Category: Uncategorized

By: Hannah Goodwin

Social media can be a scary place for children and families. Because of this, many parents are now recognizing the risks that come with fame from TikTok.

“Sharenting” is a term that was created to describe parents who regularly share their children on social media platforms. Sharenting is a term that can be seen as a negative thing in today’s world. Children today are “born into” social media and do not get to choose what parts of their lives are shared with the world.

Another thing to consider before posting your child on social media is “digital kid-napping”. This is when people on the internet take photos of children that parents have posted. This allows for a person to take the pictures and give the child a new name and identity online. The child then becomes a whole new person and personality because they were posed on the internet, innocently, by their parent. This can clearly lead to many issues as the child grows up and if they are not aware of this online form of “kid-napping”.

Viral mother daughter duo, Laura and Lena, are a prime example of this in today’s world. Their account started out as a silly little place where mom, Laura, could share the funny daily things that Lena would say. These videos were short and sweet, but people on the internet fell in love with this little girl who could put a smile on anyone’s face.

Laura and Lena’s platform began to explode from a video on mothers day in 2021. This video showed little Lena or “Wena”, as she would refer to herself, giving mom a bunch of flowers as a morning surprise. From then on out, they continued to share their life stories and expose their daughter to the internet regularly.

After about two full years of creating content with her daughter and new son, Sam, Laura made the tough decision to take her children off the platform all together. In March of 2023 they posted a goodbye video to share how thankful they were for the amazing community that they were able to create.

Here is a video of Laura explaining their exit in more detail:

@laurahfritz

Replying to @thegabster78

♬ original sound – Laura Fritz

Laura and Lena are just one example of removing children from social media. Mada Graviet is another mom who used to regularly post her son, Rez, online. 

As Rez has gotten older he is now able to express his feelings. Mada has spoken publicly about how if he is asking not to be recorded, then she will not take videos of him. As a mom, listening and respecting children should be your first priority. These children did not sign up for the viral sensations that they have become and the parents are slowly coming to this realization.

Not only are some children asking to not be recorded, but there are other issues that should be considered when it comes to safety. The internet can be a scary place, especially for children.

Posting young kids online for the world to see brings up both moral and ethical issues. The world we live in has a lot of bad things going on. Posting where your child goes everyday, what activities they are involved in, and so many other personal aspects of a child’s life can lead to dangerous outcomes. 

Wren Eleanor is an example of this. Wren Eleanor is a three year old girl who was posted on TikTok by her parents. Suddenly, on videos where she is eating a hot dog or wearing certain clothes there are hundreds of “saves”. “Saving” means that you can easily go back and watch this video as many times as you want. This sparked concern for her mother and she had to make the tough choice to remove her from the platform. Ethically and morally, her mom made a choice that was in her daughters best interest. Not what was best for fame or publicity. What once started out as an innocent place for her mom to share videos with family, sadly turned out to be a place that is dangerous for her daughter.

You never know who is watching or what that person’s ultimate goal is from watching young children online. Many people, like myself, love watching these families for entertainment and a good laugh. Sadly, many people watch for the wrong reasons. 

I applaud all the families who are taking time away from TikTok to prioritize their children in safe ways.

Seed Starting Advice: Peonies are best planted in the fall, specifically late September and October. They are usually sold as bare-root tubers with 3 to 5 bulbs. To plant be sure to dig a generous-sized hole, at about 2 feet deep and 2 feet across in well drained soil. The spot must be sunny as they flourish with 6-8 hours of sunlight each day. The root should be placed with the eyes facing upwards, on top of a mound of soil in the hole. Be sure to place the roots just two inches below the soil surface. Then backfill the hole, tap the soil gently, and water thoroughly at the time of planting. (Farmers Almanac)

Growing Advice: It is best to space peonies about 3-4 feet apart to promote good air circulation between plants. This is crucial because stagnant air build up may occur and can lead to disease. Peonies may also be prone to structural weakness due to their gigantic blossoms. To address this consider three-legged metal peony rings or wire tomato cages to support the stems.

