Podcast appearances and mentions of neil diboll

Two regulars are back on Garden Talk. Consulting ecologist Neil Diboll of Prairie Nursery talks about getting everything ready for your native garden. Seed entrepreneur Jere Gettle is back with highlights from this year's Baker Seed catalogue.

Join pioneering nurseryman and ecologist Neil Diboll for the second half of our conversation about how gardeners can familiarize themselves with the natural characteristics of the soil on their site and use that knowledge in selecting a community of adapted, self-sufficient native plants for their gardens.

Traditional gardening emends the soil to suit the needs of the selected plants; pioneering nurseryman and ecologist Neil Diboll takes the character of the soil on site as the foundation of garden design and key to the selection of an adapted, ecologically functional, and self-sufficient plant palette

Gardens using native plants benefit from planting or seeding at the right time of the year. Internationally recognized native plant expert Neil Diboll is back to tell you what to […]

Interest and awareness around native plants has been trending in recent years, and it makes them almost feel new. But of course natives are the original plants of an area—and even in certain specialty corners of the nursery industry they... Read More ›

Interest and awareness around native plants has been trending in recent years, and it makes them almost feel new. But of course natives are the original plants of an area—and even in certain specialty corners of the nursery industry they... Read More ›

Interest and awareness around native plants has been trending in recent years, and it makes them almost feel new. But of course natives are the original plants of an area—and even in certain specialty corners of the nursery industry they... Read More ›

Dee and Carol talk about wisteria, bee balm, beans, and much more.For more information and links, visit our free Substack newsletter!American wisteriaFlowers Wild Bergamot, Witchita Mountains Form from High Country GardensUK National Collection of BeebalmVegetablesBean seeds from Seeds of ItalyCarol's Forktress Blog PostOn the BookshelfThe Gardener's Guide to Prarie Plants, by Neil Diboll & Hilary Cox (Amazon)Dirt:Let Your Garden Grow Wild Ted Talk by Rebecca McMackinTheme Gardens by Barbara Damrosch (Amazon Link)Rabbit HolesFarmer's Defense sleevesDee's blog post on gardening with Alpha-Gal SyndromeThe Field House: A Writer's Life Lost and Found on an Island in Maine by Robin Clifford Wood (Amazon)Our Affiliates (Linking to them to make a purchase earns us a small commission):Botanical InterestsFarmers DefenseEtsyTerritorial SeedsTrue Leaf Market Eden BrosNature Hills Nursery  Book and Amazon links are also affiliate links.Email us anytime at TheGardenangelists@gmail.com  For more info on Carol  visit her website.  Visit her blog May Dreams Gardens. For more info on Dee, visit her website.  Visit her blog Red Dirt Ramblings.Support the Show.On Instagram: Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.On YouTube.

A successful native garden requires planning. We talk with nationally recognized native plant expert Neil Diboll about how to select the right plants and how to determine their location in your garden. We also talk about how to prepare soil and spring prairie maintenance. Click here for list for more info on prairie gardens.

Did you know that for many of our most commonly grown native wildflowers and grasses, 2/3 or more of the plant is underground in the form of roots? Or that you can reduce weeding requirements in your native plant garden by understanding the root systems of different plants that you are growing? Or that there is now a resource that can help you avoid mistaking a native plant in your garden as a weed and accidentally pulling it? Today, we are talking to Hilary Cox and Neil Diboll. They are the authors of the newly published book, The Gardener's Guide to Prairie Plants. Neil is also the president and consulting ecologist of Prairie Nursery, located in Wisconsin. The full transcript of this episode can be found at: https://www.backyardecology.net/growing-prairie-plants

Nationally recognized native plant expert Neil Diboll talks about an option for no mow turfgrass. He also answers your questions about fall prairie maintenance.

Nationally recognized native plant expert Neil Diboll talks about an option for no mow turfgrass. He also answers your questions about fall prairie maintenance.

As our climates grow warmer and frequently drier, gardeners need the drought and heat tolerance, and innate sustainability of our native grassland plants more than ever.  In their new book, The Gardener's Guide to Prairie Plants, Neil Diboll and Hilary Cox have combined their decades of experience to produce an indispensable tool for beginners and veterans alike, with invaluable advice about how to create functioning grassland ecosystems inside and outside the prairie states.

Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart   Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee   Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community   Historical Events 1766 John Mulso writes to his friend English naturalist, Gilbert White, in Selborne Gilbert White was born in 1720, So he was 46 when he received this letter from John. At the time. Gilbert had been keeping a journal about the goings on in his garden. Gilbert kept a journal for about three decades, and it was eventually published to the delight of readers everywhere. Today people still love reading through Gilbert White's notations, drawings,  and comments. Gilbert had a knack for observing the natural world and describing in a relatable way all the goings on outdoors. Gilbert was very curious. He was also really personable. When John Mulso begins his letter with a comment on the garden, he finds a point of agreement.  Vegetation thrives apace now, and I suppose you are quite intent on your new study. You will not perhaps relish a Prospect the worse when we force you to look up, as presume you will go with your eyes fixed on the ground most part of the summer. You will pass with country folks as a man always making sermons, while you are only considering a Weed.   John makes a very astute observation - Gilbert liked gardening more than anything else on Earth. Gilbert was like many pastors or reverends of his time who also pursued their hobbies as naturalists or gardeners. During the growing season, it was coming for a naturalist parson to get distracted by their gardens.   1809 A retired Thomas Jefferson enjoyed spending most of his time in his garden. (Finally!) In the spring of this year. Thomas was no longer consumed with the duties of being president. We know that in the last year of his presidency, he spent many hours pining for his garden and accumulating plants from his friend Bernard McMann and other plantsmen. So in April of 1809, Thomas Jefferson was living his dream and his best life as a gardener. He wrote to his friend, Etienne Lemaire, on this day, I am constantly in my garden or farms. And am exclusively employed out of doors as I was within doors when I was at Washington. I find myself infinitely happier in my new mode of life.   Isn't that an interesting observation? Comments like that may pass unnoticed, but this change in seasons, the warmer weather, and getting outdoors is powerful medicine. Spending time outdoors plays a role in our attitudes and our moods. We get more vitamin D we feel more energy. This time of year, we eat the fresh green offerings from our gardens, whether microgreens or asparagus. The rhubarb is popping. You can even eat some hosta leaves, little tiny rolled-up cigars, as they emerge from the Earth. You can cut and fry them up in a pan the same way you would asparagus. (If they're good enough for the deer, they're good enough for us.) They're pretty tasty. The key is to harvest them early - just like you would the fiddleheads. The joys of spring...   1851 George Herbert Engleheart, English pastor and plant breeder, was born. Like Gilbert White, George Herbert Engleheart was a gardener and a pastor.  In 1889, George began breeding daffodils - some 700 varieties in his lifetime. Sadly many of them have been lost to time, but we know that some survived. Fans of 'Beersheba,' 'Lucifer,' or 'White Lady' owe a debt of gratitude to Reverend Engleheart. Engleheart spent every spare minute breeding, and his parishioners would often find a note tacked to the church door saying, "No service today, working with daffodils." Engleheart's charming note reminds me of the little notes that gardeners hang on their porches or somewhere on their front door saying something sweet, like, " in the garden." And if you don't have one of those signs, you can grab a little chalkboard and a little twine And make your own.   1905 On this day,  David Fairchild, the great botanist, married Marian Graham Bell, the daughter of Alexander Graham Bell. Marian and David Fairchild had a long and happy marriage. When David went on his plant explorations, Marian would often accompany him. Together the couple had three children. David Fairchild is considered American botanical royalty for all his collecting and the sheer quantity of his plant introductions, including items like pistachios, mangoes, dates, soybeans, flowering cherries, and nectarines. Without David Fairchild, we would not have cherry trees blooming in Washington, DC. We also might not have kale at Trader Joe's. (David Fairchild is the man who brought kale to the United States.) David also got the avocado here as well. David Fairchild had a fair amount of luck in his life. He had a generous benefactor in a wealthy woman named Barbara Latham, who funded many of his adventures. Of course, by marrying Marian, David had access to the connections of his famous father-in-law.  Today you can continue to learn about David Fairchild and see his legacy at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Coral Gables, Florida. It is filled with many of the plants that David himself collected. And, of course, it's named in his honor.   1911 Harry Radlund, a gardener from Kilborne, Wisconsin, shared his garden successes with a plantsman named Henry Field. In 1911, Henry announced a garden contest for his customers to encourage good gardening. Later, he put their stories together in The Book of a Thousand Gardens. In the forward, Henry wrote,  I requested them to send in the stories of their gardens, true unvarnish- ed stories telling what they grew, how they grew it, what paid best, how big the garden was, what troubles they had, and how they overcame them. Also asked them to send in some pictures if possible. These letters are the result. And they are the most interesting batch of letters I ever read.  