corn at Goodmans in Niagara County NY

Sweet corn is early this year & sign up now for bus tours of gardens

Sweet corn and bus tours have nothing to do with each other except that you should hurry to take advantage of both while they’re available! Get sweet corn now Sweet corn is already available at Goodman’s Farm Market, 2227 Cayuga Dr. Ext., Niagara Falls, NY. Normally, the market wouldn’t have any sweet corn until between July 4 and 10, said Ray Crawley, manager at Goodman’s, and that would be just one or two growers. It’s not even Independence Day yet…

armyworms hiding in turfgrass from University of Nebraska closeup

Army worms reach epidemic levels; wacky weather spurs other damage

Wheat and hay crops in Western New York are being damaged by an epidemic of armyworms, but unless your yard backs up to a wheat field, your lawn probably won’t be affected. That’s according to John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County. Cooperative Extension is also fielding calls from gardeners concerning problems with aphids brought on by mild weather as well as continuing problems with plants that were damaged by frost this spring. Armyworms damage feed…

trees from Donna Brok

Caring for trees in Western New York’s changing climate

by Jeremy Sayers of The Tree Doctor Our trees and shrubs are suffering and changing as a result of climate changes, and as a Board Certified Master Arborist, that concerns me.  What also concerns me is that many professional arborists insist on denying scientific consensus on the reality of global warming. Scientific consensus on climate change Emission of greenhouse gasses caused by humans is the leading factor contributing to climate change. In 2001 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the…

cucumber water in Buffalo NY

How to keep cool in Buffalo and other summer gardening tips

The official start of summer is June 20, but the summer weather that we previewed in March seems here to stay.  Here are a couple tips to keep you cool in your Western New York garden this summer, as well as other summer tips. Cucumber water is refreshing I tasted cucumber water for the first time last summer at the home of Sharon Heim and David Wahl in Buffalo. As you can see from the photo above, it makes a…

plum tree in Buffalo NY area

Bizarre weather in Buffalo area– What should gardeners do?

We’ve had record-setting high temperatures in the Buffalo area. There have been long strings of warm–even hot–days. All of our spring plants are two to four weeks ahead of schedule. It felt as if summer weather was here to stay. But it’s still only March, and we knew the warm weather wouldn’t continue. In an article last week, we warned you that we would still get frost, and that happened last night. It probably won’t be our last frost this…

garden closeup in Amherst NY

What does climate change mean for Buffalo-area gardeners?

by Mike Van Der Puy Climate change is here. What does that mean for gardeners and farmers in Western New York? Should we alter our growing plans? If so, how? Evidence that the climate is changing in Western New York You may have noticed migratory birds arriving earlier than they used to or see some bushes budding in January. Those are clues that the Western New York climate is slowly changing. However, we have more than anecdotal evidence that climate…

spring buds and rock in snow in Buffalo

No early spring: Buffalo gardens will have to wait for warm weather

by Connie Oswald Stofko Last year at this time, spring had already arrived in the Buffalo area. The ground was thawed, the sun was shining, the air was warm and I was in my garden getting a head start on pulling weeds. It was glorious! Will we be getting another early spring this year? Probably not. “Last year was an aberration,” said Tom Paone, meterologist with the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Buffalo. We keep getting snow this month,…

watering garden in Western New York

With Western New York’s dry weather, measure your watering by the inch

Because we’ve had a few showers lately, Western New Yorkers think their gardens have gotten enough rain. Unfortunately, “Our gardens are actually facing near drought conditions,” said Ken Re, who is in sales and is the director of marketing for Russell’s Tree and Shrub Farm in East Amherst. “In this dry weather you should be watering regularly–-every other day if you can,” he said. “If you don’t water enough, your plants are placed under stress but may not show the…