Maine Gardens and Gardening - Reeser Manley

Beware the Asian long-horned beetle

The Asian long-horned beetle, or ALB, is a charismatic creature with a black-and-white body about an inch long and as wide of your little finger, bluish legs and two banded antennae that curve back over its body. more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 11/21/09 | 32 views

Gardeners mark 16 community projects at supper

Last week, Master Gardener Volunteers in Hancock County gathered at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension office in Ellsworth. more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 11/14/09 | 216 views

Enjoying end of this garden year with an eye on next

It has been an exceptional October in Marjorie’s garden, the leaves of some native shrub species just starting to turn, rich autumn color lost in recent years to early hard freezes. Summersweet … more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 11/7/09 | 101 views

Screen plant choices for invasive potential

My favorite plant in Marjorie’s garden at the moment is a redvein enkianthus, Enkianthus campanulatus, planted 10 years ago and pruned to form a multitrunk small tree. This past week, as the last … more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 10/31/09 | 175 views

Using garden ethic in public places

Pollan describes the dilemma facing a community after a tornado devastates the local old-growth pine forest, Cathedral Pines, requiring a decision by the residents on the area’s future. more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 10/24/09 | 228 views

Songbirds, crow stories grab attention

From mid-October until pea-planting time, reading books and watching the garden’s birds fill the void created by cold and snow. more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 10/17/09 | 256 views

Foliage helps light up gardens in the fall

And the dead leaves lie huddled and still, No longer blown hither and thither; The last lone aster is gone; The flowers of the witch hazel wither; The heart is still aching to … more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 10/10/09 | 232 views

Crows can mark humans as backyard friends or foes

Every gardener has a crow story, a tale that either exalts the cunning of crows or vilifies their malicious intent to overthrow the garden. My crow story takes place in western Washington, where I … more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 10/3/09 | 457 views

Autumn work prepares garden for winter, next year’s planting

The garden in late September, before a killing frost, is filled with an exuberance that borders on desperation. Plants and insects alike, knowing what is to come, seem hellbent to get their work … more

By Reeser Manley
Special to the NEWS | 9/26/09 | 428 views