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Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 10/21/10

Want Asparagus Bounty Next Spring?

Let the stalks yellow before cutting

A Bay Weekly reader called asking when to cut back asparagus tops.

Not yet!

To maximize next year’s crop and to get early production of sprouts, delay cutting back the tops of asparagus plants until after they have turned completely yellow. You want all the nitrogen in the stems and foliage to migrate back to the roots in the ground.

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Article - Sky Watch by J. Alex Knoll; by J. Alex Knoll - 10/21/10

By the Light of the Moon

Autumn’s full moons help dispel the impending darkness

Sunset Friday the 22nd, at 6:17, reveals the full Hunter’s Moon rising in the east. Like all full moons, this one rises with sunset and sets with sunrise, around 7:25 this week. The full moon is always juxtaposed to the sun with earth right in the middle. As sunlight washes over the other side of the world, it spills around the planet, striking the face of the moon head-on.

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Article - Earth Journal by Gary Pendleton; by Gary Pendleton - 10/21/10

The Great Raptor Migration

Fall’s cool, western winds drive birds of prey our way

Fall is the time for raptor migration. For a few days after a cold front, when the wind comes from the west or north, hawks, eagles and falcons pass overhead in large numbers. It could be that cooler temperatures stimulate a response that makes the birds move.

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Article - Sporting Life by Dennis Doyle; by Dennis Doyle - 10/21/10

A Twitch in Time Nets Dinner

Saved by an old bait sporting a new name

It was extremely frustrating. There were rockfish working the rip in front of me, but they wouldn’t hit my lures. I could see their occasional feeding boils marking the surface, and it was obvious that they were eating — and at least a few of the feeders were good sized.

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Article - Our Capital by Ellen Moyer; by Ellen Moyer - 10/21/10

Dealing with the Downpour

The Parking Garden at Little Gotts Court in Annapolis is soaking up stormwater runoff and getting it back into the ground

It rained and it rained. Three inches, five inches, nine inches, 13 inches of new water fell on Annapolis.

City Dock was underwater. Compromise Street was flooded. The low places in Eastport on Second Street and Chester Avenue and in West Annapolis on King George Street were flooded. Roads with the least bit of incline were sluiceways for water. Overloaded storm drains seeking new outlets made missiles of manhole covers.

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Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Frank Gouin - 10/14/10

Watch Our for Spider Mites

Test and treat your plants before bringing them in

A friend told me the leaves of her Ficus benjamina are covered with black soot. I suspected that the plant had been infected with a soft-scale insect that exudes a honeydew substance that breeds sooty mold. However, upon examining the plant, I saw it was severely infested with spider mites.

If you moved your houseplants outside for summer, there is a good possibility that they are infested with spider mites.

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Article - Sky Watch by J. Alex Knoll; by J. Alex Knoll - 10/14/10

The Wonderful Bear

From Zeus’ paramour to Arthur’s kingdom

The waxing moon reaches first-quarter on the 14th, appearing due south as the sun sets, well before 6:30 this week, and setting around midnight. Each night the moon appears 15 degrees farther east at sunset, and each evening it sets almost an hour later. The night of the 19th, the gibbous moon passes six degrees north of brilliant Jupiter.

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Article - Sporting Life by Dennis Doyle; by Dennis Doyle - 10/14/10

Perseverance Pays

If you’re on the water, the fish may come to you

The sun was getting low in an overcast sky, night was rapidly falling — and still there were no fish. Conditions were perfect off the shallow-water point, the tide was up, there was good current, a chilly wind was lying down nicely — and only one other boat was present. But no fish.

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Article - Sky Watch by J. Alex Knoll; by J. Alex Knoll - 10/7/10

Early Treat or Fizzling Trick?

The always puzzling Draconids

Thursday’s new moon provides an unobscured backdrop for this year’s Draconid meteor shower, which peaks at week’s end. Not some early Halloween reference to Dracula, this annual meteor shower is named for the constellation Draco the dragon, from which the meteors seem to emanate. It’s tricky to predict the rate of the Draconids each year, but there is always the potential for some awesome stellar treats.

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Article - The Bay Gardener by Dr. Francis Gouin; by Dr. Francis Gouin - 10/7/10

Fall’s Favorite Fruit

You’ll love persimmons — once you learn the to eat them

Now that I have returned to the Deale Farmers’ Market Thursdays from 3 to 6pm with persimmons, I get lots of questions: What do you do with persimmons? What do they taste like?

The persimmons I grow and sell are the Asian type, almost as large as tomatoes and with very few seeds, if any, depending on seasonal conditions. This year, persimmons have more seeds than usual.

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