Serving all of Eastern Laramie County since 1908
Serving all of Eastern Laramie County since 1908
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We’ve all seen the fertilizer ads with the rich beautiful lawns and tall, lush flowers. As we get closer to spring the ads will increase in volume and make us all wish that our lawns were that lovely and lush and our flowers were bursting with all the wonderful green foliage and colorful blooms. All of the fertilizer companies swear that their product is the best in the market and if you just buy theirs, not the competitors, then you can have the same look that they show on TV and on their bags. Yeah. Right. Just because they say it doesn’t mea...
This year has been quite unusual as far as the weather goes. One day it seems like we're really going to have a good winter, snow and all, then the next several days are nearly tee shirt weather. It's hard to believe it actually is winter. Seems more like spring to me. And that turns my mind to starting plants. It's not quite time yet, but it is time to start getting the supplies together and planning the timeline. This year it looks like we're probably going to be able to plant the week after...
When I first started gardening, and I mean something besides just zucchini, I just planted whatever seeds I wanted directly in the ground and expected them to grow and produce the vegetables that I wanted. Sometimes they did and sometimes they didn't. NOTE TO SELF. Zucchini always produces more than you want or can use. I digress. Many that did come up were either pretty lackluster or didn't produce at all. When I began starting plants I the house first then planting the seedlings, things got...
As I sit here in front of the computer and look back at 2018, I'm feeling tired. And getting more so. That was a truly busy year, both physically and mentally. Mostly the year was spent preparing for the next chapter of my life, retirement. I don't know if I'm getting so tired thinking about how much I had to do last year or if it was trying to juggle a business while "attempting" to retire. At last, I'm closer now than I was and, I think, the hardest work is done. Last year taught me a lot,...
It's Christmas and time to give your favorite gardener a treat for next year. A registration for the next Master Gardener course being offered by the University of Wyoming Extension Service. If you are an experienced gardener you will gain many useful insights and materials to expand your knowledge. If you're are a novice gardener or even if you think you have a "brown thumb" and couldn't even grow mold, this course is for you. It will run from Mid-January through March for a total 10 weeks,...
On my many travels through my memories as I write these articles, some of my fondest involve hikes through the woods. I've always loved to walk and I would take off for hours, and sometimes a few days, to just hike and camp. One of my favorite places to go was to the Okefenokee Swamp in northern Florida and southern Georgia. The swamp lies across the state line so it's in both states. My father and I would canoe out into the swamp to Billy's Island to hike and camp. Actually, I would hike and he...
Growing up I really had no idea what a Christmas cactus was. My grandmother had one, but to me it was just “that plant over there”. It was pretty for a few weeks out of the year and I never understood why it was so special to her. It was only after I met Linda that I started to get an idea of what the Christmas cactus was and why it was so special to people. Her mom had several and one was absolutely HUGE. It dominated the bedroom it was in and made everything else look, well, small. But she...
WOW! The year just seems to be zipping by. It's hard to imagine that it's already December and Christmas is just around the corner. Even though I started writing about the plants of Christmas last week, the time of year just sunk in. I don't know if I've been that busy or if maybe it's just old age. Could be a combination of both, I guess. Regardless, I still find myself stopping to reflect on Christmas when I was growing up. This week I was thinking about poinsettias. Mind you, the poinsettias...
As Christmas approaches, I can’t help but think back to my childhood and the Christmas traditions my family shared so many years ago. House plants were always a part of the season, but not all could be found in our house. Some were in relative’s homes and some were actually outside years round. Of course, I grew up in Florida and the climate is much different than here. Subtropical versus high plains? Oh, yeah. Way different. Growing plants outdoors was a piece of cake in Florida compared to here. But I digress. What we’re talking about here is...
It was cold, bitterly cold, on December 18, 1620 when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts to form their first colony in the New World. Since they had no shelter on land, they had to live on the ship for the next few months and ferried back and forth to the shore as they worked hard to build homes for their new colony. In March they began to move ashore permanently as shelter became available. But, the months aboard ship were devasting. One hundred settlers started the journey,...
In last week's column, I included an invitation to the residents of Pine Bluffs to come out and help plant bulbs at the columbarium last Saturday. The town responded and the Cub Scouts, American Legion Post 60 as well as several civic-minded citizens joined the Laramie County Master Gardeners to plant over 800 bulbs to accent the walkway at the new columbarium that's being installed at the cemetery. The Master Gardeners started about 8 am separating the bulbs and laying out the planting spaces...
If you're anything like me, you've been working fast and furious to get those last-minute outside chores finished before winter really gets here. We've been very fortunate to have such beautiful weather this year, but we all know it won't last. So, that said, I want to add another task to your "To Do" list. This is the perfect time to plant bulbs. In fact, it's the best time to plant bulbs. Plant in the fall and they'll come up in the spring and bring "COLOR" and more "COLOR" to your flower...
On Saturday, Betty Nussbaum of Burns received the Laramie County Master Gardeners Community Service Award. The timing was perfect with the award being given on Betty's 90th birthday. This is the first year the Community Service Award has been given by the Master Gardeners. It recognizes a member of the Laramie County community who is not employed in an agricultural field and is not a Master Gardener. Ms. Nussbaum was selected for the award for her unique dedication and tireless devotion to...
