Editor’s Note: We are delighted to welcome back Linda Ahnert of Old Lyme, who writes an occasional column for LymeLine. She is a friend and colleague from the former ‘Main Street News,’(do you remember that fine publication?)and today shares this topical, mouth-watering piece with readers.
A platter of delicious deviled eggs is always a welcome addition to an Easter—or any other!— celebration. Photo by L. Ahnert.
Do you remember Easter 2020? Perhaps it was one you might like to forget We were in the early stages of the pandemic and everyone was “sheltering in place.” Easter was the first holiday that was affected by the onset of COVID-19, and we were learning how to Zoom since families couldn’t physically be all together.
My niece had to explain to Stella (my grand-niece, who was then eight years old) that the family would not be gathering at Aunt Linda’s house for the usual Easter festivities. Stella’s response was, “What about the deviled eggs?” Nothing about missing the egg hunt, which we always have in the yard, or the chocolate bunnies in the candy dish! What really concerned Stella were the deviled eggs I always serve as one of the Easter hors d’oeuvres.
I emailed my recipe to my niece and she soon sent me a photo of a lovely platter of deviled eggs that she and Stella had made. And over the ensuing weeks, I received recipe requests from other family members—for blueberry coffee cake, German potato salad … Even Stella’s dad asked me to send the recipe for the cheesecake that I often bake for holiday meals.
Of course, I was delighted that the younger family members were in the kitchen and learning about the joy of cooking. I am not a fancy-schmancy gourmet cook. But I do love to cook and so enjoy putting a good meal on the table for family and friends.
As Laurie Colwin, one of my favorite food writers, expressed it: “The table is a meeting place, a gathering ground, the source of maintenance and nourishment, festivity, safety, and satisfaction. A person cooking is a person giving. Even the simplest food is a gift.”
Here is the very simple recipe for deviled eggs, which are simply delicious. It is from a Williams Sonoma catalog:
Shell the eggs and slice them in half lengthwise. Remove the yolks and mash them with mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper to taste until smoothly blended. Spoon in (or pipe) equal amounts into the hollow of each egg white. Sprinkle with fresh herbs. Serves 8.
Note: I sprinkle the eggs with fresh chives. Some people like to dust the eggs with paprika. The original recipe suggests that, instead of fresh herbs, you could top the eggs with caviar, capers, olives, or watercress … but I think simple is best!
A Disclaimer: Despite the title, this “View is not about politics. Rather, I am responding to the report from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that, “Nationwide, cases of consumer fraud are skyrocketing;” and review the magnitude of the problem. I also discuss some of the most common and recent forms of consumer attacks, and add a few personal cyber-war stories, which—in trying to recount them for this essay—compelled me again to ask myself, “Just how dumb do they think we are?”
Access: Americans are hyper-connected via email, phone(s), texting, social media, and even old-fashioned USPS “snail mail.” Regrettably, our hyper-connectivity provides abundant opportunity for scammer attacks.
The Data: The total dollars lost to fraud in the United States are daunting and growing.
In 2023, American consumers reported losing more than $10 billion to fraud, an unprecedented benchmark—and of that, $4.6 billion was from investment scams. Looking farther back, the FTC reported consumer losses of only $1.9 billion in 2019, increasing to $3.3 billion the following year, and still growing.
Americans were scammed of $5.9 billion in 2021, and $8.8 billion in 2022. “… and pretty soon you’re talking about real money.” (usually attributed to Senator Everett Dirksen (R-IL).
The FTC received fraud reports from more than 2.8 million consumers in 2023, with the most reported category being imposter scams, e.g., you receive an urgent call from someone masquerading as a business official, a government agency, or even “on behalf” of a family member, requiring immediate payment of a bill, maybe bail.
Online shopping followed “imposters” as the second most frequent scam. I have included an example of an imposter scam below.
Connecticut residents reported about $41 million in losses over more than 21,000 reports to the FTC, with about 1 in 5 Connecticut fraud reports involving “imposter scams.”
Somewhat reassuring, Connecticut currently ranks 27th nationwide in fraud and other reports per capita—“other reports” include deceptive claims related to new and used cars and predatory lending.
