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Saturday, September 5, 2015 An Advertising Feature of The Topeka Capital-Journal

Jamie Hancock Garden Column – Shopping outside the traditional grocery store – Finding items for your Pinterest projects – Preparing your lawn and garden for winter –

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Cricket season Jamie Hancock

jamiehan@ksu.edu Jiminy Cricket was Pinocchio’s conscious and guide. We loved him because of his sensibility and warmth and we smiled as he sang When You Wish Upon A Star in the Disney movie. I am quite sure I have never seen a real cricket wearing shoes and a coat with tails but, I have found them in my laundry piles. I have also spent many a disturbed night hunting the nocturnal singing creatures. Their ‘crickety’ sounds are charming outside but, inside they can be a complete nuisance; so much for that cricket on your hearth nonsense.

This is the time of year we begin to see more and larger crickets. Generally, they are quite harmless and don’t need to be

A Note From

The Gardener

controlled unless…they are keeping you awake at night and occasionally for other reasons.

Crickets are somewhat related to grasshoppers and katydids. We see them all about the same time of year. If we have a lot of grasshoppers we are likely to have a lot of crickets. It is often thought that the weather governs their numbers but, other things like increases in abundance of food and habitat or decreases in natural enemies are just as likely to trigger popu-

lation explosions.

You can identify crickets by their long antennae (as long as their body or longer) and their large back legs, which they use for jumping. Adult females have a conspicuous sword-like ovipositor or egg-laying device extending backwards from the tip of the abdomen.

Field crickets are ½ inch to ¾ inch long and are dark brown to black. They are well known for their singing. These are the crickets you can use to estimate the

approximate temperature in degrees Fahrenheit by taking the number of chirps in 15 seconds then adding 40. They are commonly found in fields, pastures and yards feeding on various plants and dead or weakened insects, including other crickets. Field crickets are strongly attracted to light. Indoor, they can feed on fabric, such as, cotton, linen, silk, and wool. They tend

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Hancock: Controlling crickets Continued from 2C to feed on materials soiled by food or perspiration (hence the laundry piles). Damage to these fabrics is more likely when large numbers of crickets are present.

Camel crickets (or cave crickets) are tan, humped-backed, and are about ¾ inch long. They are found in cool, damp, and dark areas. Living under logs and stones they feed on plant debris. Camel crickets are not attracted to light and if they come inside will seek dark areas and seldom chew fabrics.

House crickets are light yellowishbrown with three dark bands behind the head and are ¾ inch long. They are common around garbage dumps and are strongly attracted to light. They feed on the same things field crickets do.

Impact on the environment Crickets help in the breakdown of plant materials into humus. They are also an important food source for other animals. Negatively, crickets may injure seedlings and large numbers can be destructive. The male’s

singing can be loud and annoying.

Male crickets attract mates by chirping.

This is done by rubbing their forewings together (not their legs). The female hears the chirping with ears on her front legs.

The chirp sounds are different for each species so that individuals can find their own species. Females lay eggs in the soil.

It is rare that eggs are laid indoor and generally they don’t survive to hatch.

Control of crickets  Outdoors, limit areas where crickets can enter the house by chalking or repairing cracks and gaps in the house foundation, around doors, ground-level windows, and window wells.  Cut weeds and tall grass near the house’s foundation.  Remove firewood, brush, bricks, and other debris close to the house.  Reduce outside lighting. Turn off unnecessary lights.  Inside, crickets can be easily caught using sticky glue boards used for mouse control. If you have a chirping cricket driving you nuts, place a small amount of

cornmeal in the center of the glue board and place it near where you hear the chirping sound. Within a day or two you should have caught your singer.  Chemical control is usually not necessary. But if it is, use various over-thecounter insecticides. Most of these are pyrethrins and pyrethroids (chemicals ending in –thrin). Use insecticides that list crickets on the label.

Always follow label directions especially with regard to correct amounts and methods of application. Remember, insecticide treatments are only temporary solutions. You may choose to hire a professional pest management company if you have a large or persistent problem.

If it helps, remember that Jiminy Cricket had to hush the clocks and the snoring Geppetto, cat and fish so he could sleep.

Snore loudly…maybe it will keep the crickets awake.

Jamie Hancock is a horticulturist with Kansas State Research and Extension in Shawnee County.

4 | Saturday, September 5, 2015 | The Topeka Capital-Journal | At Home

Shopping outside the traditional grocery store

By Shanna Sloyer Special to The Capital-Journal

Tired of pushing a cart through crowded store aisles, buying produce that seems to go bad almost immediately, and spending more money than you would like on extras that you don’t really need? There are a variety of convenient, cost-saving options for healthy eating beyond the aisles of your local grocery store.

During the summer months, plant and harvest your own vegetable garden or use the local farmer’s market for your produce needs. Consider splitting the purchase of a cow or pig with a family member or neighbor for a lower per pound cost, or hunt and freeze wild game for the cost of a hunting license and tag. Contract with a local farmer or dairy for milk and farm-fresh eggs. These options will bring fresher food to your table, cutting down on harmful preservatives used in convenience and fast food meals.

