george bonnema
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistMay 21, 2019This is the right time to prune any plants in the pine family. The new growth emerges as what we call a candle, and to keep the evergreen compact and full, we cut 1/2 to 3/4 of that individual candle off. When the cut is made this early in the growing season, the cut edge will have time to develop new growth buds for the next growing season, so instead of a long space between tiers of branches,…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistApril 16, 2019Last week I sent you outside to start your spring pruning ... and then it snowed. But we survived that, so today I’ll give you a couple of indoor garden tasks to do, and maybe that will give us more sun outdoors. If you are interested in starting your own pepper and tomato plants for your garden, now is the time to sow those seeds. We are probably six to eight weeks from the last frost (yea!!) so…- April 09, 2019To the Editor: We were overwhelmed by the outpouring of support at the April 1 Dessert Theater and Auction in Grand Prairie Events for our Generations organization. The evening was an impressive showcase of local talent — from the delicious desserts to the beautiful music to the hilarious acting — that made us once again proud to be part of this community. By the end of the night all the generous…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistApril 09, 2019A couple of perfect spring days have convinced me that we are on the backside of winter so here I am again, telling you to get to work outside to keep your landscape looking great. The one plant that is first on the list to get cut back is Karl Forster grass. This is a cool season grass that starts growing really early in spring. You will already see several inches of new green grass blades…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 31, 2018I just seem to be giving you more things to do each time I write this, but maybe you pick the things you like to do or want to do like a menu ... at least I’m trying to keep you up to speed. So now we are into August, and last week I mentioned thinning or dividing bearded iris. August is also the month to move or divide peonies, both standard and fern leaf peonies. When you get to replanting the…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 17, 2018I trust that the planters you put together this spring are giving you the color you had hoped for. If you have a plant in that combination that has assumed a “take over” attitude, don’t be afraid to give it some discipline … with a pruning shears! Also, be sure to continue feeding to keep that energy and color coming. Removing the faded flowers (dead-heading) is another way to promote more…
By George Bonnema, Luverne gardening enthusiastOctober 02, 2017Now that we are into the month of October and frost is predicted next week, it is time to acclimate indoor plants that have been vacationing outdoors to their winter home indoors. Considering that they have had daylight flooding them from all sides and indoors they will have to adjust to what light comes through a window in addition to a much shorter day length, they have to make a big adjustment…
By George Bonnema, Luverne gardening enthusiastAugust 29, 2017For weed spray to be most effective, the weeds should be growing actively ... with all the rain we have had, the weeds ARE really growing actively. So, I’m saying that right now is a great time to attack creeping Charlie and any other broad leaf weed in your lawn. A fall application of spray will catch the weed seedlings as they germinate, giving you a clean sweep going into spring. Tough weeds…
By George Bonnema, Luverne gardening enthusiastAugust 22, 2017The Minnesota Northern Gardener magazine was in my mail box today, and there is an article about a new disease showing up in roses in the Midwest ... Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois. The disease is rampant in southern states because of milder weather. Rose rosette disease (RRD) is caused by a virus which is carried by a microscopic mite. The tiny, wingless…
By George Bonnema, Luverne gardening enthusiastAugust 14, 2017Blessed is the only word that I can come up with to express how I feel about getting over 4 inches of rain in the last 7 days. I had just thrashed the seed out of my dead spinach plants, and that seed has germinated like too thick … I’ll have to thin it when normally I’m just happy to have a reasonable germination rate. We stopped at a garden market last weekend and they had little green apples…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistOctober 03, 2016Impatiens have been the best choice for an annual that will produce fantastic color in shaded areas. Now we may have to go for another option. Recently, I have noticed impatiens that have suddenly lost all of their leaves and are naked stalks. The cause is downy mildew. This fungus moved into our area a couple of years ago. It can attack the plants at any stage in the growing season and is aided…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistSeptember 26, 2016Just a reminder that if you have had indoor plants “vacationing” outdoors for the summer, it is time to start acclimating them to coming back inside. A day or two inside followed by a day or two outside will give them a chance to adjust to lower light and the warmer temperature without shocking the plant by an abrupt change which often results in a lot of leaves turning yellow and dropping. Do…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistSeptember 19, 2016I regret admitting that summer is over. So now we prepare for what autumn means for gardeners. First of all, fall is the perfect time for planting. The extreme heat of summer is past but the ground remains warm, thus stimulating root growth and development. If you want to move or plant perennials, I’d get that done in September to ensure enough time for them to become established before winter.…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 23, 2016Hard as it is to believe and still harder to accept, next week will be Labor Day and that is the end of summer. I enjoy autumn but still regret summer’s exit … so on we go from here. I want you to stop feeding any shrubs, roses or trees for this season. We want the growth that is there to mature, and fertilizing at this time will encourage new growth which will have a hard time surviving winter.…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 01, 2016Last week I wrote about working on my bearded iris to address the iris borer issue. I lifted the entire clump of each variety and found borers in just one of the three, and that clump had just a few of the rhizomes affected. I found three of the critters, and they are ugly. Getting to that task as soon as I discovered the symptoms of spots on the leaves hopefully eliminated the other borers…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 25, 2016Today my flower gardens are absolutely glorious! This is the color I envision and plan for all through the cold, dark days of winter ... so enjoy every moment while it lasts. If you are feeding your planters, they should be at their peak of color now. If you have one or two plants that seem to be determined to take over the space, prune them to keep them in bounds. Sweet potato vine is one that…
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