By Connie Oswald Stofko The front porch “is like another living room,” said Doug Lilley of Livingston St., Buffalo. “I love sitting out here. It’s peaceful.” When he bought this 150-year-old double seven years ago, the upstairs porch was rotting and needed to be replaced. An addition to the back of the house was rotten and Lilley had to lop off the entire addition. The backyard was so overgrown, it was hard to walk back there. Now the house…
Mother’s Day is May 13, and the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens is celebrating with a Mother’s Day membership markdown. From May 1 through May 13, individual memberships will be discounted by 20 percent. It’s a great gift for someone who loves gardens. Yes, you can buy a membership for yourself, too! Memberships include year-round, free admission to the Botanical Gardens; discounts on selected classes, shows, and exhibits; a 10 percent discount in the gift shop and on the…...
The cherry blossoms in the Japanese Garden in Delaware Park will begin to unfold this weekend, just in time for the fifth annual Buffalo Cherry Blossom Festival, said Paula Hinz, co-chairman of the festival. The festival will kick off with an event at 5 p.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, May 2, with many more activities from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, May 5 and 6. When the blossoms are in full bloom, a Japanese tea ceremony will be held on…...
Trees are so important to our environment that they have their own day– Arbor Day, which falls on this Friday, April 27. How to choose, plant and care for a tree Consider planting a tree on your own property. Do it now; the best time to plant a tree is late winter or early spring before the buds open, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). If you can’t work that quickly, consider waiting until autumn. Trees…...
by Steven Jakobi, Master Gardener Volunteer, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Allegany County After a winter of planning, preparation and expense, few things are more disappointing for the gardener than the failure of seeds to send shoots up from the soil, or watching seedlings emerge, but then suddenly wilt and die. Unfortunately, these situations are fairly common in the field or in the greenhouse under certain conditions. The death of young plants is caused by a group of soil-borne fungi,…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Whether you want to get started in blogging, learn how to make money from your blog, improve your website or learn how to develop apps, there is something for you at WordCamp Buffalo. The daylong workshop for users of WordPress, a free website platform, will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 5 in 103 Center for the Arts on the North Campus of the University at Buffalo. Registration opens at 8 a.m. I’ll…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Before you dig up an area for a new garden or plant a tree or dig holes for a fence, you should call 811 or use the online Single Address Ticket. When you make your request, your local utilities come out– for free– and flag where their lines are so you don’t accidentally hit them with your shovel or rototiller. You’d be pretty embarrassed if the whole neighborhood lost its cable because you cut the line. And if…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko “‘Perennial’ doesn’t mean ‘live forever,’ said Mark Yadon, vice president at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses. “Granted, they may come back, but some perennials are short lived and might not last more than three or four years.” It’s best to plant those varieties every two or three years to make sure they don’t die out completely. (All you people who tell me you can’t garden because you don’t have a green thumb: If a perennial died, it…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Please help me congratulate the three lucky winners in our recent drawing held by Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com. They are: Jeanne Watson of Hamburg Bonnie Finkbeiner of North Tonawanda Kalyn Szakall of Blasdell The names were drawn at random. Everyone who was subscribed to Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com by March 28– even those who signed up years ago– were entered into the drawing. I’m happy to have so many new subscribers, and I love my loyal readers, too! Each of the winners receives a $200 prize package that…...
The 13th annual Lewiston GardenFest is looking for residents who want to share their gardens as well as vendors for the event to be held 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday, June 16 and Sunday, June 17 on Center St. in Lewiston. The event is presented by the Lewiston Garden Club. It is free to attend. Lewiston GardenFest will include gardens open to the public as well as nearly 80 vendors offering flowers, plants, garden décor and more. There will also be speakers, and Master Gardeners…...