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Planting the Plains

Planting the Plains: Shade Cloths

By Anthony Reardon

Published May 30, 2025 at 5:00 AM CDT

Your plants will obviously require sun to grow their best, but how much sun is too much? Some plans can burn if they get too much, so it can benefit them to have some sort of shade or other protective cover, to help reduce the amount of sun they're getting. Shade cloths can be an excellent way to cover plants with materials that let in different amounts of sunlight, to help customize the shade to match the needs of your plants.

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Planting the Plains Planting the Plains

Anthony Reardon

Anthony Reardon is the Horticulture – Small Farms Extension Agent for Johnson County, Kansas.

See stories by Anthony Reardon

Planting the Plains: Intercropping in the Vegetable Garden

Anthony Reardon

Growing your garden can be its own reward, but if you're serious its long-term health, you may want to consider intercropping. Intercropping is a broad term that refers to the practice of growing two or more crops in close proximity. This practice offers numerous benefits, including increased crop diversity, resource efficiency, pest and disease control, and improved soil health!
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Planting the Plains: Trimming Fruit Trees

Anthony Reardon

Growing fruit trees isn't as simple as just harvesting and eating; to help your tree thrive, produce the best fruit, and build strong limbs, it's important to trim the tree a bit to shape its growth. But it's also important not to just start whacking away at it...there's a real strategy to use, and we'll talk about it in this week's episode!
HPPR Features

Planting the Plains: Growing Blueberries

Anthony Reardon

Growing something you can eat in your garden is one of the easiest decisions of all time...why not get something back for your time and effort? One option that many folks always want to plant each year is blueberries...but the soil on the High Plains isn't always a great fit without amending it to become more acidic. This week, we'll talk about ways you can maximize your odds of success when growing these delicious and nutritious fruit in your own garden!
HPPR Features

Planting the Plains: Warm Season Pests

Anthony Reardon

With the warmer weather of May now here, you can expect to see bugs and other pests begin to appear in your garden. This week, we'll talk about the best ways to defend your plants against them, and which methods work best for specific types of plants!
HPPR Features

Planting the Plains: Weed Control Strategies

Anthony Reardon

Weeds are a nuisance in any garden, but did you know that you can do a lot to prevent them from becoming a REAL problem? "Weeding" can take many forms, but some methods and some good timing can help to prevent bigger weed problems later. We'll talk about how you can do more to combat these weeds in your own garden, and leave more nutrients for your plants!