You may have received or purchased some flower bulbs over the holidays. For forcing, you need to know whether you have a precooled or non-pre-cooled bulb. Or maybe you have an amaryllis bulb, which needs no cooling due to its tropical origins. Amaryllis bulbs produce large showy blooms on a sturdy stalk. The common name […]
‘Winter burn’ is a type of damage to evergreen foliage that occurs over winter or in early spring. Symptoms include browning and dying from foliage tips, extending inward. Several factors cause winter burn, including winter ‘thaws’ where the temperatures rise above freezing for a long period of time such that the plants come out of […]
Before the ground freezes too far down, it is a good time to put protective fencing around trees and shrubs that may experience damage from deer, rabbit, vole, or mouse feeding over winter. Fruit trees, crabapples, burning bush, shrub hibiscus, Fothergilla, young witch hazel, low-growing junipers and arborvitae are among the plants most commonly damaged, […]
The month of October or even the beginning of November is the best time for planting garlic in the southern part of Wisconsin. The second or third week of October is the usual planting time in northern Wisconsin. We used to plant late in the fall to avoid having cloves sprout. However, new research shows […]
Exciting news! The Dane County Department of UW Extension has secured a $55,000 annual federal grant to support the Richard Dilley Tax Center, enhancing free income tax preparation services. The center, in operation for 22 years, has provided invaluable assistance to low to moderate-income individuals, filing over 2,500 returns in 2023 alone, resulting in $3.71 […]
The autumn of 2022 was one of those amazing years for fall color. 2023 has been fairly good as well, which I was not expecting, given the severe drought that can cause woody plants to defoliate earlier than usual. But in 2022, even some woody plants that I don’t normally see great fall color on looked […]
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The invasive spongy moth (formerly known as gypsy moth) is back in high numbers this year as part of its typical 10-year outbreak cycle. Spongy moth is a pest of many deciduous trees, especially oak, crabapple, hawthorn, birch, willow and linden. The Tree Canopy Collaborative, an initiative of the Dane County Office of Energy and […]
Pressure Canner Testing is available by appointment. Please contact Claire Mance to schedule an appointment at 608-224-3699 or mance.claire@countyofdane.com. Pressure Canner Testing is available by appointment. Our office hours are 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday. We are closed major holidays. The charge is $3 per gauge. In addition to your gauge, please […]
Sharon Lezberg, Community Development Educator Drive, bike, or bus- decisions, decisions! Like most American adults, I can easily jump in my car to travel from place to place. I may be concerned about the price of gas, or gridlock on the road, but how often do I think about the tailpipe emissions that I’m generating? […]
Sharon Lezberg, Community Development Educator “Don’t step off the curb! Watch out!” my daughter Zoey admonished me, as I negligently stepped off the pedestrian curb onto the bike path during a recent visit to Copenhagen. I quickly jumped back up onto the pedestrian walkway, lest I get run down by a bike commuter. Zoey had […]
Seed starting time is coming! Do you know if your seeds are viable? Here are some tips to keep in mind. Fresh seed germinates best. Seed packets are labeled with the date they are best used by. Though seeds are usually viable longer than that date, some species lose viability faster, and germination decreases for […]
