| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009 4:52 am |
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I am not a tidy person. You can see that in my house, and you can see it in my garden. So, recently I was out in the garden, long after everything was past its prime, forcing myself to do some maintenance. In my backyard, I have two raised beds, surrounded by a wire fence to keep out the hens. On one of my trips in and out of the garden, I left the fence open. As I worked to keep the strawberries in the space I believe they deserve, the hens slipped in behind me. By the time I noticed them (I swear they were being quiet in fear of me kicking them out) they had already cleared a good section of garden for me. I decided I would leave the work to them. I finished up the work on the strawberries, and left the grass and random other bits for the hens. They clearly love working on the garden, and that's just fine with me. Since then I've left the gate open, they've done a nice job of clearing and fluffing up the soil. They've also nibbled a bit on my kale, but I've decided that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Everett trash service now accepts food scraps in yard waste bins If you live in Everett, you can now add food scraps to your yard waste container. Rubatino, the major trash service provider in the city, has added the service to their pickups. I love this. During the winter months, Rubatino used to pick up the yard waste only once a month, the service is now weekly. For gardeners who are on top of things and clean up the garden right away at the end up the season, once a month is no problem. I am not that gardener. Also, I already have a compost bin that a lot of my food goes in. A lot of experimenting, though, has shown somethings just don't do well in our worm bin. Avocado skins and pits for example, take ages to break down and corn cobs don't do so well, either. From now on, all that stuff will be going in the yard waste bin. I'm glad it'll be turned into compost, rather than landfill fodder. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment
Got fruit? Want bees? Check this out. Bees and fruit ... what could be more important in gardening? Here are two upcoming events that celebrate our most fruitful plants and those important pollinators! Get fruity: Spend a fruitful Halloween learning about container gardening (with intensity!), what fruits to grow in a small garden and the pros and cons of mason bees, among other things at the Seattle Tree Fruit Society's Fall Fruit Show. Gets tips on apple identification and tool sharpening. Taste fruits (including unusual ones), juices and applesauces. Fruit experts will be standing by to answer your questions. It's all free and happening from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 31 at the Center for Urban Horticulture, 3501 NE 41st St. (Mary Gates Drive) in Seattle. For more information e-mail jlsvashoni@earthlink.net or call 206-784-1034. Bringing back the bees: The Snohomish Garden Club's regular monthly meeting will feature mason bee expert Dave Hunter of Hunter's Mason Bees in Woodinville at 7 p.m. Nov. 9 at Snohomish High School cafeteria, 1316 Fifth St. Hunter, who recently converted a 20-year hobby into a mason bee business, loans bees to garden club members for free. He also sells excess bees to orchards in risis. Though the club meeting is open to the public, there is a $5 fee for non-members. The Snohomish Garden Club mission is to stimulate knowledge and love of gardening, to protect native trees, plants and birds, and to encourage civic plantings. Meetings are on the second Monday of the month from September through May. Annual dues are $20. See www.snohomishgardenclub.com or call 425-374-8622 for more information. Hunter will also be speaking to garden clubs and other groups in Monroe, Woodinville, Edmonds and Mountlake Terrace in the coming weeks. Visit huntersmasonbees.com to learn more about his services. ... [Read More] E-mail | Print | Comment |
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