OLIVIA — Libraries have long been places where the seeds of knowledge have been planted. Thanks to garden gurus and aficionados, both the Olivia and Willmar public libraries also offer community members actual seeds to plant in their gardens.
“I think people get excited about gardening,” said Theresa MaherBock, administrative assistant for the University of Minnesota Extension office in Renville County. “Gardening is whatever you want.”
The seed libraries at both Olivia and Willmar libraries are available for gardeners, no matter their skill level, to pick up a variety of seeds, free of charge. Both libraries have vegetables, herbs and flowers. New gardeners can try out their green thumbs for the first time, while more experienced horticulturalists can try their hand at a new variety or type of plant.
“This seed library isn’t really meant to supply all of your food,” said Kris Gatzemeyer, Willmar Public Library assistant who oversees the seed library there. “What it is meant to do is get your feet wet. You can try different things.”
The Willmar Seed Library has been around for close to a decade, Gatzemeyer estimates, and the last few years have been some of the best.
“Use of the seed library has gone up quite a lot in the last few years,” with more and more people wanting to try their hand at gardening and growing their own food, Gatzemeyer
Shelby Lindrud
West Central Tribune Opening drawers in a repurposed card catalog at the Willmar Public Library doesn’t unveil book cards, but rather packets of seeds. The seed libraries at both the Willmar and Olivia libraries provide vegetable, herb and flower seeds to gardeners across the region.
said. “It is the new version of Victory Gardening. People are interested in it, and I think it is great.”
It was one of those new gardeners, who had started planting just as the pandemic changed everything, who first came up with the idea of a seed library in Olivia. It helps that the person happened to also be the head librarian for the Olivia Public Library.
“It made sense to get more people involved,” said Jake Fejedelem.
To make the seed library a reality, Fejedelem turned to the University of Minnesota Extension Master Gardeners in Renville County. The group worked for about two years to get the seed library up and running, including visiting other seed libraries in the state and procuring the seeds.
“He thought it would be something great for us to do,” said Jan Howell, Renville County Master Gardener.
The Olivia Seed Library opened to the public at an open house event Feb. 20 at the Olivia Library. The turnout was more than the Master Gardeners had expected. Within a few weeks, 50 people had signed up for the seed library.
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“It ex-seeded our expectations,” Fejedelem said, who next hopes to start a seed garden at the Fairfax Public Library in southeast Renville County.
Both the Olivia and Willmar seed libraries work similarly. Those wanting to participate must fill out a sign-up sheet at the respective library and receive their member number.
In Olivia, each member household of three or fewer people can take five packets of seeds a week, while families of four or more can take 10.
At the Willmar Library, members are allowed five packets of seeds per week. Each library asks its members to record which seeds they take in a log book, so those who run the seed library can keep on top of what is popular and what needs to be refilled.
“We are really going through them,” Maher-Bock said.
“I come by twice a week to restock,” added Howell.
While the word library usually means someone borrows something and then returns it, neither seed library requires members to bring seeds in to replace what was used. In Olivia, the library is still just starting and hasn’t quite figured out how it would handle people bringing seeds in.
“They don’t need to bring their tomatoes in,” Maher-Bock said of gardeners who used seeds from the library to grow their crops.
Willmar does accept seeds from the community, though it isn’t all that common.
“I think it is an intimidating process for people to harvest their seeds,” Gatzemeyer said, though she does try to hold at least one class on the process each year. If growers do want to “check-in” some seeds, Gatzemeyer said they can be brought in an
The Olivia Seed Library opened to the public Feb. 20, 2024, and there is already hope to open another seed library at the Fairfax Public Library.
envelope with the type of seed, when and where it was harvested and how it is grown written on the front.
“We try to keep local seeds, because we want to make sure we are pushing things that are the right zone,” Gatezmeyer said.
The types of seeds available at the libraries are as varied as any garden can be. Gatzemeyer said the Willmar Seed Library is a great place to try something new, as they can get some rather odd varieties. The Willmar Library has also offered native flowers and plant seeds, thanks to the Master Gardeners harvesting the seed pods from nature around the area.
“Our Master Gardeners are pretty passionate about native flowers, native grasses,” Gatzemeyer said.
