Share my passion for all things gardening!
As gardeners, we aim to thwart insects and plant diseases, right? Well, one of the best tools we have is vegetable crop rotation. I know, crop rotation sounds like something farmers do, not small-time gardeners. And yet it makes a huge difference no matter what size your garden is. Why is it so important? Certain insects and diseases are common […]
Read moreHere’s a link to today’s column in The Spokesman-Review: Traps, sprays help keep fruit free of pests. It’s about a topic that is near and dear to my heart: organic orchard practices. Cherries, apples and pears are the most challenging tree fruits to grow. So those are the ones I focused on. I also pointed out how my husband, Bill, […]
Read moreThe other day, I noticed this leaf damage on one of my artichoke plants. I immediately suspected slugs, and quickly confirmed this when I saw a bit of a slime trail on the underside of the leaf. Grrr! In the past, I’ve used organic slug bait or handpicked them whenever I found any. And when I give talks about vegetable […]
Read moreOur new insect hotel. Here is a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Insect hotels keep good bugs cozy. (or you can read it lower in this post.) I’m glad today is finally here because I’ve been so excited about presenting this topic to you! It’s about adding an insect hotel to the garden. The purpose […]
Read moreHere is a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Welcoming good bugs will help oust pests. (you can read my column lower in this post.) Today’s topic is about attracting beneficial insects to your garden. For years, I’ve prided myself on growing everything organically. When I occasionally have insect problems, one of the things I’ve used is […]
Read moreI thought you might be interested to hear how things went in our quest to grow cherries organically this year:
Read moreI wanted to do a follow-up to my July 13 post (“Keeping the birds out of the cherries“). That way, you’ll know how things are going. You’ll recall I recently purchased some 2″-wide holographic bird scare ribbon. They’re my attempt to keep birds away from the ripening cherries. Well, it has worked great! It hasn’t completely kept the robins out of […]
Read moreYou might recall I’ve written in the past about how there are some types of stink bugs that cause an awful lot of damage to edible crops like veggies and fruits. (see these posts: Stink bug news and Invasion of the stink bugs) While at Manito Park last week, my husband saw something a bit worrisome to both of us. […]
Read moreThis is what floating row cover looks like. It’s terrific! Here is a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Products boost plant health organically. (you can also read my column lower in this post.) This one’s about how I garden organically through the use of some very helpful, environmentally-friendly products. I hope you’ll find it interesting […]
Read moreOver the years, I’ve written about my battles with leaf miners. They are the larvae that tunnel in between the cells in the leaves of spinach, beets and Swiss chard. How do they get there in the first place? What are leaf miners? Well, the adult is a fly that lays eggs on the leaves. Once the eggs hatch, the […]
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