MINNESOTA’S ONLY HOMEGROWN GARDENING MAGAZINE
Gardener Northern
Grow
THE EARLIEST BLOOMS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
SERENE OASIS
IN THE SUBURBS ORTH CENTRAL CIRCULATION
AN
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U.S. $4.50 Can. $5.50 January/February 2020 Display until February 29
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FIVE WAYS TO GARDEN SUSTAINABLY
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editor’s note a nonprofit organization
The Minnesota State Horticultural Society (MSHS) is a nonprofit, educational and charitable organization established in 1866. Our mission is to serve northern gardeners through education, encouragement and community. For information about subscribing to Northern Gardener magazine or becoming an MSHS member, visit northerngardener.org/membership, call 651-6433601 or email membership@northerngardener.org.
Minnesota State Horticultural Society
1935 County Rd. B2 West, Suite 125, Roseville, MN 551131334 Phone: 651-643-3601 Editor: Mary Lahr Schier, 507-581-4145 Horticultural Editor: Debbie Lonnee Copy Editor: Julie Jensen Design: Barbara Pederson
MSHS Staff
Interim Executive Director: David Fey; DFey@northerngardener.org Community Outreach Director: Lara Lau-Schommer; LLSchommer@northerngardener.org Communications and Marketing Director: Becky Swee; BSwee@northerngardener.org Development Associate: Diane Duvall; DDuvall@northerngardener.org MSHS thanks volunteer Dennis Feit, who assisted the staff for many months in 2019.
MSHS Board of Directors
Mike Heger, Waconia, Chair Joel Karsten, Roseville, Vice Chair Margaret Klis, Minneapolis, Treasurer Laura Wagner, Minneapolis, Secretary
Mary Lahr Schier
Early Risers
F
or years, I watched for the tiny Iris reticulata in my front garden to bloom. The bulb was planted in a south-facing bed, backed by the wall of our garage. It was the warmest spot in a cold garden. One year, it bloomed as early as March 13; another year, April 22. Sometimes it bloomed only to be buried by a spring snowstorm. (See photo below.) Other years, spring came fast and my little harbinger of better days to come bloomed and faded quickly. I know I am not the only gardener to have a signal plant—the one we watch and wait for each year. After a long winter, that bloom becomes the sign, as writer Kathy Purdy notes in her article on early bulbs, that “the back of winter has been broken.” I almost hate to mention this, knowing that you will likely be reading this in early January—that moment when winter seems to be its longest. Take heart. This issue is about beating the winter blues with garden inspiration and a few really clever ideas for geting an early start on the season.
At large: Tina Dombrowski, St. Paul Jennifer Ebeling, Maple Grove Del Hampton, Minneapolis Debra Kvamme, Blaine Judy MacManus, Sunfish Lake Mary Marrow, Minneapolis
Kathy, who runs the garden blog coldclimategardening.com, knows a thing or two about getting through winter. Her article on where to plant bulbs and which bulbs to choose begins on page 32. You’ll want to save it as you seek ways to plant more early bloomers in your yard. Meg Cowden offers an inspiring article on how she starts her vegetable garden in February and begins harvesting in late April and early May. If you are a gardener who likes to push the season, be sure to check out the helpful chart Meg provides on when to plant individual crops. The article begins on page 36. Finally, if you just want to sit back and relax, check out Diane McGann’s story about Lisa Moran’s fantastic secluded garden in Woodbury. It starts on page 22. —Mary Lahr Schier, editor mary@maryschier.com P.S. You’ll also find in this issue a brochure about donating to MSHS and a list of the hundreds of folks who keep the society and this magazine going through their generosity. Thank you all!
Connect with us
Copyright 2020 by MSHS. Printed in the USA on recycled paper. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reprinted without permission from MSHS. The information published in Northern Gardener reflects the experiences and opinions of the writers and is not necessarily endorsed by MSHS. Northern Gardener is a registered trademark of MSHS.
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(ISSN) 1529-8515. Northern Gardener is published bimonthly (January/February, March/April, May/June, July/August, September/ October, November/December) by the Minnesota State Horticultural Society, 1935 County Rd. B2 W., Suite 125, Roseville, MN 55113. Periodicals postage paid at St. Paul, Minn., and additional post offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Northern Gardener, 1935 County Rd. B2 W., Suite 125, Roseville, MN 55113.
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Early blooming Iris reticulata sometimes gets caught in a spring snowstorm. January/February 2020
1
MINNESOTA
STATE
HORTICULTURAL
SOCIETY'S
ANNUAL BULB FUNDRAISER SUSTANE PROVEN WINNERS AD AD
Members receive free admission to the show and 15% off all bulbs
Minneapolis Home & Garden Show February 26 - March 1 MORE
INFO
AT
NORTHERNGARDENER.ORG
www.northerngardener.org
contents
January/February 2020 | Volume 148, Number 1
in every issue
features
1
Editor’s Note
22
4
MSHS News: Classes,
14
Northern Natives:
calendar and more.
27
Wild ginger.
Kitchen Garden:
32
By Design: It’s the leaves. BY DIANE MCGANN
18
Plant to Pick:
36
Ornamental onion cultivars.
Early Bloomers For the earliest blooms on the block, pick bulbs carefully and plant strategically.
Get Sowing! Harness your garden enthusiasm to start vegetables in winter. BY MEG COWDEN
How-to:
40
African violets: Make more plants. BY ERIC JOHNSON
20
To add texture to your garden all season, think leaves.
BY KATHY PURDY
BY DEBBIE LONNEE
19
Feeling with Foliage BY MICHELLE MERO RIEDEL
Plant a pizza garden. BY SAMANTHA JOHNSON
17
Protected from a sprawling suburb, this secluded garden delights and soothes. BY DIANE MCGANN
BY BETH STETENFELD
16
Serene Oasis
Sustainable Steps Five simple ways gardeners can ‘live lightly on the land.’ BY GAIL BROWN HUDSON
Pollinators: Bee and Pollinator Discovery Center. BY RHONDA FLEMING HAYES
21
Garden Solutions: Jumping worms. BY LAURA SCHWARZ
43
Gardener’s Market
44
Northern View Plant it and . . . BY THERESA ROONEY
about the cover
Snowdrops are among the earliest blooms in the North. Read more on page 32. Photo by Jennifer McGuinness
a nonprofit organization
Northern Gardener is published by the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.