The Olivia Library has been able to provide a good mix of flower, herb and vegetable seeds for its first season. When it comes to choosing seeds, for beginners it’s important to not be too ambitious.
“Start simple and small,” said Renville County Master Gardener Lois Anderson. “Simple means easyto-grow vegetables, and small means fewer plants.”
SEED LIBRARIES: Page D4
Starting small will also mean it will be easier to keep on top of the required maintenance of any garden — to keep it healthy and producing. “If the average gardener spends 15 minutes a day pulling weeds and keeping their gardens clean, they shouldn’t be overrun,” Anderson said.
Working in partnership with their respective Master Gardeners means the seed libraries are also able to offer gardeners something just as valuable as seeds to plant — information. The Master Gardeners have a lot of experience and knowledge to share. Kandiyohi has a group of 25 Master Gardners, while Renville County has 17.
Each county’s Master Gardeners hold classes and programs on gardening and horticulture at the libraries. In March, the Renville County Master Gardeners held two beginner gardening classes in Olivia while the Kandiyohi County Master Gardeners held a program on container gardening, teaching tips and tricks on how to create a wonderful garden in the smallest areas.
“Anybody can grow things in whatever space you are given,” Gatzemeyer said. “It doesn’t have
“Anybody can grow things in whatever space you are given.”
— Kris Gatzemeyer
to be much, you just have to dedicate yourself.”
The Willmar Seed Library also has a question box available for people to leave questions for a master gardener to respond to. And, monthly, a Master Gardener is available in person at the Willmar Public Library to talk about gardening topics.
“We’re trying to make the seed library more vibrant by holding events, classes,” Gatzemeyer said.
With successful seed libraries in both communities, the overall goal is to help community members of all ages learn to grow their own garden oasis, whether it is a flower garden or one full of vegetables and herbs.
“Ever since COVID, gardening has really kicked off,” Howell said. “I think people are still into it now.”
There are lots of different seeds to choose from at the Olivia Seed
The Willmar Library also gets a wide variety from which people can choose.
The perfect landscape may start with a healthy, lush lawn, but for interest and depth, you’ll also need to consider the plants that surround it.
Thankfully, it’s easy to make considerable improvements to your backyard life using tips from professionals. Landscape designer Doug Scott has partnered with lawn care equipment manufacturer Exmark to offer these tips for selecting and installing plants that will beautify your outdoor living areas.
► Choose plants well-suited for your specific growing conditions. Knowing your growing zone is important, however you should also be mindful how conditions like sun exposure can change as you move around your yard.
► Choose the right size plants for the space. Bear in mind that what you’re planting today is much smaller than what it will be once it’s matured. Always read a plant’s care label to understand its optimal growing conditions and size at maturity.
► From a design perspective, think in terms of texture, layers and drifts. When addressing the overall texture of your planting beds, choose plants that vary in form, size, color and leaf structure. This will create greater interest, and a space that’s more visually appealing and enjoyable to spend time in.
For a lush look, think in terms of layers when considering
composition. Much like in a painting, you should have background, middle ground, and foreground layers. Your background layer should consist of taller evergreen shrubs to provide something alive and green to look at all year long, no matter what’s happening in front of them. Your middle ground layer should be lower than the background layer to create interest, and is where you can add a contrasting evergreen shrub or
pop of color with a perennial plant. Finally, your foreground layer should help transition the planting beds to your lawn space. You can accomplish this with smaller perennials, evergreens, annuals or creeping ground covers.
When addressing drifts, read the plant labels to know how large they’ll grow. This can help ensure plants grow in together as they mature, but are not overcrowded.
1. Dig a hole that’s about two times the diameter of the pot your plant’s being transplanted form, and about the depth of the pot.
2. Mend in compost or soil conditioner to give your plant the organic material it needs to thrive. If you’d like, add slow-release fertilizer, and mix well.
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— The question on the minds of gardeners and home owners all over the area this year is “what effect will the unusually warm and snow free winter do to my perennials, shrubs and trees?” Time will tell is probably the best answer for now.
Once we get into the growing season, we will know more. Not even the University can tell us for certain at this time.
