Potato aficionados will now have their windowsills awash with trays, on which seed potatoes are being 'chitted', encouraging the sprouts to appear before planting begins in earnest.

While many of us have visions of digging up delicious spuds and cooking them immediately the soil's been wiped off them, sometimes in reality we have to tackle a fair few pests and diseases which can leave our potatoes mottled, mouldy or full of holes.

Potato blight is one of the most deadly diseases which can destroy your plants overnight. It's caused by a Phytophthora fungus, P. infestans, which turns the stems brown and the leaves yellow, causing the plant to collapse. It is always fatal although you may save later crops by removing top growth as soon as the blight is spotted.

Blight generally starts from June onwards especially in warm, wet spells. The first signs are brown patches on the leaves. If you have neighbouring tomatoes, they're also likely to be infected. There is no treatment once the disease has taken hold.

To minimise the risk, follow a three or four-year crop rotation, never growing potatoes on the same piece of land more than once every four years, and earth up the plants regularly and deeply to protect the tubers.

Use copper-based fungicides during warm, damp spells as a preventative measure. Alternatively, grow early potatoes which can usually be lifted before blight strikes, or grow resistant cultivars such as 'Sarpo'.

Three of the most common threats to potatoes are pests - potato cyst eelworm, slugs and wireworm. Eelworms are minute worm-like creatures which attack the roots, causing plants to wilt and present reddish-brown cysts on the roots. The lower leaves wither away while upper leaves are pale green and wilt during the day. You'll need to destroy all traces of the affected crop and avoid growing potatoes in that spot for around eight years.

Slugs and snails can be a major problem on heavy, wet soil. Attacks begin in August. Early lifting of maincrops may help reduce damage and slug pellets may help a little, although some slugs live permanently underground. Collect slugs and snails after rain or in the evening on damp nights and dispose of them.

Wireworm is also a serious pest, especially in wet summers as tubers can become riddled with narrow tunnels made by the 3cm (1in) orange shiny larvae. There is no treatment or prevention, as no insecticide for use below ground is available.

Other problems which may affect your crops include scab, a fungal disease in which scabs - flat areas of rough skin pitted with shallow splits - appear. It is worse in light and limy soils but is only skin deep so won't affect your potatoes if you peel them.

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When the chips are down

Time to fertilize your tall fescue lawn. Do not fertilize warm-season grasses such as bermudagrass, centipedegrass, St. Augustinegrass, or zoysiagrass, but do get a soil test if you havent in the past three years. Apply preemergence herbicides to control crabgrass, goosegrass, and foxtails from late February to mid-March. If tall fescue was seeded the previous fall, make sure the new seedlings are extensively tillered and the new turf has been mowed at least twice before utilizing a preemergence herbicide. Refer to the turf specific maintenance calendars for detailed information.

Maintenance calendars provide suggested management practices to assist you in seasonal care of home lawns and athletic fields grown in North Carolina. Location, terrain, soil type and condition, age of turf, previous management, and other factors affect turf performance. For these reasons, the management practices and dates found in the following maintenance calendars should be adjusted to suit your particular turf conditions.

Both warm and cool season turfgrasses are grown in North Carolina. Knowing turfgrass growth characteristics and use recommendations is important for maintaining a healthy turfgrass system and minimizing management requirements. Following is a list of turfgrasses commonly grown in North Carolina.

There are over 100 diseases that affect North Carolina turfgrasses. Fortunately, there are only about 18 tufgrass diseases that develop year after year. Following is a list of the most common diseases that affect North Carolina turfgrasses.

Many insects live in or on turf. Some damage turfgrasses by feeding on roots, leaves and stems while others disturb roots by making burrows. Below is a list of the major insects which damage turfgrasses in North Carolina.

Pests that are not insects, diseases, or weeds are included in the catch-all category of "Other Pests" on TurfFiles.

Weeds by definition are any plant(s) that grow where not intended. Whereas some grass species are classified as both turfgrasses and weeds, all broadleaves and sedges are considered weeds within any successful turfgrass program. Following is a list of common weeds found in North Carolina turfgrassess.

In recent discussions with North Carolina sod growers it was apparent that there will be a significant shortage of bermudagrass sod this winter and spring.

This year is proving to be the worst year on record for fall armyworms.

Fall armyworms may soon become a problem.

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TurfFiles - Turfgrass Information for North Carolina

Theft >> Ashley Williams, 21, of the 5400 block of Kingsessing Avenue, Philadelphia, was taken into custody at 4 p.m. Jan. 31 at the King of Prussia Mall, where she is employed, on a Springfield warrant issued Oct. 23, 2014, charging her with theft and receiving stolen property, police said. Williams allegedly stole a cellphone from a break room at the Giant, 1844 Bethlehem Pike, in Springfield, reported June 1, 2014, police said. She was turned over to Springfield, arraigned and taken to Montgomery County Prison in lieu of bail set at $5,000 cash, police said.

Disorderly conduct >> Courtney Miller, 26, of the 1000 block of East Durham Street, Philadelphia, was cited for disorderly conduct following a car stop at 11:30 a.m. Jan. 28 at Bruce and Allison roads, Oreland, police said. Miller was pulled over for having counterfeit inspection and emission stickers and a glassine baggie with a small amount of marijuana was in plain view, police said. He was also cited for the traffic violations and driving with a suspended license, police said.

