The chrysanthemum has been enjoyed for thousands of years. It was cultivated as a flowering herb in China as far back as the 15th Century B.C., according to the National Chrysanthemum Society. The City of Buffalo is a mere upstart compared to ancient China, but we have enjoyed chrysantheums throughout our history, too. For more than 100 years, the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens has held its annual Chrysanthemum Show, which is the longest running tradition at the Botanical…...
Are you growing poisonous plants? If you have foxglove, hydrangea or even tomato plants, the answer is yes! In this video, Rachel Gorodetsky, Pharm.D., clinical assistant professor at D’Youville College in Buffalo, discusses common garden plants and indoor plants that can be poisonous when eaten. Her presentation was part of the kick-off event for the medicinal gardens at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens…....
“All of this is to teach our children where food comes from,” said Tricia Miller, volunteer coordinator for the Giving Garden at Union-Pleasant Elementary School in Hamburg. “If children grow it and taste it, their willingness to eat it and try more things grows.” The garden at Union-Pleasant Elementary School started three years ago because parents were concerned about food in the schools, Miller said. They decided a garden would be a good way to educate children about healthy food…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Whether you treat your maladies with an herbal tea or a pill from the drugstore, your medicine probably got its start in the garden. At the kick-off event for the medicinal gardens at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens Wednesday, a proponent of herbal medicine and pharmacists from D’Youville College gave their views on healing plants. Yolanda Smith, left, a member of the Seneca Nation of Indians, is a medicine gatherer and talked about the…
Sunny and warm– even hot!– day after day. We’ve enjoyed splendid gardening weather this October in the Buffalo area. But this spate of summery weather isn’t all that unusual for October, according to Aaron Mentkowski, meteorologist at WKBW Channel 7. This warm weather will end soon, as it does every fall. While our current weather isn’t setting any records, July’s weather did. Current weather similar to that preceding October Storm of 2006 Mentkowski noted that it was warm in the…...
The healing properties of plants will be showcased in two medicinal gardens– an outdoor garden and an indoor garden– at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo. The medicinal gardens will provide visitors with a better understanding of the importance of medicinal plants and how the plants are used in traditional, herbal and modern medicines. The Botanical Gardens is collaborating on the project with D’Youville College School of Pharmacy and Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, part…...
“We like to have our coffee out there,” said Ann M. Bednarek, referring to her beautiful garden that you can see in her photo at left. She named the photo, “Have a Seat in Paradise.” Ann and her husband Jack have lived in the duplex at 136 Fairgreen Dr., Amherst, since 2004. They have been adding to the backyard garden there every year. Many of their plants are perennials, which are still blooming. Ann enjoys the zinnias because they come…...
The sunflower is wonderful in so many ways. If you’re not growing them now, there are many reasons why you should consider growing sunflowers next year. They have beautiful flowers. Sunflowers grow rapidly and reach a magnificent height. They offer food for people and wildlife. They blossom from summer to fall. You start sunflowers from seed, so they’re cheap. They’re easy to grow. Here’s one tip that you can use now, and two more tips for growing sunflowers next year…....
It’s officially autumn in Buffalo. Whether you’re a beginner and want to start a garden for the first time or you’re an experienced gardener and want to start new beds, now is the time to do it. Mark Van Buren, owner of Zehr’s on the Lake, offers four big reasons why it’s actually better to start a garden in the fall rather than in the spring. Fall is a great time to buy perennials. “You get the biggest plant, at…...
Gardeners don’t think of plants as moving creatures. After all, plants can’t pull up their roots and scoot over to a more pleasant spot in the garden. But plants do move. Plants stretch and bow and bend as they search for light, and they move in other ways, too. Unfortunately for us, their movements are so slow that we miss their graceful dance. With the help of time-lapse photography, you’ll get an amazing look at the plant world during “The…...