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Book Reviews

Photo: Person with long brown hair, wearing comfy socks and sweat pants, sitting on the floor in front of a blazing fire place reading a book as a black and white cat rests its head on their legWinter has arrived!  While there isn’t much to be doing outside in our gardens, the winter is a great opportunity to spend time learning more about gardening.  So grab one of these books recommended by our Master Gardener Volunteers, sit by the fire, and spend time cultivating your mind this winter.


Book List

Freedom’s Gardener: James F. Brown, Horticulture, and the Hudson Valley in Antebellum America by Myra Beth Young Armstead

Garden Alchemy: 80 Recipes and Concoctions for Organic Fertilizers, Plant Elixirs, Potting Mixes, Pest Deterrents, and More by Stephanie Rose

Good Garden Bugs by Mary M. Gardiner, Ph. D.

The Know Maintenance Perennial Garden by Roy Diblik

Natural Companions: The Garden Lover’s Guide to Plant Combinations by Ken Druse

Square Foot Gardening with Kids by Mel Bartholomew

The Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardner’s Handbook by Ron and Jennifer Kujawski

The Weekend Homesteader: A Twelve Month Guide to Self-Sufficiency by Anna Hess

The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature by Sue Stuart-Smith

A Year at Brandywine Cottage by David L. Culp

Your Wellbeing Garden: How to Make Your Garden Good for You – Science, Design, Function by D.K. Publishing


Book Cover: Freedom's Gardener - Drawing of four-petaled white violetFreedom’s Gardener: James F. Brown, Horticulture, and the Hudson Valley in Antebellum America

by Myra Beth Young Armstead

Reviewed by Madelene Knaggs, New Windsor Master Gardener Volunteer

Freedom’s Gardener
is impeccably researched and full of detail. It is the kind of book that grabs the attention of readers interested in gardening, local history, Black history, and the concept of freedom. Armstead, a professor of history at Bard College, extracts small details from the diary of James F. Brown to compose a story illustrating the concept of freedom as it developed in the United States in the decades following the Revolutionary War.

James F. Brown was born a slave in 1793 and died a free man in 1868. He escaped slavery in Maryland to the Hudson Valley of New York State, where he was employed as a gardener by the wealthy Verplanck family in Beacon, NY (on what is presently the Mount Gulian Historic Site).

Brown kept a detailed diary over 39 years, with entries covering weather, gardening, and steamboat schedules, as well as domestic matters. James began his career with the Verplancks as a waiter and a laborer, but eventually assumed the duties as the Verplanck Estate’s master gardener. He managed and supervised garden, farm, and nursery workers. He was also responsible for making major purchases for the Verplanck house and garden. He frequently interacted in Newburgh with Andrew Jackson Downing, the famed lAmerican landscape designer and editor of The Horticulturist magazine (1846–1852). Brown attended the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society Show in Philadelphia as well as the New York Horticultural Society Exhibition.

This book has been recommended by the Library Journal to historians of antebellum America and the social aspects of horticulture, as well as those interested in historical diaries. Armstead’s well-researched study of Brown’s work greatly expands our understanding of the Hudson Valley and the people and plants that have shaped it.

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Book Cover: Garden Alchemy - Photo containing an assortment of flowers and herbsGarden Alchemy: 80 Recipes and Concoctions for Organic Fertilizers, Plant Elixirs, Potting Mixes, Pest Deterrents, and More

by Stephanie Rose

Reviewed by Mary Presutti, New Windsor Master Gardener Volunteer

As a newly minted Master Gardener Volunteer, I frequently turn to my class notes for advice in the garden. Now I have another, more portable source. In this one handy, slim volume, Canadian Master Gardener Stephanie Rose has compiled a nifty hands-on guide with useful recipes to get everyone’s garden in top shape.

The book is loaded with step-by-step instructions beginning with homemade methods to test your soil, then on to recipes for soil amendment, custom mulch, compost boosters, fertilizers, garden teas, potting soils, and even a method to produce your own worm castings. The ingredients are common items available in your home.

Even wildlife has not been left out. There are techniques for encouraging as well as discouraging nature in the garden. Some of my plants go outdoors in the summer months. They invariably bring fungus gnats back indoors in the fall. She has a fix to keep them away. She also includes a bottle trap for flies, wasps, and stinkbugs—all with their own individual bait recipes.

As a plus, Ms. Rose has included some fun activities to keep gardeners occupied while their plants are sleeping this winter season. You can make seed bombs, suet holders, butterfly puddlers, and more.

Garden Alchemy is chock full of beautiful, interesting photographs and diagrams that complement the easy to understand, straight to the point text. I recommend it for all gardeners.

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Book Cover: Good Garden Bugs - Photo of a black and yellow stripped hover fly resting in the center of a bright yellow flowerGood Garden Bugs

by Mary M. Gardiner, Ph.D.

Review by Donna Beyer, New Windsor Master Gardener Volunteer

All gardeners must deal with bugs — good bugs, bad bugs — but some of us aren’t sure which is which. Good Garden Bugs is directed to the home gardener who might not know the difference. As gardeners, we invest time and effort into making our gardens the most beautiful and productive they can be, yet bugs can present challenges to our efforts. Most of us understand the need for good bugs, but sometimes find it difficult to live in harmony with them.

