by Connie Oswald Stofko by Connie Oswald Stofko “Let me tell you a story,” said Kelly McDonald, executive director and Master Gardener at Cornell Cooperative Extension in Cattaraugus County. “Last year my husband and I planted tomato seeds in the house with grow lights. The plants were getting bigger, so we moved them into gallon buckets. The weather got warmer and we moved the plants in and out of the garage (to protect them from cool nights). “Then we got…
In the newest edition of the Optimistic Gardener, topics include: The publication is produced by the Master Gardeners of Cornell Cooperative Extension in Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties. Find the newsletter on the gardening page of Cornell Cooperative Extension in Chautauqua (on the lefthand side) and in Cattaraugus (on the righthand side)….
Every year, people scoop up young wild animals thinking the animals are orphaned or neglected. They take the young animals to a wildlife rehabilitator, or worse, attempt to raise the young animals themselves. In many cases, this is unnecessary or even harmful, according to this page from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The most common young animals to be mistakenly “kidnapped” by humans are fawns, cottontail rabbits and fledgling birds. It’s important to understand the normal behavior for these…
by Connie Oswald Stofko Hummingbirds generally arrive in Western New York at the end of April or early May. I’ve seen some mentions online saying that hummingbirds have already been spotted in Chautauqua County, but according to this map, they haven’t arrived yet (as of Tuesday morning, April 16). Perhaps people are seeing male hummingbirds. The males arrive a week or so before females, according to “When to Expect Hummingbirds in Your Yard This Spring” from Audubon.org. It’s possible that…
by Connie Oswald Stofko “Come to the party! Life is a feast,” said an enthusiastic Jack Edson, expressing his outlook on his gardens and his life. I visited his landscape last year on the Buzz Around Hamburg Garden Walk. He touched on many topics, including nature, art and philosophy. As he discussed the mulberry trees in his yard, Edson noted that they have a painterly quality. He pointed out the light and dark of the mulberry leaves, and compared that…
by Connie Oswald Stofko I felt a weird energy. That’s the best way I can describe what it was like during the partial eclipse of the sun here on Aug. 21, 2017. It was something like the beginning of a lightning storm. The feeling was subtle and short—I felt it for perhaps half a minute—but it was an interesting thing to experience. What will it be like when Western New York sees the total eclipse of the sun on Monday,…
by Connie Oswald Stofko Gardeners in Western New York have the opportunity to address the problem of lesser celandine. That’s because lesser celandine is right in our own backyards. Or front yards. Or the lawns and gardens of our neighbors. If you don’t know what lesser celandine is, read on. And if you are already familiar with this invasive plant, please tell others. Tip: Our weather has been warm, and lesser celandine may be coming up sooner than it has…
by Connie Oswald Stofko Every month, when I ran out of my prescription medicine, I would get a new supply of pills in a new bottle. Then I would throw the empty bottle from the previous month into the trash, and it would end up in a landfill. I would throw out another bottle the next month. And the next month. And the next. I hated to throw out the bottles, but the recycling company in our area doesn’t take…
Be a citizen scientist and join one of the many Christmas bird counts that the National Audubon Society will hold from Thursday, Dec. 14 to Friday, Jan. 5. The Christmas bird counts have been taking place for more than 120 years. The information from these has been used in hundreds of analyses, peer-reviewed publications and government reports over the decades. One thing that scientists have discovered from the bird counts is that the number of birds has decreased dramatically in…
1,700 tiny native beetles called Laricobius Nigrinus (or affectionately called Larry, short for Laricobius), were released at Zoar Valley Multiple Use Area in November. It’s hoped that the beetles will find and eat the hemlock woolly adelgid, an invasive insect that threatens native eastern hemlock trees. Over time, the woolly adelgid can kill the hemlocks, which are an important tree species in Zoar Valley. The hemlock is a foundational species; it’s key to the ecosystem. By protecting the hemlocks, we’re protecting…
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