Harvesting Advice: Peonies make beautiful cut flowers, lasting over a week within a base. Be sure to use a sharp pair of pruners, and gently cut the flowers at an angle. For best results, cut the long stem in the morning when buds are fairly tight. Remove the leaves from the portion of the stem, and then place them in the vase with lukewarm water. (Farmers Almanac)

Have you ever thought about planting flowers? Roses? Dandelions? Sunflowers? What about Cosmos? These beautiful flowers are one of a kind. Cosmos truly are one of the most underrated flowers. Did you know these flowers represent peace and love? Lets learn some more about cosmos!

What soil should I use when planting Cosmos?

When planting cosmos, one should use soil that is not too rich and not too thin. This can be classified as Well- draining soil. Cosmos grow best in neutral to alkaline soils, this soil has a pH of 7.0-7.5. (Source: Almanac)

When do I plant Cosmos?

Cosmos grow in warm dry weather. Oftentimes Cosmos are found in a drought-like environment. Cosmos should be direct sow seeds, meaning, they should be planted directly in the garden, as opposed to buying them in small plants and storing them inside. Cosmos can be planted in any garden bed, planting them no more than 1/4- inch deep. (Source: Almanac) Cosmos should be planted in a place that has full access to the sun.

How much water should I give my Cosmo?

Watering your Cosmo once a week is the ideal amount of water the flower should be receiving. Overall cosmos should receive about two gallons of water per week.

Growing advice:

When planting make sure to keep each seedling 12-18 inches apart from another. This prevents each flower from “running into one another”. Cosmos can grow up to 60 inches tall, so it is important to take this into consideration so each flower grows beautifully. If you opt to grow your Cosmo in a pot, ensure to purchase a pot that has bottom draining holes. (Source: The spruce) Unfortunately  it has been shown that grasshoppers, aphids, thrips, and lygus plant bugs can infect cosmo plants. These insects will eat at cosmos for a nice lunch! To prevent this from happening one can wipe or spray the leaves with a solution of water and a couple drops of dish soap. This should be reapplied every 2-3 days for 2 weeks.

Harvesting advice:

When harvesting, one can cut the flowers off anytime after blooming. It is best to pick some off right when the petals have opened. After cutting the flowers once they’re done blooming, they will last over a week in water. To store them strip the lower leaves and put them in a vase (Source: Almanac).

Written By: Beth Rizzuto

Overview: Corn is a vegetable that comes in many colors but primarily yellow and white. Corn is usually classified based on the shape of the kernel of the corn as well as the texture. There are four main types of corn according to the Almanac such as sugary sweet corn, sugar enhanced corn, shrunken corn and synergistic corn.

Seed Starting: It is not recommended to start growing corn seeds inside. It should be planted outside in warm weather and the soil temperature matters depending on what type of corn you are trying to grow. If attempting to grow in colder temperatures, place plastic over the soil and plant the seeds through holes in the plastic.

Sow seeds about 1½ to 2 inches deep and 2 to 4 inches apart in short, side-by-side rows to form a block, rather than one long row.

For decent pollination, we recommend a modest block of, say, 10 to 50 plants.

You may choose to fertilize at planting time with a 10-10-10 fertilizer; corn is meant to grow rapidly. If you are confident that the soil is adequate, this step can be skipped.

Water well at planting time.

(Source: https://www.almanac.com/plant/corn)

Growing Advice: Since corn takes a long time to grow it is recommended that you plant early and then plant farther along into the season to make sure that it grows. Early season corn will grow faster than late season corn which might take the whole season to grow. 

