I was recently invited to visit a little-known treasure in Mount Vernon called the Stone Garden, which sits next to a busy community garden. The Stone Garden is noted for stones that are mentioned in the Bible. The beauty and maintenance performed impressed me. I got a call from Steve Conrad, who manages both gardens […]
A Stroll Through the Garden
Posted inLife and Culture
A Stroll Through the Garden: What are the perils of Tomato Southern Blight?
In mid-July, I found out the Mansfield Extension Office got a call about a tomato problem while I was volunteering to answer gardening questions. I’m part of the Master Gardeners, a national volunteer group connected to the Ohio extension service. This year, I wanted to get more involved. Usually, I’d go to the Longwood Office […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Serviceberry is a native American favorite
What fruit-bearing tree I would grow in my garden if I had space for only one? My choice has always been the Serviceberry, or Shadbloom, or Amelanchier, which is a tall shrub or small tree. This plant has been one of my favorite landscape trees. As a matter of fact, there are 18 native Serviceberries […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Peaches provide summer sunshine from a jar
Peach pies have been a weakness of mine for many years. A friend’s wife from church made the most incredible peach pies I’ve ever tasted. I’m sorry to say that she passed away several years ago. She made peach pies from the peach trees he had in their orchard. He grew great peaches, and she […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Franklin Tree in bloom has become an extinct pleasure
A few years back, I visited my mom and saw that the Franklin Tree I had given her was blooming. It had been growing there for several years. That year, the weather was good, so the blossoms lasted late into the season. The tree was a bargain, and I almost bought one for myself at […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Cabbage invaders are ready to attack
I got a call some time ago from a reader about this worm in his cabbage. I visited his home to take a look. Most of his cabbage and related crops had small holes in the leaves. He showed me the culprit: a green caterpillar about 1 to 2 inches long, with a thin line […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Violating seed-gathering principles can be dangerous
A while back, I got a strange call from a reader who has followed my column for a while. This person asked if I’d ever heard of Toxic Squash Syndrome. Apparently, they had food poisoning symptoms that lasted three or four days. I’ve had food poisoning myself, and for three days I felt so awful […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Can chicory be a coffee substitute?
Have you been driving along the road lately and noticed a blue flower that just seems to grow up through the gravel? Personally, I find this small flower attractive, and I think you will find my research interesting. A friend from church asked me about this flower and wondered about the value of this weed. […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: I heard it through the grapevine
A few years back, one of our readers reached out to me with a question: “How do youget rid of this vine in the picture of a lot she was trying to sell?” Her curiosity got me thinking — does this persistent vine really affect a property’s value? Yes most of us agree it’s more […]
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A Stroll Through the Garden: Iris is the goddess of the rainbow
A few years ago, I got an e-mail from reader who was frustrated that their irises just wouldn’t bloom. If you’ve ever looked at your own garden and wondered what went wrong, you’re not alone — I’ve been there too. Irises have been a part of my family’s flower beds for as long as I […]