Talkin' Dirty at the Library

Master Gardener Emily Clem has a conversation with Toby Gray about the value of oak trees. As the Plant Recorder for the Huntsville Botanical Gardens, Toby talks about the variety of oaks and their place in the ecosystem. With the newer trend in landscaping encouraging native plants and wildlife, oaks play a significant role in providing food for both insects and animals.  He also talks about the best way to cultivate an oak for home landscapes.  

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.alcpl.org/

Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay      

Master Gardeners Emily Clem and Melissa Kirkindall talk about hummingbirds. Melissa has years of experience studying hummingbirds and talks about the different species, their migration, habitats, feeding, and what plants attract them to backyard bird enthusiasts. With nests the size of a walnut, the smallest hummer fits on the tip of an eraser and the largest measures eight and a half inches long! More fascinating facts in this podcast!

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.alcpl.org/

The Athens-Limestone Public Library has a wide selection of books on local gardening and birding
Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay     

Master Gardener Emily Clem talks with horticulturist, Katrina Mitchell, from the Huntsville Botanical Gardens about Alabama's endemic plants. With its diverse ecosystem of mountains, plateaus, valleys, rivers and glades, Alabama boasts over 3000 native plant species. Among those are over 28 endemic plants that grow only in Alabama and nowhere else in the world. Identifying, locating, and conserving these rare and often endangered plants are the topics of this podcast. 

 Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.alcpl.org/

The Athens-Limestone Public Library has a wide selection of books on local gardening
Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay    

Master Gardener Soozi Pline talks with Jayne Luetzow, Regional Agent for Northwest Alabama Cooperative Extension office, about pruning. Step by step pruning techniques, including when to prune, why to prune, and what tools to use. A master class in pruning trees and shrubs with specific mentions of azaleas, hydrangeas, and roses, as well as a discussion of the controversial crepe 'murder' pruning technique. 

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.alcpl.org/

The Athens-Limestone Public Library has a wide selection of books on local gardening
Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay     

Master Gardener Emily Clem talks with Master Beekeeper Bud Rogers about backyard beekeeping for the hobbyist. These busy pollinators are masters of efficiency and can make an amazing difference in the output of your backyard garden. They talk about how bees make honey and tips to avoid getting stung. Bud avidly promotes beekeeping as an accessible hobby with equipment adapted for people in wheelchairs or unable to lift heavy weights.  

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://mastergardeners-limestonecountyalabama.org/
https://www.alcpl.org/

The Athens-Limestone Public Library has a selection of books on beekeeping and native plants. 
Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music and images from Pixabay      
      

Kate Gribbin, Recreation Manager, along with Hallie Porter, Development Director, and Jennifer Johnson, Master Gardener, highlight the new pollinator gardens of the North Alabama Land Trust. Started in 1987 as a means to keep development off Monte Sano Mountain, the Land Trust now covers 10 counties, 10,000 acres and has 10 nature preserves for education and recreation. With newly planted pollinator gardens at Blevins Gap and Harvest Square, they talk about the Land Trust's role in preserving our natural resources amidst North Alabama's increasing growth and expansion.

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.landtrustnal.org/2023/04/17/northal-native-plants/
https://www.alcpl.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30c0WX-kOHI    (pollinator garden at Blevins Gap video)

The Athens-Limestone Public Library has a wide selection of books on native plants. 
Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay     

 Master Gardener, Emily Clem, welcomes Lynne Wenineger from Alabama A&M University. The curator of the herbarium at A&M, Lynne talks about the importance of collecting and preserving plants for study in the plant library. From gathering specimens in the field, to pressing, and cataloging, Alabama is the 4th ranked state in the US for biodiversity and several plant species are found nowhere else in the world.

Links:
http://floraofalabama.org/    (Alabama Plant Atlas)
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.alcpl.org/

Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay 

Master Gardener, Emily Clem, welcomes Travis Roddy of the International Crane Foundation. They talk about the cranes that winter here in North Alabama, including sandhill cranes and the endangered whooping cranes.

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://savingcranes.org/  (International Crane Foundation)
https://www.fws.gov/refuge/wheeler  (Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge)
https://www.alcpl.org/

Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay     

Limestone County Master Gardeners Emily Clem and Soozi Pline talk about native plants that grow well in the North Alabama region.  They identify plants, season by season, that bloom and provide food for pollinators all year long. In the process of naturalizing their own home properties, Emily and Soozi identify which plants work for different sun and soil conditions. They agree that gardening is often trial and error and even Master Gardener experts make mistakes!

Links:
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.landtrustnal.org/2023/04/17/northal-native-plants/
https://www.alcpl.org/

The Athens-Limestone Public Library has a wide selection of books on native plants. 
Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
Music by Pixabay    

Limestone County Master Gardener, Emily Clem, talks with Rhonda Britton, Former Home Grounds Agent with the Alabama Cooperative Extension and current Campus Engineer at Auburn University's Research and Innovation Campus in Huntsville. Rhonda gives a step by step guide to growing shiitake mushrooms for home gardeners.

Links:
https://www.sweetgrownalabama.org/sga-members/626
https://www.aces.edu/  (Alabama Cooperative Extension)
https://www.alcpl.org/

 Have questions about this episode? Email [email protected]
 Music by Pixabay