Pest Patrol

Keeping Stored Produce Out of the Reach of Rodents

’Tis the season to store the produce from our gardens. While many fruits and vegetables will last for months when properly stored, keeping it safe from rodents and other pests is imperative. This month, I purchased a box of apples from a local farm stand and kept them in a corner of the garage where ...

Preventing Pests with Essential Oils

It’s a frosty morning with windchill temperatures well below zero, so it’s no surprise that some creatures prefer to come inside to live with us for the winter. A month ago the box elder bugs made their appearance, although not nearly as thick as in some areas of the region, and more spiders are definitely ...

When mice change the way you grow potatoes

For years I’ve been an advocate of planting potatoes in a shallow trench and covering them with straw instead of hilling them with soil. But after this year, I am rethinking my strategy. I had some of the nicest plants ever. But, I lost close to one-quarter of the harvest because mice chewed on the ...