It’s October and soon the winter snow will be here, or will it be? We all remember the “lost winter of 2023-2024” when Minnesota received record warmth and lack of snow. Just as a super cold winter can damage your plants, so can a super warm, snowless winter. This article explains why these extreme temperature variations can harm your plants and what you can do to protect them. October is the time to prepare your plants for the winter!

It’s October in Minnesota and most of your plants are no longer blooming. It’s always a bit sad to see your colorful garden fade for the season. But many of these flowers leave behind lovely seed pods or lovely flowers heads. This article shows you how you can take dried plants from your garden and turn them into a beautiful wreath to enjoy inside.

Composting - an important word and process we want to teach our children, but how do we do this in a fun and educational way? Composting is a natural way of recycling so let’s invite the children in our life to not only continue recycling the paper, cans and acceptable plastic items, but also begin learning about and “recycling” the natural items we see all around into a rich compost we can use to make our plants grow. What an incredible way to teach children to care for our environment! Let’s get started on creating a child’s very own compost container, which then can be turned into a bigger composting container in the future.

As we embark into our Minnesota winter, let’s wander into the many winter wonderlands in our state. The landscape is transforming into a quiet, snow-covered land, where nature’s beauty takes on a serene and magical existence. Many Minnesota outdoor and indoor garden sights are offered in the winter with opportunities of quiet meditation, reconnection with nature and new interaction with our environment. Let’s explore the winter garden possibilities available to us in Minnesota in this article.

When we put our Northern gardens to bed for winter, sometimes we just want to be done: move our growing indoors for the winter, or even take a break from growing entirely! But there are fun and useful things we can do instead of just cutting, pulling and tossing into the compost. Plants can provide us with usefulness and beauty even when they are no longer growing.

The garden growing season may be over but before you put your feet up and sip your hot cider, there are a few things you should do to clean up and prepare your garden for winter. Fall garden clean up provides multiple benefits for both you and your garden. Here are twelve tasks you should consider to tuck your garden in for the winter.

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It’s a great idea to grow vegetables in your garden to eat and share. But some vegetables lend themselves to other creative uses. Read this article to learn how to make a beautiful and useful holiday wreath with cayenne peppers.

How many times have you seen dead, dry Christmas trees next to the road? Sometimes they just stay there, sometimes the city picks them up. But there are greener alternatives. Read on for some creative ideas.

As Minnesotans, we learn to appreciate the cycle of northern gardening. The truth is, after putting the garden to bed for the season, the winter respite provides a chance to enjoy the garden in different ways. Read this article for thoughts about how to enjoy your garden in winter.

Nothing beats the beauty of a snow-covered garden. Falling or drifting snow creates interesting sculptures on our benches, arbors, and paths. Evergreens look brighter, and trees with ornamental bark are showing off against a white background. Crowns of sparkling white form on sedum, ornamental grasses, and other perennials we left standing in the garden. Snow is useful to gardeners in other ways, too. Learn more!