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Yard Doc: Yes, it is hot this summer and landscape plants can help - TCPalm

Plant trees. It’s that simple, governments, volunteer groups, and communities across the globe know trees are not to be feared. Well planted trees forming an urban forest around your home, community, city, and state protect the area from the ravages of storms and help mitigate the unrelenting heat. MORE:  Copperleaf makes landscapes glow MORE:  Louis Philippe roses are heat tolerant Install mulch. Thin mulch this time of year is just asking for more work and hotter soil. Now, while the weeds are growing rapidly and the sun is so hot, mulch is the first line of defense against many problems. Some plants withstand the brutal heat if their roots are cool and moist. Spend some time adding to the mulch around your trees and shrubs in the cool of the morning. Avoid pesticides. The oppressive heat is stressful to plants and people; reduce the chance of injury to landscape plants and you by avoiding the use of pesticides, if necessary, apply early in the morning or late in the day to guard against injury to the plant. Put off pruning until the weather cools off a bit. Pruning is stressful and one more layer of stress in addition to the heat may cause the plant to fail. Also, many plants will be slow to seal pruning wounds as heat can slow the production of hormones need to grow additional tissue to cover the area. During the heat of summer, it may be best to apply only secondary and micronutrients to green up listless or nutrient deficient lawns and ornamental plants. Micronutrients are those needed by the plants in small amounts and include iron, zinc, manganese, magnesium and copper among others. Apply secondary or micronutrients in chelated form. Plants get hot. Not all wilted plants need water, some wilt just from the heat. Apply water only if the soil is dry. Avoid irrigating during the middle of the day; more water is lost to evaporation at this time and the shock of cool water on hot plants can cause damage and increase the chance of sun scald. Protect yourself while working outside. The heat is extreme and can be life threatening. Garden early in the day and wear a hat and sunscreen. Be sure to drink water, lots of water. Begin hydration before you go outside and continue drinking while working and after y... https://www.tcpalm.com/story/life/columnists/carol-cloud-bailey/2019/08/22/yard-doc-yes-hot-summer-and-landscape-plants-can-help/2003259001/

America in Bloom judges coming to Mansfield - Mansfield News Journal

Judges will be evaluating the community’s efforts in the areas of flowers, landscaped areas, urban forestry, environmental efforts, celebrating heritage, community vitality and overall impression. This year's judges will be Linda Cromer and Tim France, according to America in Bloom.  Cromer has served her community, Greendale, Indiana, in a variety of political positions including planning commissioner, chairwoman of the park board and tree board and housing authority commissioner. She sits on the executive boards and plays an active role in the efforts of several national and state non-profit organizations dedicated to social justice and environmental issues. Cromer, who received a fine arts education at the University of Kansas, learned to love gardening at her grandmother’s knee. Owner and operator of a floral shop and greenhouse for over a decade, she has spent the bulk of her professional life traveling as an international representative for a labor organization and has used those travel opportunities to audit design and horticulture classes at a number of universities, and to study the diversity and individuality of public gardens and the communities where they are located. She is past president and active member of the local Garden Club and spearheaded her community’s first participation in the America in Bloom Program in 2005. France has been serving as the Coshocton Municipal Court judge since 2006, currently serving his third six-year term. He has been involved with the community in various capacities, including serving on the board for Coshocton Community Housing, which provides homes for people with developmental disabilities. He is president of Coshocton is Blooming, a non-profit board established to participate in America in Bloom. His talent for planting and nurturing flowers began about 20 years ago, when his daughter’s junior high track boosters raised money by planting flowers in the 30 downtown planters. The planters were planted in May and were dead by July. He realized that someone needed to take more responsibility, so he hauled water in the back of his truck to keep the plants alive all summer. Still, they were not thriving. The next year, he convinced the local Rotary Club to donate different flowers and the City of Coshocton to allow usage of spigots and city water. He completed the Master Gardener program through the Ohio State University Extension Office. He has personally designed and planted the courthouse and city flowerbeds and helped Coshocton is Blooming obtain planters for every intersection in the city, according to America in Bloom. Finally, he piloted a program to replace the old containers on Main Street to enhance the architecture of the city buildings. The planters have grown from 30 to more than 400, including 96 hanging baskets. To date, more than 250 communities from 45 states have participated in the program and more than 22 million people have been touched by it. Awards will be announced Oct. 3-5 at AIB’s National Symposium & Awards Celebration, this year in St. Charles, Illinois. America in Bloom 2018: Judges see flowers, historic sites, more lwhitmir@nncogannett.com 419-521-7223 Twitter: @LWhitmir... https://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/story/news/2019/07/22/america-bloom-judges-coming-downtown-mansfield/1793243001/

