The Garden Show with Charlie Dobbin

Though it's not technically autumn, the shorter days and cooler weather has us all in a fall kind of mind. Now is the perfect time for lawn repair, old privet hedge rejuvenation, and Iris division. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Propagating beets, growing dormant perennials and overwintering Hydrangeas in pots are a few of our topics today on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Callers are interested in tomato blight, slugs, fall fertilizing and black spot on roses. Charlie is all about eating peppers, eggplants, carrots, tomatoes and herbs. Time for a BLT! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Trumpet vine, goutweed and lily of the valley roaming the neighborhood. Slugs galore, diseased roses and more. All on the Garden Show this week! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Potting mix toxicity for cats, carrots going to seed, early defoliation of trees, and a long-time gardener wants to know about amending her soil. And more, of course, about Hydrangeas! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Lots of rain means lots of mosquitoes. One caller has a novel solution. Tomatoes with no flowers and chipmunks tunneling beneath the air conditioner. What to do? Listen to this week's episode of the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

When to harvest garlic, how and when to prune rose of Sharon, including a lecture on appropriate soil amendments. Is it ok to add eggshells, wood ash and coffee grounds to your garden soil? Find out on this week's episode of the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Yellow leaves on Katsura, box tree moth persistence and a tiny Redbud in a pot are all covered this week. Plus, how to feed Venus flytrap? Hollyhock from seed, pesky deer flies and more on the Garden Show! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Squirrels stealing peaches, aphids on petunias, scale on Magnolia and fungus on cherry trees. It's that time of year when we look for solutions and plan to better prevent problems next season. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Overgrown tropicals, Hydrangea leaf-tiers and white fly on Hibiscus. Disappearing trilliums and beans being munched by rabbits. It's a busy show full of pesky pests! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Poison ivy, invasive lawn weeds, Lily leaf beetles and horse tails (Equisetum) - all really not wanted. What to do? Listen up tips and tricks this week on The Garden Show! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

From Plumeria, peony and Dipladenia not blooming, to boxwood and dogwood failing to thrive, to well preserved refrigerated tulip bulbs - the garden show is full of fun and entertaining information this week! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

What to do in a small yard with a 15 year old Autumn Blaze maple tree? Lovely tree with no room to really expand. Ant hills, non-blooming Lilacs, Hibiscus and orchids, and how come mushrooms are growing in the lawn? Busy show this week! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

The Box Tree Moth is wreaking havoc on many gardens in southern Ontario and beyond. We discuss identifying the pest, pesticides (BTK) to control, and callers chime in with best replacements for boxwood. Overgrown lilac, and the search for Campanula isophylla also covered this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Paul Gellatly aka The Tattooed Gardener.ca joins Dean and Charlie in studio for a rollicking show. The 'piss-off plant' (Plectranthus caninus) is said to keep cats and other mammals away. Pruning Hydrangeas, whether to dead-head petunias and controlling what might be Robber Flies are all discussed. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Lots going in in our gardens - transplanting rhubarb, black spot on roses (so early!), whether to change potting mix from year to year, cutting back perennials, making and using compost, and 30 year old Wisteria that needs a new support. Whew! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Paul Oliver from the Urban Nature Store joins us to share tips on migrating birds. Hummingbirds, Baltimore Orioles and Cardinals feature including best placement for birdfeeders. Ostrich ferns, moss in the lawn and apple trees are discussed too. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Callers want recommendations for vines in shade, small garden shrubs, eliminating poison ivy, and when can we plant our vegetable seeds outside? An ancient jade plant is also ailing. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

A new invasive species called Hammerhead Worms has arrived in Ontario. Be aware of flat-headed worms - do not touch with bare hands, squash them to kill and report via iNaturalist.ca or the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Take pictures first to confirm sighting. Meanwhile, pruning Forsythia, planting Dahlias, moving Hydrangea and Holy/Thai basil seed germination are all discussed this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Lots of questions for both indoor and outdoor plants. What to do when your Aloe vera flowers? Cyclamen care, and yellow leaves on Hibiscus. Outside: changing Hydrangea bloom colour, dormant spray for old apple tree, hosting a wedding in a hayfield, and roots growing under a swimming pool. Whew! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Charlie is presenting for Union Villa on Apr 25th, plus don't forget Riverdale Hort is fundraising with bags of worm castings - gold for your garden! Questions include: lawns, climbing roses, Bloomerang Lilac and Ivory Silk Lilac trees. African violets, Gardenias and more! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

When to wake up Dahlias? When and how to prune raspberries? When to uncover hardy Kiwi vines? And should anyone ever plant porcelain vine in a shady garden? We're all over the garden this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Clover for lawns, coffee grounds and banana peels for gardens, and pH testing for mauve Hydrangea blooms are a few of the issues discussed on the Garden Show today. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Snow abounds after weeks of unseasonal warm weather. How will the flora and fauna cope? Listen for tips, tricks and lots of great garden info this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Warm weather means birds are on the move earlier than average. Paul Oliver from the Urban Nature Store says, keep your feeders clean and full. PLUS be aware of exposed windows with trees nearby that would typically have leaves. Protect the birds with decals or dabbers. We also discuss root pruning tropical Hibiscus, seeds, squirrels and whether dryer lint can ever be used by birds when building their nests. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Such a mild winter has everyone ready to get dirty. Planting seeds, tubers, newly purchased plants - even seedlings are part of the show today. Pruning and transplanting container grown evergreens features on the show too. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Mild weather means everyone wants to get gardening. But, it's still too early! Perfect time to spray fruit trees and berry bushes with Dormant Oil to prevent insects and diseases this season. Hold off on planting tomato seeds indoors too! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