The book begins by providing information on the classification, anatomy, and the life cycle of garden bugs. The information helps the gardener understand how each stage of a bug’s development has different enemies and threats, and is presented in a way that non-academics can understand. How bugs overwinter and mature provides the gardener with valuable insight into promoting good garden bugs.

The chapter that discusses controls we use to regulate bug populations can help gardeners understand how their actions affect them. This section also stresses the need for native plants to promote healthy habitats that support good bug populations.

The chapters that follow are the core of the book. Each subsequent chapter is dedicated to an order of bug that describes the unique attributes and common examples of bugs that fall into that order. The book also includes large color photos with descriptions of each.

Over half the chapters are dedicated to wasps, beetles, and spiders. These bugs are the most plentiful and can be difficult to identify. These orders can do serious damage to plants and humans alike, so being able to identify these “good” bugs is especially important. Gardeners want to promote good bugs that fall into these orders, but also want to protect themselves and their gardens.

Currently, in the age of the internet, having a resource you can carry to the garden that will assist with pest identification is invaluable. This book is slim but does not skimp on content and is a valuable addition to a home gardener’s library.

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Book Cover: The Know Maintenance Perennial Garden - Photo of perennial garden with purple flowers in bloomThe Know Maintenance Perennial Garden

by Roy Diblik

Reviewed by Cecille Jones, Monroe Master Gardener Volunteer

If the title of this book doesn’t hook you, perhaps the words on the cover will. In red ink, it loudly declares knowing your plants means less work. Or perhaps you’ve heard of Roy Diblik, the renowned plantsman behind the Lurie Garden at Millennium Park in Chicago.

Diblik’s approach to gardening stresses harmony with how plants grow and interact with each other. He advocates knowing your plants so you can plant them in self-sustaining communities. By doing so, you will spend less time maintaining them and more time enjoying them.

The author focuses on perennials because he believes they are the foundation of durable, diverse and beautiful gardens. According to Diblik, once you’re familiar with perennials, then you will recognize how and when to add annuals, vegetables, herbs, shrubs and trees.

Diblik believes that traditional gardening has become so culturally defined over the last 50 years that it is now a source of frustration and defeat for most gardeners.

In the first four chapters, he covers the basics – from understanding plant growth to soil, light, site preparation, and more. Chapter 5 covers 74 key perennials selected for their dependability, suitability to the northern half of the U.S., adaptability to soil & seasonal changes, and durability.

The true treasure is saved for Chapter 6 and beyond, where Diblik provides more than 60 garden plans, each designed to cover a 10 – 14’ rectangle, categorized by plans for growing in sun or shade, and complete with notes on care and maintenance. Assuming you are diligent about care and maintenance, Diblik claims that each plan should take about 3 to 4 hours of work per week.

Diblik’s approach will put you on a path to a style of gardening that stresses harmony, simplicity and enjoyment.

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Book Cover: Natural Companions - Photo of several colorful flower blossoms and colorful leaves arranged on a black backgroundNatural Companions: The Garden Lover’s Guide to Plant Combinations

by Ken Druse

Reviewed by Gerda Krogslund, Middletown Senior Master Gardener Volunteer

For this book, author Ken Druse worked in conjunction with artist Ellen Hoverkamp who provided the beautiful botanical photographs throughout. Each chapter explores plants in a different light looking at season, family, form, function, color, spirit of place, or theme.

Take a journey through the seasons starting with signs of spring and continuing through the year concluding with winter and new awakenings. Learn about different plant families and delve into the numerous varieties found in each. Form follows function – examine the many different shapes, textures, structures and growth habit of flowers and other plants. Be inspired by pictures of flowers with both similar colors and exciting color combinations. Consider the spirit of place and think about what you can plant in woodlands, meadows, wetlands, rain gardens, and rock gardens. Explore themed gardens grown for fragrance, roses, pollinators, birds, cutting, edible plants, herbs, medicinal plants, and toxic plants.

This is not a “how-to” manual but a book that suggests possible plant combinations for your consideration. It gives you lots of ideas in which you can take your reliable basic plants and add others to make your garden even more spectacular. Ken Druse knows that gardening is very personable and suggests that while you read through the book, you make lists of combinations that appeal to you.

A garden is never really complete but more a work in progress as we continually experiment with new plants and new plant arrangements. I’ve spent hours going through this book and I know I’ll come back again and again.

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Book Cover: Square Foot Gardening with Kids - Small boy picking tomatoesSquare Foot Gardening with Kids

by Mel Bartholomew

Reviewed by Brooke Moore, New Windsor Master Gardener Volunteer

Getting children interested in growing food and learning more about the natural world is an admirable goal. And one that does not have to be boring or pedantic.

This lovely book by the master of Square Foot Gardening, provides kids from toddlers to teens with all the tools they need to build, manage, grow and harvest a vegetable garden. It encourages starting small and building more as confidence and experience lead one to wanting a larger planting area.

With a format that provides age-appropriate tasks and goals at every step, this book also works for the whole family. I loved that there are clues to help parents not be overly involved but rather encourage the children to figure out how to do things themselves. It covers building raised beds, making soil mixes, how to make a grid system, water issues, protecting plants from predators, best growing practices, and much more.

Teachers and classroom projects are also a part of the book, and these can be used by anyone. Math, science, art, and history are all related to gardening, and the book provides simple and interesting activities to bring these skills into the garden and to use the garden to develop entirely new ones. Measuring, weighing, keeping a planting journal are all well described and encouraged. There are good photos and illustrations for each step and lots of handy tips and “how to” suggestions.

