Mary Hockenberry Meyer

Providing timely information—when and where people need it—has long been a goal of University of Minnesota Extension. This objective coincides with University of Minnesota Libraries' support of open access publishing and the use of Creative Commons to remove content from paywalls. Many libraries at land-grant institutions have developed their own publishing programs to support open scholarship, leveraging the depth of their expertise in research dissemination. This article highlights three examples of Extension ebooks published in partnership with the University of Minnesota Libraries.

A long-term, landscape grass hardiness study was initiated in Summer 1987 at the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum in Chanhassen, MN, USA [United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone (USDA PHZ) 4b, –20 to –25 °F]. This location averages a 158-day growing season (frost free), summer temperatures of 79.9 °F, and winter temperatures of 10.4 °F. Over 35 years, 392 different kinds of plants from the grass (Poaceae) and sedge (Cyperaceae) families were planted to evaluate winter survival, landscape value, flowering, and pest resistance. Most plants (n = 271, 69%) survived at least 4 years, 186 (47%) survived 10 years, 81 (21%) survived 20 years, and 29 (7%) survived 35 years. Sixty-eight plants (17%) were deemed not winter hardy in this location (USDA PHZ 4b), and 53 are listed with insufficient data for a hardiness rating. Changes in maintenance as well as challenges encountered with long-term trials of herbaceous plants are discussed.

Cooperative Extension has a long history of using radio broadcasts in educational programming. The Minneapolis, MN-based CBS affiliate WCCO Radio 830AM contacted the University of Minnesota Extension (UMNExt) in 2013 to reinstate an 8:00 AM Saturday live gardening show titled “Smart Garden”. After several years of doing the radio show, we wanted to determine the effectiveness of getting information to listeners, what people were doing differently because of what they heard on the show, and how much they used the Extension’s resources after listening to the program. After analyzing 410 responses to an online survey, we found 78% of respondents reported they frequently or always learned something new when listening, and 56% reported adopting environmentally important practices, such as pollinator gardens, less chemical use, better lawn care, water conservation, and removing invasive plants. We concluded that this educational programming was making a positive impact on consumer horticulture practices.

Chinese silvergrass ( Miscanthus sinensis ) is native to East Asia and South Africa and has been grown as an ornamental in the United States for over 100 years. Chinese silvergrass is on the invasive species list for 12 states in the United States and is regulated for sale in New York state. It is often found along roadsides in middle-Atlantic states and Long Island, NY. In 2019 and 2020, we sowed chinese silvergrass seed harvested in Fall 2002 and Spring 2003 from several locations in North Carolina where it had naturalized and from the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Chaska, MN. The seed had been stored in a seed storage vault (4 °C) from 2002 to 2020. Germination in 2003 showed variation between 53% to 95% from 19 different individual plants. This same seed when resown in 2019 and 2020 had much lower germination that could be divided into three categories: no germination (five plants), germination of 1% or less (seven plants), and germination of more than 2% (seven plants). Results from this study show that seed viability may be a long-term problem in locations where chinese silvergrass has naturalized.

We tested prairie dropseed ( Sporobolus heterolepis) using six different germination treatments and found the best results with cold (40 °F), dry storage followed by direct seeding into a commercial germination mix placed in a 75 °F glass-glazed greenhouse with intermittent mist (5 seconds of mist every 8 minutes), and 600-W high-pressure sodium lighting with a 16-hour daylength. We found commercial laboratory viability analysis from tetrazolium staining did not correspond to germination results. Cold (34 °F), moist (2.3 g seed moistened with 2.5 mL deionized water) treatment, also known as cold conditioning, produced significantly less germination and fewer transplantable seedlings, and is not recommended for prairie dropseed.

Native grasses have great environmental benefits, not least as a food source for a wide variety of butterfly and moth species. However, native grassland habitats are some of the most endangered in North America, with less than 1% of original tallgrass prairie remaining. Dr Mary Meyer and her colleagues at the University of Minnesota have been working to evaluate the use of native grasses by butterfly and moth species. They are also working with garden centres to increase the volume of native grasses sold and grown in Minnesota.

The demand for native plants has been increasing as consumers exhibit stronger interest in sustainable gardening and landscaping. To determine whether point of sale (POS) displays increased consumer knowledge of native grass (Poaceae) benefits and affected consumer purchases, a marketing study was conducted over 2 years at five garden centers in Minnesota. A POS display poster and plant tags listing four benefits of native grasses were displayed at the garden centers in 2016 and 2017. We surveyed 341 consumers at these garden centers to understand consumer knowledge of native grasses and the influence of the POS display. Respondents totaled 84 (30.7%) who indicated they had bought a native grass that day, and of those 84, 54 (64.3%) had seen the display. The binary probit model estimates showed that seeing the POS display increased the likelihood of a native grass purchase. If a consumer had previously purchased a native grass, they were more likely to purchase a native grass again. Consumers who expressed a greater willingness to purchase native grasses based on their environmental benefits were more likely to purchase a native grass. However, neither the level of knowledge that consumers possessed about native grasses nor demographics significantly increased likelihood of purchase.

Extension master gardener (EMG) volunteers can be a valuable resource for Extension professionals in applied research if they are given clear instructions and tools for success. We developed recruitment and training materials for EMGs that equipped them for planting, maintaining, and collecting data in four demonstration/research gardens to measure the benefits of biochar on plant growth. EMGs' evaluations showed 80% satisfaction with the quality of the project, the education they gained about biochar, the volunteer training experience, and the communication methods used. Volunteers reported that working in applied research was a fulfilling educational experience.

Native grasses act as host plants, providing food and shelter, for numerous Lepidoptera species during their larval stage. As grassland habitat decreases because of conversion to agriculture and urban areas, prairie specialist butterflies and moths have also declined. Addition of native species to urban and agriculture landscapes has been shown to benefit Lepidoptera communities in various ways. Native grasses have grown in popularity as a landscaping plant due to their low nutrient requirements, drought tolerance, and soil stabilization properties. However, the benefits of native grasses to Lepidoptera are not well known to many entomologists or horticulturists, let alone the average consumer. We reviewed the literature that identified native prairie graminoids as host plants for native Lepidoptera in Minnesota, especially plants widely available in the horticultural trade that could be planted for restoration or landscaping purposes. The context of the Lepidoptera and host plant associations f...