Urban Horticulture Institute
Autumn's cooler temperatures and plant growth patterns make it an excellent time to plant trees. Woody plants are storing food in their roots for winter rather than pushing leaves or flowers. Cornell University's Urban Horticulture Institute Outreach Web page includes online access to pdfs about planting, pruning, and maintaining trees, as well as DVDs about "Tough Trees for Tough Sites" and "Creating an Urban Forest: The Bare Root Planting Method."
How Groundhog's Garden Grew
Though the curse of many a gardener, the groundhog in Lynne Cherry's How Groundhog's Garden Grew (The Blue Sky Press, 2003, $15.95) redeems his kind. Thanks to the author's delightful illustrations and skillful pen, this groundhog learns that planting a garden with friends and sharing the bounty beat stealing veggies. Cherry's lush, accurate, and colorful illustrations of seeds, plants, animals, and bugs give depth and science to this engaging story for children. As an enviro/horticulture educator, I appreciate the detailed drawings of beneficial insects, the seed-to-sprout-to-plant endsheets, and the busy animals collecting and planting seeds. This work of art introduces the gardening cycle from spring to winter, and celebrates the interdependency of creatures, plants, and the earth we share.