Congratulations to the Eastern Iowa Orchid Society, winners of the prestigious American Orchid Society Show Trophy for the best Orchid Exhibit Display at the Batavia Orchid Show in Chicago! Look for information on the group’s next meeting March 5 in Iowa City, on the events calendar, above, plus more activities in the coming year, including […]
My favorite Downton Abbey quote
Season 3 of “Downton Abbey” was rather, well, grim at times, but this exchange between Lady Edith and her grandmother made me laugh. Some gardeners may take offense, but I found it quite hilarious.
Indian Creek Nature Center celebrates 30...
CEDAR RAPIDS – Organizers hoped to attract 15 to 20 people when the Indian Creek Nature Center first offered a maple syrup workshop. More than 50 people attended that initial demonstration in 1979. Several years later, Rich Patterson was seeking a replacement for one of the Nature Center’s major fundraisers when he hit upon the […]
Air pollution warnings issued for Linn a...
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources released this today: (Feb. 25, 2013) – Elevated fine particle pollution levels were recorded across eastern Iowa this morning. Fine particle levels above EPA health standards are likely to persist in Black Hawk and Linn Counties until early Tuesday morning, when northeast winds are expected to clear the air.
Fracking, climate change and other energ...
I’m adding these to the events calendar, but wanted to provide this overview of Coe College’s upcoming Thursday Forum classes. The focus of the March lecture series will be on contemporary energy issues, including topics such as solar and wind energy, fracking, climate change and oil reserves.
Iowa’s only urban farm planning tours in
CEDAR RAPIDS – Hope has been growing in the northwest Cedar Rapids Time Check neighborhood that was ravaged by floods nearly five years ago. Matthew 25 began planting seeds for the idea of an urban farm shortly after floodwaters receded and now the 2-acre gardens near Ellis Boulevard and F Avenue NW have become a […]
Homegrown Lifestyle 12-week course begin...
Besides an awesome name, I’ve heard good things about Iowa State University Extension’s Homegrown Lifestyle course. Homegrown Lifestyle is a 12-week spring short course for folks who want to reconnect with the land, grow food for their own use and create a sustainable landscape. Find out more about the program and how you can get […]
How do you squirrel-proof a bird feeder?
My late grandmother – an avid birdwatcher – had a somewhat elaborate system rigged up to deter squirrels from her bird feeders. She could pull a wire strung through her kitchen window that attached a line to the feeder. The pulled wire would shake the bird feeder and scare off the little critters, at least […]
A nutty situation in Iowa
What do you do with too much of a good thing? Dell Lawrence of the Iowa Nut Growers Association is looking for an answer. I met Dell at his group’s booth at Saturday’s Winter Gardening Fair in Cedar Rapids. He grows and harvests black walnuts at his place near Marion, where he turned the past […]
Drought superheroes and blueberries; mol...
How I wish I had taken Linn County Master Gardener Deb Walser’s blueberry workshop 10 years ago. I planted two blueberries back then and the plants languished until last spring, when I finally decided to relocate them. They probably just needed more sun, I decided. That was, of course, the lead-off to Iowa’s drought. As […]