I've received two e-mail message this week asking for a recommendation to control native Milkweed Tussock Moth caterpillars feeding on their namesake host. The senders were well-meaning Monarch Butterfly enthusiasts who were concerned the tussocks were eating the monarchs out of house and home.

Did you know that Tuesday, August 8th was "Sneak A Zucchini on Your Neighbor's Front Porch Day"? Did you sneak, or did you get snuck upon? Didn't participate this year?  Be sure it is on the calendar for 2018! 

 

While this is a fun thing to do, it is important to remember if you have excess fruits and vegetables this time of the year, it is a great opportunity to share your bountiful harvest with others.  A simple sharing can occur neighbor-to-neighbor, among friends and family members, or excess produce can be donated food banks, kitchens or pantries.  Different...

This has been one of the most prolific seasons for Japanese beetles in Ohio for many years. High localized populations were observed throughout the state. Adult populations of both Northern and Southern Masked Chafers, two of our other common "white grub producing" beetles, were also very high this season, particularly in the central and southern parts of Ohio.

Most of the perennials in my garden have bloomed a little earlier than normal.  Here it is almost the second week in August and I am seeing the late August perennials such as Sedum and goldenrod start to bloom.  It's also time for me to do a little cleaning up in the gardens, especially with those plants that have finished blooming such as Echinacea (coneflowers), Nepeta (catmint) and others.

It’s Sunday night, I check my e-mail, and Frank Sinibaldi asks: “Mr. Chatfield, can you tell me what tree this comes from?”  I check out the attached image, and there it is: a linden bract with attached peduncle, pedicels and fruits.

 

  So, linden (Tilia spp.) is the tree. Common lindens are the American linden or basswood (Tilia americana), littleleaf linden (Tilia cordata) native to Europe and into Asia, and the hybrid Crimean linden Tilia x euchlora).  Lindens are much bee-beloved.

 

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The great thing for all of us as plant lovers is the simplicity of enjoyment of a walk in the woods or through city streets, checking out the plants we know. Here are some snapshots of just a few plant sightings on an afternoon walk in Wooster, Ohio a few days ago.

 

  First, as our lead photo, at the edge of a parking lot was Calycanthus, which a Clemson fact sheet notes has common names of Carolina allspice, strawberry-bush, sweet bubby {my favorite}, sweet Betsy, and spicebush {my least favorite since we think of Lindera benzoin as spicebush up North...

While in Maryland and Virginia recently our Extension Nursery Landscape and Turf Team of diagnosticians admired crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia indica) in whites, reds, and lavenders.  Absolutely gorgeous trees for their flower displays and their attractive bark.

What a great response to our Name That Pine query posed last Friday. There were dozens of responses, some on Friday and Saturday, and then again a number today, Monday July 31. At first, this bimodal response rate puzzled me until I realized that some of you do not get bygl-alerts, our just-in-time alerts to your phone via e-mails, vs. the Monday summary of the previous weeks alerts. 

 

 How can you possibly not want to be alerted by phone the very moment that we ask for your pine ID skills and other matters!!! Well, it is imaginable, but if you do want to get those alerts...

What does local foods mean to you? While there is not one definition for “local” food - it is very personal and can vary from person to person. Some people are able to grow their own food. Others grow some food, and also support local producers by purchasing food from them.  And still others only purchase local foods from local producers. 

True pines, as opposed to say, Norfolk Island-pine (Araucaria heterophylla) or Japanese umbrella-pine (Sciadopitys verticillata) are in the genus Pinus, which differs from other genera in the Pinaceae family. Other genera in the family include, for example, spruces (Picea), firs (Abies), and hemlocks (Tsuga).