The ABCs of Heritage Apples, and Others

  • Post published:10/27/2012
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A is for Apple, but if we look at heritage apples we can march right through the alphabet. Baldwin, Cox’s Orange Pippin, (Old) Delicious, Esopus Spitzenberg, Golden Russet, and on through to Northern Spy, Roxbury Russet, Stayman Winesap and Westfield Seek-No-Farther. The Roxbury Russet and Westfield Seek-No-Farther remind us that some apples had a very local fame and audience before they spread to wider fields. In fact, Roxbury Russet was the first named apple in Massachusetts. Even though…

Three Kinds of Peonies

  • Post published:10/20/2012
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In the past I have written about two kinds of peonies, the indomitable herbaceous peony that needs to be cut back in the fall, and the ancient tree peony that originated in China and blooms on woody stems that are more shrubby than tree-like. Both are extremely hardy with beautiful spring flowers in a variety of forms including the classic bomb with its very heavy blossom. Many see that the drawback of the herbaceous peonies, especially those with…

CISA -The Power of We on Blog Action Day 2012

  • Post published:10/15/2012
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On this Blog Action Day where many bloggers are describing and celebrating "The Power of We" I give thanks for our local Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture - CISA. I live in a rural area and like many people I have become more and more concerned about the food my family and I eat. About 20 years ago, farmers producing vegetables, fruit, fiber, maple syrup and dairy, businesses, politicians, and consumers got together to talk about how to…

Counting the Days with Inspiration and Education with UMass Garden Calendar

  • Post published:10/11/2012
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The 2013 UMass Garden Calendar gives us inspiration and education as this season closes down, and we gardeners are already thinking about a new growing season. For many years , UMass Extension has worked with the citizens of Massachusetts to help them make sound choices about growing, planting, and maintaining plants in their landscapes, including vegetables, backyard fruits, and ornamental plants. Our 2013 garden calendar continues UMass Extension's tradition of providing gardeners with useful information. This year's calendar includes tips…

Lessons from the Conway School of Landscape Design

  • Post published:10/05/2012
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I am not a graduate of the Conway School of Landscape Design (alas) but I am an admirer of the school, its teachers, principles and curriculum, and of the work its 600 grads have done around the country, and the world. As part of the celebratory 40th Reunion weekend I attended a program of Lighning Talks. A number of alums from different years were given six (6!) minutes to describe their recent work. Ginny Sullivan is an alum who lives in Conway.…

Three Woodpiles, Three Styles

  • Post published:10/02/2012
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Three woodpiles, two which have been of very different styles are among the most popular of my posts. We seem to be thinking about winter and warm nights in front of a crackling fire or humming woodstove even in August. The first was an artistic woodpile I passed one fall day in Hawley, a town near us. The second woodpile in Ashfield was a traditional pile designed to help air move through the pile to dry wood. Artistic and scientific.…

How to Divide Perennials

  • Post published:09/17/2012
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Over the weekend I spent time weeding the Lawn Beds. There were spots that had few weeds because the plants had developed into such large clumps that the weed seeds had no place to land. Some clumps were so big that it was clear it was time to do some dividing. As a general guideline perennials need to be divided every 2 -4 years. A clump will outgrow its spot and start crowding the plants around it. Sometimes…

Honey Fesitval at Warm Colors Apiary – September 15

  • Post published:09/13/2012
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Warm Colors Apiary will once again hold its annual "Honey Festival". Warm Colors has been hosting the Honey Festival for more than twelve years. The festival is a celebration of the Honeybee and our native pollinators. It is an opportunity to recognize the many contributions beekeepers, and their bees, make to agriculture and the health of our environment. Bonita and Dan Conlon open their eighty-acre apiary to the public to enjoy its beauty and explore its wildlife habitat.…

Tillage Radish – Another Cover Crop

  • Post published:09/10/2012
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Tillage radish is a  cover crop I had never heard of until this summer. One of the amazing things about the tillage radish is its rapid growth. After my neighbor Rol harvested his garlic he planted this bed to tillage radishes in mid-July. Already the wide row is completely covered with lush foliage that will die down once we have a killing frost.  The long daikon radish roots that have developed will also rot over the course of…

Green Manure, Winter Wheat and Turnips

  • Post published:09/08/2012
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Green manure is a crop that is planted in the fall; its purpose is to improve soil fertility and tilth in the spring. I have just seeded a fall green manure mix from Johnny’s Selected Seeds in three of my newly weeded and watered (thanks to the rain) garden beds. This mix contains annual seeds like crimson clover, annual rye grass and yellow peas, as well as winter rye and hairy vetch that will go dormant but begin…