Another alternative that is growing in popularity with busy families is online grocery shopping and meal planning.

These businesses have sprung up in response to a market that recognizes that families need convenient, budget-friendly meal options without sacrificing health and nutrition.

Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op

The idea behind a food co-op is that many participants contributing to the purchase of produce in bulk quantities means lower per customer cost. Bountiful Baskets also depends on volunteers who sort and pack the food, eliminating the cost associated with employee salaries.

Co-op members sign up at bountifulbaskets.org and make a contribution. Up to three produce baskets can be ordered per participant at a cost of $15 each. An upgrade to organic produce is $25 per basket. Add-ons such as bread, specialty packs, and cases of canning vegetables can be purchased as well. In addition to the contribution, members pay a one-time fee of $3 to purchase a basket that is used to sort their produce. There is also a $1.50 user fee, and a $4.50 fuel surcharge fee for residents of the state of Kansas. Every other week, members pick up orders at Jay Shideler Elementary School in Topeka.

Blue Apron

Blueapron.com promises fresh ingredients and recipes delivered to your home weekly. Customers can choose from two person or family meal plans. Ingredients are packaged in a refrigerated box with ice packs and an insulated liner to ensure

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Service Directory Stock photo/metro creative connection

Market: Online meal planning freshness, even if you aren’t home at the time of delivery.

The Blue Apron website lists seared steaks, Thai chicken burgers, fresh lemon linguine, and summer eggplant and pepper tostadas as a few meals customers can expect to try in a weekly meal plan. Three meals per week on the two-person meal plan runs $59.94 per month. The family plan promises to feed each of your family members four meals per week for $8.74 per person.

Blue Apron offers free shipping and allows customers to skips weeks (for example, if you’re on vacation) as well as cancel at any time.

eMeals

At emeals.com, subscribers pick a plan based on the size of their family, an eating style (classic, clean eating, Paleo, and budget friendly are a few they have to choose from), and their favorite grocery store. eMeals sends a meal plan and accompanying recipes to your inbox. The company promises seven simple, creative, familyfriendly dinner recipes including entrees and side dishes each week. They also provide detailed grocery lists organized by store section and based on the week’s sale items. Customers shop, cook and enjoy.

Twelve months of eMeals is $69, 6

months is $59, and 3 months is $39. The company offers a two-week, free trial period for all new customers.

Deals to Meals

This company provides customers weekly comparison breakdowns of major grocery store chains, including Costco, Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart, and vows to save consumers over $100 each month.

They stand behind this claim by guaranteeing that you will save more than the cost of the $4.95 per month membership rate, or your money back. For less than $5 per month, Deals to Meals sends meal plans based around weekly sale items. The weekly meal planner includes a weeks worth of main dishes, side dishes, desserts, and food storage recipes.

A membership also comes with custom grocery lists, allowing consumers to shop at one store, several different stores, or to price match the best deals at Wal-Mart for one stop shopping. Deals to Meals encourages users to invest in food storage or stockpiling by identifying the best deals available each week with a gold star, saving shoppers up to 70 percent off regular prices. By stocking up a little each week, shoppers will eventually have everything they need for future meal planning. Sign up at dealstomeals.com.

Service Directory

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Boost your brand, product or service with an ad in the service directory! At Home Living is read by home owners, buyers and sellers across the Topeka and surrounding area. To place your ad contact your MultiMedia Sales Consultant or 785.295.1125.

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Finding items for your Pinterest projects

By Jenni Harrison Special to The Capital-Journal

You’ve been scouring Pinterest for ideas for the kitchen, the bathroom, or maybe to make your outdoor area more user friendly. You want to piece together a rustic cabinet out of reclaimed wood or ladder bookshelf. After pinning your newest ideas and giving thought to your final project, the next step is locating your materials so you can get to work designing, crafting and

building. This can be fun, like a scavenger hunt, or create a lull in the project, offering a challenge if the item you are looking for isn’t available locally.

On my current Pinterest radar marquee letters to spell out a fun phrase in which I’ve been sticking to antique stores for my searches. In desperation I may need to perform an online search to get the rest of my alphabet, however there are some things I’d like to hold in my hand and get a visual of before purchasing, these indi-

Jenni Harrison/Special to The Capital-Journal

Left: Other stores like Two Days Monthly Market in NOTO hold other tresures - you just have to know what you are looking for. Above: Vintage Vibe in NOTO has many treasures for all of your projects. vidual letters included. Then there is the pergola with possibly matching hammock frame I’m wanting my husband to build.

These are less like a scavenger hunt unless you consider shopping for the right lumber in huge aisles a challenge.

What is your special project and where do you find what you need to craft or build?

Many supplies can be picked up at a craft store. These places are especially helpful when you need to find several duplicates of the same thing. Mass produced. Glass jars, buttons, mini chalk boards, yards of fabric, picture frames, baskets. The list

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Jenni Harrison/Special to The Capital-Journal

Left: Vintage Vibe in NOTO has many treasures for all of your projects. Right and below left: You can find items from old houses at Vintage Vibe in NOTO in their architectural salvage area.