We went into winter in drought conditions. Here in Kandiyohi County, we got a lot of wonderful rain the end of December and it all soaked in because the ground wasn’t frozen yet. We didn’t get any further moisture the rest of the winter. Then the spring snowstorm arrived, which lasted several days.
The wide temperature swings all winter is of concern as it can be hard on all plants. There might be more damage on evergreens in the form of burning and browning.
Winter sun and wind can result in foliage water loss and with frozen ground, no moisture can reach the roots. Sunny days in winter warms up plant tissue and cell activity starts. Then, when the sun sets or it becomes cloudy, the temperature drops and it injures evergreen foliage.
Newly planted trees and shrubs are affected the most. Reports of maple trees being tapped for sap as early as January are proof of cell activity much earlier than normal.
What can we as gardeners do at this point to reduce plant stress?
The University of Minnesota advises we should fertilize injured plants in early spring; keep soil moist over the root zone, mulch to protect the plant roots and stems from drought and mechanical damage. And lastly, provide winter protection this fall for next winter.
We have been told by the U of M that extended years of drought can affect trees up to five or six years after the fact. By that time we have forgotten about the drought and wonder why our trees are dying. Emerald ash borer is here to stay, as are oak wilt and other oak diseases. Alternate freeze and thaw with no snow cover can cause perennial flower roots to bolt out of the ground. This happens with garden mums.
As we are checking out the garden centers this time of year, we run into onion sets and onion plants.
What is the difference? Onion sets (small bulbs) are actually second-year onions, so they are not good keepers when harvested.
If you want to grow onions that will keep over winter, you need to buy onion plants instead. I used to get several hundred onion plants and plant them quite close together. Then as they started growing, they would be thinned and used as green onions to use in salads or eaten fresh from the garden. This gave the others room to expand and grow into mature onions.
GARDENER: Page D8
Contributed / Sue Morris
Pearl the chocolate lab keeps rabbits out of Master Gardener Sue Morris’ spring flower beds. Rapid changes in weather can cause stress to plants, especially newly planted shrubs and trees.
From Page D5
3. Place your plant in the hole, making sure that it sits at, or just above, the level it did in the pot.
4. Backfill with soil, stopping to add water when the hole is about halfway full.
5. Fill the rest of the hole with soil, then firmly press down.
6. Soak your plant with more water.
7. Finish by adding mulch, making sure it’s pulled away from the base of your plant.
Scott offers more insights in “How to Choose Plants for Landscaping,” a recent episode of “Done-in-a-Weekend Projects,” an original series from Exmark. To watch the video, visit Backyard Life, which is part of a unique multimedia destination with a focus on helping homeowners make the most of outdoor spaces.
“Now that you have the inspiration and know-how needed to choose and install plant material, you can create landscaping that reflects who you are and how you’d like to live outside,” Scott said.
Contributed / Sue Morris
Ginger and Lysimachia, otherwise known as creeping Jenny, are pretty and useful additions to Master Gardener Sue Morris’ garden.
GARDENER From Page D7
If you have saved leftover seed packets from last year, remember onion, parsley, and parsnip seed usually isn’t any good after one year. Other seed typically lasts for several years.
If you want to be certain of the viability, place 10 seeds on a damp paper towel and roll up the towel. Put this in a plastic bag and keep in a warm dark place. After a week you should see if you have germination. If nothing has sprouted, toss the package.
Two days before the first day
of spring this year I found crocus blooming in the flower bed. As of this writing, they are covered with snow. This has happened before but apparently it doesn’t hurt them as these bulbs are probably at least 25 years old. Tulips were poking their leaves out of the ground and they should be OK.
Early spring bloom is so enjoyable. Along with the early red Darwin tulips, bloodroot blooms, ginger and Virginia bluebells (mertensia) are the first to emerge and bloom in my garden. Virginia bluebells are ephemeral; when they finish blooming they slowly disappear to ground level. Blooms are blue/pink, bell shaped. They enjoy the same
Contributed / Sue Morris
Virginia bluebells are ephemeral, as in they slowly disappear to ground level once they’ve bloomed. Master Gardener Sue Morris has had her bluebell patch more more than 30 years, and enjoys the early spring blooms.
environment as hosta, so soon the hosta emerge and they don’t have to compete with bluebell foliage.
