Your home outside the city limits.
For many years, Nebraska Extension recommended fertilization of high-quality lawns up to four times each year. We often used memorable dates to help homeowners remember when these applications should be made – Tax Day, April 15; Memorial Day, Labor Day and Halloween. However, turf research is ongoing, and our understanding of how turfgrasses grow and... Continue Reading →
It’s finally summer, time to enjoy the great outdoors, but how do we get kids outdoors when there are so many distractions? As adults we recognize the therapeutic quality of unstructured time spent in nature but that’s not a convincing argument to a kid on summer break who would rather be playing video games. This... Continue Reading →
Fruit trees will soon be blooming, marking the beginning of another growing season. Many diseases become active during blooming, so it’s time to prepare to protect your trees and ensure a good harvest. Brown Rot After harvesting, gardeners are often disappointed to find apricot, peach, cherry or plum fruits quickly develop a soft fuzzy brown... Continue Reading →
Even though this year’s flooding occurred in March before most garden crops were in the ground, there is still cause for concern when considering harvesting perennial crops and planning this year’s garden. Flood waters many be contaminated by any combination of sewage, river or creek water, farm run-off or industrial pollutants. Bacteria, parasites, viruses and... Continue Reading →
Do you like to mow, fertilize and control pests in your lawn? Some of us do, some don’t.
Chickens, ducks and geese aren’t the only birds well suited for acreages. Other species of poultry do very well under similar conditions and like the mentioned birds, can provide you with meat and eggs. Coturnix Quail, pronounced “kuh-tur-niks”, are an excellent bird for acreage owners who might be limited on space and desire a small... Continue Reading →
As morel mushroom hunting season approaches, be mindful of food safety. It’s important to remember flood waters don’t carry just water. There is a host of unsavory things that are downright dangerous— ▪Human disease pathogens from raw sewage, ▪Pesticides carried from farm fields and lawns on soil particles and plant residue, ▪And rubber and petroleum... Continue Reading →
Warm temperatures in April have had many homeowners wondering about this year’s first spring preemergence (PRE) herbicide application. When is the right time to apply in spring? If you've waited, that's good - but it's almost time. PRE Herbicide Residual Pre herbicides act by killing newly germinated weed seedlings, which come in contact with the... Continue Reading →
Pruning Hydrangea “How do I prune my hydrangea?” This is a common question from gardeners each spring. No wonder it’s confusing - there are several hydrangeas species commonly grown by Nebraska gardeners, with a different pruning strategy and timing for each. But which pruning method should be used on your plants? The first step is... Continue Reading →
If you want to learn how to garden, plants are the best teachers and the best way to start is to just go ahead and plant. Choose your space carefully, you will want to plant it where you will visit often and where you will enjoy working. Observation throughout the year is a good way... Continue Reading →
Spring has officially begun. That doesn’t mean we should get overly excited and go clean up our beds just yet, this winter has been long and cold so don’t get too ready for spring. However, Asparagus will soon be emerging from past years plantings and new plantings can soon be started. Planting Asparagus is a... Continue Reading →
Floods cause damage to trees in two main ways – physical and physiological. The severity of damage is determined by many different factors, including the tree species, beginning health of the tree, length of flooding event, depth of the water, amount of soil removed or deposited over the tree’s root system and time of year... Continue Reading →
