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The Backyard Gardener: Watch out for poison hemlock

Home and Garden

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners! The summer growing season continues. The next 2 weeks would be a great time to plant squash such as zucchini and yellow crookneck in addition to another crop of sweet corn and cucumbers. This week I want to talk about an invasive plant spreading rapidly across the valley, poison hemlock (Conium maculatum). I have seen this weed along roadsides, abandoned fields and even hay and crop fields. It was imported into the U.S. as an ornamental in the late 1800s from Europe, West Asia, and North Africa. Rogue plants remained relatively rare ...

Veteran John Gradwohl brings Navy skills to stage, bubble shows

Features

PARKERSBURG – John Gradwohl said some of the skills he uses today, from repairing theater equipment to creating bubble shows with lights, music and projections, trace back to his time in the Navy. Gradwohl, 64, of Parkersburg, served in the Navy from 1982 to 1992 and left as a petty ...

Green beans: A standard for the home garden

Features

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley gardeners and farmers! The first week of June brought us some beautiful weather for working outside. I hope everyone took advantage of it and did some planting in the garden. Gardening not only provides food for the family but can relieve stress as well! I enjoy planting seeds and watching them develop over the summer. Many people ask, “When is the best time to plant in the garden?” I say anytime. Many vegetables can be planted throughout the summer and into fall. Farmer Elliot Coleman from Maine has a book entitled “Four Season Harvest”, which is a great ...

Byers, 50th anniversary

Anniversaries

Bob and Peggy Byers will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Sunday. They were married on June 5, 1976, at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Churchtown. Bob is the son of the late George W. and Gwendolyn Byers. He retired as parts director from Matheny Motors in Parkersburg. ...

Jesus doesn’t approve of an “Us vs. Them” division

Local Columns

First lesson: Not everything you might hear about the Bible is true. In Matthew 5:43-45 (NIV), Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven…” No biblical command actually instructs anyone to hate an enemy. The Jewish people developed that idea from passages like Deuteronomy 23:3-4, where God told Israel that “No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, not even in the ...

Backyard Gardener: Shade Tree Selection

Features

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners! We were a little on the dry side but that has all changed this week. Continual downpours since Sunday have brought several inches of rain and even flooding in areas around the valley. The forecast for the next few days is dry and sunny so we can catch up around the yard and in the fields with crop planting. This week I am discussing selecting and planting shade trees. Many homeowners around the valley, especially if you are building a new home or recently have purchased one, are going to plant trees in the landscape. Trees have many ...