I’ve had my Virginia bluebell patch for over 30 years. They have spread over the years with a single plant able to have multiple flowering stems, getting 2 to 3 feet wide. They are an early plant for pollinators, blooming before trees leaf out. What more could we want?
Spring is a great time to divide certain perennials in your garden. It also gives you the chance to remove old, dead growth and encourage new growth. Its easier to divide plants when they are small and just starting to leaf out. This is especially true of hosta.
Perennials that should be divided in the spring include: Anemone, Artemisia, Balloon flower, Beardtongue, Bee balm, Bleeding heart, Delphinium, Falso blue indigo (can be difficult to transplant), hosta, Jacob’s ladder, Liatris, Maidenhair fern, Milkweed, Monkshood, Mum, Obedient plant (be careful as it isn’t very obedient!), ornamental grasses, pinks, sedum, Toad lily, Turtlehead, Virginia bluebells and Yarrow.
Master Gardener Sue Morris has been writing this column since 1991 for Kandiyohi County newspapers. Morris has been certified through the University of Minnesota as a gardening and horticulture expert since 1983. She lives in Kandiyohi County. To consult with a Master Gardener, call your county Extension office.
If they can dream it, they can build it.
That might as well be the mantra behind Yee Lee and Bryan Johnsen’s extensive gardens in Champlin, Minnesota, that unexpectedly grew into a budding business.
Over the course of just a few years, the couple have created a delightful display of 27 distinct gardens. Landscaping is no afterthought, either, if their most ambitious project yet — a towering stone water feature with spiral staircases, a bridge, 6-foot-high waterfall and a stream — is any indication.
With more than 20,000 plants and a variety of landscapes under their belt, the two recently started to host garden tours during the growing season. They say it’s a way to pass on what they’ve learned about which plants flourish in Minnesota, including the rare
hybrid and tropical plants that they especially love.
“We want our gardens to be an example of how you can improve your property over a small period of time,” Johnsen said of their gardens, named a winner in the readernominated 2023-2024 Star Tribune Beautiful Gardens contest.
Lee, who is a language interpreter by day, loves to garden in her free time. Growing up in Laos, she learned tricks of the trade from her Hmong community, for whom gardening was an important part of everyday life. As a precision machinist who runs his own company, Johnsen loves everything construction.
The two, who married in 2017, became two peas in a pod working together in the yard.
“She’s the mother of the plants and nurtures all of them, and I’m the builder,” Johnsen said.
WINNERS: Page D10
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Yee
Their first major project was the front yard. When driving by their residence along heavily traveled Winnetka Avenue N. in Champlin, it’s difficult to imagine that the front yard was once little more than a drainage ditch.
“It’s about an acre and [the terrain] was very rough. You’d have to walk carefully without spraining your ankle, it was in such disrepair,” Johnsen said. “I started regrading all of it to have better contours and evened out the soil and so forth.”
The former ditch-turned-boulevard garden, under a canopy of trees, is now home to shade-tolerant hostas ranging from Blue Angels to Curly Fries. They mingle with puffy red and fuchsia dahlias and purple phlox, as well as hydrangeas, sedum and Creeping Jenny, a ground cover that doubles as paths for strolling.
Over the years, the couple have created gardens for sunny, shady and partial-shady areas. Past the front yard, more than 80 varieties of towering Asiatic lilies, some as tall as 8 feet, create a dramatic and elegant display. Lee explained her trick for getting optimal height out of the lilies. “We’ll put a very stiff bamboo pole
on some of our tallest lilies. It protects them from wind damage,” Lee said.
In another area, about 60 varieties of ruffly daylilies are on display. Here, some of Lee’s favorite color combinations can be found — orange and burgundy Volcano Fireworks, purple and lime green Mystic Port and yellow and purple El Desperado. And while the daylilies can handle partial shade, “we prefer to go with full sunshine because their performance is much better with a lot more blossoms,” Lee said.
In a shaded area of the sprawling backyard, they planted more than 300 hosta varieties. Meanwhile, dahlias cover a partially shaded area that Lee and Johnsen refer to as the pollinator garden.
