The slacker’s guide to a great lawn [Consumer Reports May 2012] – Frank Rossi (right) on the now debunked rule-of-thumb that you should never cut more than one third of the grass blade when mowing: “It was inspired by research conducted in the 1950s by scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture who were evaluating Kentucky bluegrass as a forage grass. If you’re feeding cows, the one-third rule will give you the most rapid leaf production. But if your goal is a good-looking lawn, we’re now saying it’s OK to take more off.” Most grasses thrive even when half or more of the blade is removed. That means you can mow less often, saving time and fuel, Rossi points out.
Frost threatens early blooms [Scranton Times-Tribune 3/26/2012] – “I’m pretty sure this will be the earliest bloom, going back at least to the early 1900s,” said Ian Merwin, Ph.D., a horticulturist who specializes in tree fruit at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. “We are definitely in a very risky situation right now for the fruit crop in the whole Northeast.”
Northern vintners work to improve wines’ quality [Wall Street Journal 3/29/2012] – Led by Cornell University, the Northern Grapes Project will work with more than 330 wineries and 1,300 growers managing more than 3,000 acres of grapes from the Upper Midwest to New England. Tim Martinson, the Cornell scientist leading the project, said cold climate winemakers and grape growers share information and tips at conferences and over the phone, but the project will pull it together in writing and make it available through papers and webinars. The goal, he said, “is to raise the industry.”