PlantNebraska Podcast

An interview with Jenny Hopwood from the Xerces Society all about the life cycle of stem nesting bees and how we can create habitat for them. Often known for their work with pollinator habitat, the Xerces Society works with any invertebrate species. Their mission: The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is an international nonprofit organization that protects the natural world through the...

Listen in to today’s episode where Sarah and Hanna share and discuss their favorite nature and gardening related apps. From iNaturalist to SkyView to Planter there are a lot of tools to help you learn about and enjoy they great outdoors. There is also a “deleted scene” from this episode available on our Patreon! Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voice...

Did you know Nebraska has over 200 species of butterfly? Hanna and Sarah compare which species they see the most in their urban vs rural yards and how to create nesting habitat. They also take a look at the species that migrate including Monarchs. Join our iNaturalist bioblitz and see how many butterflies we can photograph through September 1st! Mail in dead butterflies and moths to USGS Monarch W...

Botanical Latin- the language of plants- can be baffling but also incredibly helpful. Not really a language at all, this system of naming (nomenclature) gives each plant and official and universal name. These scientific names come in handy when identifying plants with regional common names or when several plants have the same common name; like sunflowers. International Botanical Congress (yes, it'...

Erin Ingram and Jenny Keshwani join us from GROWABLE, science literacy team, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. They recently hosted an event called Climate and Mental Health for high school and college students and shared with us what they learned. View the documentary "Gen Z Mental Health: Climate Stories" Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voice...

Join the new Nebraska Statewide Arboretum Patreon for weekly plant profiles, bonus podcast content and behind the scenes looks in our greenhouse and at our projects! https://www.patreon.com/NebraskaStatewideArboretum

It’s the middle of the summer and hopefully everyone has something blooming in their garden! But, midsummer brings some issues with it as well; flopping, insects, diseases & Random Death (it happens to us all). These issues aren’t unique to this time of year but they often intensify in the summer heat. June 17th is Member Appreciation week at the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum! We are a member s...

How does heat affect plants? How do plants affect temperature? Summer in the City: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7ofnHmxE-I Photosynthesis: Mrs. Frizzle says it best: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMNVwkxoW6k Stomata: any of the minute  pores  in the  epidermis  (skin) of the leaf or stem of a plant, forming a slit of variable width which allows movement of gases in and out of the  intercellu...

Happy Wildflower Week! The first week of June we always celebrate Nebraska Wildflower Week by traveling to the panhandle to spend time hiking and visiting with our partners and friends. For this episode we're going to take you along with us. Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail. Bloom Box: Growing Deeper: https://plantnebraska.org/podcast Follo...

It's time for another episode of the Bloom Box Growing Deeper podcast. In this edition, Sarah and Hanna answer listeners' questions about gardening, including how much to water during this very dry spring, how to deal with invasive weeds and more.  Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail. Bloom Box: Growing Deeper: https://plantnebraska.org/podca...

Denise Wally, former Nebraska Forest Service coworker and current friend, joins us to talk about her love of growing mushrooms. As a member of the Nebraska Mycological Society she enjoys teaching others about the identification, culinary uses and growing of mushrooms. She has experimented with ways to include mushrooms in both her landscape and her culinary gardens with great success, both for the...

It’s Spring Affair Week and that applies to EVERYTHING we do at NSA. So, today’s episode is all about Spring Affair. Sarah and Hanna share practical tips and tricks to use while you’re shopping and list more than a few plants you should look for while you’re shopping. Toby and Michelle also join in to talk about vendors and creating spring affair news. Spring Affair is our major fundraiser for the...

Chrissy Land, Western Nebraska Community Forester for the Nebraska Forest Service, joins us to talk about the importance of trees to bees. As a forester she knows and loves trees, as a beekeeper she knows and loves bees, and with a background in landscape design and maintenance she knows how to combine the two! Doug Tallamy is one of our favorite authors when it comes to the ecological importance...

April Fool's! No tricks here but we are changing things up and talking about all our 'unpurposeful' gardening projects. We always try to help you garden with a purpose but today that purpose is whatever brings you joy whether or not it has a direct tie to habitat or ecological services. Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail. Bloom Box: Growing D...

Victory Gardens made a comeback during Covid. This is an opportunity for us to talk about a significant movement in home horticulture- similar in many ways to the current movement of sustainable/habitat gardening at home. Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail. Bloom Box: Growing Deeper: https://plantnebraska.org/podcast Follow us @NEBloomBox on...

The days are getting warmer (between snowstorms) and we're getting excited for spring! Between the Spring Affair plant list and the Bloom Box design archives this episode is dedicated to pre-spring "window" shopping. Review Bloom Box: Growing Deeper and make Hanna pay! Ratings and review help new listeners find our podcast and help us create better content for you. Never reviewed before? Here are...

How are we planning to improve our soil this spring? Lot's of poop! Late winter-early spring is a great time to make sure their is organic matter ready to decompose in your garden. Our podcast episodes are now on YouTube! We also have how-to videos, webinars and other resources so check it out. Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail. Bloom Box: G...

Our interests and hobbies matter to the people who care about us most, sometimes they come along for the ride, diving in with us, and sometimes they cheer us on while appreciating the fruits of our labors (pun definitely intended). With Valentine's Day coming up, we spent some time talking with our husbands about our gardening obsessions. Hanna's husband Matthew is an admirer her gardening efforts...

Equitable access to public spaces is central to our civic life and democracy. We can’t let the threat of terrorist attacks or mass shooters turn our public spaces into inaccessible fortresses. To protect our people and economy, cities instead need thoughtful, designed security solutions that balance the need for openness with the management of risk. Roxanne Blackwell, co-interim CEO of ASLA (Ameri...

The Great Plants program is a partnership between the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum and the Nebraska Nursery and Landscape Association with the goal of promoting overlooked and underutilized plants that are native or well adapted to our area. Bob Henrickson has been leading this program for the last couple of decades and joins us to talk about this years Great Plants of the Year and highlight some...

Get cozy with a book this winter while we wait for the ground to thaw and planting to begin! Sarah and Hanna, along with Michelle our communications specialist, talk about their favorite books that keep them thinking of gardens and growing. Check out our Bookshop.org affiliate link to purchase any of these titles and support Bloom Box & NSA at no extra cost! Show Notes Send us your questions a...

Help us Plant Nebraska by supporting the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum Annual Campaign: Become a Member Donate to NSA Shop our Merch Shop with our bookshop.org affiliate link At the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum we plant Nebraska for healthy people, vibrant communities and a resilient environment. We do this through tree planting, garden making, education and community building. Learn more about the...

This week we recorded our first Bloom Box Kids episode with John! It's about 10 minutes long about different ways animals survive the winter. If you're celebrating the solstice by putting out food for wildlife, this episode may help start the conversation. Show Notes

The winter solstice is drawing near! This week we're talking about winter survival methods, human and animal. For humans, a major cold survival tactic is to celebrate with feasts and holidays; so we're learning about solstice festivals around the northern hemisphere. Our horticulture assistant John has a background in herpetology and an interest in all sorts of animals. He joins us to share some o...

Some ideas for the gardeners in your life this holiday season! (or give gardeners ideas for their Christmas lists) For experienced gardeners who have all the 'stuff' they need, consider a donation to an organization or cause they are passionate about. plantnebraska.org/donate Show Notes Send us your questions at growingwithbloombox@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail. Bloom Box: Growing Deeper: http...