“This area gets a lot of pollinator activity: bumblebees, hummingbirds, butterflies,” Johnsen said.
The duo also carved out space for their own feeding purposes. In addition to a designated vegetable garden, they’re big believers in weaving edible plants into their landscaping to add shape and dimension. It’s not uncommon for cabbage, kale and blueberries to dot flower beds filled with peonies,
“
“We just want to play around with it and see what happens.”
— Bryan Johnsen
delphiniums, roselilies and beyond.
Along a new retaining wall, purple long beans can be found.
“Instead of putting up a trellis where plants climb up, we thought ‘Why don’t we plant it on top and have it climb down,’ “ Johnsen said. “And it worked really well.”
While they’ve created quite extensive gardens, Lee and Johnsen show no signs of slowing down. They’re creating hybrid varieties of lilies through cross-pollination to add to their already vast collection.
“We just want to play around with it and see what happens,” Johnsen said. “We’re learning as we’re going.”
Their labor of love has also turned into a full-fledged business, Ascent Flower, through which they host scheduled garden tours and plant sales.
Johnsen said their business began when they decided to sell their plant
offshoots as a way to finance their hobby, which was getting expensive. They not only wanted to sell plants; they wanted to help customers grow and design displays, so they took on a show-and-tell approach.
“We wanted to encourage people to improve a particular spot on their property by showing them examples of plants we have displayed in our yard,” Johnsen said. “That way, they can maybe transfer some of those ideas to their properties.”
As Lee and Johnsen prepare for the next growing season, they’re nurturing hundreds of plants inside the atrium of their home as well as germinating and starting new plants from seedlings.
Johnsen just finished building a greenhouse above the atrium so they can expand their budding operation and save money in the long run.
“Each year we purchase 1,500 to 2,000 annuals. We can now grow them instead of buying them,” he said. “Then, if we have any overstock, we can hold spring plant sales, hopefully starting around Mother’s Day.”
©2024 StarTribune.
Home exteriors make a first impression, setting the tone for neighbors, guests and, if a property is on the market, prospective home buyers. So how do you boost your curb appeal and make your exterior pop? According to those in the know, a lot of it has to do with color.
“Choosing deep, bold colors for your door or siding can provide eyecatching focal points and dramatically increase curb appeal,” said Jon Lapp, vinyl siding product manager at ProVia.
To help you make selections that work best for your home and vision, ProVia is offering the following insights:
Color and texture play significant roles in the overall look and style of a home, so consider pairing your vinyl siding with other materials, such as manufactured stone, decorative shake, or board and batten. Whether you go for soft earth tones or deep hues of primary colors, color retention technologies will maintain the look through the years. To that end, here are a few qualities to look for in your siding:
► UV protection: Think of it as sunscreen for your house. This layer of protection helps shield your siding from the destructive effects of the sun’s UV rays.
► Weather barrier shield: Antiweathering materials on the siding’s surface can help ensure long-lasting color fidelity and low-maintenance freedom for your home’s exterior.
It’s for this reason that ProVia’s entire lineup of super polymer vinyl siding is formulated with Tri-Pigment Reflective Technology, Color Keeper Anti-Fade Protection, Weather Barrier Shield and SPX-2000 UV Blocker. These components work together to combat fade and increase weather resistance.
The entry door is an amazing place to make a color statement. However, if you buy an exterior replacement door and try to finish it yourself, achieving the flawless finish you’re hoping for is easier said than done. Then there’s the trim, and possibly sidelights and a transom that also need to be painted to match or coordinate with the door color.
From classic hues, such as rustic bronze or forest green, to trending colors like avocado or burnt orange, you can ensure a consistent, beautiful and lasting finish by having your manufacturer paint the door before it leaves the factory floor. Bonus: the color will also be under warranty. Look for a manufacturer that crafts custom doors, allowing you to choose different interior and exterior colors and other specifications tailored to your taste.
► Heat resistance: Heatresistant inorganic pigments ensure exacting deep colors, reflect heat from exterior walls, and deflect solar rays to reduce solar heat build-up and unsightly weathering.
► Anti-fade protection: A strong molecular chain, found in super polymer vinyl siding, is engineered
for superior color retention.
