Growing Greener
249 episodes - English - Latest episode: 12 days ago - ★★★★★ - 64 ratingsYour weekly half-hour program about environmentally informed gardening. Each week we bring you a different expert, a leading voice on gardening in partnership with Nature. Our goal is to make your landscape healthier, more beautiful, more sustainable, and more fun.
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Episodes
Larry Weaner – The Self-Contained Garden
June 17, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBLeading ecological landscape designer Larry Weaner describes how to have a garden that largely plants itself, while minimizing the task of weeding
Russ Cohen – Edible Wild Plants
June 10, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBRuss Cohen discusses his foraging career and his current role as Johnny Appleseed of raising and restoring to the wild edible native plants
Dr. Meredith Cornett – Forest Adaptation and Climate Change
June 03, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBDr. Meredith Cornett discusses the program the Nature Conservancy has undertaken to help the forest of northern Minnesota adapt to a warming climate
Christine Cook – Dragonfly Gardening
May 27, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBChristine Cook of Mossaics Ecological Landscape Design discusses the unique beauties of dragonflies and details how she creates gardens designed to attract and foster these insects
Heather Holm – Beyond Bees
May 20, 2020 11:49 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBPollinator conservationist and award-winning author Heather Holm introduces us to the "secondary pollinators," the amazing insects other than bees that contribute to pollinating our native plants
A Songbird-Friendly Garden
May 13, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBGrant Sizemore of the American Bird Conservancy details how house cats can coexist with garden birds, and Matthew Shumar of the Ohio Bird Conservation Initiative describes how to make your yard more bird safe..
Uli Lorimer – Native Plants Provenance
May 06, 2020 12:07 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBUli Lorimer, Director of Horticulture for the Native Plant Trust, discusses the challenges involved in sourcing and growing locally adapted native plants
Dan Jaffe – How to Make Your Life Easier With Native Plants
April 29, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBDan Jaffe, a rising star of the new generation of native plants experts and co-author of Native Plants for New England Gardens discusses the many practical advantages of gardening with natives.
Shay Lunseth - No Mow Lawns
April 22, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBShay Lunseth of Organic Lawns by Lunseth discusses her use of fine fescue grasses to create lawns that flourish with little or almost no mowing, less fertilizers and weed control, and far less summertime irrigation
Adrian Ayres Fisher - Carbon Gardening
April 15, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 33.5 MBAdrian Ayres Fisher, Sustainability Coordinator for Triton College in River Grove, Illinois explains how an easy change in gardening practice can remove carbon dioxide gas from the atmosphere and help mitigate global warming
Christie Higginbottom – Advantages of Heirloom Vegetables
April 08, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 25 MBChristie Higginbottom of Old Sturbridge Village, the famous museum village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, details the advantages of heirloom vegetable varieties that make them superior to modern hybrids for the contemporary victory garden.
Gardening with Children
April 01, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 18.2 MBGardening Icon Ruth Rogers Clausen talks about gardening with her granddaughter, and Sarah Pounders of KidsGardening.org discusses her organization's free online educational resources for parents, grandparents, and children
Edwina von Gal - Perfect Earth Project
March 25, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 31 MBEdwina von Gal, the internationally renowned landscape designer, discusses her personal journey to environmental activism and her current work with the Perfect Earth Project
William Bryant Logan – "Sprout Lands"
March 18, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 34.1 MBAuthor William Bryant Logan discusses his most recent book, "Sprout Lands," and the revival of pollarding, the basis of an ancient and mutually beneficial relationship between trees and people
William Welch - Heirloom Plants
March 11, 2020 10:00 - 29 minutes - 33.4 MBDr. William Welch of Texas A&M University and co-author of The Rose Rustlers discusses the ways in which heirloom plants, survivors from old gardens, can enhance the sustainability of your garden
Black Bears – The New Garden Wildlife
March 04, 2020 13:00 - 29 minutes - 33.7 MBAndrew Madden of the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife and Dr. Tracy Rittenhouse of the University of Connecticut discuss the migration of black bears into our exurbs and suburbs, with tips for co-existence
Douglas Tallamy – Nature's Best Hope
February 26, 2020 13:00 - 29 minutes - 29.9 MBDr. Douglas Tallamy, an insect ecologist at the University of Delaware, discusses his new, best-selling book, "Nature's Best Hope"
Dr. Elaine Ingham - Soil Food Web
February 19, 2020 13:00 - 29 minutes - 31.1 MBInternationally renowned soil microbiologist Dr. Elaine Ingham discusses her research with the soil food web that is revolutionizing gardening, and her Soil Food Web School
Karen Bussolini - Eco-Friendly Garden Coach
February 12, 2020 17:00 - 29 minutes - 31.4 MBAn interview with garden photographer and writer Karen Bussolini who discusses her work with the camera and how it informs her gardening, as well as describing her career as an "eco-friendly" garden coach.
Annie Martin -- Moss Gardening
February 09, 2020 16:07 - 29 minutes - 25.9 MB'Mossin' Annie' Martin, author of "The Magical World of Moss Gardening" and proprietor of Mountain Moss Enterprises discusses the beauties and environmental benefits of these primitive but highly adaptable plants. Topics include how to rescue mosses and establish a moss garden, and the role mosses play in reducing the carbon dioxide in our atmosphere
Author Benjamin Vogt - "A New Garden Ethic"
February 05, 2020 17:00 - 29 minutes - 32.6 MBAuthor Benjamin Vogt discusses his provocative book, "A New Garden Ethic: Cultivating Defiant Compassion for an Uncertain Future", and calls for a radical, less human-centric approach to the landscape
Dr. Linda Chalker-Scott - The Garden Professors
January 31, 2020 16:00 - 29 minutes - 32.8 MBDr. Linda Chalker-Scott of The Garden Professors blog and Facebook page, as she discusses the work of these groups and the importance of applying peer-reviewed science to the issues and problems of gardeners.
Dr. Bethany Bradley -- Invasive Plant Update
January 29, 2020 00:27Dr. Bethany Bradley, an ecologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, talks about the effects of climate change in enhancing invasive plants, and what gardeners can do to fight back
Dr. Bethany Bradley -- Invasive Plant Update
January 29, 2020 00:27Dr. Bethany Bradley, an ecologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, talks about the effects of climate change in enhancing invasive plants, and what gardeners can do to fight back
Dr. Bethany Bradley -- Invasive Plant Update
January 29, 2020 00:27Dr. Bethany Bradley, an ecologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, talks about the effects of climate change in enhancing invasive plants, and what gardeners can do to fight back
Janice Hand - "Wild Ones"
January 12, 2020 15:31 - 29 minutes - 31 MBJanice Hand, past president of "Wild Ones" discusses this organization's successful programs to boost native plants, promote the restoration of natural landscapes, and educate young people.
Edward Toth - Greenbelt Native Plant Center
January 08, 2020 17:00 - 29 minutes - 35.2 MBEdward Toth, Director of New York's Greenbelt Native Plant Center, discusses the mission of the country's only municipal native plants nursery and seed bank, and its role in preserving local races of the vegetation native to NY's five boroughs.
Brad Roeller -- Sustainable Gardening
January 08, 2020 14:51 - 29 minutes - 33.5 MBPioneering horticulturist Brad Roeller discusses the research into sustainable gardening he carried out at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY, and shares insights into the future of the field
Jeff Lowenfels - The Soil Food Web
December 31, 2019 17:00 - 29 minutes - 34.4 MBJeff Lowenfels, the author of Teaming With Microbes, details how to work with the soil food web to achieve a healthier, greener, and more productive garden
Brian Stewart -- Insect-A-Day Project
December 24, 2019 21:03 - 29 minutes - 42 MBBrian Stewart describes his backyard insect safaris, and the hundreds of different and beautiful insect species he has found, photographed, and identified in his own small garden
Dr. Josef Gorres - Invasive Earthworms
December 20, 2019 17:00 - 29 minutes - 31.1 MBDr. Josef Gorres, Professor of Plant and Soil Science at the University of Vermont, discusses the invasive earthworms which are changing the ecology of the soil in Northeastern forests, and prospects for their control
Robert Kourik -- Companion Planting Exposé
December 16, 2019 11:00 - 29 minutes - 35.2 MBWe expose the crackpot "research" that underlies most popular lists of companion plants, and then interview Robert Kourik about a science-based version of this method for enhancing plant growth
Louis Bauer -- Identifying and Using Microclimates
December 11, 2019 17:00 - 29 minutes - 34.8 MBLouis Bauer, Senior Director of Horticulture at Wave Hill, New York City's premier public garden, describes how he and his gardeners identify and make use of "microclimates" to grow a greater diversity of plants more sustainably.
