Despite a winter that tormented us, most plants did pretty well in the snow. While there was plenty of mechanical damage from several heavy snow storms, the snow accumulation actually protected many plants. Snow cover helped to prevent winter desiccation, particularly in plants lucky enough to have been buried, like turfgrass. It also kept the ground in many locations from a hard freeze, which helped provide much needed moisture to the landscape. [Read more…]
March 23, 2014 Richard Buckley
Frosty Finally Melted!
Last week, the cats from John Deere had me up to the northern tier of NY for John Deere University and we had a blizzard! This week I was in Lake Placid with my friends at NYSTA and the morning temperature was something like -7°F. All I could think of was “How do I get winter speaking gigs in Florida instead of upstate NY?!”
A healthy, but winter dormant turf area.
Photo: Richard Buckley, Rutgers PDL
February 24, 2014 Richard Buckley
Spring Fever?
Hold your horses, the Spring Equinox is not until March 20th and if the 10-day forecasts hold true, then we are in for another visit from old man winter before the seasons change.
Skip laurel buried in a snow bank. Photo: Richard Buckley, Rutgers PDL
September 18, 2013 Richard Buckley
BBR – Boxwood Blight Revisited
I heard through the grapevine about a site with some dead boxwoods, so I went to take a look and here is what I saw.
Boxwood garden. Photo: Richard Buckley, Rutgers PDL
September 11, 2013 Richard Buckley
Orange is the New Black
I went out to walk my orange dog this morning and wound up with orange shoes. And no, the orange dust all over my shoes was not orange dog dandruff, but masses of rust spores.
Rust spores all over my shoes. Photo: Richard Buckley, Rutgers PDL
September 3, 2013 Richard Buckley
Rust Never Sleeps
Happy Labor Day, which was yesterday of course, but I had the day off and hope you did too, and were out in your garden enjoying the diseased and insect riddled plants.
Alcea rosea flowers and seedpods. Photo: Stan Sheds, Spring Preserve Gardens
