With seeds harder to come by, here are some ideas for Alaska gardeners
Gardening: It’s time to think about getting creative and sharing what we have. We are all in this together. Gardeners always have been.
Gardening
An onslaught of orders engulfs seed companies amid coronavirus fears
Customers are gravitating to vegetables high in nutrients, such as kale, spinach and other quick-to-grow leafy greens, seed companies say. The other top seller is beans.
With everything going on, Alaskans need plant nurseries more than ever
Gardening: If we can’t get seeds, soil, containers and starts, how are we going to engage in growing food?
A meeting about dying Southcentral trees drew a packed house last month. That discussion is only beginning.
Gardening: The biggest question: What to replant after beetle kills? The answer was surprising.
Here are some things to start earlier than usual for your Alaska garden
Tomato seeds, for one.
Planting outdoors while there’s still snow on the ground? It’s not so crazy, and this might be the year to give it a try
Gardening: Radishes, peas and carrots are all seeds that can germinate in cool soil.
The light is coming back. It’s time to get spring bulbs out of storage
Seed racks are coming back too. Nurseries are open. Time to get supplies.
Answering reader questions: When nonnative plants are OK, how to attract hummingbirds
Gardening: Many plants introduced to Alaska don’t support our wildlife and have other unexpected, negative consequences. (But new, well-behaved, non-self-seeding annuals and vegetables are welcome.)
Roses are red — but this plant is a far more interesting valentine
Jeff Lowenfels: Hoya kerri is a vining wax plant, only this one has heart-shaped leaves.
What should we do after beetles kill Southcentral’s spruce trees?
Jeff Lowenfels: Topics of the first-ever community tree forum include: What do you replace a 50-year-old spruce with? Should we replace spruce with spruce? What to do with all the dead wood?
This is the year to try starting your sweet peas in February
Alaska gardening: I am not saying planting in April won’t still produce flowers. But your sweet peas are going to be bigger, more prolific and earlier-flowering if you start in the upcoming weeks.
Here’s why a soil thermometer is a must for your Alaska garden this year
Jeff Lowenfels: You can find them for as little as $6. (Throw in a good outdoor thermometer while you’re at it.)
High maintenance? No — orchids can be easy and fabulous Alaska houseplants.
Lowenfels: Why do people keep saying orchids are difficult to grow?
In the mood to experiment? Try loofah, pawpaws or artichokes in your Alaska garden this year
Gardening: These crops may succeed in the north, or they may not, but things are warming enough to warrant trying new stuff.
Okra, apple trees, outdoor tomatoes: Alaska gardeners have widening options in 2020
Alaska is being affected by earlier thaws and later first frosts. It’s time to admit that it is warmer and incorporate that into the growing calendar.
The world is changing fast. It’s time for Alaska gardeners to try hügelkultur.
Gardening: In the past, it made no sense to me to suggest using dead trees and limbs to create raised beds. Then we started to lose cottonwoods like crazy.
The best gift for a gardener is to volunteer your time. But here are some other options, too.
Gloves, gift certificates, magazines, microbiometers: here are some last-minute ideas, regardless of how advanced a gardener she is.
Your cat shouldn’t be outside unless it’s on a leash. There, I said it.
Jeff Lowenfels: Bird populations are having a tough enough time as it is. (Except for magpies - don’t even get me started on those.)
What to gift a gardener? Funny you should ask.
All gardeners have a desire to protect the environment. And, at least among my readers, the motto “do no harm” had better be at the forefront.
In Alaska, dark winters are a constant. That’s all the more reason to string lights.
Today, there are all manner of string lights to give your yard some pizzazz and brighten up our winter darkness.