They are real heart to heart talks, told in their own language and in their own way. And the pictures, well you can look at them for yourself. Every garden was a real garden not a paper garden. The people were real people like you and I and our neighbors. There were men and women and boys and little girls and old bachelors. They were all garden cranks and garden lovers. You can learn more by a study of these letters than by reading all the text books in creation. You get the real stuff here. Real experience. The only trouble was, I run short of room in the book. It would have taken a book as big as Webster's Unabridged to hold them all in full.   Here's Harry's garden story from 1911: On April 23d, I planted some kale seed from you. We tried to raise kale for ten years but never had any success. This year, the best is about 3 1/2 feet high and about three feet wide without spreading the leaves. On the same day planted some dill, parsley, onion seed and onion sets. The dill grew good and went to seed, the parsley didn't grow very good. My early cabbage grew good and all the heads were used. The first planting of radishes was on April 25th, and I have had radishes all summer. The Shenandoah tomatoes in the garden are dandies, the best we ever had. So are the cucumbers. My cauliflower didn't grow very well in the warm weather, but is growing fine now.   1948 Leslie Young Carrethers, American poet & artist, died. So much about Leslie has been lost to time. But one of his accomplishments is little garden poetry books that are very challenging to find nowadays. I got my copies on eBay, and I love them. I think they're so precious and filled with little poetry about various garden plants, trees, and nature. Now, these books are tiny little pamphlets. Leslie produced about half a dozen or so. They've got adorable little titles, like These Shady Friends (about trees), blooming Friends, and More Blooming Friends. Now Leslie's friends called him Reggie. I didn't realize this until recently when I stumbled on some more research about him. But this clue leads me to think that one of the little books I bought on eBay was one of Reggie's copies because he signed it, making it even more precious to me. But I thought I would share a few little snippets from Leslie to give you a taste. He's whimsical when he writes and coves the garden and plants. Here's a little poem that he wrote about Lemon Verbena. If I were allowed only to grow One fragrant herb I know I'd choose Lemon Verbena. Oh yes, my views Are prejudiced, I'll admit ts so. But I love the way She scents my garden At close of day On a silver plate, In a crystal bowl A spray of her leaves Delights my soul.   And then here's a poem that he wrote about the Foxglove. The fox-glove in the garden Is very, very sly. She always looks at the earth below- Not at the passer-by. But I will tell her secret, Known only to birds and trees When no one is near With her spotted lips She eats the bumble-bees.   Finally, here's his poem about Monkshood. Beware of the Monkshood- His deep purple cowl Is a tricky disguise- He's as wise as an owl. You may think that he bends his head over to pray- He doesn't he brews fearful poisons all day. He's a wicked magician, by evil obsessed Don't be tricked by his acting nor how he is dressed. I hope this gives you a tiny sampling of the charming poetry of Leslie Young Carrethers.   Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation The Gardener's Guide to Prairie Plants by Neil Diboll and Hilary Cox This book came out this year. It's another brand-new book for gardeners and an invaluable reference for Prairie plants. So, if you are working with native plants, putting together a tiny meadow, as we discussed with yesterday's book, Tiny and Wild. or if you want to add to your garden reference collection, then this book is truly a gem. Here's what Doug Tallamy wrote about this book. If you are looking for the complete- and I do mean complete - guide to than this much-needed book. Diboll and Cox cover not only what prairie species look prairie ecosystems, you will not do better like each of their growth stages (a first!), they also dive deep into their historical and ecological roles in prairie ecosystems.   So overall, this book is an excellent book and reference guide. One feature I love about this book is how they produced the cover. Even though it's a paperback, it's a little more firm plastic-coated cover, making it wipable. So I imagine having this book in the car with me or in the garden and handling the use and abuse. Now I want to take a second and say, have you ever seen Neil Diboll? (Maybe you are lucky enough to have attended one of his workshops or presentations.) But I want to say he is the friendliest-looking guy, and he is so approachable in how he shares information. I've watched some videos of him on YouTube, and he is frank and genuinely passionate about plants. In short,  He is an excellent, very generous speaker and expert in the area of native plants, Prairie plants. Meadows wildflowers and the like, so the minute I saw that he was one of the authors of this book, I immediately put a little heart by it, and I was like, yes, I need to see this copy so that I can see what he did - And now I can also tell you about it. Now I will walk you through how the book is structured, But I won't get too deep in the weeds here. No pun intended.  