Continued from 6C goes on and on. It’s easy shopping considering aisles are marked and organized.

Many stores run frequent specials and coupons can often be had.

Besides craft stores, where else can you shop? Are you looking for items for DIY projects like making a braided rug from t-shirts? Considering garden stones from broken dishes? Needing jeans to turn into totes for storage? Try a thrift store. These are great when you want a feelgood price and used is an option. Price tags are inexpensive and some of the major ones support the community through sales.

Antique stores and flea markets. These are my go-to when planting succulents or any other current project/hobby I’m working on. Find a retro gym locker basket

and turn it into a hanging storage unit for towels. These types of stores are the best places to find large amounts of vintage and sometimes newer items. Box springs, mason jars, wooden boxes, rusted gates, pulls and knobs, mix and match letters- you name it. Some local places like Vintage Vibe will even provide you with that extra boost of inspiration with frequent suggestions in store or on their website.

Architectural salvage locations provide many great pieces such as hardware and lighting, maybe an old bathtub or windows and doors. Reusing architectural materials that would otherwise be destroyed is a great way to think green. Now if I can just figure out how to make a hammock frame out of something old and proven, that would be my preference.

Auctions and garage sales. If time is not

a factor, browse the local ads and hit up some sales to find better prices than at the antique stores. Turning an entertainment center into a more suitable TV console or a suitcase into a dog bed? How about the baby crib repurposed as a bench? All can be found at a sale and for low prices.

Finally, try sites like Etsy or Ebay for online shopping when looking for vintage items if time is of the essence, or if you are impatient like me. The only wait you’ll have is while it ships.

8 | Saturday, September 5, 2015 | The Topeka Capital-Journal | At Home

Preparing your lawn and garden for winter

By Dustin Lemmon Special to The Capital-Journal

It’s been a long summer of pulling weeds, pruning plants, watering your garden and mowing your lawn. Surely it’s time to rest and leave those chores behind until next spring, right?

Well, not exactly. If you want your lawn and garden looking their best next spring, now is the time to prepare. Raking or sweeping up leaves is a good place to start.

Lawn care

Removing fallen leaves can be a frustrating job since not all trees lose their leaves at the same time, but you need to stay on it, Brett Blackburn, owner of Blackburn Nursery Inc. of Topeka, said.

“It’s very important to make sure you keep leaves up off the ground,” he said.

“They can smother grass and spread disease.”

One potential consequence of not cleaning up leaves is snow mold. It’s that white or gray layer of mold that grows under leaves matted down by snow. This fungal disease can damage or even kill grass.

Another recommendation for preventing snow mold is to cut your grass lower than normal at the end of the growing season.

Fertilizing

If you want to make sure your lawn is looking its best come spring, you need to fertilize it in the fall.

“The most important thing is to fertilize your lawn in September, and then again in November,” Blackburn said.

If you only do it once, Blackburn recommends September. It will make your lawn healthier and stronger going into the winter. If you fertilize it a second time do it after you’ve put your mower away for the

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Lawn: Lawns need fertilizing and overseeding Continued from 8C season, he added.

In addition to fertilizing, your lawn may need to be overseeded. This is where you spread new seeds over the existing lawn.

Blain Bertrand, owner of Topeka Landscape, Inc., said if your lawn looks weak and is not 100 percent covered with grass, you should probably overseed before winter.

Aerating and dethatching

If you do overseed, you should also aerate your lawn, Bertrand said. This is where holes are punched into the soil to help loosen it and make it easier for water, air and nutrients to reach the roots of your

grass.

There are many tools available for aerating your lawn, including those that are handheld, motorized or that can attach to the bottom of your shoes. Just make sure the option you choose will do the job right.

“Make sure it pulls a plug out and doesn’t just punch a hole and compact” the soil, Bertrand said.

Another option is to dethatch your lawn, but Bertrand said this isn’t something he recommends unless you have a warm season grass like Bermuda or Zoysia. Dethatching is removing any debris that have accumulated in yard over the

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Lawn: Maintaining vegetable and flower gardens Continued from 9C summer. This may include dead grass, bits of leaves, roots and weeds.

There are rakes specifically designed for dethatching, but if you want to save time and don’t mind the added expense, you can also purchase or rent a motorized dethatcher or one that can be pulled behind a tractor.

Vegetable garden

Once your vegetable garden is done producing, it’s important to do some quick cleanup work. You can either remove all of the plants or work their remains into the soil to help provide nutrients for next year.

If you had problems with any diseases, it’s probably best to remove the plants, so you don’t increase the risk of the disease com-

ing back next year, Blackburn said.

As for fertilizing the vegetable garden, Blackburn said that can wait until the spring. There aren’t the same benefits to doing it now like there are with grass.

Flower garden

For perennials, it’s good to give them the month of September to recover, especially those plants that had a rough summer, Blackburn said. The cooler temperatures should give them a chance to bounce back from any stress they suffered due to heat or drought.

You many continue to feed them fertilizer, so the plants can regain their strength, Blackburn advised, but don’t continue it too late into the season as they will need time to go dormant. He said the timing can vary depending on temperatures.

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