Gallup reports, “Financial scams were among the most common crimes affecting U.S. adults in 2023, with 15 percent saying at least one member of their household has fallen prey; including 8 percent reporting that it has happened to themselves … No subgroup of Americans is exempt from being scammed, but the rate is higher among non-college-educated adults and those in lower-income households.” Editor’s Note: The elderly are also susceptible. “In 2022, there were 88,262 complaints of fraud resulting in $3.1 billion in losses from people age 60+.”
The Classics:
Waiting packages” was an early pandemic-era scam, often targeting college students displaced by shutdowns and traveling away from school, e.g., “Thomas: we came across a package in our warehouse from January, still pending delivery to you; but it cannot be conveyed due to incomplete address information. Please follow the attached link or contact us at our customer service number to prove ownership and confirm your address.” In December, 2022, FedEx issued a warning regarding this sort of email and/or or texting scam.
“Mister Mxyzptlk-type Scams”: “Mxy” is a character who appeared in comic books published by DC Comics. He is described as a “mythical trickster from the fifth dimension, possessing reality-warping powers, with which he enjoys tormenting Superman or making his life difficult.
You can recognize this type of email scam from its strange email address, awkward grammar, and misspellings. I kept a few of these. One came from: “growthxanlacapganvrgb@pouryourartsout.com;” and another from: “obeisantiawquivuhbwhovzkplgk@pickupto.com.” Both told me, “You have won an Ninja Neverstick cookware.” Open the email and the offer increased to include, “You have been chosen to participate in our Loyalty Program for Free.” Of course, all one had to do to claim these valuable free prizes was to “Follow the link or contact us at our customer service number.”
Note that these emails are included only to illustrate the issue and are totally bogus. This week, another came from: “cactusryigofxprtpvzwmxxuqw@informationsrevise.com”, notifying me that “You have won an Rachel Ray Cucina Cookware Set.”
Phishing: The above examples are known as “phishing” scams, which are attempts to steal personal information or break into online accounts using deceptive emails or sites that appear like sites you may already use. The scammers’ objective is to trick you into clicking on a link or opening an attachment. The term was coined in the mid-1990s by hackers stealing AOL accounts and passwords, i.e., “scammers were using ‘e-mail lures’ and setting out ‘hooks’ to fish for passwords and financial data from the sea of internet users.”
Note, a good rule of thumb is never click on links or make any calls to a “customer service” line in emails if you are unfamiliar with the source.
Our Imposter Experience: My wife Christina answered a call in February from a woman, who identified herself as a social worker affiliated with the Old Saybrook Police Department; and signaled me to get on the extension. The caller informed her that our son had rear-ended a car driven by a pregnant woman while on his way to work in Old Saybrook. She said that the officer at the scene suspected that our son was distracted because he was texting.
The woman was rushed to “the infirmary” and her prognosis was unknown.
The caller expressed concern that the woman will lose the baby, which “would be really bad for your son.”
She informed us that OSPD had impounded his car and transported him to Hartford. She provided a dollar figure estimate of what we would need to bring, in cash, to a Capitol Avenue address in Hartford by 3 p.m. that afternoon to free our son.
Having been sensitized by a scam attack in January (see below), I called his work phone number at the beginning of what was the ersatz social worker’s fake story, and confirmed that he had reached work on time and without incident. We ended the call with two words.
If you receive this type of threat, and they are common, call the individual, who is supposedly in trouble or try to confirm independently whether the business, utility or agency is indeed trying to reach you before taking any action.
It is not impolite to hang up.
Paypal User Scams: PayPal is generally considered to be a safe and secure system for online transactions. I have been an occasional user of Pay Pal for several years and without problem. It has a huge presence, and as of the third quarter of 2023 reported 431 million active users worldwide, processing an average of 41 million transactions every day.
However, on Jan.18, 2023, PayPal reported that a data breach had occurred between Dec. 6 and 8, 2022, during which the attackers had access to the accounts of tens of thousands of users and were able to access transaction histories, credit and debit card details, invoicing data, and account holders’ full names, dates of birth, addresses, and social security numbers.
PayPal took action to mitigate the breach, but unfortunately, in 2024, scams targeting PayPal users have become prevalent. I do not know whether users whose accounts were compromised were the most likely targets, or it was just because of the sheer number of users.
