Download a photo of spring flowers.
GRANITE FALLS, Minn. — On Thursday, January 23 at 7:30 p.m. Mary Holm returns for her sixth season as the host of Prairie Yard & Garden (PY&G) -- the show for northern gardeners on Pioneer PBS. The program will feature Alan Branhagen, director of operations at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum as he gives tips and ideas on how to create stunning floral displays using flowers commonly found in the spring. “Spring Flowers” will be repeated on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 4 p.m. and Monday, Jan. 27 at 1 p.m. and will be available for online viewing at www.pioneer.org/pyg immediately after broadcast.
PY&G is produced by the University of Minnesota, Morris in collaboration with Pioneer PBS. Production sponsorship is provided by ACIRA, Heartland Motors, Diamond Willow Advance Care Assisted Living and Shalom Hill Farm.
Here is a complete line-up of the episodes and the featured guests for Season 33 of PY&G:
Spring Flowers - January 23, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. with repeats on Jan. 25 at 4 p.m. and Jan. 27 at 1 p.m.
When we think of beautiful flowers in the garden, we often think of annual varieties like marigolds and petunias that are in full glory in the summer. However, spring can have a wonderful display of color too especially if you use fall planted bulbs. Host Mary Holm visits with Alan Branhagen, director of operations at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum to get great ideas for what to use to create stunning floral displays to welcome in spring!
Raising Chickens - January 30, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. with repeats on Feb. 1 at 4 p.m. and Feb. 3 at 1 p.m.
Many of us who grew up on family farms in the upper midwest raised chickens. What is old is now new again with many towns and urban communities passing ordinances to allow city slicker chickens too. Host Mary Holm visits with Florian Ledermann, a retired veterinarian who has introduced chickens in his vineyard near Brandon and gives tips on getting ‘egg’cited about the benefits of chickens in the landscape.
Stivland Gardens - February 6, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. with repeats on Feb. 8 at 4 p.m. and Feb. 10 at 1 p.m.
You can find the neatest places when going for a Sunday afternoon drive, and sometimes one even comes across a nice greenhouse. That is how host Mary Holm found Stivland Gardens, a small, family-owned greenhouse located in the rolling countryside near Lowry.
Pruning Trees - February 13, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. with repeats on Feb. 15 at 4 p.m. and Feb. 17 at 1 p.m.
During the past two seasons, Prairie Yard & Garden has shared episodes on tree care with Gary Johnson from the University of Minnesota, St. Paul campus. First, we found out that planting trees is as easy as 1-2-3. Then, we learned the next steps of tree care so we don’t have to pull out dead sticks in episode “4-5-6.” This season, join host Mary Holm with steps 7-8-9: pruning to keep our trees looking fine!
Yard Into Garden - February 20, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. with repeats on Feb. 22 at 4 p.m. and Feb. 24 at 1 p.m.
There is a renewed interest in the movement of sustainability and growing our own food. This may be a reflection of issues regarding food safety, personal healthy eating initiatives and the satisfaction and pleasure of eating what is grown by ourselves. Host Mary Holm visits with Susie and Kris Hanson of Morris who are turning their urban yard from one that needs lots of mowing and maintenance into a yard that is producing a bountiful harvest of food for their young family.
Winter Savings - February 27, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. (no repeats due the Pioneer PBS membership drive programming)
Many people have savings accounts at their bank so they can try to put a little stash away for future use. You can do the same with some plants too. Host Mary Holm visits with Bernie Angus, a well-known master gardener from Milbank, South Dakota, who gives tips on how to care for and deposit your perennial plants indoors to have a nice nest egg of plant color for next season.
Quarry Park - March 19, 2020 with repeats on March 21 at 4 p.m. and March 23 at 1 p.m.
Many travelers who drive on Interstate 94 near the St. Cloud/Waite Park area may be completely unaware of the hidden gem that awaits them just a couple of miles away. Quarry Park is the cornerstone of the Stearns County park system that honors the area’s stone quarrying industry. Host Mary Holm visits with Caitlin Carlson of the Stearns History Museum to learn the important role granite quarries have played in the development of Minnesota. Mary then visits with Stearns County Parks Director Benjamin Anderson, who shares the stunning beauty of this park which is open to all, year round.
Grafting Trees - March 26, 2020 with repeats on March 28 at 4 p.m. and March 30 at 1 p.m.
Where can you take a tree, add another tree, and still end up with one tree? If this sounds confusing, join Host Mary Holm as she visits with David Vaske of Miltona Greenhouse near Miltona and learns about grafting trees. . Vaske is a geneticist and loves to graft buds and wood stock to create wonderful, vibrant trees that can handle the upper midwest’s challenging growing zones.
Growing Monarchs - April 2, 2020 with repeats on April 4 at 4 p.m. and April 6 at 1 p.m.
The plight of decreasing monarch butterfly populations has been well documented and many groups and individuals are trying to do their best to help. Host Mary Holm visits with Jenell Goldenstein of Hancock who, along with her family, collect eggs and raise monarchs through all stages of development. They have also established milkweed and other host plants in their urban yard to help the monarchs’ journey to Mexico!
Goats and Invasive Plants - April 9, 2020 with repeats on April 11 at 4 p.m. and April 13 at 1 p.m.
Controlling weeds and invasive species of woody plants and thistle effectively and safely as possible is a very difficult — if not impossible — task. Buckthorn is near the top of the list of invasive species in our most loved natural areas. Join us as host Mary Holm meets Pesto, the munching goats leader, and her amazing crew members while they goat buckthorn and other weeds with a vengeance. There’ll be lots of kidding around on this program as they demonstrate natural weed control and have fun doing it!
Japanese Garden - April 16, 2020 with repeats on April 18 at 4 p.m. and April 20 at 1 p.m.
A Japanese garden is a place of peace, harmony and tranquility that highlights the natural landscape through borrowed scenery, mineraturation and asymmetry. The Shoto-Teien Japanese Gardens located within Terrace Park in Sioux Falls, South Dakota displays many of the attributes of a traditional Japanese garden along Covell Lake. Host Mary Holm visits with Mary Ellen Connelly, a member of the group of community members that has worked for decades to restore and maintain this special place, and shares the history and special features of this beautiful location.
Wonderland - April 23, 2020 with repeats on April 25 at 4 p.m. and April 27 at 1 p.m.
Once you step on the property of Wayne Johnson and Bonnie Beresford, you forget that you are in the heart of a bustling city in west central Minnesota. Their yard, that has been rightfully part of the Alexandria Garden Tour, has been a labor of love and is the very land on which Wayne grew up. Join host Mary Holm as she discovers the beauty of their “wonderland” and why it was such a popular stop on the tour!
Houseplants - April 30, 2020 with repeats on May 2 at 4 p.m. and May 4 at 1 p.m.
You have heard the old saying, “What is old is new again.” It seems like every time we open a hobby or craft magazine, there is an article about the renewed interest of houseplants among millennials. Host Mary Holm turns to her husband, Tom, to talk about the care of houseplants and get his recommendations for easy-to-grow plants that everyone can try.
