Wear your jeans and dress them up to join the party at Denim & Diamonds, an event to raise awareness and funding for the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy. Denim & Diamonds will be two events in one this Friday, Sept. 8 in at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, 1 Martin Luther King Park, Buffalo. Wear blue denim and diamonds — dressy jeans and party attire to dine and dance with friends. A complimentary valet will be available. The dinner and awards will be held from 6 to…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Caution. Warning. Dangerous. Keep out of reach of children. That’s what you’ll find on the labels of pesticides and other chemicals that people routinely spray on their lawns, said Paul Tukey, and he used to spray them, too. Tukey shared his story of how he went from routinely using chemicals with warning labels to using all-organic practices in his landscaping business. Now he is chief sustainability officer for Glenstone, a contemporary art museum in Potomac, Maryland…....
Learn more about gardening and plants in the horticulture classes to be offered at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. You can sign up for an entire series or just one class at a time. You don’t have to take the classes in order. If you complete all the classes in a series, you will receive a certificate. The classes are all taught by David Clark, nationally known garden educator. He’s not only knowledgeable, he’s…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko One of the things I like about garlic is that planting it gives you something to do in late fall when there is nothing else to do in the garden. I have always heard that you’re supposed to plant garlic in October. But is there any reason you can’t plant it earlier? Since you harvest in July or August, I think it might be convenient to take cloves from your best heads of garlic and plant…...
A free online course called “Climate Change Science, Communication, and Action” will be offered by Cornell University. It is aimed at Cooperative Extension educators, Master Gardener volunteers, state and local government, land trusts and other non-profits, and others interested in an introduction to climate change science and how to communicate effectively about this important topic. The course will be held from Sept. 11 to Oct. 1. Participants should plan on an average of 3-4 hours a week of work during…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko I got my white phlox from a neighbor maybe 20 years ago. They’re beautiful and dependable and slightly fragrant and I love them. But in the past several years I’ve been getting flowers that show up pink or slightly pink. Why? A lot of phlox are hybrids, said John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County. Two different plants are crossed to get the new plant. Without warning, the hybrid can revert back…...
If you love to garden but don’t have as much space to work in as you would like, consider volunteering at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens. The Botanical Gardens is looking for volunteers to help out in many ways, including horticulture. A volunteer orientation will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 6 at the Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo The orientation is free. Register online or contact Karen Hammer, Program and Volunteer…...
Did you ever pick a big, red tomato and slice it open, only to find you should have left it on the vine a little longer? You can find tips on harvesting vegetables, including when to pick them, from the Home Garden Seed Association, which also goes by ezfromseed.org. In most cases, tomatoes should be not only fully colored, but slightly soft when squeezed, according to the Home Garden Seed Association. There are some exceptions. Large heirloom tomatoes can be…...
Walk around an indoor garden filled with free-flying monarch butterflies during the Monarch Butterfly Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26 at Audubon Community Nature Center, 1600 Riverside Rd., one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown, New York, and Warren, Pennsylvania. You can hand-feed the butterflies or wander over to see how citizen scientists tag them to track their migration to Mexico. Observe their life cycle as you examine monarch eggs and hold caterpillars. Festival admission is…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko A postal cancellation has been created to mark the 25th anniversary of the Alden Garden Club, and a short presentation with members of the club will be held at noon tomorrow, Wednesday, Aug. 16 at the Alden Post Office, 13127 Broadway St., Alden. The pictorial cancellation was designed by club members Janet Hastreiter and Sue Galbraith. Special cancellations like this one are prized by collectors. “Alden will receive letters from all over the country,” said Michele…...