When my builder built my house, he wiped out about an acre of land – mainly full sun on sand and rocks. Anything I’ve read said either to use a…
Lawn Gone: Nourishing Our Ecosystems with Meadows
by Mary B. O’Neill, Ph.D. Reprinted with permission, this article first appeared in the July 2017 issue of Main Street Magazine. The American Dream of homeownership, good fences making good…
How Do Nurseries Handle Invasive Plants?
ELA recently posed a few questions to regional nurseries to find out how they learning about and controlling distribution of known invasive plants and those plants that might become invasive.
Three Invasive Plant Species to Really Watch Out For
by Michael Bald People sometimes ask which invasive plant species give me the greatest cause for alarm. They often have their own list or landscape perspective, but frequently we’ll agree…
Is There Hope for Growing Lilies in New England Again?
by Lisa Tewksbury In the early 1990s New England acquired a new pest of lilies from Europe, the lily leaf beetle (Lilioceris lilii), which made growing lilies to their full…
Exotic Invasive Plant Control Hand Tools for Homeowners
by Bruce Wenning This article was first published in the Spring 2016 issue of The Newton Conservators Newsletter. The cutting, digging, and plant-pulling tools that I use for controlling the…
Developing Sterile Invasives (Why Bother?)
by Ellen Sousa Maine has become the latest state to ban the sale of exotic invasive plants Burning Bush (Euonymus alatus) and Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii), both long-time staple plants…
Eco-Answers from the Pros: Controlling Invasive Bamboo
I live in north central Arkansas and have an issue with an invasive plant. There is a large stand of running bamboo along my back fence line that is expanding…
Water and Big Brains
by Mike Nadeau So, water: two molecules of Hydrogen, one molecule of Oxygen. It’s a huge topic. I cannot think of anything that is living or has lived that is…
Drought and Pests
by Heather Faubert Two general statements about droughts, insects, and diseases hold true: Most plant-feeding insects tend to survive very well under drought conditions. Plant diseases are not very troublesome…
The Science of Soil Biology during Drought: ELA Conference Takeaways
Session review by K. Miho Connolly The year 2016 was characterized by precipitation amounts well below average, coupled with record high temperatures. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, 54% of…
Our Lawns Are Killing Us. It’s Time to Kick the Habit
by Mark Richardson This article was reprinted with permission from Native Plant News (Spr-Sum 2017), the member magazine of New England Wild Flower Society. Pristine turf grass lawns are as synonymous…