gardening

Girl Scouts in Troop 5013 planted wildflowers in two community garden plots at Switzkill Farm on May 17. “We have more available for anyone to use,” said Mark Hohengasser who helped organize the event.

ALBANY COUNTY — In the sunshine of an April afternoon, Carole Henry walks between carefully tended amoeba-like gardens and reaches down, as if greeting old friends after a long winter.

While plants like string of pearls, snake plants, and king sago palms may look and sound unusual, care for these and other houseplants has become commonplace.

The hope is that the future vegetables and flowers will teach students about nutrition and agriculture, as well as provide for school lunches and other school programs.

My empty canning jars are stockpiled and ready for harvest season. I saved them all year, filling a few here and there with pickles from a friend’s leftover cucumbers and jam from a couple pints of strawberries. The majority, however, sit empty. I set out last week to rectify that with some donated elderberries.

Many backyard gardeners rely on a routine of caretaking for their plants. But as temperatures rise and weather becomes more extreme, it has become necessary to adapt.

Pam Harder has been keeping an eye on the wild mustard near her Thompsons Lake Road home.

“It’s up,” she said last week.

Master Gardener Denise Maurer turns found items into garden art, and teaches others to do the same.

GUILDERLAND — Laura Shore of Guilderland found out the hard way that the beautiful ornamental plant growing in her yard was toxic giant hogweed: by trying to prune it.

Just as there’s a difference between baseball players and people who play baseball, so there’s a difference between gardeners and those who garden.

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