A noun. A verb. A blog.
It has been a wet few days. The roses have been slurping up that water and their growing tips and buds are nice and juicy. Mmmmm, say the bugs, the rose buffet is now open! Not for long, bugs. First, meet the leafroller – larva of one of a number of common moths. Leafrollers produce […]
Witness here the final moment of a pretty but destructive Lily Leaf Beetle (Lilioceris lilii), an imported pest now chewing holes in your leaves and buds — and not only of lilies. [Update: What I should have said, two years ago now, was that although it likes lilies best, the lily leaf beetle will nibble […]
This week, Nova Scotia garden blogger Jodi of bloomingwriter wrote about her experience freeing a hummingbird trapped in her barn. It reminded me of a similar thrill of mine. One summer at our place on Ile d’Orléans, in the St. Lawrence River just outside Québec City, the (francophone) kids next door were collecting Monarch caterpillars […]
As it’s growing in challenging conditions, the round boxwood (Buxus) planted by my front door has always been plagued by boxwood psyllids (Psylla buxi). They’re the tiny sucking insects that cause the tips of boxwood leaves to deform into cups. Unless you looked closely at your box foliage, you might not even realize that this […]
A concrete bunny watching over this poor downy woodpecker. This Saturday morning, as I was peacefully reading in bed, my cat’s head popped through the cat flap. I realized with a sick thud that she had something in her mouth. Something big and animal sized. I let out a “Noooooo” and went chasing after her […]
Well, let’s look at the criteria – or, shall we say, critter-ia? – for superpowerfulosity in squirrels. It certainly appears they can fly. Just try to place a birdfeeder somewhere they can’t reach. In a single bound. They have a secret identity. Sure, they look cute and fluffy, hopping along the fence like Pepé LePew. […]
Just a quick one, which I’d like to caption: No. I. Think. Not. Feeder now indoors. However, this begs the question: will feeding the squirrels keep them away from beheading my tulips? Add your voice here.
There aren’t many native sugar maples on our street. Most are Norways. So I like to check in with our sugars from time to time, as you would an elderly neighbour. About a week ago, I was horrified to note that the trunk of one across the street, whose rich leaf colours I’d photographed last […]
When skunks and other critters begin to forage this way in your garden, they’re actually doing you a favour… by ridding you of white grubs. That’s little consolation when you see the damage they do by digging, usually in what in most small city gardens passes for a lawn. Though the foragers will dig among […]
The Toronto Star today contained this article about the sad and coming total demise of the city’s ash tree population over the next ten years. It’s all thanks – or no thanks, depending on your perspective – to the beautiful but deadly emerald ash borer. Through a tree course I took at Ryerson some years […]
Just discovered Project Chirp! when I went to the Civic Garden Centre the other day. The Garden Centre store was closed, alas – I had been hoping for some inspiring garden browsing on a cold January day – but the library was open, as well as the brochure stand, which was full of info. I […]
I have a split-leaved “Monstera” Philodendron, those shapley 50s style climbers that have such an architectural presence. They’re beautiful house plants. The leaves, when mature, are quite thick and leathery – just the kind of plant, for some reason, that scale insects love. Here’s a photo of a Monstera. These armour covered insects are […]