Director of Horticulture at the Native Plant Trust in Framingham, Massachusetts, and former Curator of Native Flora at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Uli Lorimer has written a new book, The Northeast Native Plant Primer, 235 Plants for an Earth-Friendly Garden. An outstanding introduction to gardening with native plants, it is especially relevant for residents of the northeastern United States but has much to offer to gardeners in other regions of the country as well. In our conversation, we explore such matters as what is a native plant and why species-type native plants are better for the “earth-friendly” garden.

Dr. Toni DiTommaso of Cornell University explains how familiarity with the ecology of weeds can help a gardener control their impact on the garden without resorting to toxic chemicals, and shares the web address of a free book-length guide to the subject.

With roots in traditional Korean agriculture, Bokashi composting has much to offer the contemporary gardener. Conway School graduate Boris Kerzner describes the process, explaining how you can pursue this process for recycling kitchen wastes – including meat scraps and dairy – to enrich your garden’s soil in just weeks.

Water is a resource plants cannot do without, and maintaining the right level of moisture in your soil – not too little and not too much – is critical to gardening success. That’s why pioneering horticulturist Robert Kourik holds irrigation to be one of the gardener’s most powerful tools. Join him for details about the techniques he has found most precise and efficient, methods of irrigation that can reduce your water use by a half or more while also boosting your harvest of fruits and flowers.

For 40 years, Larry Weaner, founder of Larry Weaner Landscape Associates, has been exploring the intersection of ecology with landscape and garden design, creating a style of planning, planting, and management that is founded in the natural dynamics of the site. One of the most powerful of these dynamics is succession, the inherent tendency of landscapes and their flora to evolve and change. By learning how to work with succession, how to channel and direct it down desirable paths, Larry has succeeded in creating landscapes that are not only biologically richer but also far easier to manage than conventional gardens designed around a static, change-resistant plan. Join the conversation and listen to Larry Weaner discuss how to incorporate succession into a habitat that addresses the needs and desires of both people and nature.

Share my discovery of a Nebraska treasure: the Prairie Plains Resource Institute. For more than 40 years this organization has been perfecting low-tech methods of wild grassland restoration while reconnecting people with the richness of their prairie heritage. Join us for a visit with executive director Amy Jones

To trace the impact of climate change on the plants and animals of Massachusetts, Dr. Richard Primack of Boston University turned to an unconventional source: the journals of 19th century philosopher Henry David Thoreau. In these documents, Dr. Primack discovered a wealth of relevant, closely observed data. Learn about this and Dr. Primack’s other intriguing discoveries in this week’s Growing Greener

Gardening can be a prime source of aches and pains, from a bad back to tendonitis – now “GardenFit,” the new public television series, combines inspiring visits to extraordinary gardens with professional advice on how to keep your gardening healthy. Join hosts Madeline Hooper and Jeff Hughes in their project to make your gardening more rewarding both horticulturally and physically

Have you wanted to save seeds from your vegetable and flower crops and free yourself from reliance on commercial seed retailers? Do you want to develop your own bank of locally adapted seeds? Jeanine Scheffert of the Community Seed Network shares how her organization can help you succeed in both these endeavors and put you in touch with other gardeners with similar interests.

No garden has had more impact in recent years than James Golden’s “Federal Twist.” Now, in a new book, “The View from Federal Twist,” Golden has shared the thinking that went into the design of this beautiful landscape, and the history of this careful duet with nature. Indeed, this book, subtitled “A New Way of Thinking About Gardens, Nature and Ourselves,” delivers in full everything the title promises. In our conversation, the author also discusses how he translated the European garden design innovations that were his starting point into a distinctively American process.

Horticulturist Jessica Walliser is fascinated by the insects in our gardens, the vast majority of whom play positive roles in these domesticated ecosystems. We discuss the fruits of her studies and the new, updated edition of her award-winning book, “Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, a Natural Approach to Pest Control.” Learn how your landscaping can bolster the work of these essential garden allies.

