Mostrando resultados por narrador "Mike McGrath" en Todas las categorías

Paul Tukey, author of the brand new Organic Lawn Care Manual joins us to discuss how and why he became an organic lawn care expert after years of spreading chemicals on people's landscapes. During the question of the week, Mike McGrath will issue his annual warning that those popular wood mulches can kill your plants and stain your home - and now comes news that they can catch fire as well! He'll explain which mulches prevent weeds just as well as wood without any of the risks.

Are the leaves on your poor plants stained, splotched, and smudged? Besmirched, blemished, and blotched? Host Mike McGrath will discuss the dread diseases that cause spots to appear, and how you can prevent the problem - without any sprays, chemical or organic!

What are the most important organic controls to have at the ready so that pest problems can be dealt with promptly? We'll name the top ten organic essentials every good little gardener should have close at hand!

It's time for Fall planting, and Mike McGrath will explain which plants do best in the cooler months. Plant garlic cloves now and harvest big fat bulbs next Spring; plant pansies now and get months of cool-season color, and edible flowers that fight varicose veins. It's also the perfect time to plant trees and shrubs. You might find great deals at your local nursery!

Not sure what kind of Christmas tree to pick? Professor Mark Vodak of Rutgers University joins us to help you choose the perfect tree for your family's needs.

The single most important thing you can do to insure a healthy, productive garden is to make compost for your soil. But should you include things like weeds, wood ash, and droppings from small herbivores in that pile? Mike McGrath will reveal exactly what seemingly worthless waste you can safely turn into glorious garden gold!

Do you use wood chips, "triple premium shredded bark", dyed mulch, root mulch, Right Dress or other forms of wood mulch near your home or car? Penn State Professor Don Davis will explain how these mulches can breed nuisance fungi that ruin those expensive items with impossible-to-remove stains - and what you can use safely instead. Plus how to handle grasshoppers, and the secret behind "locusts".

When it comes to producing flowers, wisteria is often the vine of disappointment. On the next episode of You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath will reveal what you can do NOW to coax this rampant runner into spectacular bloom next spring.

Are multi-legged crawly things creeping into your bedrooms, and all over your house? Mike McGrath will explain how to tell if you have pestiferous millipedes or highly beneficial centipedes and what to do about them. Plus, learn how tomatoes protect themselves against pests with signals that travel an inch a minute through the plant.

In this thrilling episode of You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath will tell you about the two main types of tomatoes and helps you decide which one is best for you. Then Mike gives you a guide to community gardens. Plus: chemical-free answers to all your gardening questions.

Virtually invisible thrips are as small as the period at the end of a sentence, but can cause big problems for your poor plants. Mike McGrath will tell you how to trick them into showing themselves and how to call beneficial insects, like pirate bugs, to the rescue.

Every garden and landscape needs compost, the rich black super soil that feeds your plants, and prevents disease better than any chemical fungicide. Ergo, every gardener needs a composter! So to kick off our seasonal gift suggestions, Mike McGrath is going to describe several units you can purchase, or make yourself, to get that special gardener of yours on the road to black gold!

Have you been told to use mothballs to repel pests? You Bet Your Garden host Mike McGrath reveals why those toxic-and ineffective-little cancer bombs are the worst way to deal with unwelcome invaders. Plus fabulous phone calls, tips and tricks - all chemical free, of course.

Are mushrooms popping up in your lawn? Mike McGrath will reveal the single biggest cause of fungal growth and explain the surprisingly easy cures. He will also discuss the fascinating history of fabled fairy rings - and he suggests that you just might want to welcome these merry mycelia into your life!

Do you want to save yourself a lot of frustration in the garden? In this episode of You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath will reveal the ten biggest mistakes that gardeners make!

Out with the old and in with the new! On this episode of You Bet Your Garden, host Mike McGrath tells you how to replace the plants of summer with the crops that crave the cold; as well as suggests serious succession strategies for maximum good eating next season!

How many times have you seen an interesting looking bug and wondered if it was friend or foe? We'll discuss a great new way to find out, when we interview Arthur Evans, the author of the brand-new National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Insects and Spiders & Related Species of North America.

Are you ready to start your seeds? Howard Shapiro from Seeds of Change joins us to discuss the all-organic offerings their new catalog. During the Question of the Week, Mike tackles a potentially stinky topic: Skunks can tear up lawns in their search for food, and they're very fond of sub-letting spaces underneath unsuspecting homeowners. Mike will explain how to safely evict them without unwanted incident; and how to erase that smell if you or your pets do get sprayed.

This is the time of year when many people hear the tap-tap-tapping of woodpeckers on their chamber wall. What are they doing there? "Probably not eating bugs" says woodpecker expert Dr. Jerry Jackson, biology professor at the Florida Gulf University in Fort Myers, Florida.

The warmer weather has a lot of people thinking about finally getting their tattered turf in shape. But what you should and shouldn't do for your lawn in spring depends on which kind of grass you're growing. Mike McGrath will explain the differences between cool- and warm-season lawns and how to care for both types over the coming months.