This is a book with “kids” in the title, but it truly is a book for anyone and everyone interested in exploring how to use this simple system to have a successful garden harvest.

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Book Cover: The Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener's HandbookThe Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardner’s Handbook

by Ron and Jennifer Kujawski

Reviewed by Kimberly Marshall, Washingtonville Master Gardener Volunteer

If there were only one vegetable gardening book I could use throughout the gardening year, it would be The Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener’s Handbook by Ron and Jennifer Kujawski. This dynamic father-and-daughter gardening duo have made an indispensable resource that should grace the bookshelves of vegetable gardeners everywhere.

It provides week-by-week vegetable gardening how-to’s that coincide with each planting season. A chart at the beginning of the book helps you identify where you are in your own area’s growing season, using your first and last frost dates as a guide. For example, if your last frost date is mid-May, as it is for many of us here in Orange County, you enter that date in the calendar’s “Week 1,” which starts your weekly to-do’s (first week, two weeks out, three weeks out, etc.).

Based on these dates, the book explains which week to start seeds indoors, plant cover crops, look for pests, harvest your crops, and fertilize each and every vegetable you can think of, with plenty of gardening tips and tricks along the way. There are even steps for gardening in the winter, with instructions for planning gardens and ordering seeds, so you can work on or think about your garden all year long.

The book also includes space for journaling your thoughts and experiences. There is ample room for notes in each section to remind yourself of what you planted and any issues you might have experienced, helping you to avoid making the same mistakes the following year.

If you’re looking for a step-by-step vegetable gardening book that tells you exactly what to do and when to do it, give this one a try—especially if you find the idea of vegetable gardening a bit overwhelming, like I do. It breaks everything down into easy steps, making even the scariest parts of gardening seem effortless while helping you realize what’s truly possible for your garden along the way.

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Book Cover: The Weekend Homesteader - Grid of gardening photos: pea shoots, rubber boots, chicken, peppers, etc.The Weekend Homesteader: A Twelve Month Guide to Self-Sufficiency

by Anna Hess

Reviewed by Robin Portelli, Cornwall Master Gardener Volunteer

As I was perusing through gardening books on the Libby App from my local library, the book title, The Weekend Homesteader: A Twelve-Month Guide to Self Sufficiency by Anna Hess caught my attention. I was envisioning a book with information that would inspire me to become a self-sufficient gardener without feeling overwhelmed or pressured that I needed to go off the grid or never buy grocery produce again. I was not disappointed.

In her introduction, Anna Hess immediately connects with the novice homesteader. She understands that the dream of full-time homesteading can be daunting for most people. “Weekend Homesteader is full of short projects that you can use to dip your toes into the vast ocean of homesteading without becoming overwhelmed,” she writes. So, I began to read.

The book is divided by months beginning in the month of April or October if you live down under. Each month introduces you to topics that are important factors in growing a successful garden and maintaining a small homestead. Some homesteading basics covered that are more familiar to most of us include budgeting skills and record keeping (ugh!), healthy soil, garden rotation, and how to build a chicken coop. Anna Hess also touches upon less well-known details and tips such as how to find space to plant if you live in the city, how to stay warm without electricity for longer periods of time, and how to extend the gardening season by making your own garden hoops. Recipes, canning, cooking, and details of food/seed storing options are among some of the other multitude of topics.

Overall, I would give this book 4.5/5 stars.

Pros: It was well organized and gave many tips that only an experienced homesteader would know. It could help a novice homesteader avoid rookie mistakes. This book was published in 2012, but the topics and information are still very practical and relevant.

Cons: It covers the basics so an already experienced homesteader may not reap much benefit by reading it. Also, it is missing a chapter specific to urban gardening topics.

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Book Cover: The Well-Gardener Mind - Drawing of a head in which the outline of the face is a green stem and the head has branches coverd with green leavesThe Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature

by Sue Stuart-Smith

Reviewed by Sharon Lunden, Goshen Master Gardener Volunteer

In The Well-Gardened Mind, Stuart-Smith, a British psychiatrist and psychotherapist, delves into the therapeutic aspects of immersing yourself in a garden. This is not a how-to garden book but instead outlines the well-researched benefits to the human body, mind, and soul to be found in the natural world around us.

Our brain cells are like branching trees, requiring pruning, weeding, and room to grow. Experience and pain can be “composted” into something beneficial. Gardens reflect our lives, periods of yield and beauty, loss and rest. Our minds as gardens seek light, cultivation, seeding, nourishment, watering, and replenishment. Souls and bodies begin to heal and thrive in the peace, safety, and beauty of the confines of a flower or vegetable garden. We need the earth as much as the earth needs us to care for and cherish it, a full circle. By learning to care for a garden, we better learn to care for ourselves and others.

This is a fascinating book which I recommend to you, as it can prove helpful and comforting in the midst of the stress of these difficult times.

If we put energy into cultivating the earth, we are given something back. There is magic in it and there is hard work in it, but the fruits and flowers of the earth are a form of goodness that is real; they are worth believing in and are not out of reach. When we sow a seed, we plant a narrative of future possibility. It is an action of hope. Not all the seeds we sow will germinate, but there is a sense of security that comes from knowing you have seeds in the ground. (pp. 65–66)

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Book Cover: A Year at Brandywine Cottage - Photos: Harvested beets, radishes, and peas / A lush garden with a white cottage in in the backgroundA Year at Brandywine Cottage

by David L. Culp

Reviewed by Madelene Knaggs, New Windsor Master Gardener Volunteer

A Year at Brandywine Cottage leads us on a journey through an exquisite garden that represents a lifetime of hard work, passion, successes and disappointments, experience and knowledge. Engaging prose and beautiful photography take the armchair gardener on a virtual tour through each season as the author informs us of the Latin genus and species and the botanical and historical facts about each plant.

