The Lake of the Sky Garden Tour was across the north shore on Saturday. Thanks to all the incredible volunteers in the garden club who organized the tour, delivered the tickets and hosted the gardens.  And especially THANKS to the homeowners who dressed-up, tidied and added a little extra color here and there before opening their gardens to 1,000 enthusiastic visitors.  Some of us don't have much opportunity to visit lake-front gardens and that is always an added treat.  Highlights and reminders for me were Helenium spp. a VERY under appreciated and under-used wildflower-daisy that blooms mid-late summer in rich autumn shades. It is seldom eaten by deer.  Crocosmia 'Lucifer' dominated many gardens with it's RED.  Annuals can be perfect, mixed into perennial gardens for continuous color. Even a very small waterfall is a nice addition to a garden.  

The Villager is having a BIG SALE this week.  25% off any plants or seeds you can put on a cart.  One time, one cart, one customer with coupon from the newsletter.  Plus other specials.  We received our LAST portion of the shrub-form #5g Chokecherries last week and they are going quickly. reg 44.99 for 19.99.  

We also just brought in NOLO bait (Nosema locustae) a protozoan that kills ±90 species of grasshoppers (Melanoplus group), locusts, and mormon crickets (a type of grasshopper).  They are BAD this year and we have started seeing lots of damage.  They are attracted to and eat the bait, become infected, slow and die. Then the other grasshoppers eat them, and become infected and so-on. It is a slow acting and debilitating disease that offers long-term management of grasshopper populations AND there is some Nosema carryover to the next year. It is harmless to any other creatures.  (We have Corry's if you want Carbaryl).