Making Plans for a Healthy Garden

An essential part of garden planning is making sure that seeds or plants that you are planting are free from diseases and noxious weeds. Do some proactive planning for this spring and learn the key aspects of obtaining healthy plants and seeds in this episode of Smarty Plants.

Smarty Plants is a podcast of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Visit www.mda.state.mn.us/plants-insects/smarty-plants for more episodes. Look for a new episode of Smarty Plants every month.

Transcript

Jennifer Burrington: 0:19

Welcome to Smarty Plants, a Minnesota Department of Agriculture podcast informing citizens about invasive species that affect our environment and agricultural resources. My name is Jennifer Burrington, and I will be your host. Although spring feels far away, it is never too early to start planning our gardens. Today, we will discuss considerations for planning a healthy garden free from pathogens and noxious weeds. Helping us cover these topics are Michelle Grabowski and Maya Sarkar.

Michelle Grabowski: 0:50

Happy to be here.

Maya Sarkar: 0:51

Yeah. Thanks for having us.

Jennifer Burrington: 0:53

Michelle is a plant pathologist with the MDA's plant protection division. Her work focuses on prevention and early detection of invasive plant pathogens that threaten crops and native plant communities in Minnesota. Maya is a Plant Health Specialist with the MDA's Plant Protection Division also. Their work is diverse as they assist in seed and hemp regulation, as well as noxious weed outreach and coordination of noxious weed treatments. So I know it's a little early to think about spring, but it is nice to start thinking about all those green plants coming out of the ground and the fresh new growth and what kinds of things should we think about when planning for a healthy garden?

Michelle Grabowski: 1:35

Well, you're right. It is a little bit early, but I, for one, received my first seed catalog in the mail yesterday. So, I'm sure I'm not the only gardener, uh, flipping through pages and starting to think about what next year's garden is going to look like. And every gardener is interested in having a healthy garden. And one way that we can do that is make sure that the things we bring into our garden, Are also healthy, clean, and don't have any unintended hitchhikers. So we want to make sure we have clean, healthy seed plants and anything, um, we're bringing in like extra soil or compost. We want to make sure that again, we don't have any sneaky pests, plant pathogens, or weed seeds sneaking their way into our garden, um, to give us a great start to the season.

Maya Sarkar: 2:23

Yeah, I'd like to just echo what Michelle said, um, bringing in seeds and new plants are just, um, potential pathways for pathogens and noxious weeds to enter your garden. So, identifying risks early on is really good.

Jennifer Burrington: 2:37

Perfect. And can you remind us what plant pathogens and noxious weeds are? are.

Michelle Grabowski: 2:44

So a plant pathogen is any organism that can make a plant sick. Um, they cause plant diseases and they're typically microorganisms. So fungi, bacteria, viruses, uh, or nematodes, which are tiny little microscopic roundworms that will feed on plants.

Maya Sarkar: 3:01

Yeah, and um, noxious weeds are plants that are harmful or have the potential to be harmful to um, human health, animal health, environmental or agricultural health. So basically, plants that um, can harm humans, animals, the environment, and um, agricultural things.

Jennifer Burrington: 3:22

Yeah, definitely not something we want to bring in with our, with our brand new garden. So how can we avoid introducing these pathogens and noxious weeds when we're purchasing seed specifically for our gardens?

Maya Sarkar: 3:36

So when we're thinking about seeds, I would say that it's really important to read the label. Um, seed generally goes through multiple cleanings, testing, and proper labeling, and must follow truth in labeling laws, um, in which the label must show any noxious weed seed content. So overall, I would say a good way to avoid introducing noxious weeds is, um, read the label.

Michelle Grabowski: 3:58

Um, pathogens are a little bit trickier. Um, I do think it is important to read the label and also to think about where your seed is coming from. Um, we know that some pathogens, particularly viruses, fungi, and bacteria can hide on the outside of the seed and some bacteria can even get inside the seed with that little plant embryo. And unfortunately, the seeds that have these pathogens on them, They don't look any different than the healthy seeds. So buying from a good, reputable company that you've had success with, um, maybe that you've gotten good recommendations from other gardeners in your area. There's a lot of seed companies out there that you can, uh, if you're looking for heirloom seeds, organic seeds. Any kind of vegetable seeds, there is a seed company out there. So get, check on those reviews, um, and find good quality seed. Um, because those companies, it's part of their business. They're going to make sure they're looking at the plants in the field that are growing seed, making sure those plants are healthy and if they're growing seed. Um, outside of Minnesota in other states or even in other countries, then particularly seed coming in from other countries, they will have to get a certain inspection to be able to bring that into the country. And so the seed companies that do that will go through all that paperwork with the USDA, um, and that may include health checks on the plants. In the other country, uh, health checks on the seed itself and an inspection when it first enters into the United States.