“At first, it might be difficult to tell the difference between a good vinyl siding panel and an outstanding one. But over time, the true strength and quality of each panel will be revealed,” Lapp said.
To get inspired for your home exterior project, visit provia.com. In addition to photo galleries of finished projects, the site’s home designer tools allow you to visualize how various elements will look on your home.
By selecting professional-quality exterior products, you can ensure long-lasting durability and a big boost in curb appeal.
backyards. But humans can take various steps to make their lawns less welcoming to ticks.
Backyards are ideal places to spend warm afternoons soaking up some sun. Lazy days in the yard are a big part of what makes warm weather seasons like spring and summer so appealing. But those afternoons can quickly go off the rails when an unwelcome visitor makes its presence known.
Ticks can be found throughout the world, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that only a select few types of ticks transmit bacteria, viruses and parasites, or pathogens, that cause diseases in people. But even if the number of tick species that transmit diseases to humans is relatively low, ticks that can infect humans are a notable threat. Such ticks carry pathogens that the CDC notes can cause a number of diseases, including Bourbon virus, Ehrlichiosis and, of course, Lyme disease, among others.
Human beings can come into contact with ticks in their own
► Cut your grass short and keep it that way. Black-legged ticks are transmitters of Lyme disease, which the CDC notes is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States. Lyme disease also poses a growing threat in Canada, where data from the Public Health Agency indicates human-reported Lyme disease cases increased from 144 in 2009 to more than 2,100 in 2022. Black-legged ticks do not like environments that are dry and hot, so short grass makes lawns less attractive to this type of tick. Consumer Reports advises homeowners who have let their grass grow a little too high (around five or six inches) to bag their clippings when cutting the grass. Lots of clippings on the grass can provide a respite from the heat for black-legged ticks.
► Create a tick barrier if your property abuts woods. Woods provide a cover from summer heat that black-legged ticks crave. So
Metro Newspaper Service
Short grass deters ticks, so sticking to regular mowing schedule in the spring and summer can keep the pests away from your yard.
properties that abut the woods may be more vulnerable to these unwanted guests than yards that do not border woodlands. A barrier of dry mulch made of wood chips
between a property and a bordering wooded area can help repel ticks, who won’t want to settle in often dry, hot mulch beds.
► Plant with infestation prevention in mind. Some plants can help to repel ticks because they boast certain characteristics that ticks cannot tolerate. The fragrances, textures and oils of plants like garlic, mint, lavender, marigolds, and others create less welcoming conditions for ticks. Homeowners can speak with local garden centers for advice on tick-repellant plants that can thrive in their particular climate and on their properties.
► Remove yard debris. Piles of wood, leaves and brush can make for good conditions for ticks that transmit disease. After raking leaves and gathering brush, discard the resulting piles immediately. These measures will not necessarily prevent all ticks from establishing themselves on a property, so individuals are urged to inspect their bodies and the bodies of their pets after a day in the yard.
Pets bring many positive changes to households. Pets can make homes more lively, and the companionship of animals can reduce feelings of loneliness while offering additional health benefits to pet owners. Individuals who are preparing to adopt or purchase pets need to be mindful that they may need to make changes at home to ensure residences are safe places for pets to reside. Much in the way new parents must assess the environs for potential hazards to babies, pet owners should conduct similar inspections. These safety checks should occur both inside and in the yard if pets will be spending time outdoors. Poisonous plants are a potentially hidden hazard prospective pet owners must address before bringing a new pet home. People generally do not give much thought to the plants they include in their homes and yards beyond the care instructions and how they can add to the aesthetic appeal.
Homeowners may know if a plant likes the sun or shade, but they may not realize its potential for toxicity. That’s because adults in particular are not prone to ingesting the plants in their yard that are inedible, unlike curious pets that may sniff and nibble plants when exploring their environments. For those with dogs and cats that will spend time outdoors, it’s best to be aware of these potentially toxic plants, courtesy of the ASPCA, Dr. Buzby’s and Garden Design.
► Autumn crocus: There are various types of crocus plants, but the one most toxic to dogs is autumn crocus. The entire plant is toxic, but the highest concentration of toxic agent is found in the bulbs.
