by Connie Oswald Stofko A couple of simple tests can tell you what steps you have to take to improve your soil– or let you know that you are already on the right track. There are three kinds of tests you might do, said John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County. The first is a pH test to find out how acidic or alkaline your soil is. Farfaglia recommends that every gardener do this test at…...
“45 Gardening Tips in 45 Minutes” will be presented by Connie Oswald Stofko, editor of Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, at the meeting of the Ken-Sheriton Garden Club at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8 at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 576 Delaware Rd., Kenmore. Stofko will share 45 tips that she has gathered while interviewing home gardeners and experts. During the meeting, the artistic design will be “Remembering Fall,” a plaque design using dried materials. A business meeting will follow. New members are always welcome…....
The Bentley Sanctuary, a wildlife preserve known for its ephemeral spring wildflowers and winding trails, has been transferred to the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy from the Audubon Community Nature Center. Even before the transfer was complete, work was begun by conservancy volunteers and Cummins Jamestown Engine Plant employees to improve existing trails and build new board walks for the newly designated Pamela A. Westrom Wildflower Trail. The Bentley Sanctuary is in the Jamestown area, located at the end of Bentley Road,…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Maggie Koste Patz of West Seneca planted spinach last fall and by mid-March, the spinach was doing well. “ I recall feasting on that patch around May 25,” Patz said. If you want to harvest some food before you’ve even planted your tomatoes, use Patz’s trick: old milk jugs. Patz planted the spinach seeds in a raised bed. She cut the bottoms off of old milk jugs and set them as cloches on top of the…...
New palm trees, including a rare palm that may be carnivorous, will be installed this fall in the Main Palm Dome at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens after two palms had to be removed last week because they had outgrown the space. The two palms that were removed were actually touching the ceiling and would have died. “If the new growth at the very top breaks, the entire tree dies,” explained Erin Grajek, associate vice president of Marketing…...
The Chrysanthemum Exhibit, which is the longest running feature at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, starts this weekend. The mum exhibit has taken place for more than 115 years. It will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22 through Sunday, Nov. 13 at the Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Avenue, Buffalo. Entrance to the exhibit is included with Botanical Gardens admission: $9 for adults, $8 for seniors (ages 55 and older) and students (ages…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Until this week, it felt more like summer than autumn in Western New York. Last week I was wearing shorts, then yesterday I snuggled into a winter jacket. There was scattered frost overnight last night in Western New York. But as they say, if you don’t like the weather in Buffalo, wait 10 minutes. Tomorrow, Wednesday, it should be back into the 70s. All of this is normal for Western New York, said Judy Levan, Warning…...
Community volunteers are needed to help plant trees along the shoreline of Gill Creek in Niagara Falls, which will be part of a larger creek-wide restoration effort. The planting event, organized by Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper, will be held from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18. Advance registration is required. Register online or by contacting Wendy Paterson at (716) 852-7483, ext. 26. All supplies for the planting will be provided by Riverkeeper. In addition to 120 new trees, understory vegetation…
Connie Oswald Stofko, publisher of Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, will present “45 More Gardening Tips in 45 Minutes” at the meeting of the Niagara Shores Garden Club at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13 in the Newfane Town Hall, 2737 Main St., Newfane. Like all the events we list on Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, this event is open to the public. In a follow-up to her previous talk, Stofko will share 45 new tips that she has come across while writing for Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, the online gardening magazine…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko I saw some beautiful gardens when I was in Atlanta a couple weeks ago to attend the conference of GWA: The Association of Garden Communicators. But since the climate is so different there, I wasn’t sure I would be able to bring back any tips that would help us here in Western New York. Then we went to the home of Lee Dunn and her husband Mike. There I saw something that should interest gardeners who…...