I will walk you through each of the chapters. So the book starts with the history and ecology of the Prairie. They also talk about understanding your soil, which is essential for growing anything, much less Prairie plants. Then they discuss how to design, plant, and maintain Prairie gardens. Chapter five is significant because it talks about all the different types of plants; it's a Prairie species field guide. They go into great detail about monocots and dichotomy. Grasses and sedges. This is about 300-plus pages worth of data here. Chapter Six is all about establishing a flourishing Prairie meadow. And so that dovetails nicely with yesterday's book, Tiny and Wild. So this would be a great companion piece to that book. I would say that book is more artistic and design oriented. This book is more of a reference. Chapter Seven talks about burning your Prairie safely. Chapter eight is about propagating Prairie plants from seed, which is pretty easy to do, and also a great way to save money because if you're creating a Prairie, you need to have plants in mass. Chapter Nine is about propagating plants vegetatively. So two excellent chapters on propagation there. Then Chapter 10 is an excellent addition to this book;l It's the Prairie food web. So there's a deep dive into that. And then there is a superb Chapter 11 at the back of the book that goes through the various Prairie seed mixes you might be intrigued by. So, if you are considering growing a Prairie - I had a friend do this a couple of years ago, and they did a beautiful job - but anyone who's raised a Prairie will tell you there is a science of growing a Prairie, which is precisely what is covered in this book - And then there is the art of developing a Prairie and maintaining a Prairie. So it's a little bit of both. It's the yin and yang of Prairie's, but this book will be an indispensable guide. If you are serious and curious about Prairie plants and native plants, especially if you're doing some restoration work, Maybe you are a landscaper, and you need to work with a lot of native plants; maybe you're just a gardener who has a passion for Prairie's Meadows, wildflowers and that type of thing, whatever your scenario, this is a great guide. It's also a heavy book - but it's not so heavy that it's cumbersome or unusable. This book is 636 pages- although it doesn't feel like it - of Prairie plants. Everything you need to know and A truly definitive guide. "A one-stop compendium" is what they say about this book on Amazon. You can get a copy of The Gardener's Guide to Prairie Plants by Neil Diboll and Hilary Cox and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for around $25. It is a worthy investment.    Botanic Spark 1917 On this day, Maurice Baring writes about flying over the Fourth Army among some nature entries in his WWI diary. Maurice was a soldier with the Royal Flying Corps, and I think Maurice would be surprised and delighted to know that his diary is part of a gardening podcast here in 2023. I found a lovely little review of his diary, which became a book called A War Diary by Maurice Baring. The reviewer wrote: The remarkable thing about his book is that although it has an objective quality, it is also extraordinarily personal. It is far from being a history of the work of the R.F.C. during the war. It attempts nothing of the kind. It is rather an account of the author during the war, and by noting down whatever interested him at the moment, whether it was the book he happened to be reading or a talk he had had, he conveys to us what the war was in reality to him. His irrelevancies are relevant to that. An enormous number of these entries might have been made in his diary if there had been no war going on. Yet their inclusion is precisely what conveys to us the sense of actuality. He has endless details to attend to, news and odd rumours pour in from all sides, men are fighting and being killed (often he stops to record the death of a friend), yet his other interests persist. He is not always thinking about the war he copies out passages from the books he reads, quotes the poets, translates Horace; speculates about this and that, trusting that if he puts down all these things without emphasis, picture of what the war was actually like IS an experience to live through at H.Q. will be left in the reader's mind. Entries follow each other pell-mell. These are typical pages. Dip in anywhere and you will find the same drift of unconnected observations and unaccentuated records, noted down simply and quickly, by a man sensitive to many sides of life. Read the whole book and a curious ineffaceable impression remains of a confused process of human activity and emotion rushing on, on, on, in a definite direction, like a train which carries its passengers, now looking out of the windows, now talking together, now occupied with their own memories, on to a terminus. Such is Mr. Baring's record of the war.   As a gardener, I am delighted by the number of times Maurice mentions some plant or something happening in nature. The natural world was an anchor for him amid wartime chaos and heartbreak. Here's what Maurice wrote: On April 25th, 1917: We heard two shots in the air on the way there on the way back, just as we were this side of the Somme, a kite balloon was shot down and floated down into the river. We were looking at this; at that moment a scout appeared in the sky, and came swooping towards us. I thought it was a German, and that we were going to land looking down at the shelled condition of the ground. I was terrified. It turned out to be an S.E.It was bitterly cold : the earth looked like was a photograph: a war photograph. April 26th. I cannot read any more, not another line of the Golden Bowl by Henry James. April 28th. The garden full of oxlips and cowslips. The trees are red with sap. The hedges are budding. April 20th. We went to Vert Galant to see Harvey Kelly, who commands No. 19 Squadron... He always took a potato and a reel of cotton with him when he went over the lines. The Germans, he said, would be sure to treat him well if he had to land on the other side, and they found him provided with such useful and scarce commodities. He was the first pilot to land in France.   A little look back at WWI through the eyes of a nature lover, a gardener, and a pilot.   Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.