► Sago palm: People in warm climates may enjoy the look of palm trees on their properties. Despite its tropical and relaxing appearance, the Sago palm is extremely poisonous if ingested by pets, with the seeds being the most toxic part.
OUTDOOR PLANTS: Page D14
► Lily: Lilies are highly toxic to cats in particular. Even grooming pollen off of their fur or drinking water out of a vase where lilies are kept may cause kidney failure.
► Tulips and hyacinth: These early bloomers are beautiful flowers, but each contains a similar alkaloid toxin that is mild to moderately toxic to pets. Again, the highest concentration is found in the bulbs, which dogs or cats may dig up while exploring.
► Aloe vera: This soothing succulent may be part of an arid climate landscape. Aloe contains saponin, a toxin with foaming properties that can harm pets if ingested and cause severe dehydration.
► Begonia: A popular outdoor and houseplant, begonia has decorative flowers and attractive leaves. However, the plant can be toxic to cats and dogs if ingested, particularly the underground tubers.
► Azalea: This flowering shrub produces flowers in many colors, so it’s often present in household landscapes. It’s important to note that azaleas can be toxic to dogs and cats.
► Yew: American, Canadian and Japanese yew may be found around properties. These shrubs produce small red berries with green centers (almost looking like the reverse of a Spanish olive with pimento). Yew is toxic to cats and dogs.
► Dahlia: Dahlia produce flowers in different colors, so they are common in flower beds. However, these plants also are mildly toxic to pets.
Many toxic plants can irritate the gastrointestinal system in pets, potentially resulting in vomiting, diarrhea or lethargy. Those who suspect a pet has ingested a poisonous plant should contact the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at 888-4264435 or their local veterinarian to learn about how to respond to possible exposure.
Dogs and cats are more likely than children to ingest a household plant, and certain plants that are minor irritants to humans can prove fatal to pets.
Mankato, Minn. (TNS)
MANKATO — Following Mankato’s two-year run of “No Mow May” waivers, residents who allow the grass in their yards to grow too tall this growing season will be in violation of a city ordinance.
Grass grown to heights of more than 12 inches will be in violation of the mowing order.
The city is in the process of transitioning to a new program designed to promote healthy habitats for pollinators, such as bees, butterflies and birds.
In a news release, the city said that while research has shown some benefits of “No Mow May,” they are limited for pollinators. Most Minnesota lawns consist of turfgrass, which provides little to no resources for pollinators. Only lawns that contain low-growing flowering plants, such as dandelions or Dutch white clover, can provide nectar and pollen to a wide range of pollinators, the release said.
The new program, called “Bee a Good Pollenaider,” provides access for more community members to participate in the program, the city stated.
“Pollinators are so critically important to the environment,” stated Rick Baird, the city’s
environmental sustainability coordinator. “You don’t even have to have a yard to get involved. Anyone can participate with as little as a pot of dirt and a balcony, patio or outdoor space.”
The city offers the following “Bee a Good Pollenaider” tips:
Create habitat. Plant pollinator-friendly flowers, shrubs and/or trees in your yard/patio. A single flowering tree can provide as much forage for pollinators as a whole garden.
Select flowers that bloom in different times throughout the spring and summer season. Diverse, native plants support pollinators best.
The University of Minnesota Extension Office offers a variety of pollinator plants, grasses, shrubs and tree recommendations.
Adjust your mowing practices. Raise the deck on your mower to the maximum height (typically 4 inches) and never mow off more than a third of the total height of your lawn. Following this rule helps establish a more resilient lawn by increasing the rooting depth of grass and increases the potential for flowers.
Reduce herbicide and pesticide use when possible. Carefully read labels to avoid unintended impacts on plants and pollinators. Consider alternative weed control methods when possible and use plants and seeds that are
not treated with neonicotinoids — chemicals that are toxic to pollinators.
Let your friends and neighbors know that you are a pollen-aider and encourage them to join the effort in their own outdoor spaces.
Gift your friends a potted sunflower for their outdoor space.
(c)2024 The Free Press (Mankato, Minn.) Visit The Free Press (Mankato, Minn.) at www.mankatofreepress.com
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