With virtually no frost in the ground, and temperatures warm enough to enable grub movement, skunks, raccoons and starlings are having a field day digging and pecking our turf. Bulbs are starting to pop up too. Pruning a cedar hedge, deterring rabbits, and caring for indoor plants also a consideration of the Garden Show this week. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Paul Oliver from the Urban Nature Store joins us again to chat about the unsettled weather and it's impact on birds. Robins, squirrels and available water ranks high during the show. Callers also have good and bad fungus gnat experiences. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Providing the right conditions for blooming Amaryllis, Hibiscus, holly and black currants all covered today on the Garden Show. Air plants (Tillandsia) and spider plants are also discussed. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Terry Kennedy from the Southern Ontario Orchid Society joins the show to share her tips and tricks to growing healthy, happy orchids. This week we also discuss growing holly from seed, and garlic in the garden. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Steven Biggs (foodgardenlife.com) joins us to share his knowledge about growing figs in Ontario, and other insights for the home gardener. We also discuss just how sexy soil can be, and a listener calls about jumping worms in her garden. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Indoor gardening is on deck this episode. African violets, Fig trees, Laurel (bay leaf tree), Gerberas and potted pussy willows. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Which is it? If no potted plants indoors it must be fruit flies! More about garlic - varieties, timing to plant and harvest. Forcing tulips in pots and overwintering Bougainvillea in the basement. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Growing edibles indoors, outdoors and even on an unheated porch are completely on trend this year. Pruning geraniums, Hibiscus, Wisteria and more. Watering orchids and convincing Christmas cactus to bloom. All on the Garden Show this week! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Pruning climbing roses and Wisteria, Amaryllis and Hoya lacking flowers, bulbs to plant around rhubarb and a jade plant dropping leaves - these are some of the discussion topics this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Questions & answers from callers about growing fig trees. The search for Hoya plants, growing Lemon Cypress, spider plants and more this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Daffodils are growing, tools for branch removal, growing mistletoe (why would you?), fertilizing turf, fungus gnats and cats that eat plants. All this and more on the Garden Show! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Definitive information to control fungus gnats on indoor potted plants, an old palm is dropping leaves, and does cayenne pepper keep squirrels out of birdfeed? If so, how do the birds feel about the hot pepper?!? Tomato varieties, amaryllis and more! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Christmas cactus pruning and watering - plus the one that got eaten out in the garden! Poinsettia care, orchids, reiger Begonias, Fuchsia and how to use small evergreens as decor in planters. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Paul Oliver of the Urban Nature Store joins us in-studio to share great tips about keeping birds fed, watered and safe over the winter. On the same over-winter topic we discuss strawberries, Dahlias and how often we should fertilize Christmas cactus. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Mild weather means garlic is sprouting and roses are blooming now. More about overwintering tropical plants, Emerald Cedar demise, and lemon trees indoors. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Winter protection for tender roses, pruning Rose of Sharon and Lilac outdoors, plus trimming Mandevilla and Jasmine indoors. Keep those pruners sharp! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Callers are keen to learn about everbearing raspberries, low maintenance plants for a Seniors Centre, pruning purple leaf sandcherry, overwintering: potted geraniums, lavender and strawberries in a moss-lined hanging basket. Figs at the end of the show, plus a new found bag of tender tubers from last spring. And the phones are glitchy. What to do??? Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Charlie is still planting bulbs outdoors, but callers want information about lucky bamboo (Dracaena sanderiana), mini-roses, umbrella plant (Schefflera), cactus and transplanting crown of thorns (Euphorbia) indoors. Cutting back Hydrangea, transplanting a volunteer pine tree and caring for Rose of Sharon - all covered this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Get your bulbs in the ground now. Questions include: re-using soil in containers, overwintering geraniums and roses, planting grass seed, and are vegetable seeds labelled GMO? Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Paul Oliver joins in again to share tips for keeping birds happy and healthy all winter. Plant evergreens for shelter is one of his mantras. When to plant grass seed, and when to prune flowering shrubs all covered this week on the Garden Show. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Top dressing, over-seeding and fall fertilizing lawns are all covered this week. Plus pruning Magnolia, Rose of Sharon, garlic and tree Peonies. What can possibly grow beneath a pine tree that keeps shedding needles? Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Pruning tropical Hibiscus before coming indoors, Hydrangea that don't bloom and fruit flies! This time of year we have it all, including lots of fungal diseases like powdery mildew. To avoid mildew consider more sun and air circulation in your gardens. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Not for the first time a caller wants to know when and how to kill clover. I don't understand why. It's self-sustaining (no fertilizer or irrigation required) plus it's wonderful plant for pollinators. We take calls about Limelight Hydrangea, Hybrid Tea roses, gardening for the first time in a condo, and is there still time to plant perennials? Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio