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I will be posting pictures from this years flower show for any of you who missed it! The theme this year was ARTiculture, and the exhibits were great.
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Brood II of Periodical Cicada's will be emerging in May and June 2013, in the Pennsylvania counties of Berks, Bucks,Carbon, Chester, Dauphin, DELAWARE, Lancaster, Lebanon,Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Montgomery, Northampton,Philadelphia, Pike, Potter, Schuylkill, and Wyoming.
Although annual cicadas arrive every year in August, these periodical cicadas were last seen in 2003 and will reach staggering numbers.
Adult Magicicada have black bodies and striking red eyes and orange wing veins, with a black “W” near the
tips of the forewings.
These cicadas can cause breaking of peripheral branches and twigs, but really only effect younger trees. Most mature trees will be fine.
There are no effective chemical sprays to control these pests, but moles, snakes and other small mammals help to reduce the population, and other than their annoying sound, cicadas cause minor damage at best.
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Burglars hit roughly 2.5 million U.S. residences every year, about one every 13 seconds. Trim your chances of joining the statistics by landscaping for security.
Just because you dont have a fancy home security system, doesnt mean you dont have a security system already in place in your yard. Some simple landscaping can provide extra security measures that also look great!
First, you can plant thorny plants around the house, making it impossible for theives to hide and lurk in. Hawthorn (bottom left) is a tree that can reach 20-40 feet, but has sharp thorns all over it, so that if you do desire a tree along your house, a burglar cant climb it and access second story windows. Hawthorns also generally have a great Fall color and beautiful red berries. Other shrubs include roses and barberrys, as well as Pyracantha which has great Holiday color (bottom right).
Now if planting thorny shrubs and trees isnt your thing due to kids or personal preference, there are still alot of things you can do. Trimming bushes below windows, planting perennials that get cut down in Fall, and keeping big bushy shrubs away from windows and backdoors especially. Back doors are generally the first mode of action for burglars, so if there is no place to hide by it, they will generally look for an easier house.
Other factors such as lighting is another big thing. Strategic landscape lighting along the house or even just a street light can deter a criminal.
As a final note, eyes and ears provide the best line of defense. Be sure you have excess brush cleared, and that neighbors can have a fairly clear sight line to your front yard and back so they can keep an eye out on your property while you are away.
