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Columns

  • Time to consider what to grow indoors

    Fall begins Saturday but those of you with allergies already knew that because your nose knows.
    I really feel for those who suffer because you just can’t escape the air. You can take a tablespoon of honey every day to help drastically reduce your suffering.
    Eating local honey builds up your tolerance to everything blowing in the wind. It takes four to six weeks to kick in, so you better start soon if you want any relief in October.

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  • Tips for preparing next year’s garden, trees

    I'm sorry. Apparently, all we needed to end the drought was for me to put in a hose spigot at the bottom of the hill.
    The years of hauling water in gallon jugs up and down the hill, from plant to plant to plant is over. Can't say I'll miss it, though it did wonders for my biceps.
    Just as I'm ready to turn on the hose, Mother Nature steps in to supply all I need. Well, at least I'm ready for next year.

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  • Best bet for getting rid of bed bugs is to hire a professional

    An office visitor inquired about how to get rid of bed bugs in an apartment.
    The best answer is to hire a professional pest control company.
    They have access to insecticides that are not available to a homeowner. Professional used insecticides such as Temprid, Transport and Phantom, all registered trademark insecticides, tend to be more effective than bed bug sprays sold by retailers.

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  • September is time to prepare house plants

    Here it is almost the end of August.
    Summer has flown by on super sonic wings. The jiggler on the canner has been singing in the kitchen every weekend and I still have bushels to go before I'm done. The pantry is looking better every day. We've only had one fog this month, so far, so I'm hopeful that it will be an easy winter.

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  • Dedicating minutes a day makes for happier marriage

    How can you have a happier marriage? Even the best of relationships probably have room to grow a bit more.
    I recently had an opportunity to speak at a local women’s conference about this subject. The idea wasn’t original to me but it certainly makes sense.
    No matter how committed you are to the relationship, it can get stale if you don’t put some effort into making the relationship happy.

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  • Now is the time to start preparing for winter

    You’ve heard the saying of dipping your toes in the water? I think Mother Nature is doing that for us.
    We’ve had several chilly mornings in the upper 40s here on the farm and that’s enough to get us thinking of fall. Officially, it’s one month away. Time to get moving.
    I have several friends who think of me as a “pioneer woman.”
    I’m not. Just because I preserve what I grow, take my meat off the farm and heat with a wood stove, doesn’t mean I don’t spoil myself with the luxuries of the modern world.

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  • How to tell truth from fiction during election season

    The election campaigns are getting into high gear.  
    How do you know what’s true when one side says something about the other?  It’s hard to know the truth about all such claims. Some outrageous claims may actually be true and something that sounds true can be false.  I’m not taking sides on any issue.

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  • Lessons learned from gardening mistakes

    I really love silver linings. Sometimes, however, it’s really tough to find them.
    Take this summer for example. We’ve had a high number of insect pests, unseasonably hot weather and record low rainfall. Needless to say, it has been a challenging summer for gardeners and farmers.

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  • Lessons learned from gardening mistakes

    I really love silver linings. Sometimes, however, it’s really tough to find them.
    Take this summer for example. We’ve had a high number of insect pests, unseasonably hot weather and record low rainfall. Needless to say, it has been a challenging summer for gardeners and farmers.

    Click here to read more...
  • Weeds, wildflowers thrive in dry conditions

    One thing I know for sure, the drought has toughened up the weeds.
    Since I mulch with newspapers and straw, I use my hands to pull up any weeds that appear in the garden. Some I leave, because the bugs like them better than anything I plant. Most others I pull and I’ve got the cuts on my hands to show for it.

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