Norfolk’s June 2020 Weather
Warm and Dry By Russell Russ June was a fairly pleasant summer month. The trade-off with having beautiful weather is that it can become very dry with such little rainfall. While many other parts of the region did record decent rainfall, even impressive rainfall, Norfolk kept being missed by the larger storms. On numerous occasions […]
August, Joy & Freedom
Through the Garden Gate By Leslie Watkins “Just living is not enough,” said the butterfly, “one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower.” —Hans Christian Andersen Butterflies bring life into our gardens. Select a few plants that they are attracted to and they will come. Like flying jewels, they flit from flower to flower seeking […]
Rooting Out Invasives
Early summer is still a great time to go after many of the invasive species that are crowding out native plants and reducing food sources for birds and pollinators. Japanese barberry fruits have yet to ripen and garlic mustard seed pods are drying out but have not yet popped open. (Barberry can take over the […]
It’s a Waiting Game for Norfolk Educators
Botelle Beat by Clinton J. Sosna “We educators are planners. We are very good at planning,” says school superintendent Mary Beth Iacobelli, expressing the frustration she feels, in mid-June, with still no official word from the state on how Norfolk’s school should proceed in the fall. It’s a waiting game, filled with unresolved questions concerning […]
July, Gardner’s Bane
Through the Garden Gate Text and Illustration By Leslie Watkins The meadow vole, Microtus pennsylvanicus, is a relentless, destructive, ubiquitous pest in gardens, both ornamental and vegetable. Often mistaken for moles who can be beneficial eating grubs, worms and other root eaters, the vole is smaller and vegetarian. If you notice one of your plants […]
A Tale of Two Halves
Norfolk’s May Weather By Russell Russ Norfolk’s May weather this year can be summed up as being a month with a split personality. The first half of May was cold with some snow. April’s cooler than normal weather spilled over into early May. The second half of the month turned much more seasonable with warm […]
Moonlight Serenade
Celestial Sphere by Matthew Johnson When one looks up at our moon, consider the number of moons that continue to be discovered in our solar system. The inner planets─Mercury and Venus─ both lack a moon. Our Earth has one moon, Mars has two moons-Deimos and Phobos. From there the number of moons increases. Uranus has […]
Sourdough Adventures in Confinement
Notes from a French Kitchen By Marie-Christine Perry As strange as it is for Frenchwomen to tackle bread making, seeing as we are never more than a half block away from a great bakery in French towns and even small villages have their own bakers with pain au levain available everywhere, I had dabbled in trying my […]
No Springtime Yet
Norfolk’s April Weather By Russell Russ April can have traits of both winter and spring. It is historically a month of transition between the two seasons. This year, much to the dismay of many, April was more like winter than spring. Winter indeed was giving a good effort to hold on as long as it […]
June, Jewels
Text and Illustration by Leslie Watkins June 1 is an important date in the Icebox of Connecticut for two reasons. It means that the danger of frost is past and it’s safe to set out tender plantings. It’s also a time that welcomes the return of one of our most beloved garden visitors, the ruby-throated […]
