La Rochefoucauld said that “To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.” Nearly everybody in his or her life has had at least a small desire to get out of the fast lane and resort back to a simpler way of life. Not the least of these instincts are the pleasure of eating foods provided by nature and becoming, at least for a day, independent of the supermarkets. Edible wild plants and mushrooms grow in our woodlands, marshes, fields, pastures, and in our own landscapes. Some of the best tasting and healthy foods are available “free” for the eating, provided you know which plants and mushrooms are edible! One of our early cave dwelling ancestors encountered a pretty cluster of mushrooms on the ground and asked: What can I do with it? Will it feed me? Will cure my ills? An intrepid ancestor ate it and…
Hemlock Wooly Adelgid Alert
from the Lumpkin Coalition (Ed. Note: Lumpkin Coalition is a non-profit organization in Lumpkin County.) Our forests are threatened with the loss of our native hemlocks, eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) and Carolina hemlock (T. caroliniana). They are being decimated by the hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA), a tiny, aphid-like insect accidentally introduced to the east coast from Asia in the 1950s. The HWA attaches to the stems at the base of the needles making an incision and draining the tree of its sap. The tree often dies within just a few years. The devastation from this tiny parasite has spread from Virginia, north to Maine, and then south to Georgia. Infestations of the HWA have already reached Rabun, Towns, Habersham, Union, White, Fannin, Whitfield, and Lumpkin Counties and are traveling fast. If nothing is done to combat HWA, more than 80 percent of our hemlocks may die in the next six…
A Bit of Dirt – Summer 2008
The full pdf copy of this edition is available here. PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE – by John Atkinson ADVANCED MASTER GARDENER TRAINING There is so much to learn and so little time. Marco Fonseca, State MG Coordinator, and others at the University of Georgia have put together the Advanced Master Gardener Training Program to provide continuing education for the Georgia Master Gardener. Participants in the program found it a rewarding experience and well worth the effort. UGA recognizes your participation with a certificate that can be placed in a prominent location at your home or office. What’s an advanced class like? It is more than a refresher of the training you have already experienced as an intern. It has much greater depth and specificity. The instructors are highly qualified in their field and the presentations are designed to be of timely interest and educational importance to the Master Gardener. There is a…