The most common type of scam employs fake emails that appear to have been sent by PayPal. Many state that you need to verify your information or dispute a questionable transaction; or may claim that they have noticed unusual activity on the credit card that is linked to the PayPal account.
Note that the Bluvshtein article in “Sources” provides a good review of the different PayPal scams that occurred in 2024.
My PayPal Scam Experience: I received an email from PayPal this past January that asked me to verify what appeared to be an unusual charge on my account. The email had the look and feel of PayPal. I called the phone number included in the email and reached a member of their “support team,” who indicated that they had already made payment, but their audit system had kicked it out as potentially fraudulent, based on my purchase history. It then got bizarre.
The caller said that my account had already been reimbursed, but the reimbursement amount was wrong, and much greater than what was contested. The conversation then became aggressive and urgent. They asked me to log into my bank account to verify that it showed a $20,000 deposit from the World Bank into my checking account; and informed me that I needed to return the money; and if I did not, they were prepared to take action.
They gave me instructions on how to avoid international wire transfer fees, which, as I recall, were to wire the money to an individual on their team in Hong Kong (really!). “Just tell your banker that the money is going to a friend and you are assisting him with his relocation to the United States.” I asked them to email the instructions to me because they were so complicated. and they refused. I did not log into my account while on that call.
I met with the branch manager at Liberty Bank in Old Saybrook within an hour of the call and described the incident. She told me that over the past few months, the Bank had already been working with customers, who had fallen prey to one of these scams—at one point, almost one per day.
She reviewed my accounts and there was no deposit from World Bank. However, there was evidence that they had gotten access because of one suspicious transfer of $20,000 within my accounts. We “froze” the checking account and set up new accounts with the existing assets.
I arranged for a thorough scrubbing of my hard drive. Afterwards, I had to make certain that I did not bounce any recent checks written on the frozen account, arranged for deposits and any monthly billing “draws” be routed to/from the new account.
I also consulted with my youngest daughter, who is in the business—i.e., cyber security, not consumer scamming. She said that “attackers are getting smarter and more sophisticated and everything is easier with AI (Artificial Intelligence). This problem will only get worse. At the minimum, immediately set up “two-step verification,” aka “two-factor authentication,” which will add a second layer of protection to your account, alongside your usual method of logging in.
I set it up on all my accounts.
Reporting A Scam: In 2020, the FTC introduced “ReportFraud.ftc.gov,” a platform for filing reports with the agency. They use that as the starting point for many of its law enforcement investigations and shares the reports with about 2,800 law enforcement users across the United States. Although the FTC does not itself intervene in individual complaints, the reports are an important part of the agency’s law enforcement mission.
The FTC has tracked fraud through its Consumer Sentinel Network since.1997.
Some Thoughts and Disclosures: I am a Baby Boomer and a digital immigrant. I hardly ever do social media; and as far as I am concerned, “tik tok” was the last sound that Captain Hook heard before being swallowed by the crocodile in Walt Disney’s 1953 animated adaptation of J.M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan; the Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up.”
I think of the “Wayback Machine” as the time-travel device that Mr. Peabody and Sherman used to transport themselves back through time in the 1960s on “The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.”
However, I now also acknowledge the Internet Archive, which was created in 1996 to provide “universal access to all knowledge,” and launched to the public in 2001 with a nod to Peabody and Sherman as the “Wayback Machine.” As of January 3, 2024, the new “Wayback Machine” has archived more than 860 billion web pages and over 99 petabytes of data
In closing, my essay on consumer fraud in the digital age, I will pass on the advice that Sergeant Phil Esterhaus provided to the assembled law enforcement officers each morning at the end of roll call at Hill Street Station: “Let’s be careful out there.” Note that “Hill Street Blues ran on NBC from 1981 through 1987.
Editor’s Note: This is the opinion of Thomas D. Gotowka.
About the Author: Tom Gotowka is a resident of Old Lyme, whose entire adult career has been in healthcare. He will sit on the Navy side at the Army/Navy football game. He always sit on the crimson side at any Harvard/Yale contest. He enjoys reading historic speeches and considers himself a scholar of the period from FDR through JFK. A child of AM Radio, he probably knows the lyrics of every rock and roll or folk song published since 1960. He hopes these experiences give readers a sense of what he believes “qualify” him to write this column.
