Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com

spangled fritillary butterfly, red leaf, and bumble bee

Use the leaves, leave the leaves, or rake to curb?

by Connie Oswald Stofko Where do our pollinators go in the winter? A lot of them stay right here in Western New York. You may have created a welcoming habitat for them in spring, summer and autumn with native plants. Now it’s time for us to create a welcoming habitat for them during winter. It’s easy, too! Just leave the leaves. Why leave the leaves? We need pollinators, and pollinators need those fallen leaves in order to survive over the…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 31, 2023

Grants available for community gardens, school gardens, urban farms

The Urban Farms and Community Gardens Competitive Grant Program has a total of $1 million available for grants through the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. The grants are to support the development and expansion of community gardens, school gardens and urban farms. The state will cover up to 90 percent of the total project costs, with the total state contribution not to exceed $50,000. The minimum grant amount is $20,000. An informational webinar about the program was…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 31, 2023

Volunteers sought to contain invasive species in Buffalo Olmsted parks

The Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy has created a new Invasive Species Eradication Taskforce. The taskforce aims to make people aware of invasive plant and insect species. The group is looking for volunteers to help the conservancy contain invasive species, and, when possible, eradicate them. Some of the invasive species the taskforce is looking at are phragmites, bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus, also called round leaf, Asian or Oriental bittersweet), buckthorn and spotted lanternfly. “It’s imperative that we make a concentrated effort to manage…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 31, 2023

grassless front yard in South Buffalo NY

Yards with no grass: See how these South Buffalo gardeners did it

by Connie Oswald Stofko Paul and Paula Moloney have lived in their house on Tuscarora Road in South Buffalo for less than three years, but they have transformed their landscaping by taking one thing out. Grass. There’s no grass in the front yard. No grass in the back, either. “We both hate lawns,” Paul said, “and I don’t like mowing lawns. I never have luck with lawns; they always looked like crap.” The couple started with the garden area nearest…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 24, 2023

Learn about cold frames & more in Optimistic Gardener newsletter

Want to extend your growing season by constructing a cold frame? Check out the article by Laura A. Marsala, apprentice Master Gardener volunteer, in the newest edition of The Optimistic Gardener. That is just one of the many helpful articles you’ll find in the publication produced by the Master Gardeners of Cornell Cooperative Extension in Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties. Other topics in this edition include a discussion of whether tulips are perennials and a look at a gardener who turned…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 24, 2023

spring flowers in small pots at Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens

How much do you value this gardening magazine?

by Connie Oswald Stofko Do you enjoy the great gardening tips that you can use in your own landscape? Have you found helpful advice about pests and invasive plants in your gardens? Do you like to keep up with garden walks, classes and other great gardening events in Western New York? If so, will you become a Super Reader? I don’t require my subscribers to pay a yearly subscription. I leave it up to you to decide how much Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 24, 2023

herbs, compost, rose hips, birds in snow

Autumn tips: rose seeds, herbs, new garden, spreading compost & more

by Connie Oswald Stofko Here are six reminders–or perhaps new ideas–for activities that Western New York gardeners can do in autumn. Start roses from seeds Yes, you can actually start roses from seeds, and autumn is the time to do it, said David Clark, CNLP. The seeds are inside the rose hip, which is the fruit of the plant. It’s a green or red ball that forms when the rose flower drops off. See more in the article “How to…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 17, 2023

Orchard Park GC launches evening group called Seedlings

For people who can’t attend a garden club during the day, the Orchard Park Garden Club has expanded to include an evening branch called the Seedlings. “We hope to attract members from the Orchard Park Community and perhaps nearby: West Seneca, Hamburg, East Aurora,” said Carol-Jo Pope, Seedlings liaison and member of the Orchard Park Garden Club. The next meeting of Seedlings will take place at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 14 in the lower level meeting room of the Orchard…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 17, 2023

Register now for gardening symposium set by Jamestown Garden Club

Flower arrangements and native plants will be the topics of the annual gardening symposium to be held by the Jamestown Garden Club Saturday, Nov. 11 at the YWCA Lake Lodge, 185 East Terrace Ave., Lakewood. Doors open at 9:30 a.m.; the program will be held from 10 a.m. to noon. Mail your registration form by Nov. 1 so that it is received by Nov. 6. Get the registration form here. The cost is $15 per person. David Clark, CNLP,…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 17, 2023

triangular plant supports in North Tonawanda

Geometric shapes–even sharp angles–add interest in North Tonawanda

by Connie Oswald Stofko As you walk along the driveway to the backyard, you make your first encounter with sharp angles. The vegetable beds are rectangles. Another bed is a triangle. Plant supports are triangles. “We have some circles and arcs to make the rectangular shapes more interesting,” said Paul Orrange. He and his wife Susan Orrange shared their Whiting Street landscape on the North Tonawanda Garden Walk in July. The Orranges have been in their home for about 25…...

Monthly Subscription Membership Required

You must be a Monthly Subscription member to access this content.

Join Now

Already a member? Log in here

Oct 10, 2023