Garden Variety

It’s a staple in almost every kitchen, but if you’re going to grow your own garlic you have to do some planning ahead. On this episode, Iowa State University horticulture professor and chair Ajay Nair guides us through planting, caring for and harvesting garlic.

Autumn is here and before winter arrives, insects and arachnids have some important work to get done. In the meantime, we can enjoy the beautiful handiwork of orb weaver spiders which is especially visible this time of year. On this episode, entomologist Zach Schumm of the Iowa State University Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic joins us to talk about orb weaver spiders. He discusses their beautiful work and how they prepare for winter.

Some Iowans spent a lot of the summer wishing for rain, others spent the summer wishing the rain would stop. Later summer deluges are raising some concerns about what a strong El Nino means for the next few months. Agricultural climatology specialist Madelynn Wuestenberg joins us on this episode with her insight.

How to prepare for the first frost of the season (hint: start now)

If you step outside into the quiet of a summer afternoon or evening right now, you'll probably hear a merry cacophony of insect sounds. We talk with Laura Iles, director of the North Central Integrated Pest Management Center about the singing insects of late summer in Iowa.

The woods may be lovely, dark and deep, but most Iowa woodlands are plagued with invasive species. On this episode, we talk with DNR District Forester Mark Vitosh about the non-native invasive plants that we should be concerned about in Iowa forests and some management techniques.

One of the perennial questions we field is when to plant grass seed. The answer is right now. On this episode we talk with Iowa State University turfgrass specialist Adam Thoms about seeding and overseeding your lawn. We also talk about the fall lawn chores you should have on your horizon.

It’s state fair season and the Iowa State Fair has a competition for everything from biggest boar to longest beard to the best pie. But one contest puts people’s knowledge of backyard weeds to the test. We hear from the participants at the Iowa State Fair Weed Identification Contest.

Eating a ripe tomato fresh from the garden is one of the true pleasures of summer, but growing tomatoes can be challenging — especially if your plants get hit by disease. In this episode, we talk about tomatoes and their many diseases with Chelsea Harbach, plant disease diagnostician with the Iowa State University Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic.

While some of us are making the most of the last few weeks of summer, other folks are ready to move on to fall. Demand for iconic autumnal plants and colors starts earlier every year. On this episode, we talk with ISU Extension Horticulture Specialist Randall Vos about producing fall plants on demand.