More than just a pretty petal: How flowers feed the world around us - Vernon Morning Star

How dry is our rainforest? Southeast’s rare drought could threaten plants, animals, your power bill]Other insects often prefer nectar with amino acids too: mosquitoes, for example. Female mosquitoes of a certain species lived longer when their nectar diet contained amino acids as well as sugar; but no such effect was seen in males of those species. At least in some circumstances honeybees prefer nectar with amino acids. Some flies favor nectar with certain amino acids, which tend to occur in high concentrations in fly-pollinated flowers.A few kinds of floral nectar contain lipids, fatty acids that can be used as fuel by a visiting animal. Many contain vitamins. Some nectars even contain alkaloids and other distasteful substances that may deter some potential flower visitors.Not all nectar is found in flowers, however; in many kinds of plants, there are extrafloral nectaries (meaning “outside the flower”), which appear on leaves or stems. The nectar in these nectaries is generally quite different from that in flowers. Amino acids are present, but they are usually the non-protein-building kinds.Several studies have shown that ants often (but not always) prefer extrafloral nectar that contains amino acids over nectar that lacks them and are attracted to these nectaries. Sometimes, parasitic wasps and predatory flies are, too. Many studies have shown that the ants (and wasps and flies) prey on insects that feed on leaves or stems and thus typically reduce the amount of damage that the herbivores do. It’s a mutualistic defense system: the plant pays the ants to defend it, and the ants get food.Several local species (including species of Populus, Viburnum, Rosa, and Impatiens) may have extrafloral nectaries, but not all individuals may exhibit them; in some species, the trait is heritable but not all genetic families have the trait. Furthermore, in some cases the extrafloral nectaries are only produced after some herbivore damage has occurred. In cottonwoods and their relatives (aspens), expression of these nectaries is reportedly both heritable and inducible. Elderberry shrubs have them too; they are the little stalks near the axils of the fresh leaves in the accompanying photo; nectar is borne at the top of the stalks. However, so far, we have no observations of insect visitors to these nectaries.[Wild Shots: Photos of Mother Nature in Alaska] The most-studied extrafloral nectaries in non-tropical plants may be those found on bracken fern, a cosmopolitan species that grows in Southeast. (Ferns do not have flowers, so the nectaries are necessarily extrafloral, but the term is used for convenience of comparison with the truly extrafloral nectaries of flowering plants.) The nectaries on bracken are produced on very young, developing fronds, before the leaves expand, in late spring and early summer. They are dark blobs at the junctions of the major pinnae or leaflets, and small ones may occur along the midribs of each pinna. A study in Britain showed that the size of bracken nectaries varied with habitat: they were larger in open habitats than in woodland. The numerous studies of bracken nectaries have produced highly variable results: some showed that ants defend the young fern particularly against sucking insects, or only insect herbivores in the act of egg-laying, or just the eggs of the herbivores, or only leaf-chewing herbivores, while others showed no effect of the ants attracted to the nectaries. Presumably, habitat effects on nectary size are likely to be reflected in ant activity, and furthermore, the deterrent effect of ants depends on what species of ants come to the nectaries and the density of the ants. It also matters just what herbivores are involved: some insect herbivores are very well defended against ant attack and are impervious ... https://www.vernonmorningstar.com/news/more-than-just-a-pretty-petal-how-flowers-feed-the-world-around-us/

Floral-shop killer has behaved in prison. The parole board wasn't impressed. - SILive.com

Mariners Harbor floral shop.DeMarco, 46, was shot once in the chest on May 12, 1991, during what a jury found was a botched robbery of his store, Forget Me Not Florist and Gifts, on Forest Avenue. Steven Morales was denied parole for the 1991 slaying of a floral shop owner. Morales was convicted in June 1993, after a two-week trial in state Supreme Court, St. George.Witnesses identified him as being outside the store just minutes before the shooting, and wearing the same clothes as the culprit, the Advance reported.Witnesses inside the shop said a man wearing a gray hoodie, dark sunglasses and a red bandanna walked in and fired once. The shooter ran out after an exchange of gunfire that ended with DeMarco, the father of two young children, slumped behind the counter.Morales' sister-in-law testified she overheard conversations about the crimes and saw the defendant in possession of a gun.The firearm, which prosecutors said was a .44-caliber Magnum, was never found.At the defendant's sentencing, a justice told Morales his half-brother, Roberto Gonzalez, the getaway car driver, had implicated himself and Morales in a confession to police.Gonzalez’s admission, however, was not used against Morales at trial.Still, Morales remained resolute, maintaining his innocence, despite the conviction."I stand before you convicted, but I am totally innocent of the charges, Your Honor," Morales told the judge. Steven Morales was sentenced to 25 years to life in June of 1993. Gonzalez, 52, was also convicted of murder in November 1993. He was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison and was paroled last year after three prior denials.In its report, the parole board commended Morales for his personal growth, productive use of time, positive disciplinary record and progress while incarcerated.The board also lauded him for completing all mandatory programs while behind bars and for participating in volunteer programs. Still, the panel said those factors weren’t enough to spring Morales.The victim's slaying during the course of an attempted robbery represented a “tragic escalation” of Morales’ criminal history which includes a prior felony conviction for shooting another person, the board noted.“A review of your records, a personal interview and deliberation lead the panel to conc... https://www.silive.com/news/2019/04/floral-shop-killer-has-behaved-in-prison-the-parole-board-wasnt-impressed.html

Planning a Wedding in Ocean City, Maryland - Ocean City Today

A vibrant summer wedding on the beach, for example, might pair well with a marigold and white palette, while a winter wedding with oceanfront views could be complemented by a forest green and dusty light blue color scheme. Choosing the colors of a wedding takes vision and creativity, and a lot of times, it’s one of the most fun parts of wedding planning. Start thinking about food and beverageDoes your venue of choice cater? If not, you better start thinking about the food. Taste Events, based in Bethany Beach, provides offsite food and beverage services to weddings all over the Shore of Delaware and Maryland. Also consider asking your favorite local restaurant if they cater large events. The Shrimp Boat, for example, offers customizable catering and party options. CateringTaste Events is the catering division of the Off the Hook Restaurant Group and offers full service catering to allow guests to enjoy our award-winning chefs’ cuisine, not only at events in one of…Choose a photographer, an officiant, flowers and all that other fun stuffOcean City does not have a Justice of the Peace, so you’ll need to provide the officiant. Photographers, videographers, florists and cake bakers are easy to come by in Ocean City, and it may even get a little overwhelming when there are so many options to choose from. Consult your wedding planner or your contact at your venue to see who they’ve worked with before and who they suggest.Flowers?The City Florist is a creative design company. Always growing and evolving, The City Florist strides to remain at the top in the floral/event design field. Flowers and special event designs are…Kick back at your bachelor/bachelorette partyIt’s not uncommon to see a gaggle of happy women in “Bridesmaid”/”Bride-To-Be” shirts and sashes parading down Coastal Highway. Bar hopping on a warm, summer evening is probably the most popular option for bachelor and bachelorette parties, and Ocean City is famous for its variety of bars and restaurants.Nature lovers, or those who just want to be out on the water, might opt for something a little different. The a href="https://odys... https://www.oceancity.com/planning-wedding-ocean-city/

Jackson Attorney to Represent Flowers in Possible Seventh Trial - Jackson Free Press

A lead attorney with the Mississippi Center for Justice plans to represent Curtis Flowers (pictured) if he is tried for a seventh time for the 1994 murders of four people in Winona, Miss. AP Photo/Winona Times, Dale Gerstenslager, Pool, File A Jackson-area civil rights attorney is vowing to represent an African American man after a prosecutor accused of racial bias said he plans to try him a seventh time for the same murder case.Rob McDuff, the director of the Mississippi Center for Justice’s impact litigation project, announced on July 2 that he will represent Curtis Flowers if prosecutor Doug Evans tries him again for the 1996 slayings of four people at a furniture store in Winona, Miss. Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Flowers’ 2010 murder conviction, finding that Evans was racially discriminatory in jury selection.“Curtis Flowers’ formidable struggle to secure a trial free from racial discrimination fits within MCJ’s core mission of racial and economic justice,” Mississipp... http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2019/jul/08/jackson-attorney-represent-flowers-possible-sevent/

Clarence Thomas Breaks a Three-Year Silence at Supreme Court - The New York Times

WASHINGTON — For the first 55 minutes of a Supreme Court argument on Wednesday about racial discrimination in jury selection, the justices seemed united in their view that a white Mississippi prosecutor had violated the Constitution in his determined efforts to exclude black jurors from the six trials of Curtis Flowers, who was convicted of murdering four people in a furniture store.As Mr. Flowers’s lawyer concluded her argument, Justice Clarence Thomas asked his first questions from the bench since 2016. He wanted to know whether the defense lawyer in the sixth trial had excluded any jurors. The lawyer said yes.“And what was the race of the jurors struck there?” Justice Thomas asked.White, said the lawyer, Sheri Lynn Johnson.Justice Thomas holds the modern record for silence on the bench. Before his questions in 2016, he had gone a decade without asking one. His explanations have varied, but he has said lately that the other justices asked so many questions that they were rude to the lawyers before them.The balance of the argument went well for Mr. Flowers, whose case has attracted widespread attention. Justices across the ideological spectrum said the track re... https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/20/us/politics/clarence-thomas-speaks-supreme-court.html

Rising shipping costs spell the end of Norridgewock Christmas wreath company - Press Herald

Newburgh, which also makes wreathes. Corliss said the struggles for wreath-makers in Maine and beyond just keep mounting.Piper Mountain charges $26 per wreath, with $13 for shipping east of the Mississippi and another $1 westward.“Absolutely, shipping has become a bear,” Corliss said, saying the mailing companies have jacked costs severely the last six years and added additional home delivery fees. “It’s got me a little unawares this year. We did not raise our price, and, of course, when you say shipping, you don’t just blame UPS and FedEx; it’s also the cost of the box, the cost of the labor to decorate that wreath and put it in the box.”There’s also a growing challenge getting so-called “fir tippers” who bring in the balsam harvest from the woods, Corliss said.“The tips that we used to make the wreaths for years was 25 cents a pound for people to go out into the woods. Last year we were paying 40 cents a pound. This year I was offering 40 cents and no one came until I discovered some people offering 50 cents in this area,” he said.In Norridgewock, Christmas Tree Acres was once one of the largest Christmas tree farms in the state, and its former owner and founder, Dwight Newman, was a past president of the Maine Christmas Tree Association.Bolduc did not respond to a message left on his home phone or an email sent to the business. A phone call to the number on a “For Sale” sign on the building at 69 Depot St. also was not returned.Newman, who died in 2012, was a florist and greenhouse owner in Winchester, Massachusetts, when he started the tree farm on Sandy River Road in 1965. He eventually moved to Maine and with his wife, Nancy, started a mail-order Christmas tree and wreath business out of the Depot Street building, according to Newman’s obituary and Morning Sentinel archives.Newman retired in 1995, at which point he sold the wreath company to its current owner, David Bolduc.In the message on the website, Bolduc talks about shipping expenses increasing more than 27 percent in a single year. It said the average cost for shipping a wreath is $18 to $20 each, but the company charged only $11.25 for shipping.Leman, the Ellsworth wreath maker, said that sounds about right. His company ships about 6,000 wreaths each year to places all around the country. Six years ago, he said the average shipping cost per wreath was about $8 to $12, with $12 for wreaths going to the West Coast.Now it costs $25 to $30 to send a wreath to the west coast via UPS and “close to $16 bucks to send it next door.”The U.S. Postal Service is also an option, but the rates are generally more expensive than UPS or FedEx to ship wreaths across the country, Leman said.Representatives for both companies said in emails that dimensional weight pricing is a common industry practice, and they have efforts in place to help customers improve their packaging practices.“It allows us to make the best use of space in our vehicles and encourages customers to make packaging adjustments,” said FedEx spokeswoman Rae Lyn. “Ultimately, more efficient packaging is good for our customers and ... https://www.pressherald.com/2018/12/08/closure-of-longtime-norridgewock-christmas-wreath-company-a-sign-of-higher-costs-industry-challenges/

Closure of longtime Norridgewock Christmas wreath company a sign of higher costs, industry challenges - Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel

Newburgh, which also makes wreathes. Corliss said the struggles for wreath-makers in Maine and beyond just keep mounting.Piper Mountain charges $26 per wreath, with $13 for shipping east of the Mississippi and another $1 westward.“Absolutely, shipping has become a bear,” Corliss said, saying the mailing companies have jacked costs severely the last six years and added additional home delivery fees. “It’s got me a little unawares this year. We did not raise our price, and, of course, when you say shipping, you don’t just blame UPS and FedEx; it’s also the cost of the box, the cost of the labor to decorate that wreath and put it in the box.”There’s also a growing challenge getting so-called “fir tippers” who bring in the balsam harvest from the woods, Corliss said.“The tips that we used to make the wreaths for years was 25 cents a pound for people to go out into the woods. Last year we were paying 40 cents a pound. This year I was offering 40 cents and no one came until I discovered some people offering 50 cents in this area,” he said.In Norridgewock, Christmas Tree Acres was once one of the largest Christmas tree farms in the state, and its former owner and founder, Dwight Newman, was a past president of the Maine Christmas Tree Association.Bolduc did not respond to a message left on his home phone or an email sent to the business. A phone call to the number on a “For Sale” sign on the building at 69 Depot St. also was not returned.Newman, who died in 2012, was a florist and greenhouse owner in Winchester, Massachusetts, when he started the tree farm on Sandy River Road in 1965. He eventually moved to Maine and with his wife, Nancy, started a mail-order Christmas tree and wreath business out of the Depot Street building, according to Newman’s obituary and Morning Sentinel archives.Newman retired in 1995, at which point he sold the wreath company to its current owner, David Bolduc.In the message on the website, Bolduc talks about shipping expenses increasing more than 27 percent in a single year. It said the average cost for shipping a wreath is $18 to $20 each, but the company charged only $11.25 for shipping.Leman, the Ellsworth wreath maker, said that sounds about right. His company ships about 6,000 wreaths each year to places all around the country. Six years ago, he said the average shipping cost per wreath was about $8 to $12, with $12 for wreaths going to the West Coast.Now it costs $25 to $30 to send a wreath to the west coast via UPS and “close to $16 bucks to send it next door.”The U.S. Postal Service is also an option, but the rates are generally more expensive than UPS or FedEx to ship wreaths across the country, Leman said.Representatives for both companies said in emails that dimensional weight pricing is a common industry practice, and they have efforts in place to help customers improve their packaging practices.“It allows us to make the best use of space in our vehicles and encourages customers to make packaging adjustments,” said FedEx spokeswoman Rae Lyn. “Ultimately, more efficient packaging is good for our customers and ... https://www.centralmaine.com/2018/12/08/closure-of-longtime-norridgewock-christmas-wreath-company-a-sign-of-higher-costs-industry-challenges/