Author and gardener David Culp states, “By looking closely at my garden over a period of time, and allowing it to speak to me, I find that the garden at Brandywine Cottage wants six seasons. As you will see, this book chronicles what happens in my garden over the course of those seasons.”

Culp demonstrates his deep knowledge of plants season by season with such tips and techniques for a successful layered garden as adding pots of tropicals (he has 400 pots) into the beds to boost a tired August garden, or clipping distracting dead leaves off hellebores before they bloom. He also weaves in family and local recipes using ingredients from his own beautiful vegetable garden.

Beginning in February (in the chapter “Early Spring”), he shows us the sleepy phase in the garden when most people are oblivious to any plant life. He proves that there is much to behold—the emerging bulbs of crocus, dwarf iris, glory-of-the-snow, winter aconite, witch hazels, and the author’s large collection of snowdrops. As the season progresses into March, daffodils and hellebores take center stage. He continues to show the progression and overlapping from season to season and from outdoors to inside the home.

This book will inspire readers with ideas for their own gardens, and will encourage plans in anticipation of the upcoming season.

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Book Cover: Your Wellbeing Garden - Drawing of garden bench with trees on both sides and a potted flower sitting on itYour Wellbeing Garden: How to Make Your Garden Good for You – Science, Design, Function

by D.K. Publishing

Review by Patricia Henighan, Walden Master Gardener Volunteer

If you have been gardening for a while, you probably don’t need to be convinced that your garden is good for you. Nevertheless, this delightfully designed and easy to digest book uses scientific research drawn together by a team of scientists from the Royal Horticultural Society to present the whys and hows of creating an outdoor space that nourishes both the mind and the body, and is good for the planet. Each section encapsulates the latest research on topics such as how to fight air pollution, reduce noise pollution, help pollinators, address climate change, and provide fodder for your brain.

The authors use diagrams and illustrations to explain concepts such as how different types of leaves trap air pollutants and why vegetation is a better at reducing noise pollution than a fence or a wall. They explore topics such as Ogren Plant Allergy Scale (OPALS) which rates plants from 1 to 10 for allergenicity using eye-catching illustrations that show why certain flower and tree species are better choices if you are looking to avoid flying pollen.

Many people spend time outside to find peace and tranquility in a chaotic world. Research has found that when seeking “natural restoration”, we respond best to natural features that are moderately complex – not too smooth and not too busy. A grassy area with openings and some trees provides the highest rewards for inducing tranquility. Fractals or repeating branching patterns, which occur frequently in nature, can be added to a garden to ensure the landscape provides release for the brain from stress and anxiety. The authors encourage you to design a mindfulness corner with a comfortable seat in an area cushioned from street noise with a soothing sound of water or bees buzzing. Who said gardens must be all work?

Gardening can be a solitary pursuit or a communal activity. It can benefit people from all walks of life. Children and adults with special needs can benefit from the experience of growing flowers and food crops. Horticultural therapy is a way in which gardening is used to help people suffering from trauma and illness. For immigrants, growing crops from their home country can help to allay homesickness. And when it comes to children and gardening, psychologists have found that children can cultivate character by taking care of their own individual garden plots. It is also thought that by handling dirt at an early age, children increase their exposure to beneficial microbes, which may boost the immune system.

Since climate change is an ongoing challenge for everyone, the last section covers many aspects of creating a sustainable garden. There are suggestions on how to change barren, water-gobbling lawns into more resilient spaces and the latest recommendations on how to care for your soil, avoid impermeable surfaces, capture run-off, and design rain gardens. Obviously, it is a win-win situation as making your garden better for you will also make it better for the environment.

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Gardener’s Checklist

April 2021

Garden Maintenance

  • Evergreen tree with a large section of yellow needles
    Winter burn

    Examine evergreens for winter burn.  Prune out damage after new growth appears.

  • Carefully remove winter mulch from planting beds.
  • Fertilize roses as new growth appears.
  • Clump of white daffodils with bright orange centers and yellow daffodils
    Daffodils

    Get you soil tested before any major planting.

  • Cut flower stalks on daffodils, hyacinths, and other spring flowering bulbs as the flowers fade.  Do not cut foliage until it dies back naturally.
  • Divide and transplant fall blooming perennials.
  • Learn more about how to attract pollinators to your garden.

Creating a Pollinator Garden Workshop – Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange County

Pest Watch

Spotted Lanternfly Look-alikes – Virginia Cooperative Extension

Vegetable Gardening

  • Plant cold season crops early in the month  (i.e. onion sets, lettuce, radishes, spinach, turnips, leeks, etc.).

Vegetable Planing Guide – Cornell Cooperative Extension

Vegetable Gardening Workshop – Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange County


Stop and smell the daffodils!

Small child squatting in a patch of daffodils leaning over to smell one of the blooms

It’s Agricultural Literacy Week!

