Christmas Tree Tips
by Valle Novak The day before Christmas is the traditional time for many families to decorate their trees. Trees aren’t too hard to come by, but oftentimes the decorations are.If you have no ornaments but want the delight of a Christmas tree, do what the pioneers (and many of us older folks) did, and
Fall Chores
by Valle Novak With the rains of fall beginning and the true cold of oncoming winter a given, it’s time to complete your fall chores – draining and storing hoses, cleaning and hanging tools, and cutting back dead perennials, now’s the time to wrap it all up.Time, too, for the classic “chores” list: It’s
Bats
by Valle Novak My bed is situated so that I can lie and see what’s going on outside the window: The wind in the trees, the moon rising, the bats busily gathering mosquitos – and I thoroughly enjoy all of it. I’ve always liked bats since my years as a young girl
Yellow Jackets – Vespula spp.
by Marcie Crockett Yellow jackets are social insects that live in colonies containing thousands of individuals. These wasps will attack aggressively when their nest is disturbed, and can inflict painful stings. Numerous stings can result in a life-threatening situation, as can stings to an allergic individual. Unlike the honeybee, which stings only once
Spider Mites
by Marcie Crockett Spider mites are a major pest on a wide variety of garden and landscape plants. They are minute arthropods whose feeding can cause yellowing, stunt growth and reduce yields. Identification – Most Common Species Twospotted Spider Mite – Tetranychus urticae The “two spot” spider mites are usually yellow/tan/ greenish in color,
Aphids
by Marcie Crockett Aphids are soft-bodied insects that use their piercing sucking mouthparts to feed on plant sap. They usually occur in colonies on the undersides of leaves and on tender terminal growth. Heavily infested leaves can wilt or turn yellow because of excessive sap removal. Some plants are very sensitive to feeding
Compost
by Bob Wilson * The benefits, for both the individual and the community, of composting common organic waste materials are manyfold. Most people produce quantities of grass clippings, garden and yard wastes, or autumn leaves every year. By composting these prime materials, we can mimic nature’s soil-making process in a shorter length of
Soil Amendments
by Bob Wilson * Recently, it has been brought to my attention that some people have had problems using log-yard wastes as soil amendment. I also talked to a homeowner in Coeur d’Alene who bought some topsoil that was not what she wanted. She had ordered some topsoil over the phone and after it
Hillside Planting
by Valle Novak A few months ago, a friend new to the ranks of Master Gardeners, mentioned that her property lay on a partial hillside and that she was nervous about planting on a slope. We discussed the pros and cons and the many options – terracing, retaining walls, individual plantings shored with rocks
The Art of Color Echo
by Laurie Brown Combining colors in the garden is a source of great fun for me. drifts of lavender, spikes of blue – will it go together? How much of each? One good way to pull colors together is for one plant to echo the color of another. This can be subtle
Try an “Upright” Landscape Plan
by Valle Novak Small houses – one-story ranch-type homes or bungalows, for instance – have a real charm and are site-friendly since they don’t overwhelm the landscape. If the “gardener-in-residence” isn’t careful, however, the landscape can overwhelm the house. Too often, we are static in our selection of ornamental perennials and opt for mound-type
Fairy Garden
by Valle Novak Some years ago – and I’ve recounted this story before – I was lost in a network of country roads and finally in desperation, knocked on the door of a secluded house I had happened to see. As I waited for an answer to my knock, I glanced down at the
Herbal “Worts”
by Valle Novak Many gardeners will recognize today’s little play on words. Indeed, back in medieval times the term “worts” was used for many plants – generally the useful ones, which we now term “herbs.” Later, wort would be used for more common plants, but for several centuries, “lungwort,” “woundwort,” “liverwort” and
Edible Landscaping
by Valle Novak If your plans revolve around a pretty – mostly ornamental – garden, with flowers and shrubs, and you haven’t the time or inclination to put in a vegetable garden as well, consider edible landscaping. Plan and plant your chosen annuals, perennials, flowering shrubs and ornamental grasses, but simply consider
Green Flowers
by Laurie Brown Green flowers? Leaves are green, yes, and grass is green. But flowers? Yes, there are green flowers, a surprising variety of them, in fact. But why, you might ask, would one want green flowers, when a garden already has such an abundance of this color? Green flowers are unusual
Clematis and Peonies
by Valle Novak In the past, I have touted the benefits of vertical gardening and mentioned clematis as a natural for that genre. I always point out that the gardener should be aware of the type of clematis planted, since some of them need heavy pruning, some just a little pruning, and some none
Companion Planting
by Valle Novak What do you really want from your vegetable garden? Food, or course. But surely, food that’s healthy and safe – and while you’re at it, why not opt for beauty to the eye, and enticement for beneficial insects and pollinators? Companion planting of vegetables and culinary herbs addresses all
Growing Roses with Idaho Potatoes
Did you know you can grow roses from a cutting? Simply cut healthy stems, place them in large potatoes, and them bury them 3-4 inches deep in a healthy soil mixture of peet moss and top soil. The potatoes keep the stems moist and help develop the root systems. It’s a perfectly
Tater Facts
by Valle Novak In this article, I bring you a bright ray of sunshine – advice from Pat Van Volkinburg, Advanced Master Gardener, Master Composter, owner of “Bountiful Organics,” Farmers’ Market vendor, and the acknowledged “Spud Queen” of Bonner County – on her foolproof way to grow potatoes. Pat has won countless