Share my passion for all things gardening!
In today’s garden column, I talk about organic gardening. This is something that is very easy to do by using good cultural practices. Here is a link to it in The Spokesman-Review. Investigate different ways to control pests. (or you can read my column lower in this post) By the way, I hope you’re not getting tired of hearing about […]
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Don’t let flies prevent you from enjoying your porch, patio or deck this summer. There is no need to spray poisonous chemicals to control them, however. Our neighbor boards horses and we keep chickens. Between these two sources, there is a potential for a lot of flies. We have been using the Rescue Fly Traps since 1993 with great success. Their early […]
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I thought it would be helpful to write a column on some of the problems that can come up. I’m specifically talking about garden pests that can be very challenging. Here is a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Identify the pest before choosing the remedy. (or you can read my column lower in this post) […]
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Last fall, I took a course on permaculture. I really wanted to gain a better understanding of what it’s all about. In the final class, we were introduced to Beth Mort, who presented a wonderful lecture. She spoke about how she uses permaculture principles in her own life and to help others design their landscapes. Beth owns Zinnia Designs for that […]
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A long time ago, I grew calendulas at our old house. I remember seeing small black beetles on the flowers but never knew what they were. Two years ago, I started growing them again and — sure enough — those beetles are back. After doing some research, I learned they are blister beetles. I needed to come up with some […]
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One of the great things about traveling to other countries and visiting other gardens is that you get wonderful ideas. Then you can put them into practice in your own garden. Today, I want to show you some of the crop protection covers I saw while traveling through England last month. I’m referring to the methods gardeners used to keep […]
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I’ve recently returned from a wonderful 2-week trip to England. It’s been fun sharing some of the things I saw with you through Facebook over the past few days. I wanted to write about something I repeatedly saw in some of the beautiful gardens I visited. That was the use of natural materials for plant supports and/or keeping pests away […]
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Growing apples is a bit problematic because they are susceptible to some nasty insect and disease problems. Growing apples organically is even more challenging for the exact same reason. And yet, my husband Bill and I have taken on that very challenge in our home orchard. Why? We love the idea of eating apples that were grown without chemicals. To grow […]
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Don’t we all hate weeds? After all, they get in the way of the lovely plants we’ve placed in our gardens on purpose. I recently had a request to share some of my weed strategies, so have written a column on that very subject. Here’s a link to it in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Best weeding tools are your […]
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I think I’m going to have to eat crow… or something along those lines! Last June, I wrote about pillbugs in a blog post. In it, I talked about their reputation for munching on the stems of young Cucurbits (melons, cucumbers, squash, and pumpkins). This occurs while they’re at their most tender stage. Pillbugs also have a benign role of helping […]
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