Spring related posts- The Organic Forecast

May 1, 2016

April Showers Bring May Trowels

With all of this recent moisture and forecasted sunny warm days, we can certainly expect for our gardens to explode with new growth. Certainly it is fun to see seeds sprout and transplants double in size overnight, but along with great growing conditions for garden plants comes great growing conditions for weeds in the garden.…

April 3, 2016

To Till or Not to Till, That Is the Question!

Sometimes I hear seasonal ‘buzz’ words for the season. This spring, the buzz word I keep hearing is till – should I, shouldn’t I, why do I, what happens if I don’t? All great questions! Perhaps the most important thing to remember is there is no one correct way to grow a garden. Gardeners successfully…

March 6, 2016

Soil Test Questions Answered by Our Expert – Dr. Jennifer Reeve!

One amazing advantage of working for Utah State University, the land-grant University for the State of Utah, is my access to the broad and deep expertise of our specialists housed on-campus. Dr. Jennifer Reeve is an Associate Professor of Organic and Sustainable Agriculture for USU. Although she does not have an Extension appointment, I…

March 27, 2016

Oh Snap!

Easter weekend is a reminder that it is time to hide some precious egg shaped gems in the garden – I’m talking about sugar snap peas of course! I was in New Orleans, Louisiana last week and got a sneak peak of the garden delicacies to come in just a few weeks’ time from now.…

May 22, 2016

Bee is the Buzzword…

Washington State University recently produced the video below which provides a nice overview of plant pollination, types of pollinators, and other issues impacting pollinators such as protection from insecticides, pests and other stresses. It also covers honey bee pathogens, concerns about neonicotinoid effects on honey bee decline and discusses native and solitary bees as alternative pollinators. To learn more…

April 10, 2016

Compost Uncovered

Every time I have the opportunity to pass along nuggets of wisdom from our experts to you I try to do so to benefit all our gardens! Spring is upon us which means many gardeners are bursting at the seams with gardening questions. Soil testing, soil amendments and use of compost are three topics we…

May 8, 2016

We are ready to Grow!

This was the first week for our Meals Plus Harvest Garden workdays at Wheeler Farm. Our Master Gardener volunteers rose to the challenge of garden preparation (repair of planting beds, fine layer of mulch on top of planting beds, weeding north and south gardens) and man did they deliver a beautiful prepped garden space! Thank…

April 13, 2015

Timely Tip: Don’t Let Your Rhubarb Plants Bolt and Run!

I noticed over the weekend that my rhubarb plants were starting to form flower heads, or bolt. Gardeners grow rhubarb for its edible leafstalk (do not eat the leaves because they contain oxalic acid), not the flowers or seeds so, bolting of rhubarb plants is undesirable from the gardener’s perspective. Instinctively, I ran to grab…

May 24, 2015

The Salad Days of Spring: Top 10 Veggies and Herbs to Grow in Cool, Wet Weather

I have been getting lots of questions and comments of late from Master Gardeners, colleagues, and friends about the cool, wet weather. Personally, I refuse to let unseasonably high amounts of spring moisture ‘dampen’ my spirits – let’s face it, we need the water – so my advice is, embrace the wet weather and grow…

May 17, 2015

Top 10 Ways to Make and Use Compost

Mike Whitesides, our Extension marketing guru, has asked me to compile some ‘Top 10’ lists for your reading pleasure. Here is the second installment and a timely tip, how to make and use compost: Location-location-location! Place your compost bin near the area you plan to spread your compost and near a convenient water source. Oftentimes,…

May 10, 2015

Top 10 Ways to Attract Bees & Butterflies to Your Yard

Plant plants that bloom throughout the growing season and hence provide a continuous supply of pollen and nectar. When selecting plants at the nursery, make sure to not only purchase plants that bloom in the spring, but also plants that bloom in the summer, and plants that bloom in the fall so pollinators have a…

January 12, 2020

Be Legit-Get Equipped! Start Garden Seedlings Indoors

One of the best ways to beat the winter time blues is to start your own garden seedlings indoors. Nothing screams spring like watching your garden plants germinate and grow! Starting seedlings indoors is not hard and does not need to be expensive, but there are some necessary equipment purchases you need to make to…

March 15, 2015

Where are all the bees this year?

I accepted early in the process of conceptualizing this blog that it was necessary to add posts on a weekly basis to address timely issues of concern or interest. It is certainly true that there is year to year variability and hence the need to discuss occasional issues and provide a timely research-based response to…

March 22, 2015

Update on Warm Weather’s Effect on Fruit Trees

Utahans are still worried (and some fruit growers and USU Extension fruit experts are losing sleep) over the warm weather’s effect on fruit trees. As I am sure you have noticed, some fruit trees, like sweet cherries, peaches, apricots, and plums, are already in bloom! Although it’s true that stone fruits, like cherries, peaches, nectarines,…

March 29, 2015

Spring is in the air- achoo!

Well, its official, spring has sprung! If you are an allergy sufferer, it might be impossible to convince you that the entrance of spring is a breath of fresh air, but it’s hard to deny that it is fun to see the garden come to life after the stark winter months. To some, the entrance…

April 5, 2015

It’s time to make amends!

One great way to say ‘I’m sorry’ to your better half is to ‘make amends’ by spending the afternoon amending his or her garden soil for the growing season. Recently, 16 fraternity and sorority members from the University of Utah made their amends for previous wrongdoings by helping me prep the Meals Plus Harvest garden…

February 22, 2015

5 Things to Know about Testing Your Soil- Don’t get testy over soil testing!

If you live in Salt Lake County and have your soil tested, you might notice on the bottom of the report the statement “for further assistance, please see your county agent Katie Wagner”. Well, I am indeed the agent listed so I receive dozens of calls each year from gardeners with questions about soil testing. …

April 14, 2014

Tip of the Week: Monitor for Aphids on Fruit Trees

Spring has sprung, fruit trees are blooming and USU Extension’s Utah Pest team is on on the lookout for up-to-date pest and disease issues here in Utah. A common pest to start monitoring for now are APHIDS! “Aphids overwinter as eggs, and if they were not killed by a dormant oil spray, they are hatching now. There are several species, but they all have similar life cycles, behave similarly, cause the same damage, and are treated the same…..Monitor your fruit…

April 12, 2014

Should I soil test? Yes!

Every spring the Extension office fills with gardeners bringing in samples of their problematic garden soil asking to have it tested. While we don’t have a lab here in Salt Lake, we can easily assist them with sending the sample to the Utah State University Analytical Lab in Logan. Soil test are important in helping…