by Connie Oswald Stofko You have to brush off your car every time you want to go anywhere. There’s shoveling. Then there’s more shoveling. Then there’s still more shoveling. The air is so bitter that if it touches your forehead, you get brain freeze, also known as an ice cream headache. Only there’s no ice cream. There are a lot of reasons to irritated, fed up and cranky. If you want to pout and complain, you’re justified. And sometimes it…
Want blooms inside during WNY winter? Get a cyclamen
by Connie Oswald Stofko If you’re looking for a blooming flower in winter, especially for Valentine’s Day, check out cyclamen. Some attentive gardeners may find cyclamen tricky to care for, but that’s because cyclamen don’t need much care. “They don’t want to be overloved,” said Mark Yadon, vice president of Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Rd., Williamsville. Cyclamen like it a little on the dry side, so you shouldn’t overwater them, he said. They also like to dry…
Gardeners can help the environment & save money, too
by Connie Oswald Stofko “Just because something is good for the environment, it doesn’t mean you have to spend more money for it,” said Albert J. Gilewicz. “Sometimes you end up paying less.” Gilewicz, who describes himself as a pragmatic environmentalist with a background in engineering and business, will present “The Garden Revolution: A Call to Trowels” at the meeting of the Ken-Sheriton Garden Club at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11 at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 576 Delaware Road, Kenmore….
Want to start community garden in Buffalo? Apply to Grassroots Gardens by Feb. 17
If you are interested in starting a community garden in the City of Buffalo, you may be able to get assistance from Grassroots Gardens. The full application isn’t due until March 3, but a letter of intent is due Feb. 17. An open house will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20 in the Grassroots Gardens main office, 2495 Main Street, Suite 408, Buffalo NY 14214. Staff will be on hand to answer questions and to help…
Deadline is March 31 for vendors to sign up for Buffalo-style Garden Art Sale
I’ve received a couple questions from people asking how they can sign up for the Buffalo-style Garden Art Sale, so I wanted to share this information right away. You can get an application here, and the deadline for applications is March 31. The items for sale have to be garden- or nature-themed, or works that can be displayed in a garden setting. They can be done in any medium: Sculpture, plants, planters, metalwork, paintings, lighting, vintage, signs, woodwork, architectural remnants,…
Feb. 4 is Photographers Night; Night Lights continues through Feb. 15
by Connie Oswald Stofko You can see the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens in a whole new light– literally– during the popular Night Lights event. Photographers love the exciting and sometimes abstract images they can capture, so an entire evening is set aside just for them. Photographers Night is 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4. You may bring a tripod on this night only. You may bring cameras and monopods on any night. Night Lights continues 6 to…
Indoor gardening: Create a container of succulents during WNY winter
by Connie Oswald Stofko I know most of you are dreaming of spring right now. You can’t wait to get outside and arrange perennials in a garden bed or mix annuals in a container. Don’t just pout and wait for spring. Here’s a gardening project you can do right now: Create a container garden of succulents that you can grow inside. A project like this allows you to use your creativity, but if you’re a beginning gardener (or a lazy…
More tips on making frozen spheres for your winter garden: add candles
by Connie Oswald Stofko You know what they say about Western New York: If you don’t like the weather, wait 10 minutes. You may think we’ve had nothing but snow and cold this winter, but I can assure you we’ve had thaws. I know because the arrangement of frozen spheres that I told you about in mid-December melted before Christmas. Luckily, just before New Year’s Day we got more cold weather (hey, I’m looking for the silver lining), so I…
90-acre farm in WNY will remain agricultural land under conservation easement
Even those of us who grow vegetables in our gardens still depend on farmers for most of our food. But that food supply could be constrained if we lose Western New York farmland to housing and other development. The Western New York Land Conservancy is working to protect local farmland. Earlier this month it announced that the 90-acre Meyer Farm in the Town of Eden is now permanently protected from development and will remain farmland for future generations. This $244,000…
Spring tree seedling sale by DEC now under way
The spring tree seedling sale of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is now under way. The Department of Environmental Conservation operates the State Tree Nursery in Saratoga Springs, which produces tree and shrub seedlings for conservation plantings on public and private lands. Native New York seed-sources are used when available. Trees and shrubs are beneficial because they: Improve air and water quality Stabilize streambanks Create windbreaks Conserve energy Reforest idle land Produce wood products Produce wildlife food…