Don't let summer stressors ruin your landscape's good looks. Instead give your plants' natural defenses a boost and keep both vegetable gardens producing and flowers blooming.

Busy summer schedules can lead to plant neglect and less-than-picture-perfect gardens. When you team this with summer heat and drought that can lead to wilting, brown leaves, and poor growth, and add insects and diseases that can further weaken and damage plants, gardens can really suffer.

(StatePoint) Nobody likes working in front of a hot oven during the summer. But if you and your family love desserts, you’ll still want to partake of sumptuous treats that will keep you all cool.

According to top dessert experts, there’s a whole world of alternatives to baking for those who suffer from a year-round sweet tooth.

Implementing simple, inexpensive energy efficiency measures in their church facilities can enable African Methodist Episcopal congregations across America to redirect significant amounts of money from utility payments to fulfilling their missions in communities, an official from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies told delegates attending an AME convention in Nashville, TN on June 29.

“Cross-country skiing?  What do you guys do in the summer?”  That commonly asked question resonates with most Minneapolis fair weather folks who are eagerly anticipating upcoming days of beaches, barbeques and basking in the sun.  While some prefer to burry their winter memories in the sand, the youth on the Anwatin and Nellie Stone Johnson Middle School Ski Teams are seeking out winter… on dryland.

Pictured: With canoe in hand, Nellie Stone skier Lagarius Munn and Coach John Miller descend to the Namekagon River as they embark on their journey.

Well-groomed hair plays a significant role in African-American culture.

“Blacks are 15% of the population,” said Target buyer Chakiera Harris. “African-Americans buy 30% of all hair care products.”

Harris specializes in finding products for the ethnic hair care line at Target. She has recently seen triple digit growth in natural hair care sales at Target.  “I am happy to see people embrace their natural hair and going back to their roots,” said Harris.

University of Minnesota Extension Master Gardener volunteers and the University Department of Recreational Sports/Youth Programs are collaborating for the third year to teach 9-13 year-olds about the science—and fun—of gardening.

Extension Master Gardeners have designed 10 weeks of activities based on the national Junior Master Gardener curriculum. The University’s three-acre Horticulture Teaching Garden on the St. Paul campus serves as the outdoor classroom. Participants are youth in summer day camps through the Department of Recreational Sports.

Pictured: Laura Opsahl, a Target employee who volunteers as a U of M Extension Master Gardener, helps summer day campers at the U water the bush beans they planted.