Sources: American Association of Retired Persons. “Impostor Scams.” AARP Bulletin. 03/30/2022. Barrie, J.M. (1911) “Peter Pan and Wendy.” London: Hodder and Stoughton Benton, J. “ After 25 years, Brewster Kahle and the Internet Archive are still working to democratize knowledge.” Harvard University. Nieman Lab.02/02/2021. Bluvshtein, C. “15 PayPal Scams in 2024 and How to Avoid Them.” VPN Overview. 12/30/2023. Byrne, J. “The Name Game: Mister Mxyzptlk meets Superman.” Superman Vol. 2 (11). 11/1987. Dautovic, G. “How Many People Use PayPal? 20+ PayPal Statistics for 2024.” Fortunly.com.10/23/2023. Federal Trade Commission. “New Data Shows FTC Received 2.8 million Fraud Reports from Consumers in 2021.” 02/22/2022. Federal Trade Commission. “Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book” 2019 – 2023. Lazarus, A. “Heard about the “waiting package” phishing scam?” FTC Consumer Alert. 09/21/2020. Geronimi, C. Jackson, W. & Lusk, H. (1953) “Peter Pan.” [Animated Film]. Walt Disney Productions. Kay. R. “Sidebar: The Origins of Phishing.” ComputerWorld. 01/19/2004. Mc Gurran, B. “Is It Safe to Use PayPal?” Experian.com. 02/09/2022. Saad, L. “Scams: Relatively Common and Anxiety-Inducing for Americans.” Gallup.com. 11/21/2023. Skayhill, P. “Victim of fraud in Connecticut? New data show average consumer lost $460.” CT Public Radio. Morning Edition. 02/22/2022. Federal Trade Commission. (Thur. 02/23/ 2023). “New FTC Data Show Consumers Reported Losing Nearly $8.8 Billion to Scams in 2022.” [Press Release.] Federal Trade Commission. (Fri., 02/09/2024). “As Nationwide Fraud Losses Top $10 Billion in 2023, FTC Steps Up Efforts to Protect the Public.” [Press Release.] Winder, D. “Thousands of PayPal Accounts Breached— Is Yours One Of Them?” Forbes. 01/19/2023.
On Saturday, Griswold defeated Lyme-Old Lyme- 12-4.
Sean Garvin (3-5, 2 RBI, 3 R) had a 3 hit game, as Griswold beat Lyme- Old Lyme 12-4 on opening day.
Griswold scored eight runs in the fourth inning to help them secure the lead for good after a previous half inning 2 run home run to left field by Rowen Meiser (1-4, 2 RBI, 1 R) put Lyme- Old Lyme up 2-0 in the bottom of the third. Colin Mitchell (2-5, 3 RBI, 1 R) singled, scoring a run, Jake Duthrie (1-3, 1 RBI, 2 R) singled, scoring one run, Sunny Botello (1-3, 1 R) drew a walk, scoring one run, Garvin singled, scoring one run, Andrew Hardin (2-2, 2 RBI, 1 R) drew a walk, scoring one run, and Mitchell singled, scoring two runs.
Mitchell earned the win for Griswold. He allowed four hits and four runs (two earned) over five innings, striking out eight and walking four.
Grady Lacourciere (1-3, 2 R) took the loss for Old Lyme. He went three and two-thirds innings, surrendering eight runs on four hits, striking out seven and walking five.
Garvin relieved Mitchell and pitched two innings of no-run ball for Griswold. He gave up three hits, striking out one and walking none.
Softball
Old Lyme defeated Portland 16-0 in a game which saw Ava Roth collect the 100th hit of her career in her second at bat.
The winning pitcher was Emma Bayor 1-0 and the losing Pitcher was Hailey Bustamune
For Old Lyme, the stats were as follows: Ava Roth 3-3, 2 runs scored, 3 doubles, 4 RBI’s Sybil Neary 3-3, 3 runs scored, Double, 1RBI Anna Eichholz 2-2, 2 runs score, triple, 1 RBI Grace Phaneuf 2-3, 1 run scored, 1 BB, 1 RBI Emma Bayor 2-2, 2 BB’s Emma Bayor-5 innings, 13 K’s, 1 hit
Old Lyme is now 1-0 in the Shoreline Conference League and 1-0 overall.