Nationally recognized native plant expert Neil Diboll talks about his new guide book on prairie plants. He also answers your questions about planting natives in the spring.

Grab your hedge clippers and don't forget to feed your plastic flamingos! Joy and cohost Max are exploring the surprising history—and even more surprising legacy—of the American lawn. The clean, green front lawn has been synonymous with the American Dream for decades, but…why do we like lawns so much? A green-year-round carpet of grass takes a lot of water and other resources to maintain, and can pollute local ecosystems. How can we get the pleasant sanctuary of a traditional lawn without harming the environment? Joy and Max climb a massive hill and find some donkeys, and lawnfluencer superstar Ry-Ry the Lawn Guy experiences a revelation. We hear from local wildlife, and environmental conservationist and tall-grass enthusiast Neil Diboll encourages us to let our lawn's wild side come out to play. Naturally, the biggest question is: Will Joy construct the perfect topiary self-portrait? Once you've gotten the grass stains out of your pants, see if you can put this First Things First in the correct order: Plastic lawn flamingoes, the gas-powered lawnmower, and AstroTurf. Also--what summer shoe is one of the oldest styles of footwear in the whole world? Didja Know has the deets! This episode was sponsored by: Fabric Insurance (Meetfabric.com/forever - Apply today in just 10 minutes at meet fabric dot com slash forever. Policies issued by Western-Southern Life Assurance Company. Not available in certain states. Prices subject to underwriting and health questions.)

