Start seeds inside now for cool-weather crops; start seeds for tomatoes in a few weeks in WNY

by Connie Oswald Stofko It’s finally time for us to start thinking about starting seeds inside! Cool-weather vegetables Let’s keep our fingers crossed that all this snow melts at a nice, steady pace so that our garden beds will be dry enough to for us to plant cool-weather vegetables in April. As the folks from Lockwood’s Greenhouses in Hamburg told us in a previous article, cool-weather vegetables are the crops that can take some cooler weather and light frosts. They…...

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gift basket from Mischler's in Williamsville NY

Tell your gardening friends– Subscribe for a chance to win a great prize package!

by Connie Oswald Stofko I need your help today. I want to find new subscribers for Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, the online gardening magazine for Western New York, so I’m holding a contest and offering great prizes for gardeners. Please help me spread the word by emailing this information to a friend. Or share it on on Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter or your favorite social media. Or pick up the phone and call a relative. Or mention it to a coworker. If you’ve been…...

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Plantasia plans new events including tea party, craft beer night and visit by fairy tale princesses

Reservations are due tomorrow, March 11 for one of several new events at Plantasia— a garden tea party. The tea party will be held at noon Thursday, March 19 at Plantasia in the Fairgrounds Event Center, 5820 South Park Avenue, Hamburg. The menu will include salad, sandwiches, desserts and a variety of teas. The cost is $22.95 and includes the cost of admission to Plantasia. For more information, email Helen, the tea party hostess, at marklyn1@verizon.net or contact the Plantasia…...

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Grow Jamestown Garden Fair

Grow Jamestown offers a week of gardening events, plus garden fair March 21

The fourth annual Grow Jamestown Garden Fair has been expanded to include a week of educational workshops, demonstrations and other activities centered on agriculture and education. The week of events will take place Monday through Friday, March 16-20. It will culminate  with the Garden Fair from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, March 21, at the Lillian Vitanza Ney Renaissance Center,  119-121 West 3rd St. (corner of Washington and 3rd), Jamestown. “There is something for everyone this year,” said Mary…...

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trowel photo illustration copyright Connie Oswald Stofko

Free Trowel Talks set by Master Gardeners for March, April in Chautauqua County

The first two talks in a series called Trowel Talks will be presented today, Tuesday, March 10, by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County Master Gardeners. “Adaptive Gardening” will be presented at 6:30 p.m.  in Myers Memorial Library (Frewsburg), 6 Falconer St., Frewsburg. “Propagating Houseplants” will be presented at 7 p.m.  in the Mayville Library, 92 S Erie St., Mayville. The Trowel Talk series will be held during March and April at libraries throughout Chautauqua County. The talks are free…....

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floral clock photo illustration by Connie Oswald Stofko

Hear ‘ 45 Gardening Tips in 45 Minutes’ at WNY Herb Study Group at Botanical Gardens

by Connie Oswald Stofko I’ll present “45 Gardening Tips in 45 Minutes” at the meeting of the Western New York Herb Study Group at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 11 in the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. In my presentation, I’ll share some of the best tips I discovered as I have interviewed home gardeners and gardening experts in the past several years for Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, the online gardening magazine for Western New York. I have…...

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'Star of Holland' amaryllis at Buffalo Botanical Gardens by Stofko

Amaryllis reminder: Don’t cut off the leaves

by Connie Oswald Stofko Many of you may have received an amaryllis bulb or plant over the holidays, and you’d like to get it to rebloom indoors next year. It’s not hard to do. However, I’ve heard from a couple people that they were told to cut back the plant after it has finished blooming. Don’t do that! You need to keep the leaves on the plant. Through photosynthesis, the leaves will work to recharge the bulb. The plant needs…...

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Clematis_Serious_Black courtesy Buffalo Botanical Gardens

Three plant sales set at Botanical Gardens: orchids, bulbs & Great Plant Sale

by Connie Oswald Stofko Three different plant sales are set at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. First is the orchid sale, which will take place from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Saturday, March 7 in the Administration Building. The sale will include all types of orchids from the the recent orchid exhibit as well as orchids from the Botanical Gardens’ collection. You may want to get there early; the sale will continue only…...

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savor the beauty poster copyright Stofko

Thought for the day: savor the beauty

by Connie Oswald Stofko Well, it’s official. This was the coldest February on record in Western New York. It’s been a tough winter. Some of us got seven feet of snow in November alone. Even areas of Western New York that don’t normally get much snow have two feet or more on the ground. People are tired of shoveling, of trying to walk on snowy sidewalks, of driving through snow. Then there’s the cold. Day after day of below zero…

floral clock photo illustration by Connie Oswald Stofko

Hear 45 Gardening Tips in 45 Minutes with Springville garden club

by Connie Oswald Stofko I’ll present “45 Gardening Tips in 45 Minutes” at the meeting of the Scene Garden Club at 10:30 a.m. Monday, March 9 at Loves, Inc., 64 East Main St., Springville. In my presentation, I’ll share some of the best tips I discovered as I have interviewed home gardeners and gardening experts in the past several years for Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, the online gardening magazine for Western New York. I have to average one tip per minute, so it’s…