OLD LYME — Kathryn Fallon Bergeron, a longtime resident of Old Lyme, died peacefully in her sleep at Beechwood nursing home in New London March 25, 2024, three months shy of her 97th birthday.
She was born June 15, 1927, in West Haven … Her mother having died from the birth, Kathryn was raised in the household of her aunt Anna Coleman Moran and husband George William Moran … in the early 1950s she met the love of her life, Edward Henry Bergeron … They married in 1953 and had two children … In 1957, they moved to Old Lyme, where three more children were born between 1958 and 1961. Old Lyme would remain her home for the next fifty-nine years.
A devout Catholic, Kathryn served for a time as parish secretary at Christ The King Church in Old Lyme …
Predeceased by Edward, her husband of fifty-three years … She is survived by five children, John Edward Bergeron of Fairport, N.Y., Sister Mary Elisabeth Bergeron, OSU, of Patchogue, N.Y., Katherine Ann Bergeron (and husband Joseph Rovan) of Providence, R.I., Anne Thérèse Bergeron (and husband Stephen Wellmeier) of Providence, R.I., and Michael Fallon Bergeron of New London …
A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at 11 a.m. April 4, at Christ The King Church, 1 McCurdy Road, Old Lyme, to be followed by an interment ceremony at Resurrection Cemetery in Westbrook …
‘Those March winds shall blow, and we shall have snow and what will the Robin do then poor thing? He’ll hide in the barn and keep himself warm and hide his head under his wing’.
Maureen Haseley-Jones is “The English Lady.”
March is a month of ‘wait and see’ as we anticipate walking around our gardens. This morning, I walked outside, into a westerly breeze and a gentle sun. I took a deep breath and as I did, I caught the rich fragrance of the soil beginning to awaken.
All of us are itching to get into the garden and I believe that foray will be earlier than last year since frost did not penetrate deep into the ground.
The sodden soil will dry out in the next few weeks, but I urge you to tread gently as you tend the soil, which is the precious commodity of Mother Nature. Pertaining to that, I am suggesting that you do not till the soil, as tilling damages soil structure and can break friable root systems.
Please be patient right now! I know you are chafing at the bit to get your hands into the soil, but, at this moment, continue planning for the upcoming season. Planning means organizing, which helps to prevent costly gardening mistakes during the growing season.
On a pleasant afternoon, when you go outdoors, check on the trees in your garden and decide what you think, which trees might need pruning. That is which limbs might need to be removed or the canopy lifted to allow more sunshine into a shady area of the garden. Having made some of those decisions, I suggest that you call in an arborist, as tree branches without foliage takes less time for arborists to do the work and is therefore less expensive.
What to look for:
Are there broken or dead limbs?
What branches require cabling?
If a tree appears to be 50% dead, then it should be removed.
A medium shade area can be changed to a dappled shade area, allowing more sunlight in by thinning out the upper tree branches or tree canopy.
Perhaps you would like a tree removed to transform a shade area to a sunny spot ,which allows for a larger choice of plants available to you.
I always hesitate to remove a healthy tree but sometimes a tree has been planted too close to the house and consequently the roots have undermined your home’s foundation and the shading over the roof has resulted in mold and mildew.
There is an art to tree work knowing how, when and why to cut. Work on the trees should be carried out by a professional so that at the completion of the work, the effect is both practical and aesthetically pleasing. An experienced arborist will also take into consideration the health of the trees. Having the work done by an arborist avoids injury, falling from ladders or perhaps tree branches or trees falling on you.
PRUNING – is a task that you may feel you are able to accomplish yourself.
March is the month to prune evergreens before the new growth appears.
Hedges can be sheared for shape, so that any stubby ends will be concealed by new spring growth.
Please keep to the natural shape of the shrub – no round balls.
Prune Spirea to six inches from the ground.
In April, prune Lavender to three inches.
In late March, prune Sweet Pepper Bush (Clethra), cutting out the oldest branches.
Lilac – Prune back all old branches to various lengths before leaf growth begins, from two to five feet, keeping to a natural shape. Sprinkle lime around the base of the Lilac and add manure in May. Lilacs enjoy alkaline soil and e benefit from a small amount of lime sprinkled about a foot away from the base of the Lilac.
