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Backyard Gardener: Hard frost marks end of growing season

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley Farmers and Gardeners! Most likely we will say goodbye to the growing season this weekend in the Valley as frost is in the forecast. Any late squash, tomatoes or other vegetables need to be harvested quickly. Don't forget to move houseplants back indoors before they get frosted. Many homeowners move indoor plants onto the deck or front porch to enjoy during the summer. To be safe, Extension recommends houseplants be brought indoors before nighttime temperatures dip below 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep in mind many of our houseplants are tender tropicals, and some ...

The Way I See It: Holiday season set to begin

After neatly spreading holidays out over the last 10 months, we are about to enter the intense holiday season. Late October, November and December have a lock on observances and celebrations. Most of them have food involved. Some have drinks involved, still others weird dress codes. Some ...

MOV Climate Corner: Vote not just for climate, but affordability

The energy research company Energy Innovation recently completed an analysis, Associated Press coverage of which was published in last weekend’s edition of the Parkersburg News and Sentinel, that found that “households will pay an average of $6,500 more for energy, cumulatively, through 2040” because of policies and actions of the Trump regime and congressional Republicans. The analysis “focused on the sweeping package of tax breaks that slashed funding for clean energy tax credits, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill, Trump signed; environmental rollbacks, including clean air ...

Living Democracy: So, what happens if I don’t vote?

“It doesn’t matter anyway,” “What’s one vote?” These comments are often heard from people who choose not to vote. The idea that one vote can’t possibly have an effect is a common misconception. In fact, throughout our history, there have been very close votes that made the difference in the direction taken by America. One Vote! The Musical is a play written about Marietta’s founding and its place in Ohio and American history. When Thomas Jefferson wanted to introduce slavery where it had been prohibited before (the Northwest Territory) at the Constitutional Convention ...

Early Marietta: Life aboard the G W McBRIDE

Working on a river towboat was never easy. Hard and dangerous work. Difficult personalities. Steady work? – rarely; boats, crew, and conditions changed often. A job could end abruptly for misbehavior or on a captain’s whim. Young Clare Carpenter from Apple Grove in Meigs County was "hired ...

Cracking the Code: Learning from past success

Lynnda and I got our COVID shots last week. We believe prevention is better than a cure. Some people are against vaccinations. Everyone is entitled to an opinion. Most are too young to live through what Lynnda and I have. We remember crippling polio. Polio is an infectious virus that can cause muscle weakness resulting in permanent paralysis and possible death. It can cause muscle and fat tissue to waste away. There is no cure except for supportive care. Both of us knew people with polio. I remember Danny in my second-grade class. He had a wasted leg from polio. Danny had a pleasant ...