Harvesting: Corn is usually harvested best 2-3 weeks before the first fall frost. To lengthen the season of growing corn it is suggested after the first few weeks of planting that you plant another round of seeds. Corn takes around 80-100 days to grow according to the University of Vermont’s Zone 5-6 Planting Schedule.  (Source: https://www.uvm.edu/sites/default/files/Extension-Master-Gardener/Zones5plantsch.pdf)

Recipe for Summer Corn Salad

Ingredients

• 2 bell peppers, 1 red and 1 green, cored
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons corn oil
• 4 large ears corn, cooked
• 2 cups small red new potatoes, cooked
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon
• 2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon tarragon or white vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Cut peppers into thin strips; then, in a medium-sized skillet, saute over high heat in 2 tablespoons of the oil until peppers are browned in spots. Set aside. Cut corn from the cob and dice potatoes fairly small. Mix remaining 1/3 cup of oil with onion, herbs, mustard, soy sauce, and vinegar. Stir in the peppers, then add the remaining vegetables and season to taste. Stir well and chill in a tightly covered 2-quart bowl for at least 2 hours, so flavors have a chance to blend. This salad will keep well in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 days.

Written by Jacob Hyjek

Growing up I was surrounded by gardeners, from my mom working at ocean spray growing cranberries to my cousin’s vegetable garden, my whole extended family has roots in gardening. This connection we all share originated with my grandparents Mary and Joe. My grandparents had a love for all things green. They grew their own vegetables, flowers, and fruit trees. My aunts and uncles grew up helping pick things from the garden and helping to weed out the two industrial sized greenhouses my grandparents attached to their home.

My own experience in my grandparents garden is not a unique one, but one that I share with my brother and cousins as well. I was babysat by my grandparents often just like my relatives and in this time I would learn everything I know today about gardening. My favorite part was heading out to the garden with my grandma on a hot summer day rummaging through all sorts of vines and plants to find the biggest, roundest, and reddest tomatoes to pick. Once I found around five perfect tomatoes I would move on to the biggest, greenest, shiniest peppers I could find. After roughly five of the peppers, covered in dirt and sweat I would then move to cucumbers and finally bring my picks of the bunch to my grandmother to inspect in Shaws bags. She would select the ones to bring inside for herself and I got to lay out the rest on their “free” cart that she had parked right next to the garden. Here neighbors and friends could stop by and grab anything they wanted from the cart. This was my favorite part. I loved watching people come stop by to take the vegetables that I picked myself.

My grandparents were a huge influence on my family as far as gardening and giving us all the gift of a green thumb. They even created a family holiday just for us called “planting day” where we would all meet in the spring to plant the seeds for their huge garden. This collectively was one of everyone in my extended family’s holidays. It meant so much to me and more than my grandparents could have imagined.

Written by Marj Tobin

Written by Caroline Howland

These beautiful orange and yellow annuals symbolize good luck and happiness.

Marigolds add bright color to gardens and also attract insects so they are typically planted near vegetables so they can keep aphids and beetles from eating crops. They are popular because they bloom all summer long.

Plant from Seed: Marigolds are tolerant of wet to dry soil but do best in well-drained, fertile soil. Pick a spot with full sun, once the soil is warm in the spring it’s time to plant. Dig soil 6 inches down to loosen. Moisten the soil and then plant seeds 1 inch deep, 1 inch apart. Seeds can be started indoors or outdoors. The seeds should sprout within a week.

Plant from transplants: plant directly into loosened soil, at least 8 inches apart. Water each flower as you plant. Choose a sunny spot where the soil drains well.

Taking Care of Marigold flowers: water at the base of the plant when the soil is dry. Pinch off the tops of the growing plant to make the flower bushier and promote more blooms. If the blooms are dead, pinch off the flower to the nearest leaf.

Varieties of Marigolds: these flowers come in a variety of colors ranging from creamy white to golden orange. Some are larger than others. French marigolds, American marigolds and African marigolds are the most popular. The French variety are smaller than the others.

Using Marigolds: Marigolds can be cut and added to any flower arrangement but they are commonly dried because of their ability to keep their color. Hang the cut flowers upside down until the flowers are dry and they can be used for fragrance to homemade soaps, oils or lotions. They can also be kept as a dried bundle.

https://www.almanac.com/plant/marigolds