Jennifer Burrington: 5:31

That's great. Um, there are lots of places that, uh, we get seed from and not just here in Minnesota. So, um, are there some ways we normally get seed that are riskier than others?

Maya Sarkar: 5:44

Yeah, there are a lot of ways, um, folks can get seed. Um, generally you can buy seed from big box stores. You can buy them from some of our local labelers as well. Um, generally seed sold in Minnesota follows, again, truth in labeling laws where the label reflects what's in the packet. Um, the label has what you need to know as far as content, germination rate, any, um, potential noxious weed. um, impurities and the like. Um, so the seed industry does a lot of work to properly clean, test, and label seed. Um, so relatively low risk as far as introducing noxious weed seed, um, when we look at that. Um, I also know Minnesota has some strong community organized seed libraries and seed swaps. Um, seed libraries are also required to have seed clean of noxious weeds. Um, however, if you're swapping seeds that are older, the one risk I can think about is they might not germinate as well. It's important to remember that seed is alive, and its germination changes over time, and is especially dependent on how that seed is stored. Um, one of the bigger risks I can think of is, um, I've come across it more and more, but online sales of seeds, and I can expand on that later.

Michelle Grabowski: 6:56

From the pathogen side of things, one source of seeds that, um, we're hearing more about and is becoming more popular but is pretty high risk is seed that you collect from, uh, fruit and vegetables that you purchase from a grocery store. And so anytime you purchase a tomato or a pepper, um, you purchase a head of garlic or a potato, those, uh, vegetables can actually be used as seed. But if you think about Minnesota, when we're starting to plant our seed, it's January to March, so it's very cold and chances are the vegetables that we're seeing in our grocery store, the ones that have seeds in them, like tomatoes and peppers. Those plants aren't growing in Minnesota right now. And so those vegetables are coming from another state in a very different climate than us. And in many cases, they're coming from a foreign country. And it's important for gardeners to understand that there are different regulations. for things that are being brought into the United States to be eaten. Um, it's going to be cooked and chopped and um, end up on your plate versus plants that are brought in as seed or to be planted in your garden. And so Some plants are allowed to be brought in, um, to be used and to be eaten by people, um, that may have very small quantities of plant pathogens, like a virus or a bacteria. And the ones that come through are not harmful to humans, but if that seed is taken out of that pepper, for example, after you've made your salad, And you plant that out, the, that very small amount that's in that seed can cause a plant that has a disease and then that pathogen is able to spread to other plants in your garden, and maybe other plants in your neighborhood, if you're in a community garden, and that's where things can get risky.

Jennifer Burrington: 8:47

Perfect. As much as my kids always talk about, oh, let's go plant these seeds. I have to remind them that no, you can't just go plant a seed from the tomato that we just ate on our sandwich. So

Maya Sarkar: 8:57

yeah, it's a little bit different, a little bit different.

Jennifer Burrington: 9:01

All right. So are there ways we can lower the risks of getting unhealthy seeds?

Maya Sarkar: 9:07

Yeah, I think Michelle covered a great big point about as, uh, as far as harvesting seeds from. foods that we eat, which is generally higher risk. It sounds like Michelle. Um, when we think about seed that's sold in packets that we see at the store, um, either from a big box store again, or one of the many local labelers, it has to go through multiple cleanings tests and properly, sorry, and proper labeling. Uh, so it is generally like low risk for transporting noxious weeds. Um, but it does happen, but infrequently, I would say. Um, one big way to lower risk, and it's something that I'm coming across more and more, um, is online seed sales. You know, if you look at some seed online and the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. With online platforms, it can be hard to tell where the seed is coming from. That makes it hard to determine if it's a reputable source, and a lot of times you might not even be able to see a full label of the seed. So, if it's too good to be true, probably avoid it. If you can find the labeler from the online platform, try to go to their own website so you can confirm it's a reputable source. Um, those are the two best methods that I think are a good way to lower your risk of getting unhealthy seed, especially online.

