With all this rain in Western New York, it looks more like April than June. John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County, said some gardeners have water ponding in their yards, and yesterday he saw someone’s riding lawn mower stuck in the mud. We had a dry spring in Western New York, but so far this month we’ve had about twice the average amount of rain we would get during that period. This weather poses some…
Question on spotty mint, plus more gardening news
What’s the problem with this mint– and oregano, too? Jackie Fialkowski Gatas contacted me with this question: Does anyone happen to know what is happening with my mint? It’s also starting to show on my oregano. Don’t know if it’s a bug or a fungus. Thanks guys. Readers, can you help Jackie? If so, please leave a comment below. Background Sometimes readers contact me with questions that I can’t answer. I’m not a gardening expert– I’m a writer by profession….
National Garden Festival gets under way this weekend
The National Garden Festival kicks off this weekend with several events: the first luxury bus tour, the Lewiston GardenFest, Perennials Day at Lockwood’s Greenhouses and the GObike tours. Note: The GObike event is now a series of tours held every Sunday from June 23 to July 21. Favorite Buffalo Gardens—the Preview Tour Friday, June 21 Tour the gardens that have made Buffalo famous, as seen in Fine Gardening and Horticulture magazines, among many others. From Disney-esque Civil War era…
Want something unique? Try daylilies–Easy to grow, too!
If you’re looking for a flower that’s easy to grow and different from what your neighbors have in their gardens, try one of the 1,100 varieties of daylilies available at Lasting Dreams Daylilies, 6425 South Abbott Rd., Orchard Park. If you need more variety, hang in there. Carol and Anthony Haj, owners of Lasting Dreams Daylilies, are working on hybridizing their own brand new varieties, too. There are so many reasons to love daylilies. Topping the list is daylilies’ beauty…
Fairy garden workshop set & more gardening news
Fairy garden workshops set at Mischler’s Fairy garden workshops will be held Saturday, June 22 at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Rd., Williamsville. The workshops will be held at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. and will last about two hours. The first half of each workshop will consist of an explanation and demonstration by Mischler’s creative staff. Attendees will learn how to design and build a miniature garden. The second half of the workshop will be a hands-on…
New event: tour of gardens by bike
A great way to see beautiful gardens is by bicycle on the GObike City Garden Tour, a new event of the National Garden Festival and GOBike Buffalo. It will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, June 23. This three-hour guided bike tour takes place in the City of Buffalo on bike path streets. Cyclists will be introduced to many of the signature, historic homes and gardens of the city’s most beautiful neighborhoods, beginning at Frederick Law Olmsted’s…
Known worldwide, U.S. landscape architect Griffin is unsung at home
Walter Burley Griffin is “probably one of the most important landscape architects you’ve never heard of,” said Christopher Vernon, associate professor in the School of Architecture, Landscape, and Visual Arts at the University of Western Australia. Griffin designed the landscape for the Martin House Complex here in Buffalo. He took on many other successful and prestigious projects as well, including designing the entire city of Canberra, the capital of Australia. Despite his accomplishments, Griffin doesn’t have the reputation in the…
Garden Festival’s bus tours start June 21
You’ll get behind-the-scenes tours of some of Buffalo’s finest gardens, from secluded private yards to the city’s Frederick Law Olmsted-designed parks, during these luxury motorcoach tours, which are part of the National Garden Festival in Buffalo. The tours will be led by expert gardeners and include a sit-down lunch. The tours are operated by AAA Western and Central New York’s Horizon Club Tours. There are various pick-up locations for each tour. In addition to these luxury motorcoach tours, the National Garden…
Cheektowaga gardener stays organized with careful notes
Chet Okonczak can tell you the name of every plant in his garden, and if he’s not sure of a name, he can easily look it up. Organized in a three-ring photo album are hand-drawn maps of each plant in the six beds in his backyard at 38 Brentwood, Cheektowaga. On the same page are photos of that bed at various times of the year. In the pocket on the back of the page he keeps the plant tags so…
Questions on another voodoo plant and lettuce woes
Can you help readers with these two gardening questions? Gardening question #1: What’s the name of this stinky plant? I saw your post about the stinky plant. I think I have one, but it does not look like a lily. I was told mine is a voodoo plant. Last year, it gave me a beautiful umbrella effect. This year, it is odd and has a red flower in the middle. Today I found a ton of flies on it, and…