Search

Growing Annual Geraniums

Annual geraniums are popular indoor and outdoor flowering plants.  The variety of flower colors, leaf shapes, colors, and growth habits make this plant ideally suited for home landscapes.  These versatile plants are excellent as annual bedding plants, in hanging baskets, and in containers.  Annual geraniums are not actually "true" geraniums as they are members of the genus Pelargonium. True geraniums are perennials in the genus Geranium.

How to Manage Moss in the Lawn and Garden

Mosses are common in many lawns, especially during wet years. Mosses are small, thread-like plants that form green mats on the soil surface. Mosses are adapted to a wide range of environmental conditions. Mosses can be found in moist and dry sites, sun or shade, and in acidic or alkaline soils.

Control of mosses is discussed below.

Authors: 

What are some good grape varieties for Iowa?

Answer: 

Several varieties of grapes can be grown successfully in Iowa.  The best cultivars to plant depend on where in Iowa you live, what you intend to use the grapes for (wine, fresh, etc.), and what color of fruit you want (red, white).  

Below is a list of cultivars well-suited for Iowa sorted by use and color. 

Not all varieties are reliably cold-hardy in all parts of the state.  Varieites are denoted as well suited for "South" (the southern third of the state) "Central" (the middle third of the state), or "All" (hardy in all parts, including northern Iowa).  Nearly all cultivars are susceptible to 2,4-D drift so grapes should always be planted in areas protected from herbicide drift.

* Key: S = small, M = Medium, L = Large, R = Red, W = White
AN = Anthracnose; DM = downy mildew; PM = powdery mildew; BR = black rot; BUN = bunch rot; PH= phomopsis; Cu = copper; S = sulfur

Creating Raised Bed Planters

Raised beds have become popular features in the home landscape. They are both functional and attractive and can be used to grow flowers, vegetables, and small fruits.

Learn how to build your own raised beds for use in vegetable gardens and other areas in the landscape.

Will applying insecticides to kill grubs help control moles?

Answer: 

One of our biggest frustrations with moles is the perennial misinformation that an insecticide application to kill grubs will solve the mole problem.  This is the “lie that will not die.”  Forty years ago, it might have been true that an insecticide application would discourage moles because back then, the insecticide ingredients being used were highly toxic to people, pets, and wildlife, but they were especially toxic to the “Mole Main Meal” – earthworms.

All pesticides that were highly toxic to earthworms were discontinued or banned long ago.  Insecticides available today do not kill earthworms; therefore, the white grub treatment does NOT remove the mole food source

AAS Winners Would Make Great 2024 Garden Plants

News Article

March is here, and we are all sowing seeds with ultimate optimism! Do you have your garden planned out? Is every little corner and crevice full? If you have room for just one more plant this year, consider one of these AAS Winners!

Growing Forsythias in the Home Landscape

After a long, drab winter, most gardeners anxiously await the arrival of spring. One sure sign that spring has truly arrived is the bright yellow flowers of the forsythia (Forsythia x intermedia). Named after William Forsyth, an 18th-century Scottish horticulturist, the forsythia is a deciduous shrub that is native to China, Korea, and Europe.

Authors: 

What Do Warm Winter Temperatures Do to Insect Populations?

News Article

A common question we have been receiving in the Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic (PIDC) is if the warmer winter temperatures we have been experiencing in Iowa will result in increased insect and arthropod abundance this summer. Will there be more ticks? What about other insects like mosquitoes and boxelder bugs? Well, the short answer is it depends and remains to be seen for many. In addition, more than just temperature will have an impact on insect populations. Things like precipitation can also be a huge factor.

Pages