Hello fellow readers, The rainy, humid summer has set us up a perfect storm for slugs, always a top nuisance garden dilemma, bringing back one of my first column topics about ugly slug remedies. “What are the holes all over my hosta?” asked Dave from Hardwick, NJ. “H

Hello Fellow Readers, Earlier this season, my brother Rick from Knoxville, TN, and a dear friend Ruth of Hope, NJ, asked about rose pest remedies and soil requirements to get them off to a good start. I find roses fussy and hard to keep in their glory. There are spider mites and aphid

Hello Fellow Readers, Pam and Ed of Sparta have a charming bluestone patio. The shady spot has encouraged moss to take up residence, which is lovely. The dilemma is, ants have also moved in. Previous attempts to evict the ants have caused the demise of their treasured green fuzz in th

Hello Fellow Readers, During a recent interview with BJ Ward of Warren County Community College in Washington NJ regarding their upcoming visit with Liz Gilbert, he asked if stink bugs are a common garden dilemma question. As a matter of fact, no one yet asked about the annoying littl

Hello Fellow Readers, Hector and Judy of Morristown NJ, longtime clients become friends, have a “Big and Little” vignette of blue spruces that have begun to decline. Their little blue looks as though the needles were stripped from the lower branches. “Did the deer do this to my baby b

Hello Fellow Readers, I’m delighted to help Pam and Ed of Sparta NJ create a useful backyard for their rescue canine kids to run. It surely was a dilemma as the grade change from their side gate to the flatter back forty compares to a ski slope. Walking the area was difficult for two-

Hello fellow readers, Chipmunks are darn cute but often the most frustrating garden pest, even more so than deer primarily because there’s no effective spray or fencing to keep them out. So what’s the best chipmunk control? The jury is out. Barbara from Succasunna, NJ, wri

Hello fellow readers, The reasons to prune are similar to the reasons for caring for ourselves and our families– Improving appearance and health, training the young, controlling size, preventing injury or damage, rejuvenating the old, and influencing bounty. But choosing the rig

Hello fellow readers, ‘It looks like a sea anemone!’ wrote Ruth of Hope referring to the alien-looking bright orange thingy with finger-like protrusions found on a cedar tree. Turns out this two-inch slimy blob is caused by a fungi called Gymnosporangium juniperi-virginianae (wowee; t

Hello fellow readers, Bruce from Bangor PA, asked if he had a woodchuck or groundhog problem borrowing holes all over his yard. Same critter Bruce just a different label. They’re Marmota monax, to be exact, and are in the same family as squirrels – but much bigger eaters. And to