Michelle Grabowski: 10:23

I agree with Maya. Um, and I would add keep it local. Um, so it is great to support our local stores. Um, and also it's it is okay to save seed, um, and to swap seed, but keep it local. If you're going to be saving seed, instead of taking seed from a tomato you bought at the grocery store. Make sure that you're planning ahead so you can save seed from your own garden. Um, start out with healthy seed from a good reputable source. And then what you want to do is make sure you're selecting a healthy plant and make sure that the fruit looks healthy. So if you have discoloration or wilting or spots or rot, That's not the plant you want to collect seed from. Rather pick your healthiest plant with healthy fruit, save seed from your own plants. And if you want to swap, swap with local neighbors, people in your own community, because that way there is still a risk that there could be some local native plant pathogens that get carried on that seed, but they're organisms that are already in our environment and we're not introducing anything new that adds extra problems to gardening.

Jennifer Burrington: 11:34

And then if we start our own gardens with plants rather than seeds, what risks should we be

Michelle Grabowski: 11:41

aware of? So when you're talking about a whole plant, um, there's just that many more hiding places for unintended hitchhikers to come in. So you could have plant pathogens or insect pests that are, uh, hiding in the leaves. hiding on the stems. Um, you could have something that's infected the root system. If you have a plant that comes in a pot with either soil or potting mix, there could be organisms hiding within that soil. So just because there's so many different environments in a plant, um, there's just more opportunity for organisms that we didn't want to bring in with our plant to sneak their way into our gardens.

Jennifer Burrington: 12:24

Yeah, there's a lot of plant material to look at. All those leaves, got to look under them for little stuff. So what, what can we do to minimize the risks when picking out plants?

Michelle Grabowski: 12:37

Um, so start out by, again, picking a source, a nursery, um, or a place where you feel comfortable and you know, um, you're able to talk to the business and you're comfortable with where they're getting their plants from, how they care for their plants. Um, plants should look healthy out, um, where you're purchasing them. And then when you pick a plant and you decide, this is the one I think I'm going to go with. Take time to do a little inspection. Um, look at the stem, look at the leaves, both the upper and lower leaf surfaces, and you want to see tissue that's uniform, it's the right color, um, if you're seeing soft sunken spots, dark discolored areas. any kind of wilt or rot looking areas, then you, that's not the plant that you want. Um, if you're seeing lots of plants in that, uh, where you're trying to purchase a plant that look like that, then maybe it's time to go somewhere else and purchase a plant. Um, we often forget about the root system, and so if you have a potted plant or a bare root plant, make sure that's part of your inspection. Um, a lot of plants, you can pull them out of their pot even a little bit or pull them out completely. Um, and you want to see roots that are like tan to white with a lot of fibrous root hairs. If that plant is pulling out and it's not holding on to the soil and there's soft gray to black mushy areas, there's not all of those fine root hairs, that's an indication there might be a root rot problem with that plant. And you don't want to bring that into your garden because those pathogens often survive in the soil for many years at a time. So look for that healthy, strong root system, healthy, strong plant material, um, and then that's a good plant to take home.

Jennifer Burrington: 14:26

Perfect. And there's a nice listing of local, uh, garden centers and greenhouses and stuff on Minnesota Grown, um, that people can check out as well, um, based on your location. And then it seems like it's getting easier and easier to purchase things like seeds and plants from online sources, like we discussed a little earlier. And how can we take precautions when doing that?

Michelle Grabowski: 14:53

So it's true, um, remember when you're buying it from online, I think Maya mentioned earlier that oftentimes it can be really tricky to tell where that plant material is coming from. Um, don't be afraid to use the contact us customer service option to ask questions. to learn more about the plant material. Um, if it is coming in from far away, you can see, uh, look online and see kind of what issues there are in for gardeners in that area. Often every state has their own extension service and you can learn more about it. And then ask about what's being shipped with that plant. So are you getting a bare root plant that's not coming with any soil? Is it going to be dormant? Is it just a rhizome or a bulb? The more plant material that's being shipped, the more hiding places that there are. You can always reach out to the company and ask them if they've done any testing and what they do to make sure that the plant material they're sending is healthy. And then finally, take some time when it arrives. to do your own inspection. Um, and with any new plant material, if it's coming from far away, especially, um, it's a good idea to maybe pot it up and keep it aside. So maybe you have a whole collection of irises. You brought by some new rhizomes. If you're not a hundred percent sure about how healthy they are. Maybe plant them up in a more contained area in a pot and see how they look when they grow. Because if there is a problem, it's going to be a lot easier to clean that up and it won't have spread to your big iris collection at that time. When you're confident it's healthy and it's happy, then you can move it up to join the rest of the collection.

