We’ve just endured the wettest June on record only to be faced with unusually hot and humid weather, more cold wet weather, and another heat wave.  Snails, slugs, mosquitoes, fungi and weeds are delighted while tomatoes, eggplants, and other hot-weather loving plants are only just starting to come to life since the first heat wave.  What’s a gardener to do?  

Happily, help is at hand!  There are resources within most gardeners’ reach that can provide guidance on these and many other issues.  The only catch is that there are so many that I can only scratch the surface in a single article.

For gardening issues such as pests and diseases, invasive plants, and even for happier topics such as directions on how to grow fruit or suggestions on plants best suited to your climate, you cannot beat our fabulous State University Extension system.

Local Extension Offices

I really love our local extension offices.  Some may think of these as hubs for 4-H programs and Master Gardener training, but they are even more than that.  If you aren’t sure what’s wrong with your plant, you can bring it in for identification and suggestions on how to help it.  (Note:  Please be kind and put problem plant material in a Ziploc bag so that you don’t set my unwanted spores or bugs loose when you visit.)  They also have fact sheets on how to grow various crops, and workshops that are planned specifically to meet local needs.  For Knox and Lincoln Counties, the closest office is at 377 Manktown Road in Waldoboro, just across the road from Medomak Valley High School.  They are open weekdays from 8am to 4:30pm.  You can also call them at 207.832.0343.

MOFGA

The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) is another wonderful resource.  Their 2nd edition of the Resource Guide to Organic Insect and Disease Management is hot off the press.  It’s organized by crop family and covers pest and disease problems, as well as the cultural solutions and organic pesticide recommendations to control them.  The book can be ordered or viewed as a PDF at:  http://web.pppmb.cals.cornell.edu/resourceguide/

You can also subscribe to the pest report, which is issued monthly by Dr. Eric Sideman, the staff scientist at MOFGA.  You can subscribe to receive it via e-mail here:  https://app.e2ma.net/app/view:Join/signupId:1416681/acctId:1407886.  Or you can view it online, where it generally appears within 24 hours of the e-mailed version – with color photos.  Both current and past reports are available at:  http://www.mofga.org/Publications/PestReports/tabid/732/Default.aspx.

Garden centers and nurseries

Garden centers and nurseries are battling the same bugs and diseases that you are, so you can stop at your favorite store and ask for help.

Garden Clubs

Another excellent resource is other gardeners in your region.  Join your local garden club to meet them.  Most garden clubs host speakers on all sorts of horticultural topics and welcome the public to their meetings.  We have several choices here in the midcoast:

Camden Garden Club:       http://camdengardenclub.com/5.html

Belfast Garden Club:          http://www.belfastgardenclub.org/contactus.html

Rockport Garden Club:       http://rockportgardenclub.org/Contact.html

Warren Field and Garden Club:  contact Irene at 273-3701

Owls Head Garden Club:   Attend a meeting at the Owl’s Head Town Community Building at noon on the 1st Wednesday of the month

Books

Some books I find particularly helpful are:

• Bugs, Slugs & Other Thugs by Rhonda Massingham Hart.  The “thugs” include bad birds, rodents, neighbor’s pets, slugs and snails, and insects with a table that helps you find common pests for any given plant.
• The Garden Primer, 2008 ed. by Barbara Damrosch.  This comprehensive volume is a down-to-earth, entertaining garden reference by a Maine gardener extraordinaire.

Good luck! 

Katherine Holland owns Blue Newt Landscape Designs, a firm that offers landscape services from design and installation through coaching and ongoing care.