There are over 50,000 farmers in New York State.  They run over 30,000 farms on over six million acres of land.  They produce vegetables, fruit, meat, eggs, milk and so much more.  Here in Orange County there are about 1,000 farmers running 600 farms on over 80,000 acres of land. Not from Orange County, check out how many farmers you have in your county.

Book Cover - Tales of the Fairy GodmotherChuck's Ice Cream WishIn celebration of New York agriculture, volunteers throughout the state will read a book with an agricultural theme to elementary students this week.  This year’s book is Chuck’s Ice Cream Wish: Tales of the Dairy Godmother, written by Viola Butler, art by Ward Jenkins.

Join the Celebration!

Watch NYS Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture & Markets Richard Ball or Dairy Farmer Jessica Ziehm and her daughter Pheobe read this year’s book.

Click here for lessons and resources that go along with this year’s book.

Learn more about life on a dairy farm by watching these short videos.

Bret and Brynley Take Care of Calves

A Day in the Life Growing Up on a Dairy Farm

Check out these the Agricultural Literacy Archive and explore past year’s books and resources!

Ag Literacy Book Archives - 14 book covers

Learn more about Get Growing! – a virtual gardening program full of hands-on learning for 3rd, 4th, 5th Graders!

Get Growing! - Virtual 4-H Gardening Program Graphic

Gardener’s Checklist

January 2021

Garden MaintenanceSnow covered house and landscape plants

    • Avoid using salt based de-icers near susceptible plants.

Salt Damage in Landscape Plants – Purdue Extension

  • Consider using an anti-desiccants to protect your evergreens.

Protecting Evergreens in the Winter  – University of Massachusetts Extension

  • Three deer standing is a snowy fieldReapply deer repellent on vulnerable shrubs as needed.

Using Commercial Deer Repellents – University of Maryland Extension

  • Do a daily tick check!  That’s right, ticks are active in the winter too!!

Winter Tick Activity – University of Rhode Island

African violets with pink flowersHouseplants

  • Make sure to check you plants at least once a week for signs of pest and other issues.

Houseplant Problems : Diagnostic Chart – University of Maryland Extension

  • Learn more about houseplant care.

Webinar Series: Houseplant Master Class – Penn State Extension

Sketch of several garden tools (i.e. rake, shovel, gloves, watering can, etc.)Tools

  • Sort out your hand tools. Repair and clean as needed paying attention to ones that you have not used.  Consider giving these away!  Choose a good location to store them and perhaps a container to organize them.

Maintaining Lawn and Garden Tools – University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension

  • Learn more about how to care for your garden tools.

Webinar: Care of Garden Tools – Penn State Extension

Vegetable Gardening

  • Pumpkin seedsSpring may seem to be far off, but it will be here before you know it, so it  is time to plan you garden!
  • Do a germination test to see which of your seeds are still viable and which ones will need to be replaced.

Home Germination Test – Cornell Cooperative Extension

  • Looking to change this up this year, check out what vegetable varieties other people like.

Bowl of tomatoes of all shapes, colors and sizesVegetable Varieties for Gardeners – Cornell University

  • If you had any disease issue last year, consider looking for varieties that have disease resistance.getting varieties

Selected List of Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners in New York State – Cornell University


Wishing you all a Healthy, Hopeful and Happy New Year!
Pumpkin covered with succulents surrounded by pine branches and lights

April is Citizen Science Month!

What is citizen science? 

Scientists are limited in the amount of data they can collect by both time and money.  With help from members of the general public, known as citizen scientists, researchers are able to crowd source data collection collecting more data from more places helping them find answers to real-world questions.

So if you want to do something fun and educational that contributes to the advancement of scientific knowledge, consider becoming a citizen scientist.

Citizen Science Projects


Monarch Butterfly (Orang and Black) - Jouney NorthThe Journey North

This project focuses on migration and seasonal changes.   People all over the United States, Canada, and Mexico, report sightings of birds, monarchs, frogs, and other organism.   Watch as reported sightings are mapped in real-time as waves of migrations that move across the continent.


inaturalist logoi-Naturalist

iNaturalist lets you photograph, identify, and document what’s around you.  Every observation can contribute to biodiversity science, from the rarest butterfly to the most common backyard weed.  By sharing your observations with scientists, you will help build our understanding of the natural world.

Never Home Alone

In studying life, scientists have overlooked many regions. Some regions have not been studied because they are so remote. Others because they are so diverse that it is hard to know where to even begin. Then there is the great indoors, which we believe has been understudied in part because it is so immediate. This project aims to document the species that live indoors with humans.


The Cornell Lab of Ornithology - Logo with Bird in MiddleThe Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Hundreds of thousands of people around the world contribute bird observations to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology each year, gathering data on a scale once unimaginable. Scientists use these data to reveal how birds are affected by habitat loss, pollution, disease, climate, and other environmental changes. Your participation will help trace bird migration, nesting success, and changes in bird numbers through time.

Celebrate Urban Birds

Celebrate Urban Birds is a citizen science project focused on better understanding the value of green spaces for birds. This project connects people of all ages and backgrounds to birds and the natural world through the arts and fun neighborhood activities.

e-bird

The goal of this project is to gather this information on bird sightings, archive it, and freely share it to power new data-driven approaches to science, conservation and education.  e-Bird also develops tools that make birding more rewarding.  It provides the most current and useful information to the birding community from photos and audio recordings, to seeing real-time maps of species distribution and alerts that let you know when species have been seen.

