Warm Winter? Watch for More Pests

Preparing for Pest Pressure After a Warm Winter

If your garden seems overrun with insects after a mild winter, you're likely spot-on. Mild winters, while enjoyable for us, often lead to heightened pest challenges come spring. Warmer-than-normal temperatures allow more insect pests to survive the cold season, resulting in earlier activity and potentially larger populations throughout the growing season. Typically, harsh winters act as a natural check on pest numbers. Many insects overwinter as eggs, larvae, pupae, or adults in protected spots like soil, leaf litter, plant stems, or bark crevices. Prolonged freezing kills off a portion of these populations, keeping numbers in balance. But during a warm winter, survival rates rise significantly. Pests such as aphids, mites, scale insects, caterpillars, and certain beetles can emerge sooner and in greater numbers. Warmer spring conditions accelerate their development, enabling faster reproduction and sometimes additional generations per season. For instance, experts note that milder winters reduce stress on overwintering insects, boosting spring survival and often giving pests a head start as plants green up earlier.

This dynamic also affects the predator-prey balance. Beneficial insects—like lady beetles, lacewings, and parasitic wasps—overwinter in similar garden debris, such as leaf litter or hollow stems. While many survive mild conditions too, pest populations frequently rebound quicker, creating a temporary imbalance where pests gain an advantage. Both harmful and helpful insects rely on these overwintering sites, so the key isn't total removal of debris but strategic management.

Gardeners are increasingly advised to delay heavy cleanup until spring, waiting until temperatures consistently hit around 50°F (10°C) to allow beneficials to emerge first. This protects pollinators and natural enemies while still permitting thoughtful tidying. Removing everything in fall or early spring can disrupt these helpful populations.

The best defense against elevated pest pressure is vigilant monitoring. As plants break dormancy, check regularly for insects or damage—focus on new growth and leaf undersides, where many pests congregate. Early detection makes control far easier, whether through hand-picking, water sprays, or targeted interventions before outbreaks escalate. Bolstering beneficial insects helps too. Plant diverse flowering species to supply nectar and pollen year-round, sustaining predators and parasitoids. Minimize unnecessary pesticides to preserve these allies, which naturally suppress pests. Healthy plants also fare better: ensure proper watering, sunlight, and soil nutrition so they withstand minor damage more resiliently.

A warm winter doesn't doom your garden to chaos, but it raises the odds of increased insect pressure. By staying proactive—monitoring closely, delaying cleanup thoughtfully, nurturing beneficials, and prioritizing plant health—you can manage challenges effectively while fostering a thriving, balanced ecosystem.

Additional Reading:
https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/how_insects_survive_cold_the_potential_effect_of_a_mild_winter
https://yardandgarden.extension.iastate.edu/article/2024/03/what-do-warm-winter-temperatures-do-insect-populations
https://extension.psu.edu/delay-garden-cleanup-to-benefit-overwintering-insects

Native Flowers in the Home Garden

Spring is a perfect time to plan for new intriguing colors and features in the yard. With all the common plants available in local stores and greenhouses, one should check out the lesser-known native flowers for their unique charm. There are hundreds to choose from, and these native beauties hold up well under Idaho’s four seasons. Three lesser-known flowers, which are sure to steal the show in the yard, include the Rock Columbine (Aquilegia scopulorum), the Wild Blue Phlox (Linum lewisii), and the Bubblegum Mint (Agastache cana). 

The Rock Columbine is a little showstopper reaching its full height of 7 to 10 inches when bloomed out in blue flowers from May through August. It can grow in many soils including the common alkaline and clay soils of the Treasure Valley. Rock Columbine enjoys full sun or moderate shade, and though it can’t survive completely on its own without supplemental watering, it only needs watering when the leaves look stressed. This flower is not invasive and can easily be maintained.

Lewis Flax, also known as Wild Blue Phlox (Linum lewisii) is a fascinating native flower. Its blue flowers bloom in late spring to mid-summer, which have the curious habit of dropping to the ground after a day only to be replaced with others the next morning. The Lewis Flax isn’t picky with the soil it likes and requires moderate to little water. In fact, can be on the invasive side if it has a great water source. The Lewis Flax is 12 - 30” tall making it a great addition to the middle or back of your garden.

Another interesting flower is the Bubblegum Mint (Agastache cana) plant originally from New Mexico and western Texas. These form pink and violet flower spikes in late summer until the fall when it frosts.  This is a ‘leggy’ plant growing 36-40’ tall and works perfectly in the back of a garden or in a hard to grow section of well drained sand or gravel. Other great features to the Bubblegum mint include needing only 3 - 5 waterings a year and having no insect or disease problems. 

