goldenrod soldier beetle on goldenrod in Amherst NY

Pretty beetle helps gardeners, but can turn into a zombie

by Connie Oswald Stofko The goldenrod soldier beetle is a native insect that eats aphids and pollinates plants, which is good for our gardens. Yay! But if it comes into contact with a certain fungus, the unlucky beetle can die, become a zombie and help spread the fungus to other goldenrod soldier beetles. That’s sad for the individual beetles, but it’s not something gardeners need to worry about. Our garden helper The larvae of the beetle feed on soft-bodied insects…

bumble bee on goldenrod by Stofko

30 x 30: Help conserve land & water by 2030 in New York State

by Connie Oswald Stofko Do you want to help conserve 30 percent of lands and waters by 2030? Learn more and offer your comments on a proposed strategy for New York State. A virtual meeting will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Aug. 15 where you can offer your input. Here are the details: See the draft New York State 30×30 Methodology and Strategies document. You can offer your comments until Aug. 30. See more here. 30 x 30…

looking at mint plant in Amherst NY

Garden Talks begin in Batavia & on line

The Genesee County Master Gardeners will hold monthly Garden Talks starting in February. Garden Talk programs start at noon and can be 30 to 60 minutes long, depending on the topic. They will be held on Thursdays. This free series is open to all, but registration is required. You can attend in person at the Cornell Cooperative Extension office, 420 East Main St., Batavia, or online via Zoom. To attend in person, contact Mandy at 585-343-3040, ext. 101 or amm532@cornell.edu. For a Zoom…

common ninebark courtesy Dow Gardens, Bugwood

Free native plants, nationally known author & more at Plant for Nature!

by Connie Oswald Stofko Get a free native plant, hear the author of The Humane Gardener, and find out more about how you can create a wonderful garden that works with nature rather than against it. It’s all part of the event Plant for Nature! to be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 4 at the WNY Welcome Center, 1999 Alvin Rd., Grand Island. It is hosted by the Citizen Coalition for Wildlife and Environment, which received a…

bee on trefoil flower in Amherst NY

No Mow May: It’s a starting point in Buffalo & Western New York

by Connie Oswald Stofko No Mow May is gaining popularity locally and across the country. The idea is to help bees. When you take a break from mowing your lawn, you’re allowing plants in your lawn, such as dandelions, white clover, violets, trefoil and self-heal, to flower. Those flowers provide food for bees and other pollinators. The idea started in Britain. Following Britain’s success, Bee City USA, an initiative of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, partnered in 2020 with…

wintergreen Gaultheria procumbens

Native wintergreen, plus more from WNY Gardening Matters

American wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens), a native plant, is an appealing evergreen groundcover, according to this article in the most recent edition of WNY Gardening Matters. Its glossy leaves emit a pleasant teaberry scent when crushed. Its white flowers are tinged with pink in summer and develop attractive red berries. There’s another evergreen groundcover with the common name of wintergreen, but it’s in an entirely different family. Learn more about spotted wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata) in this article, too. Also in this…

bee and hose and compost represent sustainable gardening

NEW: ‘Sustainable Gardening’ course starts Saturday at Botanical Gardens

by Connie Oswald Stofko “Sustainable gardening works with nature so you don’t have to do as much work trying to control pests, diseases and soil issues,” said David Clark, CNLP. Clark, a nationally known horticulture educator, will teach the new series of horticulture classes on sustainability. Classes will be taught from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays starting this Saturday, Jan. 22 in the Administration Building at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. These classes are…

monarch flying off swamp milkweed

Monarchs are in danger; how you can help in Western New York

by Connie Oswald Stofko Monarchs should be on the endangered species list, said Jay Burney, executive director of the Pollinator Conservation Association (PCA), based in Western New York. For years there has been a massive decline in monarch butterflies, but last year the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) declined to add the monarch to the endangered species list, Burney said. The FWS said there will be a yearly review and the monarch will stay in the running for…

Canadian anemone

Periwinkle is invasive; see 5 better alternatives for Western New York

by Connie Oswald Stofko I have enjoyed periwinkle in my garden, but it’s time to consider some alternatives. Periwinkle or Vinca minor is used as an ornamental groundcover. The leaves are glossy and the purple flowers are a delight. Here’s the problem: This invasive plant can easily spread outside of our gardens. It invades natural spaces, gets established and pushes out the native plants. It offers nothing to insects, birds and other animals. When it comes to control, periwinkle or…

dunes with native grass on Lake Ontario courtesy Roy Widrig

Use native plants along shores of Lakes Erie & Ontario– see new guide

Private property owners as well as municipalities can use a new guide to select plants to revitalize the shorelines of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Working With Nature: A Guide to Native Plants for New York’s Great Lakes Shorelines was recently released by New York Sea Grant, part of a nationwide network of 34 university-based programs working with coastal communities through the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The guide offers nature-based alternatives to traditional “gray” or hard structures such as rock rip-rap (rocky material placed along…