The April Gardener

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug:  Now that the weather is getting warmer, you may start to see the brown marmorated stink bug in your home or out in the garden (I saw my first stink bug ever in my kitchen in February). The stink bug is native to parts of Asia and was first seen in the US in Allentown, PA in 2001 and has steadily migrated to parts of Maryland.

The stink bug was very prolific in 2010 due to the winter’s heavy snow cover and a very hot, dry summer. Damage to farm and garden crops was significant. Adults congregate in late summer/early fall and actively seek safe overwintering sites – especially inside buildings. They emerge and mate in the spring. They are not harmful to people, houses or pets. They do not bite, sting, suck blood or spread disease and they don’t eat or bore into wood. The stink bugs feed on plant leaves, buds and fruits.

They emit a strong, unpleasant odor when threatened or crushed. The smell goes away quickly.  If you want to know more about how to get rid of or control this homeowner nuisance and agricultural menace, go to the University of Maryland’s Home and Garden Information Center website.

Rubber Mulch — Is It Safe For Your Garden?  It’s April and time to start thinking about mulch (well, I’ve been thinking about mulch since February but I’m a little crazy about gardening).

There are so many mulch choices, comprised of many different materials, some more natural than others. Rubber mulches are advertised as permanent, effective and safe materials for use in landscapes, gardens and playgrounds. At first glance, it may seem that rubber mulches are an environmentally friendly way of recycling used tires but further research indicates they are neither effective in long-term weed control nor safe for the environment.

While recycling waste tires is an important environmental issue, the solution is not to spread the pollution problem over our landscapes, gardens and playgrounds.

Hazards of Rubber Mulch:

(1) It’s flammable.  A research study comparing several different mulches found that when rubber mulch (which contains petroleum products) is ignited, it is more difficult to extinguish than any other mulch, including wood chips. 

(2) It’s toxic. Like any other material, tires and rubber mulches are eventually broken down by environmental factors, such as sunlight, or by bacteria and fungi. Just some of the chemicals that leach from rubber mulch include aluminum, cadmium, chromium, molybdenum, selenium and zinc.

(3) It’s destructive. Many vegetables and plants mulched with rubber can accumulate high levels of zinc, sometimes to the point of death. Other metals found in decomposing rubber can also accumulate in plant roots, leaves and fruit. Decomposing rubber mulches provide a constant stream of toxic leaching into adjacent aquatic systems. 

I would suggest that you use only mulches that are made of natural wood/bark/tree products.

I use pine bark mulch. It smells good, it looks good and it’s safe.