Beautiful Weeds Beautiful Weeds: Why America’s “Weeds” Are Actually Keystone Wildflowers Colonial Farming Nomenclature. When colonists began settling farms in the so-called “new world,” they encountered plants unlike anything they had seen before. These wildflowers grew vigorously, often appearing along fencerows, in fallow fields, and even pushing their way into crops. Instead of recognizing their […]
Permaculture Design: When Weeds Talk. Continued from the invasive plant series. Part I. II. III. Permaculture Design re: plant interpretation. Plants spontaneously show up on land and colonize a micro-region sometimes. Usually this is viewed as a headache at best. And yet, using permaculture principles, a weed colony can be interpreted as a communication about
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Why are Dandelions Bad (Or Are They?) Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) are one of the most recognizable plants in lawns and gardens across North America. But are they truly bad, or just misunderstood? Let’s explore the history of dandelions, their impact on the ecosystem, and why they’re not worth waging war against. The History of Dandelions
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Continued from Parts 1 + 2. On a hillside in the SUNY Albany neighborhood, our team planned and executed a major transformation and restoration project. This urban garden was devastated by invasive weed infestations. Attention to soil health and quality was the key to the project’s success. After we removed all the invasive plant
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Caring for large gardens is quite a different fête from caring for small gardens. The maintenance routine required to keep a small native garden thriving is often quite manageable. Weeding monthly is usually a breeze after plants are established. It’s fairly common knowledge by now that using native plants returns a low maintenance garden
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Butterfly Garden DIY: How To Jesse taught a workshop at a regional garden expo. “Butterfly Garden DIY: How To” was the topic. Subsequently we’ve heard from folks who wanted to attend and couldn’t. This post will summarize the butterfly habitat gardening presentation. A wildlife biologist friend writes frequently about butterfly gardening and the lifecycles of
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