Get Growing Blog
Connecting people with the wonder, beauty, and value of trees and plants.
Most Recent
December 2, 2021
Healthy Soils have a Healthy Dose of Decomposition: Celebrating World Soil Day
By Sarah Kyker, PhD, Postdoctoral Research Associate
By: Sarah Kyker, Emma Dawson-Glass, Katie Stuble, and David Burke December 5th marks World Soil Day. World Soil Day began in 2014, initiated by the United Nations, to focus attention... more
November 30, 2021
Winter is Wonderful
By Margaret Thresher, Vice President of Public Relations & Marketing
Winter in Northeast Ohio is underrated. The average temperature in November is 50 degrees, December is 40 degrees and January is 35 degrees. Approximately 10 days a month are sunny... more
November 16, 2021
People for Trees: Planting One Tree at a Time to Make a Big Impact
By Margaret Cook, Communications Specialist
In its first year, People for Trees has gathered more than 1,000 pledges to plant more than 3,800 trees across Greater Cleveland. In addition, Holden Forests & Gardens has planted... more
November 1, 2021
When to Plant a Tree
Certain types of trees are generally recommended to be planted in spring and not in fall, especially after early October. If a tree was dug in late summer, or planted... more
October 29, 2021
At Holden, Our Resilient Forests Are Also Laboratories
By Katie Stuble, PhD, Director of Research
At Holden Forests & Gardens, we’re pretty excited about trees. And, we’ve got a lot of them! In addition to the thousands of trees in our gardens and collections, the... more
October 28, 2021
Autumn Gardening for Nature Lovers; Leave the Leaves
By Stefanie Verish, Horticulturist, CBG
The birds, the blooms, the butterflies…but also the bees, the mushrooms, the ravenous deer, the slime mold sprawled across your mulch… As gardeners, we take it all in—the good, the... more
October 27, 2021
Foraging for Health
By Alyssa Zearley, Nursery Technician
Cold, flu, and now, perhaps, COVID season, are rapidly approaching. Which means it’s also elderberry syrup season. For those not familiar, elderberry syrup is a concoction of elderberry, honey, and... more
October 25, 2021
Selecting Trees in Northeast Ohio
HF&G has developed a tree selection guide that provides essential information to help you choose climate-resilient trees suitable for urban and suburban areas in northeast Ohio. Click the link below... more
October 22, 2021
Great scientists are made, not born
By Juliana S. Medeiros, PhD, Plant Biologist
We’ve all heard the story; a famous scientist is asked how they got interested in their subject area and they say something like “I’ve always loved sea otters and wanted... more
October 7, 2021
Tips for Keeping Trees Healthy
Very few trees die of old age in residential or urban areas—mechanical damage and improper care pose huge threats to trees. If you don’t listen carefully to what your tree... more
October 3, 2021
The Avon-on-the-Lake Garden Club is saving Monarch Butterflies
Members of the Avon-on-the-Lake Garden Club are doing their part to save as many Monarch butterflies as possible. The group recently began a conservation project, initiated by President Elaine George,... more
October 1, 2021
Beech Leaf Disease and Forest Fungi: Healthy trees support healthy fungal communities
By Claudia Bashian-Victoroff, MS, Research Specialist
Arboreta play an active role in studying a wide range of tree diseases and the pathogens and parasites that cause them. Holden is no exception. Work from our arboretum and... more
September 29, 2021
Pass on or Protect the Woods
There are many options to consider when you own undeveloped land. Let us help you address some concerns! more
September 29, 2021
Profit from the Woods
This short guide will help you evaluate opportunities for sustainable income from your woodlands. more
September 29, 2021
Keep the Woods Healthy
Learn about protecting the health and ecological integrity of your woodlands. more
September 29, 2021
Enjoying the Woods
Evaluate the benefits your woodlands provide, and plan for the future. more
September 24, 2021
Celebrating National Mushroom Month with a Book Review and a Recipe too!
By Claudia Bashian-Victoroff, Jessica Miller, Sarah Kyker, and David Burke
As September winds down, we are taking one more week to celebrate fungi during National Mushroom Month! Fungi are the main recyclers of dead plant material in the forest and... more
September 17, 2021
National Mushroom Month: Sharing Some Science & a Recipe, Too!
By Claudia Bashian-Victoroff, MS, Graduate Student, Sarah Kyker, Postdoctoral Research Associate, and David Burke, VP, Science & Conservation
Mycorrhizal at HF&G: We continue to celebrate September as National Mushroom Month at HF&G! Today we want to tell you about our favorite fungal group: mycorrhizal fungi! While we certainly... more
September 16, 2021
Fall Forum: Attention Club Presidents and Representatives
Fall Forum, open to all club presidents and representatives, is scheduled for October 21 at 10:00 a.m. in Woodland Hall at the Cleveland Botanical Garden campus. Watch your email... more
September 10, 2021
Soil, Mushrooms & a Recipe, Too!
By Claudia Bashian-Victoroff, MS, Research Specialist
by: Claudia Bashian-Victoroff, Sarah Kyker, and David Burke We continue to celebrate September: National Mushroom Month. Mushrooms are amazing (and delicious) and definitely deserve a month of focus and celebration.... more
September 8, 2021
Breaking News: Pollinators contribute to flowering plant diversity
Holden Forests & Gardens (HF&G) Scientist Na Wei, Ph.D., and her collaborators from the University of Pittsburgh and East Tennessee State University discovered how pollinators may contribute to the maintenance... more
September 3, 2021
Pest Alert: Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula)
The invasive spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) has been found on Cleveland’s east side. This discovery matters greatly to Northeast Ohioans. Here are the details we have thus far: At a Glance The invasive Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) has... more
September 3, 2021
A Book About Mushrooms & a Recipe
By Claudia Bashian-Victoroff, MS, Research Specialist
With summer turning into autumn, September is a great time of year to see mushrooms in the forest. Mushrooms are a type of sporocarp, or the fruiting body of fungi,... more
September 1, 2021
September is National Mushroom Month
By Sabrina Kozsey, Gardener
Happy National Mushroom Month! September is one of our favorite months in the Holden Forests and Gardens. Why? Because it is National Mushroom Month. Many people celebrate National Mushroom Month... more
August 27, 2021
DIY Xeriscape
By Caroline Paul, Horticulturist
By the time late August and September roll around many of us start to experience what I call annual fatigue. Annual fatigue is the feeling you may begin to feel... more
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