There are hundreds of native flowers growing in Idaho with just as interesting and beautiful flowers to pick from. Many of these thrive in xeriscapes and rock gardens, which means they can look stunning even with the water spigot turned down. Check out “Native Plants for the Intermountain West” for more native flowers with brief descriptions of what to expect from each plant and how to care for them.

Why Fewer Flowers Now Mean More Flowers Later

Spring is here! 

The garden centers and plant sales are alive with color. Those pots bursting with open blooms are hard to resist—they deliver instant cheer and promise a garden full of flowers right away. But the plants that give the strongest, longest-lasting performance often have the fewest (or no) open flowers when you buy them.

Here’s why this counterintuitive choice usually leads to better results.

Roots Come First

Young plants work with a limited energy budget. In their early stages, they direct most of it toward developing a solid root system and sturdy stems and leaves. Once heavy flowering begins, that energy shifts to sustaining blooms and setting seed.

The vivid flowers you see at the sale are beautiful, but they signal that energy has already gone into reproduction rather than root building. Plants still focused on vegetative growth are investing in the foundation that matters most after transplanting: strong roots for anchoring, efficient water and nutrient uptake, and the capacity to support bushier growth and abundant blooms later in the season.

Transplant Shock Needs Priority

Bringing a plant home means adjusting to new light, wind, soil, moisture, and temperature conditions—all stressful. Recovery and new root growth require energy.

A plant already loaded with blooms has to split its resources between keeping those flowers going and establishing roots. This often shows up as dropped buds, faded blooms, or a temporary slowdown. A non-blooming or lightly budded plant can devote nearly everything to settling in quickly, leading to faster establishment, denser branching, and a far more generous flowering season overall.

Pinch Without Hesitation

Picked up a gorgeous blooming plant anyway? Before you plant, simply pinch or snip off the open flowers and any visible buds. It may feel like a small loss, but this redirects energy straight back to roots and fresh shoots. Most plants bounce back within a couple of weeks—often stronger, bushier, and more floriferous than if the original blooms had remained.

Smart Shopping Checklist

When you’re browsing, look for these signs of a plant built for success:

• Compact and sturdy growth (avoid tall, leggy ones stretched from low light or crowding)
• Deep green, healthy foliage (no yellowing, spotting, or wilting)
• Well-rooted but not severely root-bound (check the drainage holes—roots should fill the pot nicely without a tight circling mass)

The Payoff

Gardening rewards patience every time. Choosing plants focused on root development—or giving blooming ones a quick reset with pinching—sets the stage for healthier establishment, fuller structure, and sustained waves of color all season long.

Healthy roots first. The abundant flowers will follow.

Happy planting this spring! Your garden will shine because of these thoughtful decisions.

Soil blocking for your Spring Seed Starting

Soil blocking presents several advantages for home gardeners, making it an attractive option for those seeking efficient, sustainable, and rewarding gardening practices.

Space Optimization: For home gardeners with limited space, seed blocking offers a compact and efficient way to start seeds indoors. By using soil blocks rather than traditional pots or trays, gardeners can maximize their growing area and cultivate a greater variety of plants in a smaller space.

Cost-Effectiveness: While initial investment in seed-blocking equipment may be required, the long-term savings are significant. Soil blocks can be made using simple tools or purchased commercially, eliminating the need for disposable seed trays and pots. Moreover, seed blocking reduces seed waste by ensuring each seed is planted with precision, saving money on seed purchases in the long run.

Improved Seedling Health: Seedlings grown in soil blocks tend to experience less transplant
shock compared to those grown in traditional seed trays. The intact soil blocks protect delicate roots during transplanting, resulting in healthier, more resilient seedlings with higher survival rates.

Water Efficiency: Soil blocks retain moisture more effectively than traditional planting mediums, reducing the frequency of watering needed for seedlings. This is especially beneficial for home gardeners who may have limited time for watering or live in regions with water restrictions.

Ease of Transplanting: Transplanting seedlings from soil blocks is straightforward and minimizes root disturbance. Gardeners can simply place the soil block directly into the planting hole, eliminating the need to handle delicate seedlings or disturb their roots. This reduces transplant shock and ensures a smoother transition to the garden bed or container.

Reduced Disease Spread: Traditional seed trays and pots can harbor pathogens and promote the spread of soil-borne diseases. In contrast, soil blocks are less likely to harbor harmful microbes, reducing the risk of disease transmission among seedlings. 

Environmental Sustainability: By reducing the use of plastic pots and trays, as well as minimizing seed and water waste, seed blocking aligns with environmentally friendly gardening practices. Home gardeners can feel good about minimizing their ecological footprint while enjoying the benefits of healthier plants and bountiful harvests.  

