Heavy snow and difficult travel expected again, heaviest snow in southern Minnesota

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

With above-average spring temperatures in southern Minnesota this week, we wanted to get a head start on garden projects and planning. 

Mary Meyer, professor of horticulture at the University of Minnesota, joined 

 to offer gardening tips and answer listener questions. 

Minnesota spring gardening: What you need to know

• One of the first jobs of the season: 

Remove mulch and leaves on top of your perennial plants.

 Remove debris and limbs in your yard. Let your lawn dry out a bit before raking. 

The ground is still too frozen to do any real backyard digging.

 It can also damage your plants. If your footsteps leave imprints in your yard, it's still too early, Meyer said. 

start thinking about your yard's diversity last year and plan additions.

 If you have an ash tree, Meyer recommends planting another type of tree nearby to prepare for the eventual loss of the ash.  

 by creating a mulch area. Train your dogs to urinate in that area to save your plants and grass.

 to add to your property? Meyer recommends the following: 


Native perennials: purple coneflower, blazing star, rudbeckia

 Meyer says to try zinnias, salvia, milkweed, hyssop, mint

 For apples, you need two kinds for cross-pollination. Crab apples will work. Blueberries need acidic soil, so gardeners in the Twin Cites would need to add peat moss. Wild blackberries are easy, but be careful they don't spread.  

 to choose from.  Meyers recommends Frontenac and Marquette varieties. 

. They are easy to grow here, Meyer said.  

 is Saturday, March 21, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. There will be tours and maple tapping demonstrations.

• "Please remind listeners to consider neighbors when choosing and planting...not everyone wants crab apples/walnuts dropping in their yard killing flowers and staining sidewalks, driveways, etc." - Maureen McGough-Pose on live stream

•"I recommend maple trees. When they are large enough you can make your own maple syrup. (Perfect in March)" - Jen on live stream

https://twitter.com/SherwoodGarden/status/576048138428907520

https://twitter.com/SBSDirectVote/status/576043655368077313

Lifestyle

Shows

Big Books & Bold Ideas with Kerri Miller

Kerri Miller Feature

Emily Kaiser

Author

Mary Meyer, professor of horticulture at the University of Minnesota, offers gardening tips and answered listener questions.

With 60-degree temperatures in southern Minnesota this week, we can't help but start planning our gardens. University of Minnesota Professor Mary Meyer answers listener questions about how to prepare your soil, when to plant and how to keep some critters away.

Minnesota spring gardening: What you need to know

Go Deeper.

Like this?