Lee Reich -- No-Till Gardening
December 09, 2019 21:02 - 29 minutes - 28.1 MBHorticulturist Lee Reich, the author of "Weedless Gardening" explains his no-dig, all organic, and hassle-free gardening system that nurtures the soil to yield bigger harvests
Claudia West -- Planting in a Post-Wild World
December 09, 2019 15:42Landscape architect Claudia West, co-author of "Planting in a Post-Wild World" describes her techniques for returning nature to our neighborhoods and cities, and for creating living landscapes that are robust, diverse, and visually harmonious
Claudia West -- Planting in a Post-Wild World
December 09, 2019 15:42Landscape architect Claudia West, co-author of "Planting in a Post-Wild World" describes her techniques for returning nature to our neighborhoods and cities, and for creating living landscapes that are robust, diverse, and visually harmonious
Shannon Currey -- Warm Season Grasses
December 04, 2019 17:00 - 29 minutes - 33.2 MBShannon Currey of Hoffman Nursery discusses the special qualities of warm season grasses that make the superior performers in heat and drought, and ideal for an era of climate change
Lisa Tewksbury -- University of Rhode Island Biocontrol Laboratory
December 04, 2019 12:47 - 29 minutes - 35.3 MBDr. Lisa Tewksbury discusses the work of the URI Biocontrol Laboratory and the role it plays in controlling invasive plants and insects
Neil Diboll -- Meadow Gardening
December 01, 2019 23:05 - 29 minutes - 34.6 MBNeil Diboll, president of Prairie Nursery and pioneer of the prairie gardening movement, discusses the ecological strengths of our native meadow flowers and grasses
Ruth Rogers Clausen -- Deer Resistant Gardens
November 27, 2019 17:00 - 29 minutes - 31.1 MBHorticulturist Ruth Rogers Clausen, author of "50 Beautiful Deer-Resistant Plants: The Prettiest Annuals, Perennials, Bulbs, and Shrubs that Deer Don't Eat," discusses the best ways to protect your garden from hungry deer
Larry Weaner -- Ecological Garden Design
November 23, 2019 18:41 - 29 minutes - 34.3 MBCelebrated landscape designer Larry Weaner, co-author of Garden Revolution, discusses his style of design which harnesses the natural ecology of the site to produce a garden that largely plants and maintains itself.
Alyssa Rosemartin -- Phenology, Nature's Calendar
November 20, 2019 17:00 - 29 minutes - 35.5 MBAlyssa Rosemartin of the USA National Phenology Network explains how natural phenomena such as the blooming of common plants can help gardeners schedule tasks more accurately.
Heather Holm -- Beyond Bumblebees
November 13, 2019 17:00An interview with award-winning author and landscape restorationist Heather Holm about the thousands of native pollinators that can serve your garden. Learn how to attract and foster these invaluable and essential insects.
Dr. Bethany Bradley -- Assisted Migration of Native Plants
October 30, 2019 16:00 - 29 minutes - 36.5 MBAn interview with Dr. Bethany Bradley, ecologist at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, about the pros and cons of implementing assisted migration of native plants as a response to climate change
Margaret Roach -- Education of an Evironmental Gardener
October 28, 2019 16:00 - 29 minutes - 29.1 MBAn interview with Margaret Roach, in which the celebrated host of "A Way to Garden" discusses the tools she used to educate herself about the environmental aspects of her craft, and her latest book, "A Way To Garden."
Jared Westbrook -- Saving Trees With Genetic Engineering
October 28, 2019 15:22 - 29 minutes - 32.3 MBAn interview with Dr. Jared Westbrook of the American Chestnut Foundation, in which he describes how his organization is using genetic engineering to return the American Chestnut to our forests, and discusses the implications of this work for other endangered trees
Douglas Tallamy - Insects and Plants
October 23, 2019 18:17 - 29 minutes - 34.2 MBAn interview with Douglas Tallamy, University of Delaware Professor of Entomology and award-winning author of Bringing Nature Home, talking about the need to include insects in your garden.
David Wolfe -- Gardening in a Changing Climate
June 19, 2019 16:00 - 29 minutes - 34.6 MBDavid Wolfe, professor of plant and soil ecology at Cornell University, details how to keep your landscape flourishing in a time of changing climate
Robert Kourik -- The Hidden Half of Your Plants
June 12, 2019 16:00 - 29 minutes - 36.2 MBRobert Kourik, author of Understanding Roots, discusses the nature and needs of plant roots and how to foster them for a lusher, healthier garden