Prune Butterfly bush to two feet from the ground and in May apply composted manure around the base.
Prune forsythia after it has bloomed, pruning out sparse flowering old wood.
Prune roses when the forsythia blooms. If the roses have only been in the ground for one year, do not prune, wait until October.
Do not remove the protective mulch from around the base of the roses, wait until mid May, and then apply a dressing of manure and fine bark mulch, about a foot away from the stem of the rose.
You may be asking, ‘Why wait until May to apply manure’ The answer is that the soil needs to warm up to 55 degrees otherwise the nutrient benefits of the manure bacteria that works with plant roots and soil organisms, are not activated. I suggest you invest in an inexpensive soil thermometer to check the soil temperature. At soil temperature of 55 degrees apply a three to four- inch layer of composted manure.
When April arrives, carefully begin to clear away winter debris, treading carefully on the soil to avoid damaging soil structure and friable root systems. When you have cleared away the debris, make a clean edge to the borders with a sharp spade; this makes such a difference to the look of your garden.
The best tool to use is a sharpened lawn edger, the blade is a half- circle nine inches wide and 4.5 inches deep with a flat top – this tool creates a deep edge. Face the bed and thrust the edger down to its full depth and push the cut soil into the bed. Continue along the soil edge and then remove the spade and surplus clumps of soil and grass.
Edging was one of the first lessons I was taught at our family nursery in England; my great-grandfather was a strict taskmaster standing over me until I got the edge correct.
If you are contemplating the location of a new planting bed or expanding an existing one, here are some tips:
Think in terms of where you spend your leisure time outdoors, and where you may choose to sit, near to the new bed, enjoying the bloom, fragrance and structure of your plantings.
From indoors are you able to view and enjoy the new border?
Is it an area where there will not be drainage problems, erosion concerns or water pooling?
Is it convenient to tend and enjoy where you place a bench or chair?
Will you be able to water it with relative ease?
For an informal garden I prefer a curved bed – a curved line gives grace and fluidity. I lay out a garden hose in the desired shape and size of bed adjusting the hose until you are satisfied with the gentle curves.
MANURE:
Many of you who have been my radio listeners and lecture audiences, know how I feel about that wonderful natural product. Manure is not a fertilizer – it builds soil structure, aids in drainage and its bacteria encourages the millions of soil animals below the surface to come alive and work with the manure bacteria to produce nutrients for the roots of the plants.
TYPES OF MANURE:
Poultry manure – I know the odor can be rather objectionable, however, this manure contains about 2% nitrogen, one of the highest levels in any manure. If you have access to poultry manure, allow it to age for two months and by that time, the odor will have dissipated and then add it to the garden.
Horse manure is about .5% nitrogen. If you obtain horse manure from a stable, which has sawdust on its floors – it should be pretty weed free. What I have done in the past is obtain horse and cow manure from stables and farms in April. When you get it home, spread manure out in a flat area (not in a planting bed) then cover it with a tarp for a month.
Using this method, the tarp will suffocate the weed seeds and the sun on the tarp encourages the manures to continue to decompose. A week before using the horse and cow manure remove the tarp to allow the sun to further decompose it.
Cow manure is .25 % nitrogen and is the most available manure. If you get horse and cow manure from the farm, ask the farmer to give you manure from the bottom of the pile so that it is already partially decomposed.
Compost pile – If you do not have a compost pile, maybe it could go on your list for this season. Vegetable waste from the kitchen, plus grass clippings, and wood pruning can be added to the pile. The high temperature in the compost kills the weed seed and cooks all those other necessary ingredients. The ratio of compost and manure for your garden is 1 part compost to 3 parts manure – but if you do not have compost – manure will do the trick.
**DO NOT apply fresh manure to the garden, as it will burn the plants. If you do not have a source of manure from a farm, purchase composted manure in bags from the garden center.
To produce the best-planting environment, resulting in a soil that is ‘black gold’ apply 3 inches of composted manure to all planted areas in May, July and October.
Natural fine bark Mulch can be added later in May. Do not use buckwheat mulch as it flies everywhere. Do not, I repeat do not use cocoa mulch, which is poisonous to dogs and cats and please do not use the chemically colored red mulch. The benefits of natural fine bark mulch are, that this mulch helps to retain the beneficial moisture in the soil and aids to retard weeds as does Bradfield organics, a corn gluten weed pre- emergent.
