Michigan Gardener - Your guide Great Lakes gardening: Garden Event Calendar / Expert Advice / Plant Profiles / Tree Care

PLEASE NOTE: In the autumn of 1995, we hatched the idea for a free, local gardening publication. The following spring, we published the first issue of Michigan Gardener magazine. Advertisers, readers, and distribution sites embraced our vision. Thus began an exciting journey of helping our local gardening community grow and prosper.
After 27 years, nearly 200 issues published, and millions of copies printed, we have decided it is time to end the publication of our Print Magazine and E-Newsletter.

We will continue to update our Website with articles and enter current gardening events in our website Event Calendar. All the best wishes for 2024 and beyond.

Making Food From Flies

October 2, 2013 • Leave a Comment

NPR:

In the quirky little college town of Yellow Springs, Ohio, home to many unconventional ideas over the years, there’s now a small insect factory.

It’s an unassuming operation, a generic boxy building in a small industrial park. It took me a while even to find a sign with the company’s name: EnviroFlight. But its goal is grand: The people at EnviroFlight are hoping that their flies will help our planet grow more food while conserving land and water.

They don’t expect you to eat insects. (Sure, Asians and Africans do it, but Americans are finicky.) The idea is, farmed insects will become food for fish or pigs.

Read the full story here…

LED lantern designed to repel mosquitos

September 23, 2013 • Leave a Comment

We recently received a ThermaCELL Outdoor Insect-Repellent Lantern to use. This insect repellent device is a dual insect repellent and LED lantern. Both functions can be used separately or together. Providing a 15- by 15-foot mosquito-free zone, it is silent, portable, and odor-free. It works for areas like patios, backyards, campsites, decks, and barbecues. Rather than a harmful chemical, ThermaCELL utilizes allethrin, an artificial version of a natural insecticide found in chrysanthemum flowers. The butane cartridge powers the mosquito repellent for 12 hours of use. Eight LEDs, powered by 4 AA batteries, provide the light from the lantern, which has two illumination settings. More information at mosquitorepellent.com.

American Garden Award Winners Announced

September 16, 2013 • 1 Comment

The 2013 American Garden Awards featured four new flower varieties chosen by their breeders for their excellent garden performance. These varieties were planted and displayed at the thirty-one gardens across the U.S. and Canada. The public was invited to vote for their favorite.

The votes have been tallied and the three winners are:

Grand Prize Winner: Verbena ‘Lanai® Candy Cane’
by Syngenta Flowers
‘Lanai® Candy Cane’ offers a truly unique flower pattern which commands curbside attention! This striking striped beauty offers continuous summer blooms stacked atop a well-balanced plant habit. Candy Cane was selected from a strong and proven family of verbena varieties with superior weather tolerance.

Second Place Winner: Zinnia ‘Zahara™ Cherry’
by PanAmerican Seed
Grow beautiful Zinnia ‘Zahara™ Cherry’ in both containers and landscape beds, or just about any other sunny location where you want loads of bold color. These fast-growing zinnias bloom continuously all season long and are both disease and drought tolerant.

Third Place Winner: Impatiens ‘SunPatiens® Compact Electric Orange’
by Sakata Ornamentals
With vibrant, deep orange blooms, Electric Orange is a new color in the SunPatiens® line. SunPatiens fill in quickly providing three seasons of color in the garden and in containers. They can be planted in sun or shade and grow readily in rain or shine. SunPatiens are trouble free and need no care beyond regular watering.

For more informatation, visit All-America Selections

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