Maya Sarkar: 16:34

Yeah, it sounds like prevention is a lot easier and a lot of different aspects from seed to plants as well. Um, like I mentioned before, if it's too good to be true, it probably is. Um, I had a grower recently where I was conducting an inspection who, uh, pointed me at a tray and asked me to identify the plant that was in it. It looked like blades of grass. And then he pulls out a little packet from his pocket and it says, you know, 100 count cactus seeds. And he was like, that's what I planted. And I, you know, I was like, wow, that's, those are not succulents. Um, where did you get them from? And he was like, oh, they were super cheap online. And I was like, Yeah, you know, that story tracks. Um, so again, I feel like it's happening more and more. Um, if it's too good to be true, it probably is. Um, be wary of cheap seed and see if you can find the full label and who is labeling it. So just to reiterate, going to make sure that it's from a reputable source and seeing if you can find who is labeling it, seeing if that labeler, that reputable source, has their own website that you can order from.

Jennifer Burrington: 17:41

Thanks, and what steps can we take if we're concerned with the quality of our seed or plants that we received?

Maya Sarkar: 17:48

Yeah, so I'll reiterate a bit of what Michelle's already gone over for plants, but for the seed side of things, if you're concerned about some seed you got, you cannot plant it, properly compost it, and find new seed that is from a reputable source. If you do end up planting the seed, you know, keep it kind of quarantined in a way. If it ends up sprouting up to be something that you didn't expect, again, you can properly compost that. Um, and then also if you do receive seed that you did not order, I would not suggest planting it, um, and, and properly composting it right away.

Michelle Grabowski: 18:23

If you are, um, seeing problems you think might be a plant disease problem, there's a bunch of different resources out there. Um, first off, if you haven't purchased the plant yet, um, be strong, walk away. There are healthy plants out there. We have a lot of great nurseries and greenhouses that'll sell healthy plant material. So look for those, uh, garden centers and support them. Um, if it's a plant you already purchased and you're starting to see a disease issue developing, um, a couple of tools that are available to, uh, gardeners, one of them is an online tool called what's wrong with my plant by the university of Minnesota extension. And, uh, it covers many of the common insect and disease problems that we see on, uh, garden plants from fruits and vegetables to landscape trees and flowers. It's a great place to start. Um, many counties also have a master gardener volunteer program that hosts various days or events where they will help gardeners answer questions and diagnose problems that they're seeing in their yard. Um, the University of Minnesota also has a plant disease clinic, and um, this is a fee for service, but you can send in plant material to them, um, and they will use microscopy and a variety of lab techniques to identify exactly which plant pathogen is causing, uh, your plant to be sick, and give you that information along with some recommendations about how to manage the problem that you have. If you do suspect that what you're seeing is something new to Minnesota, then please do reach out to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture through our Report a Pest program.

Jennifer Burrington: 20:09

And with our Report a Pest program, you can, uh, email us, we have a, our email address is reportapest, all one word, at state. mn. us. Otherwise, we do have an online form that's really easy to fill out, and you can add pictures directly to the form, and that website is www. mda. state. mn. us. forward slash report a pest. Again, all one word for that. And that online form, like I said, you put in your county, your contact information, and if it's a plant pathogen, well, Michelle, you're probably going to see it as soon as it comes through. And if it's an insect, um, our entomologist, Angie will take a look at it too. Um, so those are two. Uh, ways that you can contact us if you see something that looks unusual or that you weren't able to use the other resources. Um, I've, no, I've used What's Wrong With My Plant because I'm not always the best at, um, keeping things growing. And so then I can tell what's wrong with my plant and hopefully help it along. And, um, the kids are happy then when we actually get some, uh, produce from them. So, uh, hopefully. These have been some great tips for everybody, and I hope everyone, uh, has a healthy garden, and that their planning is lots of fun, and that they, um, or have nice orders of seeds, and, um, can find some locally grown, uh, plants from some of our, uh, vendors if you take a look on the minnesotagrown. com website. So, thank you, Michelle and Maya. It was great having you on to discuss how to plan a healthy garden, and I certainly learned a lot, and I'm sure our listeners did too. Michelle. Thank you. Uh, I'm going to go home and start looking through my seed catalogs. Yes. I think I'll, I haven't gotten mine yet in the mail yet, but, uh, they should be coming soon here. Um, so this has been a Smarty Plants, a podcast from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Our producer is Brittany Revelle. Our editor is Larry Schumacher, and I have been your host. You can learn more about pests and other invasive species that affect our environment@www.mda.state.mn.us. And while you head to our website, we'll be working on the next episode of Smarty Plants. See you there.