THE HUMUS COMPONENT:
I know I have written about the importance of the Humus component for the soil but I feel I must continue to stress this fact.
In 1937 Franklin D Roosevelt told us ‘that the nation that destroys its soil destroys itself.’
Unfortunately, America has not heeded that warning. Precious soils in this country and around the world are being destroyed by dangerous practices used in industrialized agriculture as well as poisonous chemicals, which completely disrupts our eco system and poisons all living things.
In your own garden you can build and retain a rich growing environment by building the Humus component -We are all carbon-based creatures as is all life on earth. Not only humans but also our soil microbes need carbon to flourish. To attract carbon from the atmosphere into your soil you need to build the humus component.
HOW TO BUILD THE HUMUS COMPONENT:
Do not till soil – tilling breaks up soil structure.
First step – Add composted manure three times – in spring when the soil has reached a temperature of 55 degrees. If the soil has not reached that temperature, the soil organisms are not able to work with the bacteria in the manure to produce nutrients for the roots of the plants.
This year, as we have not experienced deep frost therefore, the soil temperature may reach 55 degrees by the end of April or early May. Add the manure again in July to continue to nourish your growing plants and again in October to protect and nourish your plants and roots through winter. Manure is not a fertilizer; it builds soil structure and works with all the soil animals to keep a healthy disease- free growing environment.
Second step – Add wood chips in the form of brown fine bark mulch or wood chips that you produce from your garden; these are aged wood chips combined with leaves, twigs and branches.
These two major steps build the humus component. If you do this in your own garden – not only, will you be helping to heal the planet but also produce the healthiest of gardens.
A question I am often asked is ‘can I put manure over mulch in my summer garden’? The answer is ‘yes’ – the manure together with nature’s moisture and your own irrigation enables the manure to find its way easily into the soil and to the roots of your plants.
WHAT EXACTLY DOES HUMUS DO?
Humus acts like a sponge and can hold 90% of its weight in water.
Because of its negative charge – plant nutrients stick to humus for nitrogen, calcium, phosphorus and minerals, which prevents these from washing away and acts as nature’s slow- release fertilizer throughout the year.
Humus improves soil structure making it loose and friable, which helps plants to root in this soil to get better access to nutrients, water and oxygen.
Humus also helps to filter toxic chemicals from the soil, mulch, like carbon-based water filtration systems filter toxins from your water.
We are not able to control industrialized agricultural practices – but in your own garden you can make a difference, if you feed the soil, it will feed the plants.
Once again, I’m getting a little ahead of myself. So back to a cloudy day at the end of March, when you may gradually begin to remove protective covering from shrubs and small trees. In exposed garden areas, where wind is a problem, leave the covering on until mid April. Cold wind is more damaging and drying to plants than extreme cold and frost.
FROST HEAVE: If some perennials, trees and shrubs have heaved out of the ground, cover the roots with fresh topsoil or mulch until mid May when they can be settled back in place.
An established clematis makes a delightful combination if paired with with roses.
I just walked around the corner of my house to check on my trellis on the chimney where I have roses and clematis planted together. Roses and clematis are a delightful combination in a companion planting. This planting method means that the rose and the clematis planted together have the same growing needs, ‘feet in the shade and heads in the sun’.
Beginning in May, add manure and mulch around the base of both. Discontinue feeding roses and clematis in mid August; this enables both plants to go into a necessary slow dormancy.
BACKSCRATCH: When the lawn has dried out in April, rake lightly and remove excess debris such as leaves and dead twigs. Raking gently raises the mat of the lawn, which enables the emerging grass to breathe again. Aerating machines are useful to develop a healthy lawn.
Puncture holes with the aerator and pull out plugs of soil every four to six inches; following this treatment, root development takes off and thatch is reduced. Do not use the large thatching machines, as these machines damage the grass.
GRASS FERTILIZER: In April, apply organic fertilizer, lime and organic grub control before the grass begins to grow. Reseed bare or sparse spots after gently loosening the soil, liming and fertilizing, then cover the seed with salt hay to keep the seed warm and to prevent wind from blowing the seed away. Water the seed for the first three weeks. Do not blast the area with water, which scatters the seeds. As with lilacs, grass enjoys alkaline soil which is why we use lime together with the fertilizer and grub control.
