July 15, 2009
Japanese beetle prevention questions abound
Japanese beetle numbers continue to climb as adults emerge from the soil over the extended period of late June to mid-July. As homeowners face increasing plant defoliation as described last we
Home Demonstration Garden Field Days, 2009
Every year several ISU Research and Demonstration Farms host field days to showcase new and/or unusual vegetables and annual flowers. Each garden at the different locations is planted with the same types of plants in essentially the same layout.
Hosta Petiole Rot Present Now
Few objects of terror are as alarming to a hostaphile (obsessed lover of all things hosta) as petiole rot, a devastating fungus disease formerly known as hosta crown rot. The first reports of
Carpenter Ant Nest Exposed
Learning that you have a carpenter ant colony indoors is never pleasant, but then comes the difficult task of locating it. Car
Spider Webs Make an Interesting Display
Jim Hill, Hancock County Extension Director forwarded the photos below that show the remnants of a night of spiders gone wild.
Slugs sink their teeth into gardens
There seem to be plenty of slugs in my garden, but I hope not in yours. Slugs leave small, irregular holes all over the leaves of plants. They especially seem to like my hostas but they are not picky feeders. Slugs are difficult to detect because they feed only at night. Slugs look like snails without a shell. They vary in size from less than an inch up to 2 inches in length, grayish colored, and a bit slimy to the touch. In fact as they crawl along they leave a slime trail.