Thursday, January 31, 2013

Some Yard Clean Up and Chores

Yesterday was finally warm enough for me to break hibernation, get outside and do some yard work.

I discovered a mantis egg right on the Alternate-leaf Dogwood.

My honeybee hives were active and buzzing around. This one was drowning so I saved it and thought the colors and hairs looked great. There aren't to many bright colors to photograph at this time of year.

I was near the hives putting sugar water on them when I realized the moss on our shed has grown out of control. I'm not sure if that's bad or not but I think I could probably transplant some of it elsewhere.

As much as I dislike Rudbeckia plants, I actually think their seed pods are a highlight out in the meadow garden. They're a nice easy filler plant with a good burst of color, but I roll my eyes at the lack of pollinators they get. Maybe that will change as they spread, and I look forward to them spreading, but right now I just think of them as being only pretty and not good for anything else.

Thursday, January 24, 2013

New Prairie Nursery Catalog

The new Prairie Moon 2013 catalog looks amazing this year. They have lots of wonderful new photos of plants and meadow communities that emphasis the colors of these beautiful plants. I'm a month or two away from placing any plant orders other than seeds but it's good to have.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Met Doug Tallamy Today

Earlier today I got to meet Doug Tallamy after he gave a talk at the Mt. Cuba Center. He signed my book too.

His lecture assumed you'd already read his book and already know the wonders of native plants, and focused more on the life cycles of birds and butterflies; the lengths they go to survive and why they're important to the ecosystem and so on.

Sunday, January 6, 2013

The Philadelphia Flower Show

I'm not really sure why I go to the Philadelphia International Flower Show each year anymore. I often criticize them for their dependence on bulbs. Last year was a refreshing breath of fresh air becuase there wasn't a bulb to be found at all, except from one or two exhibitors who specialize in selling and developing them. In a show where Orchids were so extensively used I can hardly fault a family bulb business.

This year's theme seems to be England ... I hesitate to say "Again" because since I've been going they've done themes like Venice, France, Europe, World Tour, and England kind of blends in. I think Asian Gardens would stand out so much more given their previous themes.

Bulbs aside, I hope to attend and give it a fair review. I know it's hard to get plants to flower in March. If they are going to use them, I hope that someone goes all out with them. I want half a foot ball field laid out of nothing but tulips!

Friday, January 4, 2013

Mark Lynas Home About Categories Archives Books Contact Lecture to Oxford Farming Conference, 3 January 2013

Here is an interesting lecture on the Organic vs. Genetically Modified debate. It opens with the guy who started the anti GM crop movement saying Sorry for not listening to the science that shows GM crops are great for the world while Organic is well...  kind of like what the Amish are doing.  

Full Speech and Video Here.