Minnesota

Boosting the safety of Minnesota’s cottage food marketplace

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Autumn Stoll guides a cottage foods safety trainee on pH testing. Cottage foods are an important part of Minnesota agriculture. With more than 10,000 registered cottage food producers in the state, this micro-producer industry is...

Forestry for Minnesota birds

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Saw-whet owl. Photo: Ryan Pennesi A groundbreaking study documenting the widespread decline of bird populations across almost all species and habitats in North America revealed that since 1970, 2.9 billion birds — approximately 29% of...

Fall’s hidden architects: funnel weavers in Minnesota gardens

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Funnel weaver spider (Agelenopsis). Photo: David Cappaert, Bugwood.org As autumn settles over Minnesota, gardeners may encounter a silvery shimmer across their lawns and shrubs in the early morning light. On closer inspection, they find...

Climate-resilient landscape trees for Minnesota

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu American persimmon adds fall color and grows edible fruit. With recent storms damaging trees across the state, you may be wondering what to plant as replacements. Brandon Miller, Tiffany Enzenbacher and Laura Irish-Hanson,...

Native plants support wildlife and sustainability in Minnesota gardens

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Echinacea may reseed and produce young plants that usually wait to bloom till their second year. Native plants have naturally evolved in a specific region over thousands of years. They are well-adapted to the local climate and soil...

Lesser known trees and shrubs for Minnesota

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Brandon Miller Everyone can appreciate the flowers and fruit of a crabapple tree or the year-long beauty of a juniper. But Brandon Miller, a University of Minnesota Extension specialist in horticulture science, is engaging applied plant...

Future climate information for Minnesota

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu New tool, Minnesota CliMAT, informs long-term local planning The University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership (MCAP) recently launched an interactive online tool that offers highly localized future climate information for...

How loud will cicadas be in Minnesota?

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Cicada shells are easy to find on the side of trees and on sidewalks in the summer. Photo: Herbert A. 'Joe' Pase III, Texas A&M Forest Service, Bugwood.org You may have seen on your social media that people are predicting a loud...

New invasive crayfish found in Minnesota

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Minnesota Department of Natural Resources recently announced the discovery of invasive signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) in Lake Winona, near Alexandria, Minnesota. Signal crayfish are native to the Pacific Northwest region of...

Recommended trees and plants for the Driftless Area in Minnesota

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Map of woodlands of Minnesota, courtesy of Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Today we're sharing our recommended trees and plants for the Rochester Plateau and Blufflands (region 9 on the map), also commonly referred to as the...