Gardeners are busy now planting Dutch bulbs for a spring show, but there is an environmentally more beneficial alternative: native spring ephemerals.  Neil Diboll, founder and president of Prairie Nursery, shares how to use these early blooming natives to create truly perennial early spring color while also benefiting pollinators and other wildlife.

A pioneer in the native plant industry and recognized internationally as an expert in native plant ecology, Neil Diboll has dedicated his life to the propagation of native plants, promoting their benefits and furthering their use and in restoration projects. In this episode of Nature Revisited, Neil talks about the roots of the native plant movement, the importance of native plant species and their role in the food web, and how we all need to be respectful stewards of the land in order to secure a healthy future for all. More about Neil and Prairie Nursery: https://www.prairienursery.com/resources-guides/neil-diboll-consulting-ecologist/ Also available on your favorite podcast apps Website: https://noordenproductions.com/nature-revisited-podcast Nature Revisited is produced by Stefan van Norden and Charles Geoghegan. We welcome your comments, questions and suggestions - contact us at https://noordenproductions.com/contact

Bugs benefitting humans? Doug Tallamy's research and reason lays out an eco-logical banquet of ways insect life supports our own - and he calls on each one of us to return the favor, by growing native plants. Tallamy's message is passionate and practical - and clear enough for us ALL to take to heart.          Tallamy's first book, Bringing Nature Home (2007, Timber Press), has become the go-to best bet for inspiring lawn-lovers to switch allegiance to a truly lively (meaning largely NATIVE) personal landscape. His new book, Nature's Best Hope (Feb 2020, Timber Press), jumped onto The NY Times Bestseller List in less than a month. Read Washington Post short essay from 2-12-20         His first midwestern speaking gigs, in St. Louis on March 6-7, sold out in days. This Earthworms conversation is a great chance to hear THE BEST explainer of how we are part of Nature, and how our personal landscapes - from suburban yards to city balconies - CAN turn around catastrophic ecological decline, if we work together and Grow Natives NOW. We can grow what Tallamy encouragingly calls Homegrown National Park. Dig it! Music: Big Piney Blues, performed live at KDHX by Brian Curran THANKS to Sasha Hay and Jon Valley, engineers for Earthworms Related Earthworms Conversations: Nancy Lawson, The Humane Gardener (Feb 2019)   Native Plant Garden Tour: See, Grow, Love! (Aug 2017) - look for this tour again in 2020 - and find St. Louis Audubon's Bring Conservation Home program cited by Doug Tallamy in Nature's Best Hope as a program transforming local plant aesthetics.  Lawn Alternatives with Neil Diboll of Prairie Nursery (Aug 2017) In the Company of Trees, Forest Bathing with Andrea Sarubbi Fareshteh  Jan 2019)

Neil Diboll, president of Prairie Nursery and pioneer of the prairie gardening movement, discusses the ecological strengths of our native meadow flowers and grasses

GoldenSeeds#12.NeilDiboll.Prairie (https://mikesgreengarden.files.wordpress.com/2019/11/goldenseeds12.neildiboll.prairie.pdf) The Golden Seeds aren’t perfect but it’s a start. I like to read them in PDF format better what about you? Neil Diboll, President of Prairie Nursery, Inc. On the Web: (http://www.prairienursery.com/) (http://www.facebook.com/prairienursery) 1-800-476-9453 (1-800-GRO-WILD) We would love to help you with anything and even help you find some seeds or plants that would grow! Gardens are  focused on needs desires of humans only life gardening for all farms plants animals critters bugs sustainable ecosystem on people’s properties native plants. The real importance of native plants is that they have co-evolved with other linked to one brought to another long periods f coevolution support very few of other invertebrates adaptation foundation of the food change limited value ecology what resource was important doug bringing nature home more valuable the other thing to get the chemicals out of the environment native plants are great because 1 you don’t have to fertilize and you don’t have all the maintenance associated with it and opposed to a lawn you don’t have all the petrol chemicals and gasoline building it or running  the equipment. steal plastic most important if I don’t see holes in the leaves of my plants. I’m a failure as a gardener encourage my plants to be eaten insects are eating them and insects are eating the birds so I have an ecosystem in my yard. I mean birds eating the insects. You are creating a food chain, creating a food web, in your garden. So we are no longer just gardening for human interests and human returns gardening for all forms of life sharing revolutionary concept for gardening. Tell us about your very first gardening experience? I started out  in first grade with my first garden. Our class was raising money for some endeavor by selling garden seeds for ten cents a packet, door to door to neighbors.  I decided that if I was going to sell people a product, I should at least try it myself.  The garden was a miserable failure due to terrible soil conditions, and I suspended my gardening efforts for ten years. I learned to garden organically at age 16 when I decided to try vegetable gardening again in the same backyard.  This time I double dug the future garden two spade lengths deep in the fall, and filled the hole with the leaves we raked up in our yard.  The hole consumed all the leaves without hardly denting the chasm.  I then collected leaves from the gutters on my block, and filled the hole with one foot of leaves, covered by an inch or two of clay, until I had a three foot tall “mass grave,” as my extremely skeptical parents referred to it. A giant mound in the backyard. By spring, it had settled down to about 18 inches in height, and I planted my garden.  It was a spectacular success, producing an abundance of vegetables and greens, and I was suddenly a genius gardener! Used that garden for years ~ even after I went to college my parents used it for years. I love that! It’s like you built your own deep beds right there. Like what people talk about today building deep beds no till style. Tell us about your amazing CV that talks about all these things. I went into business in 1982! Why did I go into business? Well, for a number of different reasons. I worked for the US. Forest Service  in Colorado and the University of Wi where I live now. But there was limited employment for 6 months. and I just wasn’t a public sector person, there was a lot of bureaucracy. Then when the recession of 1981-82 hit. When you can’t find a job, what do you do? You create your own I created a backyard garden retiring at age 68 old farmhouse outside of greenery ok if we use that land if we rent the... Support this podcast

This month on We Dig Plants, hosts Alice Marcus Krieg and Carmen Devito visit Zone 4 of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which includes the Wisconsin prairie. A pioneer in the native plant industry and recognized internationally as an expert in native plant community ecology, Neil Diboll has guided the growth of Prairie Nursery for 30 years. He has dedicated his life to the propagation of native plants and their promotion as uniquely beautiful, ecologically beneficial and sustainable solutions for landscapes and gardens. In 2013 Neil was the recipient of the Great American Gardeners Award from the American Horticultural Society. We Dig Plants is powered by Simplecast

OK, so maybe "No Mow" is a seedy fiction, but there ARE alternatives to conventional turf that can save water and work, turn down the Lawn Boy's carbon emissions - even support the lives of pollinators. All while keeping that sweet green place to play for our kids and dogs. Today's needs have evolved, somewhat, from the country's original No Mow situation:               Neil Diboll, president of Prairie Nursery in Westfield, Wisconsin, returns to Earthworms to elucidate the what-why-how of Lawn Alternatives. His No Mow Lawn Mix is proving popular in central Wisconsin's sandy, loamy soil. And his youth in University City, MO, gave Neil a healthy appreciation for our heat-loving Zoyzia grass. Of course he encourages transformation of areas in your turf into flowering prairie-like pollinator islands. Move over, John Deere - there are turf alternatives here!                              Could a local, creative plantsman develop a "No Mow" mix for our St. Louis area's hot summers and clay soils? Working with nature, the grass COULD be Greener! Music: Magic 9, performed live at KDHX by Infamous Stringdusters THANKS to Cody Pees, Earthworms engineer and discerning listener Related Earthworms Conversations: Growing a Joint Venture with Nature (February, 2017)

Wildflowers are moving into the city - and plants with "weed" in their names are welcome even in the 'burbs. Sure and steady as Oak trees, a Native Plant revolution is changing the ways we experience our yards, our parks, our school grounds and even our corporate campuses.                        Neil Diboll, President of Prairie Nursery in Westfield, Wisconsin, has grown this wild idea for 35 years. He was digging native plants when his business "couldn't give 'em away." Now he - and many humans like him - can't get enough of the kinds of plants that let our species garden in a Joint Venture with Nature.                                       Mitch Leachman cultivates this mania here in the KDHX listening area. As head of St. Louis Audubon, he leads volunteers from groups with names like Wild Ones and Master Naturalists in efforts to "Bring Conservation Home" - the wildly successful Audubon program that comes to your yard with guidance to garden ecologically.  Let this Earthworms conversation welcome you to the realm of Native Plants. Want to learn more? You're in luck! March brings workshops, talks and plant sales bursting like Milkweed pods with Native Plant knowledge, opportunity, and FUN! Neil Diboll will headline the 2017 Partners for Native Landscaping Workshop on March 3 & 4 - hosted this year at St. Louis Community College-Meramec, where native plant horticulture training is taking off like Prairie Blazing Stars.  Additional visiting Native Plant maven: pollinator plant author Heather Holm. Need a lift for your spirits? Start gardening for butterflies, birds and bees. Pick some flowers with "weed" in their names. Meet folks who've got the Native bug - and let yourself catch it too! Music: Agnes Polka, performed at KDHX by the Chia Band, 1999. THANKS to Andy Coco, Earthworms engineer, and to all the Partners for Native Landscaping organizations. Related Earthworms Conversations: Prairie Power: Native Plants, Soil Health, Biodiverse BEAUTY (March 30, 2016) Wes Jackson and The Land Institute: Growing Our Food Crops as Prairies? (September 15, 2015)

Revisiting the meadow-meister Neil Diboll. More about planting a prairie (and reducing lawn).

Ken and native plant expert Neil Diboll discuss prairies and meadows