NestWatch

NestWatch is a nationwide monitoring program designed to track status and trends in the reproductive biology of birds, including when nesting occurs, number of eggs laid, how many eggs hatch, and how many hatchlings survive.  Their database is intended to be used to study the current condition of breeding bird populations and how they may be changing over time as a result of climate change, habitat degradation and loss, expansion of urban areas, and the introduction of non-native plants and animals.


Logo - The Tick App - Bulls Eye with a the outline of a tick in the miidle suurounded by the words The Tick AppThe Tick App

The Tick App allows people living in high-risk areas for Lyme disease, like Orange County New York, to participate in a tick behavioral study.   Participants complete daily logs and report ticks.  The app provides information on how to remove ticks, prevent tick bites, and general information about ticks.   When enough people are involved, it can also provides information about blacklegged and deer tick activity in our area.


Monarch Caterpilar (Yellow, white, black stripped) on a green leaf - Monarch Larva Monitoring ProjectMonarch Larva Monitoring Program

This citizen science project’s mission is to better understand the distribution and abundance of breeding monarchs and to use that knowledge to inform and inspire monarch conservation.  People from across the United States and Canada participate in this monarch research.  Their observations aid in conserving monarchs and their threatened migratory phenomenon, and advance the understanding of butterfly ecology in general.


Logo - Monarch Watch.org Education, Conservation, ResearchMonarch Watch

Monarch Watch strives to provide the public with information about the biology of monarch butterflies, their spectacular migration, and how to use monarchs to further science education in primary and secondary schools. They engage in research on monarch migration biology and monarch population dynamics to better understand how to conserve the monarch migration.

Monarch Calendar Project

In the spring and fall volunteers collect observations of adult monarchs.  This information is used to  assemble quantitative data on monarch numbers at critical times during the breeding season.

Tagging Monarchs

Each fall Monarch Watch distributes more than a quarter of a million tags to thousands of volunteers across North America who tag monarchs as they migrate through their area. These citizen scientists capture monarchs throughout the migration season, record the tag code, tag date, gender of the butterfly, and geographic location then tag and release them. At the end of the tagging season, these data are submitted to Monarch Watch and added to their database to be used in research.


Logo - The Lost Ladybug ProjectThe Lost Ladybug Project

In the past twenty years, native ladybugs that were once very common have become extremely rare.  During this same time, ladybugs from other parts of the world have greatly increased in both numbers and range. This is happening very quickly and no one knows how, why, or what impact it will have on ladybug diversity.  Citizen scientists involved in this project help scientists answer these questions by photographing ladybugs and submitting the photos along with information about when and where the ladybugs were found.


Logo - Vegetable Varieties for GardenersVegetable Varieties for Gardeners

A project of Cornell University’s Garden Based Learning, this web forum provides an avenue for gardeners to share knowledge.  Gardeners report what vegetable varieties perform well – and not so well – in their gardens.  Other gardeners can view ratings and read the reviews to decide which might work well for them.  Researchers  use the information gain new insight into the performance of vegetable varieties under a wide range of conditions and practices. The information gathered is also used to make a  Selected List of Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners in New York State.


Logo - The outline of New York State under a picture of a moth, a beetle, a moth and a fly with the words Empire State Native Pollinator SurveyEmpire State Native Pollinator Survey

Native pollinators play an essential role in the pollination of flowering plants, including native plants and wildflowers, garden plants, as well as cultivated crops. Some native pollinator species have suffered population declines over the last few decades.   Participants  in this study submit photographs and/or specimens to help  determine the conservation status of a wide array of native insect pollinators in non-agricultural habitats.


iMapInvasivesiMapInvasives

iMapInvasives is an on-line, GIS-based data management system used to assist citizen scientists and natural resource professionals working to protect our natural resources from the threat of invasive species.  Citizen scientists are provided with resources to help them identify invasive species. Their invasive species findings are aggregated with data from a wide variety of sources contributing to early detection of invasive species as well as analysis of management strategies.


A curated beetle collection with pinned specimens above tagsNotes from Nature

Natural history museums across the world share a common goal – to conserve and make available knowledge about natural and cultural heritage. The Notes from Nature project gives you the opportunity to make a scientifically important contribution towards that goal by transcribing museum records. Every transcription that is completed brings us closer to filling gaps in our knowledge of global biodiversity and natural heritage.


Logo - citizenscience.orgCitizen Science Database

This is an official government website designed to accelerate the use of crowdsourcing and citizen science across the U.S. government.  It includes a searchable database of  a government-wide listing of citizen science and crowdsourcing projects designed to improve cross-agency collaboration, reveal opportunities for new high-impact projects, and make it easier for volunteers to find out about projects they can join.


Become a Citizen Scientist today!

Out in the Garden

As the days get warmer and the sun sets later and later, I hope you all have the opportunity to spend more and more time outside.  Sunshine and fresh air are good for the soul!

If you happen to have a garden or have decided that this is the year to start one there are lots of things to keep you busy at this time of year!

Perennial Beds

A mantis egg mass, straw colored foam like mass the size of a golf ball, on the branch of a forsythia bush covered with yellow flower buds
Mantis ootheca on forsythia

Hopefully you waited until spring to clean up your garden to allow beneficial insects and other arthropods such as bees and butterflies to overwinter.  Now that spring has sprung you should leave debris as long as you can to give these creatures a chance to emerge from their winter hiding places.  You should start carefully removing debris from around blossoming plants.  If you must cut back hollow stems, bundle them so any pollinators overwintering inside have a chance to emerge.   As you are cleaning up be on the look out for praying mantis egg cases know as ootheca.   This is one time when you should leave things till tomorrow!

