gardening

Got a garden? Lean on your land grant

Lots of Ohioans started gardening this spring, some for the very first time, possibly including you. In a time of pandemic and staying at home, gardening gets you out into fresh air and sunshine, keeps you socially distanced, and yields healthy food for your family.

Call it, yes, a victory garden—one that stretches your food budget, limits your time in the grocery store, and helps ease the strain on food supply chains.

So how, now that your garden is growing, can you keep it strong all summer long?

Tim McDermott, an agriculture and natural resources educator with CFAES’ OSU Extension outreach arm who runs the Growing Franklin food-growing blog, shares his top six tips, especially for beginners.

Continue reading Got a garden? Lean on your land grant →

3 ways to keep learning about gardening

Check out CFAES’ Agriculture and Natural Resources Madness series on Tuesday, April 28, for three sessions related to gardening and landscaping:

  • “Gardening for Pollinators” at 9 a.m.;
  • “Landscape Insects: Bagworms vs. The Tent Builders” at noon; and
  • “BGYLive! Ornamental Horticulture Updates” at 3 p.m.

All of the webinars are free and open to the public.

Find details and the links for watching.

Tips for gardening with physical limitations

If you’re thinking about planting a vegetable garden, whether during the coronavirus shutdown or any other time, but are challenged by a physical disability, check out an upcoming webinar from CFAES called “Gardening With Physical Limitations.” The program will offer tips and strategies. It’s from 11 a.m. to noon on Thursday, April 9. Registration is free, open to everyone, but is limited to the first 500 people.

Dig further details.

Something to do while you’re staying at home

The video above, by CFAES horticulture educator Pam Bennett, is seven years old, but the suggestions are still good today. Now’s the time of year to get your garden ready for spring, and, with Ohio’s coronavirus “stay at home” order about to begin, you might have some time for a good head start.

Bennett is also the program director of our state Master Gardener Volunteers program, and if you’re interested in joining and serving with the program at some point down the road, you can learn more about it here.

Find out about event cancellations

Many of CFAES’ upcoming events have been cancelled or postponed due to the global coronavirus outbreak. Among them are the Sustainable Landscaping Workshop on March 18, the CFAES Sesquicentennial Open House on March 21, the Ohio Compost Operator Education Course on March 25-26, and the Ohio River Valley Woodland and Wildlife Workshop on March 28.

Find further details and updates on our event calendar, and if you’re not sure whether an event is still happening or not, be sure to contact the organizer ahead of time.

See the CFAES event calendar.

Celebrate winter’s ‘subtle beauty’

Staff members from Secrest Arboretum and Ohio State ATI’s Horticultural Technologies Division, both part of the CFAES Wooster campus, have teamed up to build and host a display garden at the Great Big Home + Garden Show in Cleveland, which continues through Sunday, Feb. 9. Attendance at the show is expected to top 100,000 people.

Continue reading Celebrate winter’s ‘subtle beauty’ →

Secrest has secrets. Here’s a chance to see them

Discover Secrest Arboretum’s “far corners and hidden treasures”—plants and places that visitors rarely see (including the distant “back 40”)—on a tour called “Hidden Gems of Secrest” set for Wednesday, Oct. 23. Hours are 1-3 p.m. Admission is free but registration is required. The arboretum is part of our CFAES Wooster campus.

Find out more and register. (Photo: Getty Images.)