MOLES: To keep the mole population to a minimum in your garden; apply organic grub control once a month from March for two months which results in less grubs, less food for the moles. When you see signs of moles, find the mole holes and insert Exlax, which contains Senna, an organic herb. The moles eat the Exlax and become dehydrated from defecation and die.
Apply organic pre-emergent crabgrass killers in March and April.
VOLES : Spread castor oil around the base of plants and keep mulch away from the base of the plants so that voles, which are canny creatures, are not able to hide there and gnaw on plants and roots.
DEADHEAD: Do not cut off the leaves of the crocus as they bloom; the leaves make food for the bulbs for next season’s bloom.
DAFFODILS: When the green shoots emerge, spread composted manure around the plants.
DAFFODILS FOR DISPLAY INDOORS: The stems release a sap like “goop” that harms other flowers. Before adding Daffodils to an arrangement, cut the stems at an angle, and leave them in a vase half filled with lukewarm water for a couple of hours. Discard that water and add the Daffodils to the other flowers. If you recut the stems you will need to repeat the process. Change the water in the vase often.
PERENNIALS: In May, when perennials are about four inches above soil level and when the soil is 55 degrees, apply composted manure around them to encourage healthy growth.
DIVIDING PLANTS: At the end of April or beginning of May, you can divide late blooming perennials that have been in the ground for four years or more; these new divisions encourage stronger bloom.
Discard the older, inner parts of the clumps and plant the new outside portions. Do not plant the new divisions any deeper than they were originally in the ground.
Pick pansies frequently in April to promote more flowers.
Pansies: pick the flowers regularly to encourage more bloom.
When dividing Irises – barely cover the root system so they do not fall over – if Irises are planted too deep in the soil, they will not bloom.
March is the time to plant the following seeds indoors: gaillardia, salvia, marigold, zinnia, petunia, snapdragon, stock and verbena. Before planting these seeds, soak them in warm water and plant them in sphagnum moss or coir. Coir is the outer shell or fiber of the Coconut, either of these two mediums prevents a disease called “damping off”, which can cause seeds to rot before germination.
Cover pots and seed trays loosely with plastic wrap, which creates a mini greenhouse, providing moisture which seeds require to germinate.
NOTE: Remove the plastic once the seeds have germinated, as the soil needs to drain and needs air circulation around the emerging stems.
If you are going away on business, or on vacation reapply the plastic wrap over the pots and trays and prop some sticks or skewers in the corners. While you are away the seedlings will stay moist, and the sticks or skewers ensure that the seedlings do not encounter the plastic.
March is the time to start tuberous begonias, and caladiums indoors.
DORMANT SPRING SPRAYING of fruit trees, flowering cherry, crabapple, hawthorn, mountain ash and lilac can be done before the leaf buds open.
Call a professional company and request that they use only organic products.
Houseplants – repot them if they need repotting in April.
Pink geraniums in the center set off this planter beautifully.
GERANIUMS: The plants that you brought indoors at the end of last season, check them for new side shoots, then cut them back to four inches and repot them in clean pots about an inch and a half larger with fresh potting soil.
Well, fellow-gardeners, I know you are getting excited to be in your gardens this season and I hope that these tips have given you plenty to think about to keep you busy for a while. Enjoy photos of lovely gardens that my son Ian has designed and if you wish contact Ian for a consultation and enjoy the photos on his website LandscapesbyIan.com.
Enjoy being outdoors in spring sunshine and I look forward to seeing you in your garden in April.
About the author: Maureen Haseley-Jones is a member of a family of renowned horticultural artisans, whose landscaping heritage dates back to the 17th century. She is one of the founders, together with her son Ian, of, The English Lady Landscape and Home Company. Maureen and Ian are landscape designers and garden experts, who believe that everyone deserves to live in an eco-conscious environment and enjoy the pleasure that it brings. Maureen learned her design skills from both her mother and grandmother, and honed her horticultural and construction skills while working in the family nursery and landscape business in the U.K. Her formal horticultural training was undertaken at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in Surrey.
