Don’t prune in autumn. That’s one of the important bits of advice gardening expert Sally Cunningham will share during a free class on “Yard and Garden Care in October (for a Better Spring!)” at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, October 12, at Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark Street, Hamburg. While the class is free, seating is limited, so please call 649-4684 to make a reservation. Whether you maintain a yard or grow vegetables and flowers, the jobs you do now will make a…...
Tag: Composting
Gardener goes old school with organic gardening in Buffalo
“We’re from New York City,” said Shawn King. “It’s all concrete there. When we got here and saw all this land, we just started planting.” She and her husband, Lew-Jean, have lived for 27 years at 166 Lasalle Ave., Buffalo. I visited them on July 13 during the Samuel P. Capen Garden Walk. “We’ve always had a garden,” Shawn said. “The love of gardening was instilled in me by my grandmother.” In the front yard, a neat arrangement of flowers…...
Don’t waste those leaves! 3 tips to turn autumn leaves into compost
by Connie Oswald Stofko Autumn leaves are so valuable for your garden. You can rake them onto garden beds to serve as mulch. This can help protect your plants during the winter. After that, many of us still have plenty of leaves left. These are great for compost. Here are three tips to make the most of your autumn leaves. Gather leaves up in a tarp. I used to rake my leaves into a pile. Then I would pick them…...
Easy compost bin, research study & more items too good to miss
Speed up compost with this no-turn bin I love these instructions for making a bin for a compost pile that you don’t have to turn. It’s cheap and very, very easy. Compost piles need oxygen to carry on the decomposition process. One way to speed up your compost pile is to turn the pile with a pitch fork. This design by Fred Davis of Hill Gardens of Maine allows air to circulate throughout the pile so you don’t need to…...
Put your garden to bed: Tips from Toronto writer & horticulturist
Labor Day is approaching, the kids are heading back to school and the sun is setting earlier and earlier. Autumn is on its way, but that doesn’t mean that the gardening season is over, according to Toronto garden writer Ken Brown. Brown, a horticulturist who landscaped exhibits at the Toronto Zoo, will be the featured speaker at Lockwood’s Greenhouses Fall Garden Fair to be held Saturday, Sept. 8 at Lockwood’s Greenhouses, 4484 Clark Street, Hamburg. The fair includes several great talks and demonstrations…...
Couple expresses differing gardening styles in West Seneca
Carl and Doris Swan bought a house with three acres of land on Center Road in West Seneca as an investment property. After 43 years, they’re still there. “I figured we weren’t going to stay long,” Carl said, “but we did.” Over the last 10 or 15 years, areas that formerly were used by the children and grandchildren for playing ball are becoming gardens, and the Swans have developed different gardening styles. The Swans showed their gardens during the first…...
‘Fungi & great moments in history’ among talks at ReLeaf Conference
If it weren’t for fungi, we wouldn’t have the Ten Commandments or the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark. That’s the tongue-in-cheek assessment of George Hudler, professor at Cornell University, who will speak on “Great Moments in History and How Fungi Got Us Here.” His entertaining talk will be part of the 20th annual statewide ReLeaf Conference, where you will have the opportunity to learn from professionals from across the country and Canada and to tour local community forestry projects,…...
Celebrate Earth Day in your garden
Gardeners treasure the chance to get outdoors and work with plants. They feel the rhythms of the seasons. They’re in tune with nature and want to make their corner of the world a better place. Earth Day is coming up this Sunday, April 22, so this seems like a good time to review ways we gardeners can be more effective in helping the environment. Many of the tips on our list today are things we’ve talked about in previous articles,…...
Speed up your compost pile by balancing key ingredients
In an earlier article, we told you why you should save autumn leaves and we gave you some basic information on composting. In another article, we gave you more details on what to put in your compost pile. Today we’re going to give you more advanced information on composting. If you’re willing to put in a little bit of work, there are ways to speed up your compost pile. David Clark, horticulturist, shared tips on composting at a recent seminar…...
Hurry and plant spring bulbs now. Plus, three other autumn reminders
Take advantage of this beautiful autumn weather we’re enjoying in the Buffalo area and tackle some gardening projects. Here are some reminders of things you can do right now. Reminder #1: Hurry and plant spring bulbs. If you want spring flowers such as tulips and daffodils, hurry and plant your bulbs now before the ground freezes. That tip is from the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, where today 16 volunteers and several staff members planted spring bulbs– 4,500 of…...