Gardening Tips

Welcome to our page where we will feature various gardening tips from our society members and other groups in our hardiness growing zone. Please enjoy!

Great Reference Books for Natural Gardening

1. The Gardener's Guide to Native Plants of the Southern Great Lakes Region

Authors: Rick Gray and Shaun Booth

Synopsis: A book to give the actual native plants that grow in our region.

2. Grass Isn't Greener

Author: Danae Wolfe

Synopsis: The everyday gardeners very practical guide to bringing nature to your yard.

3. Natural Landscaping

Author: Sally Booth

Synopsis: Inspiration and ideas for the landscape you really want.

4. Bringing Nature Home

Author: Douglas W. Tallamy

Synopsis: How you can sustain wildlife with native plants in your garden.

5. Nature's Best Hope

Author: Douglas W. Tallamy

Synopsis: This book shows how homeowners everywhere can turn their yards and balconies into conservation corridors that provide wildlife habitats.

6. Tending the Earth

Author: Lorraine Johnson

Synopsis: The author paints a larger picture of how gardens shape our conception of the wildness around us.

This video features how to successfully overwinter your geraniums. Many of our members found this instructional and useful for their own gardening.

Growing Canna Lilies from Seed:

Collect the ripe seed pods from your canna lilies this Fall. They should be brown and papery. Black seeds should be inside.
Start in March next year. Using 60 grit sandpaper, sand off a spot from the outer hard shell until you reach the inner part of the seed.
Put this sanded seed in a glass of water to soak.
After approximately a week the seed will start to swell up and a small root will emerge.
Plant this seed into damp Promix and put in a sunny, warm window. If your house is on the cool side, you might need to use a heat mat. After approximately a week it will start growing leaves.
This is a picture of my Canna lily in September grown from one seed in March.

Essential Gardening Tools

Presented by Member at January 2025 Meeting

Loop Hoe: Long-handled, light, effective hoe for weeding, cultivating and easily reaching around and behind plants. Only available from Lee Valley Tools.
Hand Pruners: Cuts most things in the garden except larger branches. The Fiskars brand are very good quality.
Cultivating Knife: Multi-tool with one side of blade serrated and V pointed end. The Fiskars brand are very good quality.

Checking Seed Viability

Presented by Member at February 2025 Meeting

1. Dampen a paper towel.

2. Place 5 seeds on it and fold in half.

3.Place in a plastic baggie and seal.

4. Write the date and type of seed on the outside of the baggie.

5. Place in a warm, dark spot out of direct sunlight.

6. Check in a week to see how many have sprouted.

7. You can keep them for another week.

8. If none have germinated by then, don't waste your time.

9. Any tiny sprouts can be put in soil and grown.

Propagating Succulents

Presented by Member at March 2025 Meeting

When a succulent becomes too long, or leggy, it is easy to correct this. Simply cut off the top, remove a few leaves from the stem and repot it in new, moist soil. Don’t get rid of those leaves, though! Each leaf has the potential of becoming a brand new succulent plant. Simply place the leaf on some soil in a shallow pot. It is good to give the leaf a few days to callous over on the end and then begin to water lightly until a baby appears. The beheaded stem can also be left in the soil. It will soon begin to grow a cluster at the point where it was cut.

(Images from Needles + Leaves Blog https://needlesandleaves.net/blog/2013/5/31/propagating-leggy-succulents)