Garden tips Archives - Page 5 of 108 - Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com

Monarch butterflies could become extinct: See what you can do

by Connie Oswald Stofko In order to protect monarch butterflies, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) has proposed listing the monarch under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). “This is good news for conservationists and nature lovers,” said Jay Burney, a local conservation activist. The monarch would be listed as threatened, which means it is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future. (Endangered means a species is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.) By…...

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Feb 11, 2025

Got a sick tree? Get a diagnosis for free!

If you have a sick tree in your yard, you can get help through the Forest Health Research Lab, part of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. While it talks about “forest health,” you don’t need a forest; a single tree is fine. But this lab is just for trees, not other kinds of plants. The Forest Health Research Lab is available year-round to help you diagnose tree diseases and potentially invasive insects–at no cost. They will also…...

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Feb 11, 2025

Who has been in your garden? See winter tracks

by Connie Oswald Stofko If you’re like me, anytime you see tracks in the snow, especially if they are near a plant that has been nibbled on, you assume it’s rabbits. But sometimes I get surprised—we occasionally have deer, too. Or the random skunk. How can you tell what has been in your garden? You can get help with these Winter Tracks from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. In addition to drawings, there’s helpful text, too. For…...

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Feb 11, 2025

Moth gardens, hardiness zones and more from Master Gardeners

Master Gardeners in Erie and Orleans counties share tips on moth gardens, what to do in your gardens now, a reminder about hardiness zones and more. Moth gardens Here’s a review on the book Gardening for Moths, a regional guide. The spectacular photos drew her in, but the text is attention grabbing, too, said Lyn Chimera, Master Gardener with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Erie County. Moths are responsible for a tremendous amount of pollination. We think about butterfly gardens, but…...

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Feb 4, 2025

Spring is coming; start looking for small vases

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…...

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Feb 4, 2025

burlap on rhododendron to keep deer from eating shrub in Cheektowaga NY

You think YOU have deer in your garden?

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…...

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Feb 4, 2025

vegetable garden with fencing to keep out rabbits in Cheektowaga NY

Random tip: keep rabbits out of veggies

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…...

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Jan 28, 2025

How to keep poinsettias looking great for weeks

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…...

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Jan 21, 2025

Are black-eyed Susans native plants?

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…....

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Jan 14, 2025

bees on flowers and two buck deer in Amherst NY

What worked well for your garden? What didn’t?

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…....

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Dec 17, 2024