Freshly mulched garden bed in front of a house
Freshly mulched garden beds

Mulching is another spring time activity.  There are many different types of organic mulch that will not only suppress weeds, but also add organic material to the soil as they break down.  You don’t have to mulch everything, in fact many ground nesting bees such as bumble bees need a bit of bare earth to make their nests.  And if you are mulching your trees make sure to keep the mulch at least 3 inches away from the base of the tree so that it is not touching the bark.

And it is never to early to start weeding!  Lots of winter annual weeds such as common chickweed and prickly lettuce have already sprouted!

Vegetable and Herb Gardening

Starting Seeds Indoors

It is not to late to seed one more round of cool season crop such as cabbage, kale,  and lettuce, but it is also time to start seeding warm season crops such as eggplant, peppers, and tomatoes.

To start seeds you will need:

      • seeds
Several flats of seedlings
Flats of seedlings

There are lots of places online where you can purchase seeds. If you still have seeds left over from last year and don’t know if they are still good, don’t throw them out, try this simple home germination test.

      • sterile potting mix

It is important to use sterile potting mix to avoid disease issues like damping off.  Do not reuse potting mix and do not use garden compost.

      • container
20 or 30 chard seelings sprouting in a small plastic container filled with soil
Rainbow chard seedlings in a supermarket salad container

You don’t need to buy a fancy container to start seeds.  Just make sure the container has been sterilized and has drainage holes.

      • water

You want to keep the soil moist, but be careful not to over water or you may have a problem with damping off.

      • light source
A bookcase converted into a light frame for seedlings -grow lights above seed trays placed on the shelves
Bookcase converted into a grow frame

Some seeds need  light to germinate, but all seeds need light after they germinate. Once your seeds sprout  a light source will help prevent them from becoming leggy.  You can purchase grow lights or just use a soft white fluorescent bulb.  Here are directions on how to build a Low-Cost Grow-Light Frame.

      • heat
Mini greenhouse made from areused plastic container covering a small tray with 8 small cups of soilEight small cups of soil
Mini greenhouse

Most seeds will germinate between the temperatures of 55°F and 75°F,  but the optimal temperature for each type of seed varies.  You can create a mini-green house to trap heat and moisture.  You can also buy heating mats to warm the soil.  Click here to see  Soil Temperature Conditions for Vegetable Seed Germination.

Out in the Garden

A small child in a jean shirt, teal skirt and bright yellow rain boots put seeds in the ground
Planting peas

Gardening is an activity for the whole family!  Children love helping plant seeds!  Right now you can be direct seeding cool season crops in your garden such as beets, carrots, lettuce, peas, radishes, spinach, and turnips.  If you want to have a continual harvest, consider succession planting or  seeding several smaller plantings of the same crop at timed intervals, rather than all at once.

Chive plant in a raised garden bed
Chives

While most people are busy seeding, some perennial plants are already coming up or even ready to harvest!  Chives are a great example of a perennial that allows you add something fresh and green to your meals in the early spring.  If you planted chives in your garden last year, they are probably already making their way to your table.  This perennial of the onion family begins growing in early March and is able to be snipped with scissors and eaten soon after and throughout the growing season right up until the fall frost.

Crinkly green and dark purple leaves with bright pink stems sticking out ogf the soil
Rhubarb

Another perennial making an appearance is rhubarb!  Rhubarb is a great addition to any vegetable garden and as it is deer resistant and highly attractive it can also be used as part of your edible landscape.  Although the leaves of rhubarb are considered poisonous, the stems of this spring crop that can be used to make the classic strawberry rhubarb pie as well as many other delicious snacks.

Click here for vegetable gardening resources! 

And as always, if you are having any issues in your garden, need help identifying the cause of a problem or figuring out a management strategy give us a call.  Our Garden Helpline phones are staffed April – November, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, from 9:30 am – 12:30 pm.  But you can always leave us a message or send us an e-mail.

Call (845) 343-0664 or e-mail your questions to mghelpline@cornell.edu.


Whatever kind of garden you have, spend some time enjoying its beauty!

A hanging ball of greens and fuzzy pussy wilow branches
December’s Kissing Ball transformed into a ‘Kitty Ball’ by the addition of Pussy Willow branches

Thanks to all of the Master Gardener Volunteers who provided their thoughts and photos for this post!

Vegetable Gardening Resources

Although it seems like no one really knows what is going on right now or how long this situation is going to last, one thing that I am sure of is that there is no time like the present to start your own vegetable garden!

Whether you’ve been growing vegetables for 30+ years or this will be you first year, here is a list of resources that should help you along the way.


Vegetable Gardening Resources – Getting Started!A cucurbit seedling showing the two cotelydons and the first true leaf just starting to unfold.