In 2017 Benjamin Vogt captivated the gardening world with his book, “A New Garden Ethic,” in which he explored the need to radically redesign our domestic landscapes to accommodate all the other creatures of North America. Since then this award-winning author, horticulturist, and educator has been promoting this message in the gardens he designs, his many articles and talks, and his on-line classes. Today we discuss these classes, and how they present an engaging and easy-to-master introduction to his special, eco-friendly, style of gardening.

Gardening can be the heart of a community, as the Rochester, Minnesota Seed Library demonstrates. Librarian Keri Ostby describes how the seed library brings together vegetable seeds for all the groups within the community, providing a source of superior fresh foods and for exploring mutual foodways. By encouraging seed saving the seed library also fosters the development of locally adapted strains of vegetables

If, like me, you’re daunted by the conventional instructions for creating a pollinator meadow, you’ll be heartened by Alina Harris’ unconventional alternative. Instead of applications of herbicides or smothering with sheets of plastic, she says you can just change the frequency and timing of your mowing. An integrated pest and pollinator management specialist for the Xerces Society, Harris also works for the National Resources Conservation Service and the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension. In all these roles she’s an advocate for the little things, the insects and other invertebrates that pollinate our flowers and serve as a foundation of the food chain. Hear her story of balancing help for farmers and gardeners to protect their plants against pests with promoting the vital role that invertebrates play in promoting environmental health.

The nation was shocked in December by the destructiveness of the fast-moving Marshall Fire in Boulder County, Colorado which burned through six thousand acres of suburban landscape in less than 24 hours. Bill Melvin of Ecoscape Environmental Design in Boulder discusses the causes of the fire’s ferocity, and how gardeners can adapt their activities to help limit future fires’ impact while also planting more in harmony with the local environment

The “Naturalistic” Garden is popular these days, but what is it and how does it differ from a truly natural landscape? Duncan Brine, principal with his wife Julia of Garden Large, a garden design firm in Pawling, New York, is an acknowledged master of the naturalistic. Listen as he discusses this style of design, how it informs his work, and how it is illustrated in the remarkable six-acre garden that he and Julia have created around their home.

Struggling with a wet spot in your yard? Join John Courtney of Kind Earth Growers to learn how to turn this difficulty into an asset. John has more than 20 years of experience in growing native plants adapted to wet soils. From collecting seed in the wild to mixing special soil blends, he understands wetland natives’ special cultural needs, and savors their special beauty. Let John help you transform that wet spot into an ecological opportunity and beauty spot.

The flowers in your garden are not, as gardeners often suppose, aesthetic statements, they are more or less blatant invitations for sex. Ranging from plant incest to the brutality of dragonfly sex, Carol Reese, distinguished horticultural educator at the University of Tennessee, shares insights on the curious aspects of sexual relations between plants and the role that wildlife plays in promoting it.

Sam Hoadley, Mount Cuba Center’s Director of Horticultural Research deliberately neglects his plants. His responsibility is to conduct the trials by which this renowned botanical garden in Hockessin, Delaware tests native plants to see which are garden stars – and attractive to pollinators – and which are garden and pollination duds. After selecting a popular genus, Sam and his crew collect all the types they find available in nurseries, establish them side-by-side in the test plots, and leave them to fend for themselves. The results he collects into detailed, comprehensive reports, an invaluable resource that Mount Cuba makes available to gardeners for free.

Based in Decorah, Iowa, the Seed Savers Exchange was founded in 1975 by Diane and Kent Whealy to share and preserve seeds of heirloom plants such as the morning glory and tomato that Diane’s great grandparents had brought with them when they immigrated from Bavaria in 1884. Today, the exchange boasts some 13,000 members and preserves 20,000 vegetable and fruit cultivars. Join our conversation with Dr. Philip Kauth, the Exchange’s Director of Preservation, to learn about what is new with the preservation of historic seeds.