Ron Patterson

It’s kind of discouraging to see what looks like a nice tomato, only to pick it and find a dark, leathery patch on the bottom. While blossom-end rot is most often seen in tomatoes, it will also affect peppers, melons, squash and eggplant, although to a lesser degree. Blossom-end rot is caused by a c…

Several years ago, I received a call from a gardener who was concerned that his potatoes and tomatoes were not doing very well. He said he rotated them every year. When I looked at his garden, I saw that he was only growing tomatoes and potatoes, rotating them back and forth. This created a perfect …

Fresh, young potatoes are absolutely delicious. Fried, young potatoes with summer squash, onions, peppers, garlic, and a couple of eggs on top, with fresh salsa on it makes the breakfast of champions. On the other hand, potatoes stored through the winter need to be treated differently. Harvest Potat…

Many gardeners love flowering perennials because you don’t have to plant them every year, saving labor. However, most perennials do require occasional maintenance. A well-maintained perennial will have healthy growth and larger blooms. Why Herbaceous perennials produce new plantlets each year, which…

I’ve had a number of calls in the office about preparing a lawn for winter. There are four consideration when dealing with lawns, regardless of the season: Mowing Irrigation Fertilization Weed control Other—on occasion, we also need to worry about compaction and thatch Some of the recommendations wi…

Our autumn weather is quite unpredictable. Hopefully, we will recover from recent snows and still have a little time for fall yard work. This last season I did not till my garden at all and it performed beautifully. I did my normal fertilizing, weed control activities, hilling my potatoes, and appli…

The fall color show has been brilliant this year. Bright oranges, yellows and reds, everywhere you go. Now those beautiful leaves are dropping to the ground. What can be done with all this organic material? Note: the following recommendations are for tree and shrub leaves. Vegetables and flowers may…

My observation has been that the most common reason for houseplant failure is improper watering. This could mean watering too much (most common), watering too little, pots that don’t drain, or harmful chemicals in the water. Pot selection Use pots that have drainage holes. Roots need both water and …

When selecting trees for your home landscape, you need to consider more than just fast shade. While most trees do have a place where they are appropriate, there are a few that should never be planted in eastern Idaho. Future posts will cover some trees to consider and site selection and preparation.…

Medium-sized trees will fit well in most residential landscapes. Unless you have a large house and a large yard (over 20,000 square feet), medium-sized trees should be the target for your large landscape plants. Don’t plant too close to structures as broken branches may cause damage. In this group, …

The first decision you need to make before you purchase a tree is where to plant it. This will have a bearing on the size and ornamental features you want in that location. Location will also have a bearing on future pruning: “The first step to proper pruning is to plant the right tree in …

In honor of the North American Invasive Species Awareness week we’re going to be taking a closer look at managing weeds. Weeds do not recognize property boundaries. My weeds are your problem and your weeds are my problem. Every one of us needs to be involved in weed control, because ignoring the wee…

To protect the large Idaho onion industry, all allium products are subject to Idaho quarantine laws. The reason for the quarantine is to reduce the possibility of introducing onion white rot fungus into onion-growing areas of the state. Eastern Idaho counties under the quarantine rule are Cassia, Po…

Many gardeners love flowering perennials because you don’t have to plant them every year, saving labor. However, most perennials do require occasional maintenance. A well-maintained perennial will have healthy growth and larger blooms. Why Herbaceous perennials produce new plantlets each year, which become crowded, competing for resources. In time, herbaceous perennials will often become a …

Another fun house plant that provides beautiful winter blooms is the kalanchoe (pronounced kal-un-KOH-ee or Ka-LAN-cho-eh). It can be found in the stores now and is easy to grow and get to rebloom. Flower colors range in the red-orange-yellow-salmon spectrum. There are several interesting species in…

Crown of Thorns is a sun loving herbaceous, deciduous, perennial shrub. Legend has it that Euphorbia milii was the plant used as the thorny crown placed on Jesus’s head at his crucifixion. Its common name “Crown of Thorns” refers to this legend. There is evidence that this plant had been brought to…

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When we focus on soil health the soil structure improves, drought resistance improves, water infiltrates faster (less flooding and runoff), nutrients are cycled more efficiently, soil organic matter increases, more carbon is sequestered in the soil, erosion is reduced, plants are more resistant to insect and disease pests, and the food we get from the plants has higher nutrient density (not sure how they measure that, but homegrown does taste better).