Summary: Soil blocking offers home gardeners an array of benefits. With its simplicity and effectiveness, seed blocking is an excellent choice for gardeners looking to maximize their gardening success while minimizing their impact on the environment.    

                SOIL BLOCK RECIPE   

False Spring? How do you know...?

Let Soil Temperature Be Your Guide in Southwest Idaho

This unusually warm winter across southwest Idaho has many gardeners eager to head outside and start cleaning up. Mild afternoons can make it feel like spring has arrived.

But air temperature does not tell the whole story.

In our region (USDA Zones 6b–7a), average last frost typically falls between late April and early May. Even in a warm winter, frost risk remains. More importantly, soil temperature — not the calendar or a few warm days — determines when plants, roots, and pollinators are truly active.

Why Soil Temperature Matters

Soil warms more slowly than air, especially in heavier clay soils common throughout the Treasure Valley. While afternoon air temperatures may reach the 50s or 60s, soil a few inches below the surface may still be in the low 40s.

Those underground temperatures guide biological activity:

• Root growth begins around 40°F.

• Active plant growth increases closer to 50°F.

• Many overwintering pollinators emerge when soil temperatures approach 50°F.

• Crabgrass germinates when soil reaches about 55°F for several consecutive days.

These thresholds help gardeners understand what is happening beneath the surface.

You may notice dandelions blooming early in spring. Dandelion bloom typically corresponds with soil temperatures in the 40s. That signals early-season activity has begun, but it does not mean warm-season conditions have arrived.

When crabgrass begins to sprout, soil has warmed to about 55°F — a clear seasonal shift underground.

Timing Garden Cleanup

Because many beneficial insects overwinter in leaf litter and hollow stems, early cleanup can

remove habitat before insects have emerged. Waiting until soil temperatures are consistently near 50°F supports pollinators and allows the garden ecosystem to transition naturally.

Instead of focusing on air temperature alone, watch for:

• Daytime temperatures consistently above 50°F

• Overnight lows mostly above freezing

• Soil temperatures at 2–4 inches approaching 50°F

A simple soil thermometer provides more reliable guidance than guessing based on warm afternoons.

What You Can Do Now

Late winter is still a good time to:

• Remove diseased or pest-infested plant material

• Clear heavy branches or debris

• Prune dormant trees and shrubs

More extensive cleanup — cutting back perennials, raking beds, refreshing mulch — can wait until soil temperatures rise and conditions stabilize.

When preparing planting beds, also test soil moisture. If a squeezed handful forms a tight ball, it is too wet to work. Working wet soil can cause compaction that affects root growth all season.

Let the Soil Lead

The early warmth is welcome, but soil temperature provides a clearer signal of seasonal change. By watching what is happening underground, gardeners can protect pollinators, avoid soil damage, and time planting more effectively.

In southwest Idaho, patience in early spring often results in stronger plants and a healthier garden ecosystem.

Let the soil lead — it knows when spring truly begins.

Three Tough Beauties for Your Yard

Choosing the right tree in the Treasure Valley is about more than looks. Our landscapes demand plants that can handle real conditions due to their tolerance for drought, salt, and poor soils, while still providing shade, habitat, and long-term beauty. A great example is the honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos var. inermis ‘Shademaster’), a thornless tree that balances function and form with ease, with golden color in the fall. Its fine-textured leaves create light, filtered shade that supports lawns and garden beds beneath it, making it an excellent choice for yards where multiple layers of plants need to coexist. It is also relatively low-mess compared to many shade trees, and its dappled canopy helps reduce water stress on turf and understory plantings during peak summer heat. It’s a quiet workhorse that brings both comfort and resilience to the landscape and the edible pulp in its seed pods, which are a food source for wildlife. 

The Treasure Valley climate brings hot, dry summers, cold winters, and alkaline soils that can stress less-adapted species. One way to build resilience into your landscape is to incorporate native trees that are already attuned to our region. Black or Douglas hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) is a native gem that brings both beauty and backbone to a yard. This small, multi-stemmed tree thrives in irrigated areas or low spots that hold a bit of moisture, making it a great choice for swales, borders, or naturalized edges. 

In spring, it lights up with clusters of showy white blossoms that draw in pollinators, followed by dark berries 
that feed birds and wildlife. Its dense, thorny branches create excellent nesting habitat and can double as a living screen or informal hedge. While it won’t cast deep shade, black hawthorn adds structure, seasonal interest, and ecological value as part of a layered, living landscape. There is a a hawthorn called 'Paul's Scarlet' with striking pink blooms too!

For those with large areas, selecting species that are well-adapted to local conditions means less water, less maintenance, and greater long-term success. The bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) embodies this principle with its deep roots, drought tolerance, and remarkable longevity. It not only withstands Treasure Valley conditions, but also supports wildlife and adds lasting structure to a landscape. Over time, it can become a true anchor tree, offering shade, habitat, and a sense of permanence that grows with the landscape itself. This is a tree that rewards patience and strengthens the resilience of your yard for decades to come.

When you match the right tree to the right place, you’re not just planting shade, you’re building a resilient Treasure Valley ecosystem from the ground up.

More information is available here:

https://www.blm.gov/sites/default/files/documents/files/NativePlantLandscaping.pdf

Front Range Tree Recommended List

International Society of Arboriculture  

10 Seed Catalogs Every Gardener will want to check out!

Growing flowers and vegetables from seed gives you more choices and saves money. Here are 10 great seed catalogs to check out. Jill Staake writes for and did all the work for us. The green links are live - just click & go. While the winter wind blows, gardeners everywhere turn to seed catalogs as they dream of the spring and summer ahead. The catalogs pile up, dog-eared and tattered, as growers plan for the future. Seed catalogs offer more choices than even the largest garden centers, and growing plants from seed is a great way to save money. We’ve rounded up 10 of our favorite seed catalogs you’ll want to have on hand as you prepare for the growing season. Tip: Want to save paper? All of these companies have websites, and many of them have digital versions of their catalogs.

Prairie Moon Nursery

If you’re dedicated to planting natives in your garden, Prairie Moon should be your go-to resource. They offer an incredibly wide range of wildflowers and grasses, with information about native ranges and growing tips. They sell most seeds by packet or in bulk for larger plantings, as well as bare-root and potted plants for some species. Seeds to Try: Milkweed, multiple varieties. Monarch butterflies need native milkweed throughout their range. Prairie Moon offers a dozen different species of milkweed seeds, covering much of the country.

Request a Catalog 

Select Seeds 

Flower lovers will revel in Select Seeds’ offerings. They specialize in fragrant, old-fashioned blossoms like those that filled your grandmother’s garden. Select Seeds also has rare finds and rediscovered antique heirlooms, like Job’s Tears (Coix lacryma-jobi), one of the oldest grasses in cultivation.

Request a Catalog 

Territorial Seed Company

Veggie lovers, rejoice! Territorial Seed’s catalog has more than 100 pages of vegetable and herb seeds and plants to choose from. Some of their offerings are truly unique, like oak trees inoculated with Bianchetto truffles so you can grow your own fungi delicacies. They also offer flowers and fruits. Seeds to Try: Goldilocks Squash, BuffaloSun Tomato 

Request a Catalog 

Burpee 

Flower and vegetable gardeners will all find something to love in Burpee catalogs. Burpee offers a bit of everything, along with a variety of gardening accessories. Seeds to Try: Royal Purple Radish, Fourth of July Tomato

Request a Catalog 

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds 

Heirloom seeds provide a direct connection to days past. Baker Creek sells over 1800 varieties of seed, specializing in types from the 19th century and earlier. A look through their catalog feels personal, as many photos include their family or employees showing off their offerings. Seeds to Try: Black Nebula Carrot

Request a Catalog

Johnny’s Selected Seeds 

Johnny’s is an employee-owned company that takes special care to ensure all their seeds meet the Safe Seed Pledge. Their breeders use traditional methods to crossbreed new varieties, so if you’re concerned about GMO, you can trust Johnny’s. They offer a large selection of vegetables and flowers. Seeds to Try: Sun-Fill Purple Sunflower, Goldie Husk Cherry 

Request a Catalog

 

R. H. Shumway’s 

Take a trip down memory lane with R. H. Shumway’s print catalog. Charming black and white drawings illustrate the vegetable offerings, while the flower pages have color illustrations. You can visit their website to see photographs of most varieties before ordering, if you like. Seeds to Try: Pride of Wisconsin Melon 

Request a Catalog

Harris Seeds

Based in Rochester, New York, Harris Seeds has been a resource for gardeners since it was founded in 1879. They now offer a large selection of vegetable and flower seeds, as well as live plants, bulbs, and gardening supplies. Request a Catalog

Park Seed 

Park Seed is one of the biggest names in the business, and they’ve been in business since 1868. They carry an array of flowers, vegetables, plants, and gardening accessories. If you’re new to seed-starting, check out their Bio Dome System, which makes it easy to grow strong healthy plant from seed. Seeds to Try:  Green Twister Coneflower, Honeybaby Butternut Squash Hybrid Request a Catalog

Annie’s Heirloom Seed 

The founder of Annie’s began the company when she realized just how much better heirloom vegetables tasted than commercially grown varieties. She had difficulty finding quality heirloom seeds, so she eventually decided to start her own company. Their carefully sourced seeds come from around the world, with new types added all the time. Request a Catalog

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