The Vermont Garden Journal is a weekly program hosted by horticulturalist Charlie Nardozzi. Each week, Nardozzi will focus on a topic that's relevant to both new and experienced gardeners, including pruning lilac bushes, growing blight-free tomatoes, groundcovers, sunflowers, bulbs, pests and more. Hear the Vermont Garden Journal Friday afternoons at 5:55pm and Sunday mornings at 9:34am. Subscribe to the Vermont Garden Journal Podcast and RSS Visit the VPR Archive for Vermont Garden Journal programs before 4/19/2013 .
Purple through and through: A new GMO tomato that home gardeners can grow
"Purple" is a new tomato from the Norfolk Plant Science group in England that has genes from a purple snapdragon flower. That modification gives the tomato its deep purple hue through and through, plus packs in more antioxidants.
2/25/2024 • 4 minutes, 11 seconds
You're a Libra? Here's a rose! Astrological signs and their matching flowers
All Things Gardening discusses a recent National Garden Bureau article that pairs Zodiac signs with the plants and flowers that complement them best. Plus, a potting soil solution for dryness.
2/18/2024 • 4 minutes, 15 seconds
Single stemmed and super tall, the vibrant blossoms of zinnia flowers are an irresistible pollinator magnet
Zinnias are annual flowers that bloom reliably from mid-summer to frost, are pollinator and butterfly magnets, make great cut flowers and are easy to grow.
2/11/2024 • 4 minutes, 29 seconds
A gardening dispatch from India
Charlie Nardozzi is traveling in India and visiting a local garden center there. Nardozzi noticed several plants, flowers and veggies that grow well in Vermont, too.
2/4/2024 • 4 minutes, 41 seconds
A gardening dispatch from India
Charlie Nardozzi is traveling in India and visiting a local garden center there. Nardozzi noticed several plants, flowers and veggies that grow well in Vermont, too.
2/4/2024 • 4 minutes, 41 seconds
Houseplant Rx: stinky soil, wilted orchids and out-of-control greenery
Houseplants add color and act as sponges, soaking up carbon dioxide while adding oxygen. Still, there are a range of issues that can befall plant owners trying to keep certain houseplants thriving.
1/28/2024 • 4 minutes, 30 seconds
With a boot tray, soil and seeds, get growing this winter by planting microgreens
While getting your hands into the warm soil is months off, you can grow small crops of microgreens indoors! These small batches of tender veggie shoots are great additions to salads, soups and smoothies.
1/21/2024 • 4 minutes
Same easy-care house plants; new vibrant colors and patterns
Common favorite houseplants like philodendrons and rubber trees come in varying colors, shapes and sizes.
1/14/2024 • 4 minutes, 15 seconds
From 6-pound tomatoes to 80-pound squash, seed catalogs offer a myriad of new veggie plants to grow
While the winter chill draws you indoors and you're dreaming of spring and summer gardening, leaf through seed catalogs (virtually or in-hand). Many local and regional seed companies offer heirloom and hardy vegetable plants in hundreds of varieties.
1/7/2024 • 4 minutes, 15 seconds
Next spring, plant a 'holiday berry patch' with white, red and purple berries
A small patch of colorful, ornamental berry bushes could elevate your holiday decorating game next year.
12/24/2023 • 3 minutes, 54 seconds
Collect branches and boughs to create custom holiday decor
If you have large outdoor planters or containers, try filling them with cut branches, berry twigs and needled evergreen boughs for rustic, natural holiday decorations this season.
12/17/2023 • 3 minutes, 54 seconds
Pining for a different holiday tree this year? Branch out and go live (then replant it in your yard!)
A living tree can make a fun centerpiece for your holiday celebrations! Choose from lots of different needle-bearing live trees from your local nursery. Each year, you can decorate indoors, then replant outdoors.
12/10/2023 • 4 minutes, 5 seconds
It's the leaves — not petals — of the nochebuena (aka poinsettia) that add that holiday color
From tropical climes to your Northeast table setting, the poinsettia is a great indoor house plant. Its leaves, called bracts, look like flower petals. And its those vibrant leaves that attract pollinators in its natural environment. Once potted up in festive foil and in your home for the holidays, here are some tips to keep it looking great all season.
12/3/2023 • 4 minutes, 26 seconds
Get roses, rhododendrons wrapped up for winter now before the ground freezes
Broadleaf evergreen shrubs — like roses, lavender and thyme — need protection from cold temperatures, snow and wind. Learn how to create a barrier from winter weather, using natural materials like hay and wood chips along with stakes, wire and burlap.
11/26/2023 • 4 minutes, 15 seconds
To overwinter dahlias, dig up the tubers and stash them in a shoebox
Dahlia blooms grow well in Vermont's climate, but they are too delicate to overwinter in the ground. Now is the time to dig them up and get them cozy for a long winter's nap so you can plant them again for more blooms next spring.
11/19/2023 • 4 minutes, 22 seconds
Can the wooly bear caterpillar predict the weather?
The tiger moth caterpillar, with its black- and rust-colored bands, has long been thought to be a predictor of upcoming winter weather. More likely, the coloring on these caterpillars shows what the previous months' weather and conditions were like.
11/12/2023 • 4 minutes, 16 seconds
For cheery daffodils, scilla and crocus next spring, plant flowering bulbs now
The warmer temperatures that lingered into early fall means you still have time to get digging in the soil before it freezes. Use this opportunity to plant flowering bulbs soon for a big reward next spring!
11/5/2023 • 4 minutes, 26 seconds
Tender annuals, like geraniums, need to overwinter before cold weather hits
Got begonias, fuschia and geraniums still growing in containers on your back porch? Now is the time to bring these tender annuals indoors to overwinter.
10/29/2023 • 4 minutes, 8 seconds
Get tickled pink (or blue and green) by pastel pumpkins when decorating for fall
Color outside of the lines when it comes to fall decorations this season. Instead of just traditional orange pumpkins and yellow hardy mums, get inspired by some of the pastel-colored blue and pink pumpkins, winter squash and gourds then pair them up with bright mums and fall greenery.
10/22/2023 • 4 minutes, 18 seconds
Plant low-growing fescue and sedge for ornamental grasses that thrive in multiple conditions
Planting some low-growing grasses can add movement and color to your yard and garden. These plants can also be planted in places where you might have traditionally chosen to lay down a layer of mulch.
10/15/2023 • 4 minutes, 18 seconds
Self-seeding veggie plants can provide a free crop next year
Certain vegetable plants, if left to bolt or go to seed, will self-sow and grow again next spring. You won't have to buy new seed and replant, which saves money. Plus, by letting the plants self-sow and regrow naturally, you're spending less time guessing when to plant.
10/8/2023 • 4 minutes, 18 seconds
Blue, pink, white or bronze; how to dry hydrangea blossoms
This flower's name contains a clue to what kind of growing conditions it likes: hydrangeas love water! And this summer's wetter weather really made these bushes blossom and bloom. Right now, blue, pink and white hydrangeas are really thriving. Enjoy them while they are still in bloom, then learn how to preserve those petals to use in decorations this fall and winter.
10/1/2023 • 4 minutes, 11 seconds
Late bloomers like persimmon dodged the May frost and are nearly ready to harvest
Tropical fruits like persimmon and paw paw (a fruit in the cherimoya family) did well in Vermont this year and here's why: because they bloomed later in spring, the late frost didn't affect them. They also did well despite heavy rains this summer.
9/24/2023 • 4 minutes, 16 seconds
Late bloomers like persimmon dodged the May frost and are nearly ready to harvest
Tropical fruits like persimmon and paw paw (a fruit in the cherimoya family) did well in Vermont this year and here's why: because they bloomed later in spring, the late frost didn't affect them. They also did well despite heavy rains this summer.
9/24/2023 • 4 minutes, 16 seconds
For berries that provide essential nutrients for migrating birds, plant these two types of bushes
The fruits from certain berry bushes pack a bigger nutrient punch for migrating and over-wintering birds.
9/17/2023 • 3 minutes, 55 seconds
Learn to identify invasive jumping worms and remove them from your garden soil
Invasive jumping worms are in all parts of Vermont except for Essex and Orleans counties, according to Vermont Invasives. These earth worms can cause trouble because of their excessive consumption of organic matter that adversely affects biodiversity.
9/10/2023 • 4 minutes, 13 seconds
Showy and delicious, plant this edible flowering vine for late summer color
Choose an annual or perennial flowering vine to add color to your late summer and early fall gardens. Some will bloom right up until frost.
9/3/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Support pollinators with milkweed types, like 'whorled,' 'swamp' and 'purple'
Common milkweed is great for attracting pollinators and especially monarch butterflies. The plants can take over a small space quickly so try some less-aggressive milkweed types that can grow in a variety of soils.
8/27/2023 • 4 minutes, 16 seconds
Plant green, flowering ground cover for a mowable, pollinator-friendly lawn
If, earlier this year, you took "no-mow May" to heart and left a portion of your lawn unmowed for bees, beetles and butterflies, you can take it a step further now! A University of Minneapolis "bee lab" studied the kinds of grasses and ground covers that grow a green lawn that benefits pollinators. And you can still mow it.
8/20/2023 • 4 minutes, 16 seconds
Some low-key, late summer flowers that pollinators cannot resist
Late summer blooms like phlox and hydrangea can steal the show with their big blossoms and color. Still, it's a native perennial called helenium that really brings the bees and birds to the yard.
8/13/2023 • 4 minutes, 1 second
A fall harvest awaits Vermont gardeners who can replant certain crops now
Many Vermont home gardeners might have experienced flooding. If they can, now is an optimal time for home gardeners to replant for a small harvest in September and even into October.
8/6/2023 • 4 minutes, 16 seconds
These freckled flowers add height, color and fragrance to your gardens
Lily varieties like Tiger, Martagon and Trumpet can add height and color to your gardens and borders. Some types grow to six feet tall and bring heady fragrance, too.
7/30/2023 • 4 minutes, 13 seconds
After recent Vermont flooding, the daylily blooms
Hemerocallis or more commonly known as the daylily often comes in bright yellow and orange. The tall flowers sprout up easily and keep growing in all kinds of challenging conditions, like the recent Vermont floods.
7/23/2023 • 4 minutes, 15 seconds
After historic Vt. flooding, toss any edible garden veggies touched by or under floodwaters
After flood waters recede, home and market gardens can take stock of their gardens and crops and determine what can be saved and how to remediate the soil now for next spring.
7/16/2023 • 4 minutes, 52 seconds
If you're itching to get rid of poison ivy in your yard, wait! This Vermont native has its good side.
Sure, poison ivy causes itchy, red welts on 90% of people who touch its leaves or stems. This native plant also serves as food for birds and insects and even helps in high winds.
7/9/2023 • 3 minutes, 55 seconds
How to keep slugs from turning your garden into a salad bar
Slugs chewing on your lettuces and flower leaves? When the plants grow bigger and the wetter weather moves out, they will, too. In the meantime, try a couple of natural methods to deter them.
7/2/2023 • 4 minutes, 11 seconds
Learn the '3-year rotational' and prune lilacs & other flowering shrubs like a pro
Pruning certain flowering shrubs in early July is key to them blooming again next spring.
6/25/2023 • 4 minutes, 22 seconds
How to ensure the gardening benefits of this creepy critter outweigh the drawbacks.
The good news: these fierce-looking insects do not climb in through your ear, burrow into your brain and lay eggs. They can, however, keep certain garden pests at bay.
6/18/2023 • 4 minutes, 14 seconds
Try these heirloom zucchini varieties that hold up great in a baked dish
Known as a vegetable that grows well and very fast during Vermont summers, zucchini is a great addition to home gardens. This year, plant varieties that a bit different and can grow well in a garden or a container.
6/11/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
For colorful flowering perennials, try growing 'butterscotch' & 'cherries jubilee'
Flowering perennials like hardy baptisia and amsonia can bring color to your landscape for many different seasons.
6/4/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Tips for home gardeners who lost flowers and plants in the late May frost.
Some parts of Vermont saw temps in the 20s during the overnight hours this month. While many apple orchards, vineyards and berry farms lost crops and income, home gardeners also had fruit trees and newly planted veggies get zapped by frost.
5/28/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
If your tulips and daffodils didn't bloom, try some bulb forensics to find out why
Sometimes when flowering bulbs like daffodils and tulips don't bloom, the answer is underground. By digging up the bulbs and noting their characteristics, you can solve the problem for next year.
5/21/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Ornamental grasses add movement, height and color to your gardens
From blue-green blades low to the ground and mounding like spiky hairdos to eight-foot-tall, feathery quills swaying in the breeze, find ornamental grasses to add to your gardens.
5/7/2023 • 4 minutes, 12 seconds
Ornamental grasses add movement, height and color to your gardens
From blue-green blades low to the ground and mounding like spiky hairdos to eight-foot-tall, feathery quills swaying in the breeze, find ornamental grasses to add to your gardens.
5/6/2023 • 4 minutes, 12 seconds
Create a rain garden and rain barrel to capture and re-use water
Capture and conserve storm water from heavy rains in gardens planted with water-loving flowers or catch it in a rain barrel.
4/30/2023 • 4 minutes
Make your yard the most popular in town for birds with fruit trees, water & hiding places
Dead trees, water features and tasty berries can make your address the one to stop at for local birds seeking food and shelter.
4/24/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Lily lovers can look for new hybrids to bring fragrance, color and height to gardens
Looking to add height, color and fragrance to your flower gardens? Lily varieties pack a visual and fragrant punch. Though these flowers grow well in Vermont, they will need your help to keep the red lily leaf beetle at bay.
4/9/2023 • 4 minutes, 9 seconds
Love 'mosscore?' Grow some cushiony greenery in your yard
In the right conditions, you can grow some green moss to bring an idyllic look to your landscape. You can purchase all kinds of mosses to grow or encourage more growth with a "moss milkshake!"
4/2/2023 • 4 minutes, 5 seconds
Up your app game with bite-sized snacking peppers for summertime hors d'oeuvres
Padrón or Herbón peppers hail from the Padrón region in northwestern Spain. These snack-sized peppers, along with Shishito peppers from Japan, can range from mild to spicy and are great when charred or grilled and eaten as an appetizer.
3/26/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
If your garden space is small, try growing vertically
Many beloved veggies are inclined to climb vertically already - like beans, squashes, cukes and zukes. Those plants tend to grow very large and can take over garden spaces. If you have a small garden, try growing certain plant varieties in containers or grow vertically instead.
3/19/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Hardier blue hydrangea varieties bring color and contrast to your gardens
Try planting new and sturdier flowering shrubs that grow better in our region, like Blue Enchantress, this spring.
3/12/2023 • 3 minutes, 57 seconds
Getting ready for spring: A start-up guide for growing tomatoes indoors
Gather up all the things you'll need - germinating soil, small containers, seeds and a grow light. Then, come late March or early April, get your tomato starts planted indoors.
3/5/2023 • 4 minutes, 1 second
The care and feeding of creepy, carnivorous house plants
Some plants eat meat! These carnivorous plants tend to grow in wet areas and bogs but certain types will grow well indoors, with proper watering and feeding techniques.
2/26/2023 • 3 minutes, 59 seconds
A tale of two Charlies and how these gardeners agree and differ on no-dig techniques
Local gardening expert Charlie Nardozzi has been talking about no-dig gardening techniques for awhile. He compares his practices to those of another gardening "Charlie," Charles Dowding from England, who has been no-dig gardening for decades.
2/19/2023 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Beyond cut flowers; Valentine's Day plant ideas to give your fave gardener.
Two fun Valentine's gift ideas will last well beyond the holiday and make gardeners swoon: The sweetheart hoya has heart-shaped leaves and the moth orchid is a beautiful houseplant.
2/12/2023 • 4 minutes, 6 seconds
Save those store-bought veggie pieces and learn to root and grow new ones.
Though it is fun to try to regrow plants from avocado pits and citrus seeds, chances are good they will never flower or fruit. Instead, take lettuces, ginger and lemongrass to regrow new plants.
2/5/2023 • 4 minutes, 4 seconds
Use the handful of weeks before spring to start growing leeks and onions indoors.
Leeks and onions need about eight to 10 weeks to germinate before you can plant them in your raised beds and gardens outdoors. That means now is a great time to plant some indoors.
1/28/2023 • 4 minutes, 3 seconds
If your home-grown tomatoes are destined to become sauce, plant a variety with sweet flavor and dense pulp.
If you grow lots of tomatoes with canning plans in mind, this year, try Captain Lucky or Blue Beech.
1/21/2023 • 3 minutes, 54 seconds
'Dark Side of the Moon,' and 'Bit of Honey;' among new, colorful perennial varieties to plant this spring
When you're perusing gardening catalogs and websites for perennials to plant in spring, look for these that have unusual colors.
1/14/2023 • 4 minutes, 13 seconds
Keeping up with cool new variations of your fave house plants
Philodendron and snake plants make great choices to grow indoors all year. And these steadfast classics come in fun varieties. Look for these and other houseplant variations to add to your indoor greenery.
1/7/2023 • 3 minutes, 58 seconds
Embracing a few gardening resolutions now can start off your spring on the right path
While you're making other New Year's resolutions, resolve to make certain changes in your gardening game.
12/31/2022 • 3 minutes, 55 seconds
Let worms do the work in turning food scraps into rich compost
Vermicomposting is a great way to break down food scraps this winter and create rich compost for gardens and raised beds this spring.
12/24/2022 • 3 minutes, 54 seconds
Buck traditional and choose from these five alternative holiday trees
Many factors play in to your holiday tree choices, like the cost of a traditional tree and how much space you have to display it. This year, try these different kinds of festive trees to decorate your home.
12/17/2022 • 3 minutes, 56 seconds
Make fast feathered friends with peanut butter and pinecones
Using natural elements like pinecones and tree branches, you can make home-made bird feeders. Just add suet or peanut butter, then sprinkle on the bird seed and hang the feeder outdoors.
12/11/2022 • 4 minutes, 11 seconds
Go for easy-care amaryllis bulbs to bring in bright blooms this winter
Amaryllis bulbs are native to southern hemispheres but you can pot them to grow this winter with very little care. Also, try a more recent variety of waxed amaryllis bulb that will grow and flower with no soil or water!
12/6/2022 • 4 minutes, 36 seconds
Want natural, one-of-a-kind holiday decorations? Gather boughs, branches and berries to make your own.
Gather up natural materials from your lawn and garden to create one-of-a-kind holiday decorations.
