Written by Nancy MacKenzie The Pumpkin Patch As many of you know I moved almost full-time to La Crosse, Wisconsin in August, 2012. In ever had been to Wisconsin so this was a new adventure for Tom and me. After moving around…

Written by Carol Welch Outside my kitchen window is a small herb garden where I have stashed a few tomatoes and peppers. It’s the place where I go for a breath of fresh air. It’s also the place where the insects go, because there’s…

Written by Jerry Parr In 1867, Jean Baptiste Guillot created the first hybrid tea rose by crossing a China rose with a tea rose. Hundreds of new varieties followed. These roses with their great blooms, long stems and…

Written by Parker County Master Gardeners Christmas brings a unique selection of plants that provide color and interest to your holiday decorating. Christmas cactus, poinsettia, amaryllis, and rosemary are just a few. While these…

Written by Bob Starnes Daylilies are one of the most colorful and commonly planted perennials in today’s home and commercial gardens due to their almost indestructible nature and wide variety of colors. While dazzling in their beauty, the…

Written by Carol Ann Stroud Dedicated to Ashley Deal The Parker County Master Gardener Association designed and installed the Butterfly Garden in the summer of 2003. Located on the grounds of Chandor Gardens, this beautiful garden was dedicated…

Written by Carol Welch ~ Parker County Master Gardener If there was something you could do in your own backyard to help a butterfly, would you do it? If it improved the look of your flowerbeds, attracted beneficial insects, and was good for the…

Written by David McClellan How did this practice ever get started? I have been gardening for a good while and I don’t know how many books, TV programs, and magazine articles, I have seen that indicate put a layer of gravel in the bottom of a…

Written by Phil Craighead What can be more cheerful than seeing a bare tree full of bright Cardinals in your backyard after a heavy snow in January? Even though this scene might make a perfect picture postcard, the birds themselves may be…

Written by Nancy McKenzie What would fall be like without gourds? No pumpkins for Halloween. No decorative gourds for our fall décor. No dried gourds for next year’s birdhouses and feeders. Thank goodness for our local growers who…