, but work you do now will save you work next year,” said Weston Miller, a horticulturist with Oregon State University Extension Service. “For example, add compost and lime to the vegetable garden,
This time of year, insects and spiders are out and about – some in large numbers – looking for places to hunker down for winter. “Just like us, they’re coming inside to get warm,” said Brooke Edmunds, a horticulturist for Oregon State University Extension Service. “They’re not feeding on homes or humans, they’re just looking
When botanist John Bartram first identified a hydrangea native to the U.S. in the 1730s, little did he know it would become a mainstay of the garden with its iconic flowers implying romance with their blustery beauty. Hydrangeas populate millions of gardens and with good reason. They can be used as specimens in a place
Holding onto poinsettias after the holidays is good for the pocketbook but hard on the ego when you can’t get them to color up the next year. To get you through the grief experts at Oregon State University Extension Service give the gift of good advice. Now’s the time to start coaxing poinsettias back into
Anticipation of ripe pears and apples peaks in fall as fruits hang heavily from branches and begin their gravity-aided trip to the ground. But how do you know when it’s prime picking time? According to Steve Castagnoli, a horticulturist with Oregon State University’s Extension Service, the signs are different for apples and pears.
For most gardeners it’s been a normal or above-average year for the country’s most popular vegetable. “It was a fairly decent season for tomatoes,” said Brooke Edmunds, horticulturist with Oregon State University Extension Service. “We got warm enough and didn’t have any early cold spells. If you were irrigating, you probably had a pretty good
Conifers in Oregon are getting hit hard by several years of drought, to the point that many are dying. “Beginning in 2013-14, we started to see significant impact on Doug-firs in western Oregon, particularly in the south end of the state,” said Dave Shaw, a forest health specialist with Oregon State University Extension Service. “Now
If you treat them right, microscopic critters in soil will do your bidding and turn garden and kitchen debris into black gold for the garden. “There are more microorganisms in a teaspoon of topsoil than there are people on planet Earth,” said Nick Andrews, small farms specialist and compost expert for the Oregon State
Lawns languish in the heat of summer unless showered with the water they require to thrive. But not to worry, the grass isn’t dead. Come fall when the rains start again, grass greens up quickly, said Alec Kowalewski, turf specialist for Oregon State University’s Extension Service. While letting your lawn go dormant in