Posts categorized as The Nature Walk

Arverne East Urban Nature Preserve

Boarded-pathway-Arverne East Nature Preserve Rockaway

Fall is the best time to hike, walk, spy migratory birds, and embrace the changing leaf landscape. And we don’t have to make a trip up to Hudson to enjoy all that. NYC Parks offers us diverse natural and urban landscapes with endless exploring and learning opportunities. Would you guess we have over 1,700 parks, playgrounds, and recreation areas throughout the five boroughs? I was impressed to read that number. I’d estimate a few hundred of those green spaces are in Rockaway. It’s fair to say we’ve all noticed the […]

tagged in nyc parks

He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not – A Tale From The Garden

Detail-of-a-Black-Eyed-Susan-with-striking-burnt-orange-two-toned-pedals.-1536x2048

A young country girl named Susan fell in love with a sailor. When he had to leave for a long sea voyage, she promised to remain faithful and wait for his return. As time passed, Susan began to doubt his loyalty and her heart saddened. While standing in a meadow, she plucked the petals from a daisy, saying, “He loves me, he loves me not,” to determine whether her love would return. The daisy’s petals provided no answer. I spotted a patch of Black-Eyed Susans at Edgemere Farm last Sunday […]

tagged in garden, gardening, plants

The Bird Event Of Beach 91st Street

A-Heron-perched-at-Jamaica-Bay-spring-2020.-Photo-by-Bridget-Klapinski-768x868

It was the day after the “apocalypse.” The dangerous air quality conditions from the Canadian wildfires cleared. It was safe to breathe the air again. I went outside to check if the backyard garden needed watering, but I was distracted by a “honking” nose. I looked towards the sky and there, I saw a flying dinosaur! It launched from the roof of my neighbor’s house into the towering tree of heaven in the corner of my yard. It landed on a long branch, settling in next to its lover. A […]

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Mulch Grows Soil

Teresa Farrell understands the benefits of mulching

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service has said “Mulching is one of the simplest and most beneficial practices you can use in the garden.” Knowing this, why did I skip mulching this spring? I’m regretting it now. The weeds are a constant in any garden but without mulch, it becomes unmanageable. Every few days it seems the weeds reappear. A 2-3 inch layer of mulch will prevent seeds from planting in the soil. For the relentless roots of weeds, (ahem, morning glories) mulch blocks out sunlight which […]

tagged in garden, gardening

Summer Is Here

clean up the beach 1

I feel overwhelmed by the masses coming to Rockaway the past few weeks. Last summer it was calm in comparison, due to the pandemic. The garbage, the parking situation, and the dunes problem have been upsetting. Before I scare you off though, I’d like to say,  I’m not using this forum to complain. This is not Facebook!  I’ve been thinking about it and I want to share some of the positives I came across relating to these local issues. The Garbage: A few Mondays ago I went down to the beach […]

tagged in beach, rockaway

Brood X

Billions of cicadas known as Brood X are emerging after 17 years living in their underground world. When will they arrive in Rockaway?! As a gardener, I’m so intrigued with these rare insects. The ground temperature needs to be about 65 degrees to trigger their surfacing. Which was estimated by scientists to be mid-May in New York. It’s the first week of June now and I haven’t seen any on the peninsula. I’m upset! Cicadas remind me of an alien species from the Delta Quadrant. Brood X has two  distinctive […]

tagged in garden, gardening, insects

A Shade Garden

Bungleweed-in-bloom-scaled (1)

My backyard is shaded by the towering condo on the corner of Beach 91st and Shore Front Parkway. A shade garden is a challenge! But a challenge is fun and encourages you to learn. If we all had perfect soil and full sun, that would be boring, right? A big part of gardening is trial and error. In the past few years – since my front yard is generally organized and thriving – I’ve focused on the backyard plants. I’ve tried many different perennials and annuals, with tags that say […]

tagged in garden, gardening

Groundcover or Grass?

Purple Mazus

I remember my father taking so much care to make his little patch of grass perfect. But there was always some kind of problem –  grubs one year, the neighbor’s cat the next year. And us kids that one time we destroyed the grass with Slip N’ Slide! I’ll never forget my father’s face after seeing the mud puddles everywhere, which looked more like a Florida marshland than a Long Island lawn … oops. There’s so much maintenance to lawn care. “Don’t walk on the grass, I just put down […]

tagged in garden, gardening

Bigmouth Strikes Again

squirrel pumpkin 1

My squirrel is back. I’ve compared the markings and I’m almost positive it’s the same guy (yup, I sit, stalk and take notes on squirrels in my spare time). For the past three years now, Bigmouth, as I somewhat affectionately call him, has come to feast on my fall decorative display. I spend an unreasonable amount of money on pumpkins, gourds, corn stalks, hay and decorative cabbage. This year there is all the more reason to rationalize the cost. We’re seven months into a global pandemic and a very scary […]

tagged in halloween, squirrel

Trees This, Tree That

New trees planted at the Beach 91st St. skate park

A few tree-related items have popped up this week and I thought it would be worth sharing. The first is both frustrating and hilarious. I got an email from 311 in response to a request I submitted to the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation on June 22, 2018. Yes, that’s 2 years ago?? “Thank you for your street tree planting request. Pending inspection for utility conflicts, we have determined this to be a suitable location for a new tree. The next update is due within 180 days. We’ll notify […]

tagged in rockaway, trees