We all know that we need to water our lawns and keep them mowed in the summer to keep that healthy well-maintained look. But what to do when winter is just around the corner? Just before winter is when we have that last, hard push to get everything done so that we’re prepared for what we know is coming. Our lawns are no exception and they need to be included in the cold weather preparations. Lawns need to be watered right up until the ground freezes. Plenty of water helps ensure the roots won’t dry out in our harsh weather. Extreme cold, whi...
In "The Essential Oils Handbook", Colleen Dodt called lavender oil her desert island oil. I've changed the wording a bit because the lavender plant has so many more ways to be used than just essential oils. Although the essential oil is the most commonly known product, there are others. Hydrosol, buds and flowers are other ways to use lavender. Not only are there various forms to use the plant, there are many ways to use it. To begin with, you have to know which variety you are working with...
As I write this article, I'm a little bit concerned about all the produce I still have in the garden. Some if it I can pick anytime before it freezes, but some may end up being lost. My greatest concern is the tomatoes. Today, I have about 120 pounds of tomatoes left to pick, but only about half are even close to being ripe. I hope the warm temperatures will help ripen those that are close. Peppers are different. They can be picked at any level of maturity and still be eaten. Sometimes they're...
By now, you're either right in the middle of harvest or on the tail end of it. What are you going to do with all the vegetables that you have stacked in those boxes, filling your kitchen, your garage or wherever? You really only have four options: eat it; give it away, preserve it for the future, or just throw it away. Since you've put all this work into it over the last season, throwing it away simply isn't an option. Giving it away, or trading with other gardeners for vegetables you didn't...
Relaxation. Rejuvenation. Restoration. That's exactly what Linda and I did this weekend. I had a topic all ready for this week, but after our little jaunt around southeast Wyoming and down into Colorado, I changed my mind. Harvest is about to come full force and before it does, it was time to take a break. So, no gardening this week. Only a recap of our trip and some of the neat things we did and saw. Our original plan was to spend the weekend in Centennial at the Old Corral Steakhouse and...
I don't know where the time went last week. When I get to writing about something that truly interests me, I lose track of the words. Planting is nice, but the harvest, even with all the work that it promises, is my favorite time of the year. Besides being work that I enjoy, I think it's the anticipation of the fresh vegetables and the future prospect of eating everything that I've canned or frozen. The best thing about growing your own vegetables, beside the sheer enjoyment, is knowing what...
I don't know about your garden, but I'm starting to see a lot of color in mine. That means that harvest is coming sooner rather than later. I ended up planting two to four weeks late this year, but the harvest seems to be coming almost two weeks early with the tomato varieties I planted. I want to say that is a good thing as it will let me get started with canning a little bit early and not have it all crammed into such a tight schedule. Those of you who can or otherwise process their harvest...
So, the 2018 growing season is starting to wind down. Harvest is coming in and the canning season is literally right around the corner. And you really think it may slow down soon? Not so fast, Flash. Now it’s time to start planning for next year. There’s still quite a bit of work to do before you sit down for that “long winter’s nap”. Why can’t I just buy seeds and put them in the ground next year you may ask? The quick answer is, “You can”. The only problem is that you may not optimize your garden space. The only way to get the most out of...
Since I was unable to finish what I started last week, I'll try to get it in this week. There really is simply too much to speak to when it comes to watering systems and watering to put into a short article. I left off with poly pipe and drip tape and got a start on valves. So, I'll pick back up there and may rehash a few things, but basically build on what I discussed previously. Since poly pipe has a disgusting characteristic of contracting and expanding with the temperature, its placement...
By now I hope your garden and flower beds have been planted. I wish I could say that for mine, but I'm running way behind. I still have 144 lavender plants, 72 peppers, 200 geraniums and a host of other plants to get in. And I thought retirement meant life was supposed to slow down. So why am I so far behind you may ask. The answer is simple but time consuming. Just "life" is the first part. I'm just running behind. But the second part of the answer is the topic of this article. I'm putting in...
I just love peppers. Hot, sweet, mild or whatever. I just love those little fruits. Mostly I like jalapenos. You see, I don’t eat peppers for the heat, rather for the taste. And jalapenos just have the best flavor in my book. That doesn’t mean I don’t eat other kinds of peppers, thought. Bell peppers are the best known of the sweet peppers, but don’t discount others such as the sweet banana pepper types. There’s also a sweet pepper that reminds me of an Anaheim pepper. In the sweet peppers, don’t let the color be your foremost reason for...
Strawberries are easily grown and are a common plant in the garden. But, there are many other berries that grow well here and bear discussion as well. I don’t think we’ll ever be the “berry capital” of the country, but we can and do grow many berries and they grow well enough that they are even grown commercially. Raspberries are the first berry that comes to mind after strawberries. They are pretty common here and come in a wide variety of colors and flavors…anything from gold, to red, to black. Generally speaking, the red raspberri...
