Gardening

By Larraine Roulston: International Compost Awareness Week (ICAW), celebrated annually the first week of May, is a perfect time to reflect on our respect for the soil. As we work in our gardens this spring, we are nurturing life itself. Healthy soil is chock-full of worms as well as other …

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By Larraine Roulston: Having a designated area to grow your own organic vegetables is ideal; however, one can be a successful gardener by using many container pots attractively placed on patios, porches, decks and balconies, in flower boxes under windowsills, and even in large sunlit kitchens or living rooms. The …

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By Kim Robson: Spring is coming. This is the time of year when many of us are planning our gardens and placing orders with seed catalogs. This is also the perfect time to consider some of the many plants to grow for their medicinal properties. After the dreary, cold winter …

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   By Amanda Wilkes: Once again, technology saves the day! Scientists have developed a way to eliminate harmful pesticides for at least one species of bugs. With this new technology, we may be able to one day eliminate toxic pesticides altogether. For now, scientists are focused on the Asian citrus psyllid …

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By Larraine Roulston: If you live in an area where cold nights have already nipped the night air, you may be thinking that you won’t be composting much longer. It is just as easy, however, to compost during the cold months as it is in the warmer weather. One of my neighbors …

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By Larraine Roulston: This summer I had a great opportunity to shadow my brother-in-law Bob while he tended his backyard bee hives. As a seasoned beekeeper and member of the Capital Region Beekeepers’ Association in Victoria, BC, Bob has 11 hives, each containing rows of hanging combs, all buzzing with activity. Donning …

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By Larraine Roulston:  Composting is as easy as 1-2-3. It is simply the breakdown of organic matter by bacteria and other organisms into a dark soil-like material. By layering approximately equal amounts of nitrogen (wet greens), kitchen food scraps, and carbon (dry browns) such as leaves, with a little moisture and …

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By Demi Crawford :  A garden is a food source not only for humans but also for several other creatures that are a part of the natural world. And some of the so-called “part of nature” are what we refer to as garden pests — bugs, slugs, snails, aphids and …

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By Larraine Roulston: Will the perfect lawns of the future be ones that have a variety of greens and small blooming flowers that attract pollinators? Presently, most suburbanites prefer weed free lawns. Of course, children need to have a cleared area to play, but why does the lawn need to …

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By Kim Robson: It might be hard to believe, depending on where you live, but summer is fast approaching, and so is planting season. Lots of folks in colder climes like to start seeds on a sunny windowsill to give plants a head start. Of course, all garden centers sell …

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