  • Beginning a Vegetable Garden This resource takes you through choosing a location for you garden to dealing garden pests.
  • Vegetable Growing Guides From artichoke to zucchini, find information about site characteristics and plant traits as well as growing information and special considerations.
  • Vegetable Planting Guide This resource includes a chart that shows when you should seed things inside, when you should seed things outside and when it is time to transplant. (Note: Although written for Rockland County, it works Orange County as well.)
  • Average Last Frost Date Although the last frost date is important, keep in mind that even after the last frost, cool temperatures will stress warm season crops like peppers and tomatoes.  These crops like nighttime temperatures consistently above 45°F and soil temperatures at about 70°F.
  • Soil Amendments and Fertilizers This guide includes fertilizer guidelines by plant group as well as information about pH adjusters, growth stimulants and potting mixes

Soil Samples

A trowel stuck in a raised garden bedBefore starting a garden, it is always a good idea to get a soil test.  As our office is closed, we are no longer accepting soil samples at this time.  Fortunately, if you need your soil tested, you can mail it directly to the soil testing lab, Dairy One.

Once you have your results, we would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

Vegetable Garden Problems

  • Vegetable Pests Colorado potato beetle on a potato stemFrom cucumber beetles and aphids to spider mites and slugs, this guide will help you identify your pest and give you tips on how to manage it.
  • Vegetable Diseases Choose your vegetable and then look through Fact Sheets and Information Bulletins to help identify the disease and learn the best way to manage it. 
  • Vegetable Cultural and Environmental Problems Sometimes you might think your plant has a disease when in fact the problem is not caused by a pathogen but environmental conditions or a cultural practice.  This resource will help you diagnose your problem and teach you what you can do about it.

Garden Helpline!

Garden Helpline Card (Information in text below image.)If you need help identifying the cause of a problem or figuring out a management strategy give us a call.  Our Garden Helpline phones are staffed April – November, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, from 9:30 am – 12:30 pm.  But you can always leave us a message or send us an e-mail.

Call (845) 343-0664 or e-mail your questions to mghelpline@cornell.edu.


So in the time of uncertainty, I encourage you to grow some food.

Stay home!  Stay safe!  Be well!  Happy Gardening!

 

The Great Backyard Bird Count has begun!

A bright red male cardinal perched a twig as snow falls The Great Backyard Bird count has begun! Starting today, February 14th until Monday, February 17th you are invited to join this citizen science project in which people all over the world spend at least 15 minutes simply counting the numbers and kinds of birds that they see.

This project began in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society.  Just last year over 200,000 people in 100 countries participated and counting over 6,800 species of birds.

The data collected from the Great Backyard Bird Count helps scientist learn more about bird populations including population fluctuation, migration timing, effects of climate change, etc. This is extremely important as birds are great indicator species and in North America we have seen significant decline in bird population in the past 50 years!A black crow standing on the snowy ground

So please take 15 minutes of you time today, tomorrow, Sunday and/or Monday and participate in this amazing opportunity to contribute to scientific research!

Click here to learn how to join the Great Backyard Bird Count!

Related link:

Birds as Indicator Species – Ornithology: The Science of Birds

North America has lost more than 1 in 4 birds in the last 50 years, new study says – National Audubon Society

 

4-H Fair and Family Festival

4-H Fair & Family Festival, July 26, 27, & 28, Presented by: Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange County, More information at cceorangecounty.org

Friday, July 26, 2019, 3:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Saturday, July 27, 2019, 9:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Sunday, July 28, 2019, 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Join us for three days of fun and festivities for the whole family!

Sign: Cow Pie Bingo, Horse Show, Duck Derby, Movie in the Park, Food and Smooties, Petting Zoo, Arts and Crafts, Fun!For more information, click here!

Master Gardener Volunteers will be there all weekend answering all of your gardening questions, selling succulents and a facilitating a new activity for kids of all ages called “Bugs in Goo!”  Come on by our tables and check it out!

Location:

4H Park and Education Center
300 Finchville Turnpike
Otisville, NY 10963

 

Citizen-Science Training

Stop the Spread: Scout for New Forest Pests

Adult Spotted LanternFLy measuring 1 inch in length
Spotted lanternfly adult

Help survey the Hudson Valley Region for potential new forest pests. Reports of invasive pests newly detected in New York are causing great concern. These include spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula), Asian longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis) and jumping worms (Amynthas sp.). Reporting their presence and stopping their spread are urgent needs. You can help.

Spotted lanternfly (SLF) is an invasive planthopper that can feed on a wide variety of plants including grapevines, hops, maples and fruit trees. It is established in neighboring states and may be moving into our region.

This workshop will prepare interested individuals such as gardeners, hikers, landscapers and forest managers to scout for and identify SLF. Trainees will be asked to be “boots on the ground” to assist in the detection of the pest, to report it to NYS DEC and to help prevent its spread in our area. The biology, identification, potential damage, methods of spread, monitoring and management of SLF will be described. The Blockbuster Surveyor protocol and iMapInvasives app will be reviewed to track the current distribution and abundance (or absence) of SLF.

Identification information will also be provided for Tree of Heaven, Ailanthus altissima, the SLF’s favorite host; an emerging pest, Asian Longhorned Tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis; and Jumping Worms, Amynthas sp., which are in our region but under-reported.

CCE offices in the region will host the trainings in May. Register with the links below:

Questions can be addressed to Joyce Tomaselli, CCEDC, jdt225@cornell.edu, 845-677-8223 ext. 134

Lower HUdson PRISM LogoThis program is part of the Lower Hudson Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management’s efforts to stop the spread of invasive species in the Lower Hudson Valley. Visit www.lhprism.org for more information on how the LHPRISM strives to address invasive species issues through its partnerships. Click on “Upcoming Events” or “Get Involved” to learn more.