Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com

signs for Jamestown front yard recognition 2015

Jamestown recognizing beautiful front yards

Jamestown’s front yard gardens are in full bloom, filling neighborhoods with eye-catching colors. To acknowledge the value that these gardens and their caretakers add to the city, the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation (JRC) is continuing the GROW Jamestown Front Garden Recognition Program for a fourth straight year. “The GROW Jamestown Front Garden Recognition Program is a way to acknowledge home gardeners who contribute to the curb appeal of Jamestown’s neighborhoods, and to encourage all residents to take part in making Jamestown…...

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Jul 13, 2015

evening sun on gauzy tent in backyard in Buffalo

Create an elegant landscape on a budget with tips from Buffalo gardener

by Connie Oswald Stofko Pat Bobo has an elegant landscape filled with flowers, shrubs, fruits and vegetables, but she doesn’t spend a lot of money on plants. One example is the lush grape vine she picked up for a dollar. When she bought the plant, it was on its last legs, she said, but now it’s thriving. “I don’t like paying over $4 or $5 for a plant,” Bobo said. “I pride myself on getting things for a dollar or…...

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Jul 7, 2015

Gardener has more than 300 varieties of plants in small Snyder yard

by Connie Oswald Stofko Dick Herr has a way with plants. He had a yucca plant in his garden, but dug it out 35 years ago. Last year– surprise!– it came back. Now it’s taller than ever and was in full bloom when I visited last week. You can see his gardens at 180 Hamilton Dr., Snyder, during the Snyder-CleveHill Garden View from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 12. Maps can be picked up at Trillium’s Courtyard Florist,…...

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Jul 7, 2015

Artists: Plein Air Day at Mischler’s set for July 11

Painters and other artists can get inspiration from the outdoor flowers during Plein Air Day 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 11 at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Rd., Williamsville. The event is free and no registration is necessary. “En plein air” is a French expression that means “in the open air” and is used to describe the act of painting outdoors. Artists can set up their easels and draw with natural sunlight on their subjects. Many…...

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Jul 7, 2015

Learn to raise monarch caterpillars in July 16 workshop in Jamestown

Learn how to raise monarch caterpillars to help increase their numbers in a workshop from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, July 16 at the Audubon Nature Center, 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown, NY, and Warren, PA. Mostly an indoor program, it will include a short walk outside to see the milkweed patch, the only food of monarch caterpillars. Depending on the local monarch butterfly population and the success of Audubon’s breeding program, you may be able…...

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Jul 6, 2015

Jennifer Matyjasik on patio Williamsville

New owner tries to preserve history of the home’s landscape in Williamsville

by Connie Oswald Stofko Rather than just rip out the overgrown jungle that she found in her yard when she moved into her home six years ago, Jennifer Matyjasik is trying to preserve the history of the 1930s house and honor the avid gardener who once lived there. Her neighbors told her that the woman who had owned the house, along with her sister, were great gardeners. Matyjasik is trying to honor that as she fashions her new landscape. As…...

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Jun 30, 2015

Sunny field has evolved to shady haven in Amherst

by Connie Oswald Stofko “Gardens are never done,” said Gary Leising of 2695 Sweet Home Road, Amherst. “You always come up with new ideas. There are always things you want to do and things you want to change.” When Leising and his wife Linda moved into their newly built home in 1984, the landscape was just a field. That mostly sunny landscape has turned into a mostly shady landscape with two dozen trees, established garden beds and a large koi…...

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Jun 30, 2015

Tea plants are back; get other unusual fruit, nut & berry plants at Lockwood’s

When we first told you about Sochi tea plants— the kind of plants you can use to make a cup of tea– they were so popular, they sold out. Well, Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark St., Hamburg, has them back in stock. You can keep these plants outside in the summer, but bring them inside in the fall. What makes this plant even more attractive is that in the fall it gets white flowers that are fragrant. See more about caring…...

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Jun 30, 2015

Help a reader: How can you keep squirrels from eating your tomatoes?

by Connie Oswald Stofko A reader sent me this question that I can’t answer, but I hope one of my readers can. If you have suggestions, please leave a comment below. Does anyone have suggestions for deterring squirrels? Every year my friendly neighborhood squirrel gets in my garden and eats my tomatoes. He even actually brings them up on my porch sometimes and leaves the peels and uneaten portions laying there. It’s very frustrating that he picks my fruit before…...

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Jun 29, 2015

overall view of Bonnie Brooks' yard in Buffalo NY

Native plants and large greenhouse are attractions in this Parkside garden

by Connie Oswald Stofko The yard of Carrie Brooks, 773 Crescent Ave., Buffalo, is filled with plants, and many of them have a story. The forsythia came from a bouquet her daughter gave her. The branches stayed in the vase of water too long and rooted, so she planted them. After the bush has finished flowering, she allows a sweet pea vine to climb up and cover it with its own flowers. Japanese lanterns were used as the table decorations…...

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Jun 23, 2015