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rows flowers Goodman's Niagara Falls

Use local garden centers when shopping for plants

by Connie Oswald Stofko When you go out to buy plants this weekend– or at any time– turn to your local garden centers. They often have interesting plants that you can’t get in the big box stores. More important, many of the garden centers are growers, too. They know about plants and have folks on staff who can answer your questions. For example, if you say you don’t want to spend a lot of time maintaining your garden, they’ll know…...

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May 24, 2016
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how to deadhead hanging basket by shaking

Here’s an easy way to deadhead annuals in hanging baskets

by Connie Oswald Stofko Here’s an easy way to deadhead some annuals in hanging baskets. I got this great tip from Kristin Pochopin, interim director of horticulture at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens during the recent Great Plant Sale. Instead of picking off the dead flowers one by one, hold the basket by the hook, as she is doing in the photo. Hold it close to the ground and shake the basket. The dead flowers will fall off…...

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May 24, 2016
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bee and milkweed flower in Buffalo

No, there’s no labeling on use of neonicotinoids in plants or seeds

by Connie Oswald Stofko I got this question from a reader: Hi Connie, How can we be sure that we aren’t buying plants that have been treated with neonics, or grown from seeds containing neonics? Is there a standard label to look for? Or certain brands that don’t deal in them? Thanks. Kristen Buffalo Since I’m not a gardening expert, I contacted someone who knows more about  neonicotinoids, which are used in pest control. I talked to John Farfaglia, the…...

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May 24, 2016
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healthy impatiens in Lancaster NYJune 2013 closeup

You can plant impatiens in your shady garden if you want to play the odds

by Connie Oswald Stofko If you want to plant impatiens this year, you can take steps to decrease your chances of having your flowers killed by the blight called downy mildew, said Margery Daughtrey, senior extension associate with the Section of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology at Cornell University. One thing you can do is to plant your impatiens in hanging baskets where they might be more sheltered from the disease. You can also plant them among other plants so…...

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May 17, 2016
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mixed container at Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens

Go early to get best picks at Great Plant Sale; see container demonstrations, too

by Connie Oswald Stofko In a new feature this year, you can see free demonstrations on creating great mixed containers at the Great Plant Sale to be held in the Administration Building of the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. Admission to the sale is free. The sale will be held Thursday, Friday and Saturday, May 19, 20 and 21. (I’ll have a table there, so stop by and say hello!) Thursday is for volunteers…...

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May 17, 2016
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aster yellows on coneflower

Coneflowers with aster yellows disease: Keep healthy plants, but pull diseased ones

by Connie Oswald Stofko Here’s a question from a reader: Hi Connie, Last summer we were warned about aster yellows destroying coneflowers. My coneflowers were all infected but I didn’t remove the plants from my garden. Now I’m watching them sprout and I’m wondering if I should be worried. Should I take them out now? Thanks, Eileen Welborn Buffalo Yes, if you saw symptoms of aster yellows disease last year on your coneflowers and you didn’t pull out and carefully…...

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May 10, 2016
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tea house in Lancaster NY

Garden walks in Lancaster & Ken-Ton are seeking gardeners; Hamburg wants vendors, too

The garden walks in Lancaster and Ken-Ton are looking to sign up gardeners who want their gardens listed on this year’s event, and Hamburg is looking to sign up vendors as well as gardeners. As we told you previously, Sunday, May 15 is the deadline to sign up for Garden Walk Buffalo. For more information on other garden walks, see our Events page. Hamburg Garden Walk: vendors & gardeners The Hamburg Garden Walk is looking for gardeners to show their…...

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May 10, 2016
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demonstration garden in Jamestown NY

Evening in the Garden begins May 18 in Jamestown

The first Evening in the Garden of the season will take place at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 18 in the demonstration garden at the Frank Bratt Ag Center, 3542 Turner Rd., Jamestown. The events are held by the Master Gardeners of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County. Each session includes a talk or demonstration as well as a question-and-answer session. This month’s session will be a demonstration of container planting. It will cover different examples of plants that can be…...

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May 10, 2016
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people looking at a leaf

Public can participate in ‘bioBlitz’ to document species at Reinstein Woods

A 24-hour “bioBlitz” will be held to find and identify as many different species of organisms as possible at Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve, 93 Honorine Dr.,  Cheektowaga. It will take place from Friday evening through Saturday, May 13-14. It is being held by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) in partnership with Friends of Reinstein Woods. Starting on the evening of Friday, May 13, field teams of local scientists and volunteers will work together to seek out…...

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May 9, 2016
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red lily leaf beetle

Now is time to look for red lily leaf beetle in WNY; watch for brown marmorated stink bug

by Connie Oswald Stofko Last year we told you about two invasive insects that could cause problems in your garden: the red lily leaf beetle and the brown marmorated stink bug. The red lily leaf beetle is the one that causes the most concern right now. It eats lilies and did extensive damage in some gardens last year. If you had lily leaf beetles last year, expect to have them this year. Start watching for the red lily leaf beetle…...

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May 3, 2016
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