Tag Horticulture
Uncovering winter’s blanket
As we awake from winter and flirt with the warmer, snow-melting temperatures of early spring, let’s reflect on the found beauty of Mother Nature’s seasonal transitions.
Native November: In new First-Year Interest Group, students connect with the land through Indigenous lens
Instructor Dan Cornelius is "trying to help students connect to place, so that no matter where they are, they’ll think more deeply about the land and its history.”
Arboretum: A slice of nature and ecological history in the city
For students looking to get off the beaten path and immerse themselves in nature, the Arboretum also has numerous maintained trails through all of their restored ecological communities.
President’s Oak lives on
On Wednesday morning, a graft from the long-standing, much-beloved President’s Oak was planted near Washburn Observatory during a ceremony celebrating both the future and the past.
Q & A: Plant expert talks benefits of owning plants for students, Plant Adoption Day
Plants are beneficial for the well-being of students. They provide oxygen and are an essential resource for all human life on Earth. And now students can get a free one.
Greenhouses contend with the climate to keep plants growing
The university's greenhouses, which include plants from all over the world, provide study material for botany and horticulture courses and the precisely controlled climates required for research experiments.
UW Arboretum’s Native Gardening Conference to be held Sept. 16
The conference offers a day of expert-led workshops and tours to help all gardeners, from beginner to experienced, learn to create beautiful restorative landscapes that play a broader ecological role and support biodiversity.
Dutch elm disease claims “Elmer,” a campus tree more than a century old
An elm tree affectionately known as Elmer, a landmark on campus for more than a century, has been taken down, a victim of Dutch elm disease.
Valuable potato specimens transferred to Wisconsin State Herbarium
A large collection of potato specimens have been transferred from the U.S. Potato Genebank in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, to the Wisconsin State Herbarium at UW–Madison, which has 1.3 million specimens.
Farm to Flavor dinner showcases vegetables bred for flavor
Only deep, earthy beets, rich sweet corn and bright kale were fit for the Farm to Flavor dinner, a showcase for vegetables bred specifically for intense flavor by the UW–Madison plant breeding network the Seed to Kitchen Collaborative.
Spring comes to Allen Centennial Garden
The Allen Centennial Garden is at the height of its late-spring beauty this week, as many of its flowers are blooming. The garden was dedicated…
Farming for Flavor: Seed to kitchen initiative creates more than a culinary connection
The Seed to Kitchen Initiative from the Department of Horticulture at UW–Madison brings together chefs, farmers and plant breeders to promote vegetable variety characteristics important to local food systems, such as flavor, fresh-market quality and agronomic performance on smaller-scale farms.
Plant breeders partner with chefs for tastier produce
Have you noticed that more and more restaurants are featuring great-tasting, locally sourced foods on their menus? Now, through a UW–Madison horticulture initiative called “Seed to Kitchen,” chefs on the culinary cutting edge are working with plant breeders to grow produce with specific flavor characteristics their customers will love.
UW horticulturalists help sow seeds of community in northern Wisconsin
Just as some seeds yield tomatoes, carrots and lettuce, others grow community and partnership.
Giant Pumpkin Regatta set for Oct. 10 at Memorial Union
Madisonians have a fun, alternative way to enjoy the fall harvest: attending the university's Giant Pumpkin Regatta at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10, at the Memorial Union Terrace, 800 Langdon St.
Student organic seed enthusiasts to gather in Madison
While organic foods are popular among consumers, the organics segment remains a lonely field for future plant breeders. At many of the universities that offer graduate programs in plant breeding, for instance, there are only a handful of students focused on developing better fruit, vegetable and field crop varieties for organic farming systems.
Urban Horticulture Day set for Aug. 15
Want some fresh ideas for your home garden? Stop by Urban Horticulture Day at UW–Madison's West Madison Agricultural Research Station on Saturday, Aug. 15 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
Campus botany gardener: transplant master
To hear master gardener Mo Fayyaz tell it, raising plants is straightforward: Get the right light, temperature, soil and water. Keep your eyes open. If one thing doesn’t work, try something else. And if everything fails, choose another plant. “You cannot just plant a rose in the shade and expect much,” he says. In 1984, Fayyaz secured his present job, director of UW–Madison’s Botany Garden and Greenhouse, and he began a long campaign to nurture and expand a garden that supports teaching and research in the biological sciences.
Novel Open Source Seed Pledge aims to keep new vegetable and grain varieties free for all
This week, scientists, farmers and sustainable food systems advocates will gather on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus to celebrate an unusual group of honored guests: 29 new varieties of broccoli, celery, kale, quinoa and other vegetables and grains that are being publicly released using a novel form of ownership agreement known as the Open Source Seed Pledge.
Growth industry: New faculty member supports local produce
When Julie Dawson starts making farm visits, she may face a problem many of her fellow University of Wisconsin–Madison agricultural extension specialists don’t: battling city traffic and finding a place to park.