by Connie Oswald Stofko One day I realized I had lots of large vases, but nothing that was suitable for flowers from my spring garden. It seemed like every flower was short: hyacinths, lilies-of-the valley, daffodils. And don’t forget the occasional gift of dandelions from a child. If you want to enjoy these flowers from your own garden, start looking for vases now. Thrift stores and garage sales are where I’ve been able to find small vases. The vases should…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko As a gardener, what would it be like if your house was surrounded by a nature preserve full of deer? Ruth Robson in Cheektowaga knows what it’s like firsthand. While she has houses to her right, to her left is the Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve. Her backyard, and the backyards of all her neighbors, border on Reinstein Woods. The deer could stay in Reinstein Woods, but they don’t know know anything about property lines, so they…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko We’re not ready to plant vegetables outside yet, but this is a good time to plan for spring. Here’s an idea for keeping rabbits out of your vegetable garden. I saw these raised beds in the yard of Beth and Brian Kreutzer in Cheektowaga. I think these garden beds are genius: simple, fairly easy to build and a solid defense against pesky rabbits. You can tell the fencing works by the healthy vegetables! The Kreutzers’ patch…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko To keep at least some of your potted poinsettias looking pretty longer, try this tip from my sister, Sharon Moriarity of Cheektowaga. She was able to start out with many potted poinsettias. On Jan. 6, the end of the Christmas season, her church was taking down the poinsettias, but no one else wanted them. Moriarity was glad to take them home. After a while, some of the “flowers” weren’t doing well. (What we think of as…...
UPDATE FEB. 3, 2025: Some readers wanted to hear more about this topic, but couldn’t attend the talk when it occurred. You can see a summary of the main points of Ken Parker’s presentation here. by Connie Oswald Stofko Are black-eyed Susans native plants? To North America, yes. But to Western New York, they’re not native, said Ken Parker, membership chair of Wild Ones Western New York. And it’s important for “native plants” to be native to where we live…....
by Connie Oswald Stofko Now is the time to start making plans for next season. What worked well in your garden this year, and what didn’t? Here are some ideas that may help. Consider trees and shrubs Too often, when we think about “garden plants,” we think only about perennials and annuals, but shrubs and trees are important elements of your landscape. New York state and most counties in Western New York will have sales of tree and shrub seedlings…....
Get ideas for holiday decorations with materials that you already have in your garden. Nancy Walker, Master Gardener trainee with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Orleans County, has compiled tips on using natural materials. Some of the materials she lists are: Read her article here. Tip: You can get the Master Gardens Journal and updates from the Master Gardeners in Orleans County by signing up here. See more holiday ideas here:…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Snow is coming to Western New York, and heavy snow is expected in the Snow Belt, according to the National Weather Service. It’s time to protect your gardens from heavy snow—you never know if the winds will shift and surprise you. By the way, if heavy snow warnings are surprising you, it’s probably because most of us in Western New York haven’t gotten any snow yet this season. Buffalo has now set the record for the…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko Traditional poinsettias are still a welcome sight, but “the Princettia variety is becoming more and more popular,” said Mark Yadon, vice president at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses, 118 South Forest Rd., Williamsville. “Princettias are compact, mounded plants,” Yadon said. “The flowers are smaller, but more abundant.” A traditional poinsettia has larger flowers, but there are fewer of them. An aside about poinsettia flowers: What we call flower petals on poinsettias aren’t really petals. They’re bracts, which…...
by Connie Oswald Stofko I had a poor garlic crop this year. Instead of large bulbs with separate cloves, I got small bulbs without any separate cloves. I don’t know what I did wrong. For years I have planted garlic with no problems. I think it’s the easiest food plant you can grow. John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County, concurred. “It’s hard to go wrong with garlic,” he said. Though garlic is usually easy to grow,…...
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