Dodder, Lovevine, Strangleweed, Hellbind, Vegetable Spaghetti This plant is a real sucker! Dodder is a parasitic vine with smooth, wiry, twining stems that attach to a host plant with tiny suckers (haustoria) which draw water, minerals and carbohydrates out of the host plant to feed itself. Large numbers of them twine over shrubbery to form blankets that look like masses of orange spaghetti (which gives it its common name, “vegetable spaghetti”). Dodder is a member of the Morning-Glory Family (Convolvulaceae) in older references, and a member of the Dodder Family (Cuscutaceae) in the more rece ..read more

Patch PerfectTM, Bag of Hope or Pile of Hype? “Get Growing with Patch PerfectTM, the turbocharged grass seed that grows faster thicker and fuller than any other grass seed on earth, Guaranteed!” Sound too good to be true? Listen and find out… THE HYPE: Spread It and Forget It It’s Like Grass Seed On Steroids Grows Thicker, Faster, And Fuller Luscious Green Grass All Year Long Handles High Traffic Areas Neutralizes Pet Urine Grows In Extreme Heat & Cold Grows In The Shade Buy 1 Get 1 Free “The turbocharged grass seed that grows faster thicker and fuller than any other grass seed on e ..read more

Southern Leopard Frog A Native Southern Frog The Southern Leopard Frog is generally green or light brown in color with dark brown or black blotches that give this mostly aquatic frog its common name. The Southern Leopard Frog grows to 2-1/2 to 3-1/2″ in length, has a distinct light spot in the center of its eardrum, a long-pointed head and snout, and a white line running along its upper jaw. Habitat The Southern Leopard Frog inhabits freshwater ditches, canals, ponds, lakes, marshes, mixed hardwood swamps, and cypress swamps throughout Florida. During the summer it prefers weedy areas away fro ..read more

Real Orchid Plants From Costa Rica My wife Cathy and I spent our 25th wedding anniversary vacation in Costa Rica at Dreams Las Mareas, Playa el Jobo La Cruz de Guanacaste El Jobo. Northern Pacific Costa Rica across the Bahia Salinas from Playa Manzanillo, Nicaragua. The weather in the El Jobo area is hot and dry most of the year. This is considered a tropical dry forest area. The average day time temperatures are typically in the mid-80s to low 90s. Night time temps are usually in the low to mid-70s. While the rainy season is considered May through November, the area really ..read more

The Coal Age Approximately 323.2 to 298.9 million years ago years ago, the Earth was a much different place than it is today. The continents that we are familiar with now did not exist then. What we know today as the Anthracite Region of Pennsylvania was located on what was then known as Laurasia (Laurentia (the ancient geological core of North America), Baltica, and Siberia)) forming the northern part of the supercontinent Pangaea, parts of which (ancient Pennsylvania included) were located below the equator in the region of present day Brazil. Then, like today the temperatures of the area we ..read more

I have always wanted to be a bee keeper and one weekend in October I discovered that I had a colony of bees living in my overturned Terra Cotta Kokopelli flower pot out behind the oak tree. I approached the bee colony a number of times to see how aggressive they were and lucky for me they did not take much notice of my presence. I wished to keep the bees, but first I asked my wife if she would be alright with it. She expressed a bit of skepticism, “By the pool?”, she questioned. I assured her that it would be fine, the bees would mind their own business and not bother us when we were enjoying ..read more

Hrudka pronounced (hur-UT-ka) is a simple custard cheese. The basic recipe is mixing eggs and milk, adding salt, and cooking it while continually stirring until the proteins separate into curds and the liquid separates into whey while not scorching the mixture. The technique for making hrudka is similar to making farmers cheese. Hrudka can be made savory with salt and pepper or sweetened with sugar and honey. The recipe below is on the sweeter side with honey, sugar and vanilla. Hrudka can be served cold at Easter Sunday breakfast or at the holiday dinner feast. It is also sliced to be pu ..read more

January 4, 2021 By Isabella Caprario, special contributor to FloridaGardener.com Starting a garden is an excellent way to enjoy beautiful plants and delicious fruits, herbs, and vegetables right in your backyard. As a new gardener, it’s vital to be sure you’re choosing plants that will thrive in your climate. The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map helps you determine which plants will grow best in your part of the country. Knowing what to plant in your garden means a successful yield, year after year. Read on for some helpful gardening tips that will ensure your fruit, herbs, plants, and flowers li ..read more

When selecting your Christmas tree, remember these tips: Select a tree that is at least one foot shorter than the height of the ceiling in the room where you are going to display the tree. Check the freshness of the tree by running your fingers over the branch along the needles. Make sure the needles on the tree you select are pliable and adhere to the branches. They should bend, but not break or fall off. Try shaking the tree to see if the needles are firmly attached. While you can expect some loss of brown needles, don’t accept the tree if you notice an excessive loss of green needles ..read more

Translated from Andreas Lampe’s “Interview mit einem Maulwurf” in Flora Garten 9|11 Hardly anyone gets to see him and yet almost everyone has an opinion about him. Because with his hills he transforms flat, painstakingly manicured lawns into a landscape of craters, he is anything but popular. Interested to learn more about the industrious burrowers in the ground, we asked the mole for an interview. You lead a very secret life spending most of your time under the earth. Many people have never seen you. Also comparatively little is known about yo ..read more