Lawn, Gardening & Pests News

Highland grassy sites in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia were popular sites for potato and rutabaga farming in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Rutabagas (Brassica napus) are a cool season root crop in the Brassica family and, in many ways, are a larger version of a turnip. 

Creasy greens are cold-hardy edible plants that grow wild throughout Appalachia. The traditional telltale sign of spring in the Appalachian Mountains is when greasy greens start emerging from the soil. 

Onions are a staple crop in central Appalachia. Before the popular green bunching scallions and bulb onion, multiplier onions were widely grown in gardens throughout West Virginia.  

Dear Friends and Garden Enthusiasts, 

Growing Irish potatoes ( Solanum tuberosum) is a family tradition here in the Mountain State. Potatoes are a staple  food across the world due to their adaptability, yield, nutritional value and storage quality. Irish potatoes are not roots, but specialized underground storage stems called “tubers.”

Beets come in many colors – white, golden, red, purple and even candy-striped. Plus, the bright green tops are edible too! Plant a rainbow in your own garden by planting a mixture of varieties like Red Ace, red beets with red-veined leaves; Kestrel, deep red, sweet baby beets; Bull’s Blood, a dark red beet used for the tops; Touchstone Gold, a beet with a bright gold inside and green tops; and Guardsmark Chioggia, an Italian heirloom beet variety that is exceptionally sweet and  has concentric rings of white and red inside.

Many West Virginia gardeners grow traditional garden vegetables, such as beans, corn and tomatoes, as well as common root crops, like potatoes. And recently, a variety of  new and unexpected colored vegetables have come to market for home gardeners to try and enjoy.

Boxwood blight is a fungal disease that affects one of West Virginia's most popular landscape shrubs.

While cantaloupe, honeydew and watermelon are the most known types of melons, there are many lesser known varieties. From heirlooms to hybrids, the colors, textures, shapes and sizes are endless. Rinds can be smooth or netted and range  in colors from dark green, light green, striped dark and light green, to shades of tan, yellow, orange, gray and red. Flesh color can be red, pink, green, yellow and orange – there is even a white-flesh watermelon called White Wonder. 

WVU Extension Master Gardener training, which used to be offered through in-person courses organized by WVU Extension offices around the state, will once again be available online via Zoom sessions.