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Terry Ettinger, Host of "The Weeder's Digest"
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Every Saturday Morning - 11:00 to Noon
To join the program, dial . . . . .
421-9797
#570 on the Verizon Wireless Network
(please use a hands-free device if you're driving, or better yet, pull over before calling!)
1-800-999-4678 (if you're listening via the Web from halfway around the world, or maybe just Albany, Binghamton, Rochester or Buffalo) |
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How to Contact Terry Ettinger
Studio Phone: 315-421-9797 or 800-999-4678 Programming Fax: 315-478-6455 E-mail: terry@tlehcs.com
Website: www.tlehcs.com
Mailing Address: 570 WSYR Newsradio 500 Plum Street, Suite 100 Syracuse, NY 13206 |
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About Terry Ettinger
My interest in growing plants was nurtured at a very young age by my parents. They've had a vegetable garden for more than fifty years and also enjoy growing dahlias, cannas, gladiolus, too.
 It's also a product of the time I spent as my grandfather's shadow on his northern Illinois farm where my grandparents raised hogs and grew corn, soybeans, oats - and Christmas trees! (I'm the skinny one at left in the picture above, taken in the front yard of my grandparent's farmhouse with my grandfather, Earl Sayers, my brother Tim, and my cousins.) My journey from the corn fields of Illinois to Central New York has included stops along the way to obtain B.S. and M.S. degrees in Plant & Soil Science (with an emphasis on landscape design, management and plant propagation) from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, the University of Minnesota-St. Paul for additional graduate work in horticulture, and the SUNY-College of Environmental Science and Forestry right here in Syracuse for a one year stint as a graduate student in the landscape architecture program. Upon my arrival in Central New York in early March of 1987, I spent a little over five years as a horticulture specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension - Onondaga County.
It was during my time with Cornell Cooperative Extension - one fateful day in early May of 1988, in fact - that my life changed forever. A guy by the name of Joe Galuski (maybe you've heard of him), invited me to join him during his afternoon talk show on this very radio station to answer any lawn, landscape and garden questions that his listeners might have. Well, we actually did get a few calls (two as it turns out, however, were from my wife's co-workers) and Joe, with his sharp eye for spotting talent, asked me to come back the following week to field more questions. As the say goes, "the rest is history!" Thanks to you, the "Weeder's Digest" audience, the show is still growing strong (sorry, I couldn't resist) almost twenty years - and thousands of questions later! So, to help me keep doing what I love do to - which is to help you be succesful with all of your lawn, landscape and garden activities - make sure to join me every Saturday morning from 11:00 to noon! |
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Gardening-Related Groups Growing Across Central New York
If you have a passion for a particular plant or group of plants, or just enjoy sharing your growing joys and sorrows, there are many groups of like-minded gardeners all across Central New York. Below is just a sampling of these groups with the most recent contact information I have at hand.
If you're aware of a group that's not included here, or have updated contact information for a listed group, click here to send me a note.
Syracuse Rose Society (go to website)
Men's Garden Club of Syracuse (315-727-2182)
Central New York Orchid Society (go to website)
Bonsai Club of Central New York (go to website)
Habitat Gardening in Central New York (go to website)
Gardeners in Thyme (315-635-6481) |
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Rugosa (Saltspray) Roses and Evergreen Sizes
Saturday 08-09-2008 10:39am ET
We received a couple of calls last weekend about the practicality of using rugosa roses (Rosa rugosa) in Central New York landscapes.
Also known as saltspray roses because they're often found growing wild in the dunes along the Atlantic ocean, they're perfectly hardy here in Central New York. In fact, it's almost impossible to kill them as the hotter, drier, sunnier and saltier it is, the better they do. You can even run over them with a snowplow and they'll bounce right back the following spring!
The only limitation is that some of the more common forms tend to produce a lot of sprouts from their extensive root systems. This can result in them showing up in places where you really don't want them.
The solution is to use more manageable cultivars, like my favorite rugosa rose, `Frau Dagmar Hastrup,' pictured below along a driveway in Dewitt. For more information about this rose, click here to go to my website.
 Other well behaved rugosa roses include the "Pavement" series that are now available from a number of online mailorder nurseries.
We also received a couple of calls regarding the mature size of evergreen trees and shrubs, including Blue Spruce. I have an entire section of my website devoted to exactly this topic, which you can go to by clicking here. The bottom-line is that almost all of the common evergreens found in Central New York landscapes grow much, much too large for the spaces in which they're often planted - as is the case below!
Shedding Light on Home Garden Remedies and Organic Gardening
Saturday 08-02-2008 10:36am ET
To follow up on last weekend's interview with University of Minnesota horticulture professor, Jeff Gillman, I wanted to remind you of his books, "The Truth About Garden Remedies," (ISBN-10: 0881929123) and "The Truth About Organic Gardening" (ISBN-10: 0881928623). 
Both arose from his extensive preparation for courses he teaches at the "U," (where I spent three very long years in the horticulture Ph.D. program). And both shed some very interesting light on awide range of home remedies and organic gardening practices that have become part of gardening lore over the years.
Both books are published by Timber Press and are available at your favorite book store. Of course, you can also find them on the shelves of your favorite public library or obtain them through their interlibrary loan services.
Moss Need Not Be Maddening
Saturday 07-19-2008 10:35am ET
Most moss-related calls I receive on the "Weeder's Digest" are along the lines of how to prevent it from crowding out the grass in a shady and/or damp lawn. In fact, maybe only once or twice in the twenty years of the program has a caller asked about encouraging moss to grow in their garden!
In reality, mosses are fascinating, "non-vascular" plants. They don't "crowd out" lawn grasses, and one type of moss or another can be found growing almost anywhere!
If you'd like to learn more about mosses, Dr. Robin Kimmerer, a bryologist and Professor in the Department of Environmental and Forest Biology at SUNY-ESF, and Director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, will be leading a two day workshop called "The World of Adirondack Mosses," this coming August 16th and 17th.
Online Vegetable Gardening Resources
Saturday 07-05-2008 10:17am ET
On last week's show, I promised to point you in the direction of helpful, online fruit and vegetable gardening resources.
Toward that end, click on any of the titles below to go to a variety of extremely helpful sections of the Cornell University Department of Horticulture website.
"Guide to Growing Fruit at Home"
Possibly the best online resource for growing tree and small fruits in the home landscape and garden.
"Vegetable Gardening Homepage"
This is the best place to start your exploration of online gardening resources available from Cornell University. However, if you're an impatient gardener, below are several more direct links.
"Improving Your Soil With Cover Crops"
A great garden starts with great soil. This relatively brief introduction to "cover", or "green manure" crops, will get soil garden soil in great shape in less than five years.
"Pounder Heritage Garden at Cornell Plantations"
If you're interested in growing heirloom vegetables and fruits, the Pounder Heritage Garden is a great place to start your quest.
"Garden-based Learning Homepage"
I'm convinced that the little plot my parents carved out in their vegetable garden just for me when I was only in first or second grade was key to starting me on my way to becoming a professional horticulturist!
Finally, please remember that there is no "right" or "wrong" way to grow vegetables and fruits. Experimenting is a great part of the enjoyment!
Make sure to check back here next week, and I'll share some tips on locating/designing your garden, and how to deal with critters that might be interested in sharing your bounty!
Save the County Annual Garden Tour
Saturday 06-21-2008 10:32am ET
If you'd like to stroll through one of the most incredible private gardens in all of upstate New York - and support an outstanding environmental cause at the same time, today is the day to do just that!
From 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. today, Saturday, June 21st, Sycamore Hill Gardens, a private 25 acre estate garden just outside of Marcellus is hosting Save the County Land Trust's annual garden tour.
Established in 1972, Save the County Land Trust's mission is to "promote ecological diversity and active stewardship by
acquiring and preserving valued natural areas in Onondaga and
surrounding counties for educational purposes, scientific
inquiry, biological conservation, and appropriate recreational
use." To date, the trust has preserved almost 2,500 acres of unique and stunningly beautiful natural areas in Onondaga and Oswego counties, the best known of which may be Baltimore Woods Nature Center.
Meanwhile, Sycamore Hill Gardens, which is open to the public only a few days each year, features 24 distinct spaces including a large koi pond, a children's garden, a formal garden, a stone tower, hundreds of trees and shrubs, and countless perennials!
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© 2008