The Weedpatch Gazette
Welcome! My favorite part of this blog is the interactive aspect of it. Click on the blue titles to view the full article. This page is where you can pin, tweet, share, and best of all, COMMENT! I like comments! ~ Rommy Lopat
CHICAGO PLANTS, LANDSCAPES, PARKS & PRESERVES
~ and the people that create them ~
Got Milkweed?
If you are reading this, doubtless you know the Golden Rule of Biodiversity: plant milkweed. Please. No, I take back the "please". Just do it. Even if you garden on only a balcony, grow some milkweed in a clay pot. However you manage it (ie "float" its...
My Ash Was Shot Up Today!
It's July 23 and a relatively cool day outside, just right for giving my ash(es) an injection......against the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). If you have a large ash (this is just too hard to write without laughing), I recommend getting shots. Just so you know,...
The Blues on the 4th of July
Happy 4th of July! It's a great holiday, parades, picnics, pyrotechnics. What's not to like? Of course, you can get the blues on the 4th of July-but in a good way, in the garden. Two bulbs must be ordered for your garden because they are...
Garden(er) Inspirations
Last week while shopping at Rich's Foxwillow Pines Nursery in Woodstock, Il, I met a lovely gentleman named Art Tanimura. Art is a part-time salesperson at Rich's because, he explained, "It's a hike out here in traffic, but I really like the...
News Briefs from around the World…
In case you missed these stories... . TWIGITECTURE: my new favorite word and my new favorite garden idea. Gotta have my own nest! Check out this NYTimes story by Penelope Green. People are soooo creative... . Conserving water is very important,...
A WEDDING GARDEN
It's June! Time for graduations (congratulations to our Leah for graduating from UCLA!) and especially for WEDDINGS (congratulations to my husband, John Drummond, for marrying me 25 years ago. Smart move.). In honor of June weddings, I thought...
Open Days this Sunday for Gardens in Lake Forest, Highland Park, and Winnetka
The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days program – June 23:On Sunday, June 23rd, make plans to become inspired by five private gardens in Highland Park, Lake Forest, and Winnetka, opening to the public to benefit the Garden Conservancy, a national non-profit...
Darrel Morrison and the “Native Flora Garden” in Brooklyn
Congratulations to landscape architect Darrel Morrison, a friend to many designers here in Chicago who have known him since he taught at the University of WI Madison, for a wonderful article about his new native-to-NY-area garden at the Brooklyn Botanic...
Japanese Beetles, Honeybees, Gypsy Moths, and Congress: Which one is not a pest?
TWG [The Weedpatch Gazette] subscriber Adrienne Fawcett, who nobly publishes news of Lake Forest and Lake Bluff on her blog, Gazebo News, wrote to ask how to control Japanese Beetles on her Knock Out Roses, which are claimed to resist Jap Beetles. So much...
Patience, please
Hi from Rommy & her Webmaster - Just a short note from someone who knows the web, but is new to figuring out RSS-driven-blog-subscription! To all of you new subscribers, please don't give up on us yet; I think we have it figured out. The...
A Potpourri of News…
Can you believe it's June 1st already?! Sorry to have been out of touch...planting season...our farmhouse gardens to be photographed for Country Gardens Magazine...family...volunteerism...Leah's college graduation...technical issues with this website...such a busy...
Planting Irish (?!) Seed Potatoes
Three weekends ago I planted 15 potatoes in our vegetable garden. I bought the seed potatoes at Paquesi's Garden Center, and was drawn to these packages because they carried the "certified organic" label of the USDA. Never one to trust, I discovered that...
Too Much Water and a Cold Snap
This morning's simpering heat, combined with a brief uptick in the wind and quickly clouding dark skies, made it easy to think about the tornadoes that ripped across Oklahoma and Kansas yesterday. Sadly, more tornadoes, hail storms, and slow-moving...
Hmmm, yes, but what should we do to help?
Here's a link (Webmaster Note 2019: the link is no longer available. Here is the Medill News Homepage, for further reference: http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/ ) to an article in the Medill Journalism School website. I'm not sure we needed a...
The Garden Snoop’s Calendar: one more thing…
Oh, here's another great event for you to attend. This is WONDERFUL because of the sponsors, Rich & Susan Eyre, who have a personal goal (already partially realized because of YOU gardeners!) of building 100 new hospitals in Bolivia. Buy...
A Few News Briefs…
Having grown up in Weston, Connecticut, there are a few East Coast preferences that I will never shake. One is the New York Times. I read it assiduously. So from time to time I'll post some news and/or links that gardeners, conservationists,...
Last Minute Garden Snoop Event…
Oh, if you can re-arrange your whole life to attend the Rare Breeds show at Garfield Farm Museum (west of St. Charles) on this Sunday, by all means you should do so. If you love animals, you will love this show. The show features some kind of Colorado...
The Garden Snoop’s Calendar…
I do not promise to report every plant sale or garden tour, but if they look oh-so-interesting, I will post them as you alert me to them. Here are a few: Ending May 19 : Tour a Showcase House of a never-before-seen 1916 David Adler-designed 15,000 sq ft...
The Baltimore Oriole is Back!
Thanks to subscriber Nancy Coolley for photographing this stunning Baltimore oriole [Icterus galbula] in her backyard. Look at the clever rig Nancy devised for hanging the oranges. Great idea! And after they eat the oranges in early May, they want a chaser...
Redbud Trees: Try All the Flavors
Quick! Check your garden! Do you have all the Redbuds?I thought we had 'em all in our garden: regular "pink", white, and purple-leaved. But last Thursday I found a new Redbud that puts the rest to shame. It's called, 'Appalachian Red', and it is STUNNING...
MISSION
The Weedpatch Gazette is written for people who believe that beautiful landscapes should emphasize diversity and richness in plant material and be especially sensitive to landforms, ecology, economy, wildlife, and the wise use of land, water and soil. TWG aims to present information succinctly, with candor, detail, and humor. Submissions of content, well-reasoned criticism, and ideas for stories about landscape and the people who make and appreciate them are always welcome.
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