News
See the STARS
The Night Sky is a Precious Gift Have you ever thought about how wonderful it is that you can see the stars in the night sky? It’s easy for us to take this miracle for granted, but visitors from cities and suburbs notice it right away. The night sky is a precious gift. For ancient man, the night sky was fascinating entertainment; a companion, the equivalent of today’s wide screen TV. The ever-changing constellations and phases of the moon marked the passing of time, and provided a dependable
Tomatoes and Viviparity
Mutant Tomatoes? Not So Fast! Have you ever seen tomato plants sprout right out of a ripe tomato? It looks sort of spooky, like something from a horror movie. Here’s a letter we received from Carol Gorby of Manchester, Ohio: “Dear Steve, “I recently purchased at the supermarket a group of tomatoes still attached to the vine. We ate some, however two were left over and sat on my kitchen counter for a few weeks. No sign of decay or mold on them but I noticed one started getting bumpy.
Soils - How to Improve Them
Making Fluffy Dirt - Improving Your Garden Soil My grandmother’s vegetable garden had the most wonderful rich, dark, crumbly soil I’ve ever seen. A powered tiller would have been a luxury in her world. Instead she set me to work “spading” it; painstakingly turning over every single shovelful, burying last years’ composted leaves and the first early weeds. She had the good fortune to live in southern New Jersey, where the soil is sandy and well-drained. Most of us struggle with hard clay soil in
Weed Control & Lawns
Healthy Lawns Reduce Weeding Chores Are you fighting a losing battle with weeds in your landscaping? Weeds are the biggest challenge for landscape gardeners. We’ve tackled this topic from many directions in past columns, but here’s a new idea: It’s quite possible that the biggest source of weeds in your landscaping is the lawn surrounding your landscape beds. Lawn grasses (and the weeds in your lawn) are eager to invade your landscape beds. There’s less competition there, and most likely the soil