Aggravated assault >> A 16-year-old Philadelphia male is being petitioned to Montgomery County Juvenile Court on charges of simple and aggravated assault and harassment following an incident at 12:20 p.m. Jan. 28 at Wordsworth Academy, 100 Camp Hill Road, Fort Washington, police said. A teacher at the school reported being punched in the face in the gym, police said.

Disorderly conduct >> Two 13-year-old male students from Elkins Park, students at Cedarbrook West Middle School, 1331 Ivy Hill Road, Wyndmoor, will be cited for disorderly conduct after allegedly making some threats toward the school at 8:37 a.m. Jan. 29, police said. Parents of students at the school were notified of the threats, police said, and the accused students, who said they were just joking, will also face internal discipline from the school.

DUI >> Lamin Sidibeh, 25, of the 7600 block of Stenton Avenue, Philadelphia, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding and careless driving following a one-vehicle accident at 10:47 a.m. Jan. 24 at Paper Mill Road and Cheltenham Avenue, police said. Sidibeh was westbound on Paper Mill when he attempted to turn left onto Cheltenham, but hit the curb and the vehicle vaulted about 19 feet, landing in a yard in the 1400 block of Paper Mill, driving off the lawn and back onto southbound Cheltenham, where it came to an uncontrolled rest, police said. Sidibeh was found semi-conscious behind the wheel with an open bottle of beer next to him and he was transported by Springfield Ambulance to Chestnut Hill Hospital for treatment and a blood test, the results being a 0.29 BAC, police said.

Disorderly conduct >> Courtney Miller, 26, of the 1000 block of East Durham Street, Philadelphia, was cited for disorderly conduct following a car stop at 11:30 a.m. Jan. 28 at Bruce and Allison roads, Oreland, police said. Miller was pulled over for having counterfeit inspection and emission stickers and a glassine baggie with a small amount of marijuana was in plain view, police said. He was also cited for the traffic violations and driving with a suspended license, police said.

Aggravated assault >> A 16-year-old Philadelphia male is being petitioned to Montgomery County Juvenile Court on charges of simple and aggravated assault and harassment following an incident at 12:20 p.m. Jan. 28 at Wordsworth Academy, 100 Camp Hill Road, Fort Washington, police said. A teacher at the school reported being punched in the face in the gym, police said.

Disorderly conduct >> Two 13-year-old male students from Elkins Park, students at Cedarbrook West Middle School, 1331 Ivy Hill Road, Wyndmoor, will be cited for disorderly conduct after allegedly making some threats toward the school at 8:37 a.m. Jan. 29, police said. Parents of students at the school were notified of the threats, police said, and the accused students, who said they were just joking, will also face internal discipline from the school.

DUI >> Lamin Sidibeh, 25, of the 7600 block of Stenton Avenue, Philadelphia, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding and careless driving following a one-vehicle accident at 10:47 a.m. Jan. 24 at Paper Mill Road and Cheltenham Avenue, police said. Sidibeh was westbound on Paper Mill when he attempted to turn left onto Cheltenham, but hit the curb and the vehicle vaulted about 19 feet, landing in a yard in the 1400 block of Paper Mill, driving off the lawn and back onto southbound Cheltenham, where it came to an uncontrolled rest, police said. Sidibeh was found semi-conscious behind the wheel with an open bottle of beer next to him and he was transported by Springfield Ambulance to Chestnut Hill Hospital for treatment and a blood test, the results being a 0.29 BAC, police said.

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Springfield police reports: Week of Feb. 8

Philadelphia, PA (PRWEB) February 09, 2015

Giroud Tree and Lawn has been awarded the prestigious and difficult-to-attain Angie's List Super Service Award for 2014. Based on 97 recent reviews in the categories of Tree Service, Lawn Fertilization & Treatment and Lawn and Yard Work, Angie's List members gave Giroud an A grade, the highest possible score.

Giroud Tree and Lawn is the only tree service and lawn treatment service company in the Philadelphia region to win the Super Service Award every year since the Award was established locally in 2005, notes Lou Giroud, Giroud Tree and Lawn President and ISA Certified Arborist. Friendly staff answering the phone, on-time arrival, expert tree service and lawn treatment service programs by ISA Certified Arborists and meticulous cleanup are just a few of the ways we ensure that customers love doing business with us, he added.

Only about 5 percent of the Tree and Lawn companies in the Philadelphia region have performed so consistently well enough to earn our Super Service Award, said Angies List Founder, Angie Hicks. Its a really high standard.

Angies List Super Service Award 2014 winners have met strict eligibility requirements, which include an A rating in overall grade, recent grade, and review period grade; the company must be in good standing with Angies List, pass a background check and abide by Angies List operational guidelines.

Service company ratings are updated daily on Angies List. Companies are graded on an A through F scale in areas ranging from price to professionalism to punctuality. Members can find the 2014 Super Service Certification logo next to company names in search results on AngiesList.com.

About Giroud Tree and Lawn Giroud Tree and Lawn specializes in tree service, tree removal and lawn care programs that make customers love doing business with the company since 1974. Serving Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia Counties, the company offers professional tree and lawn evaluation, tree pruning, tree removal, insect and disease control, fertilizing, stump removal and traditional and 100% organic lawn programs to keep lawns healthy and green . Giroud Arborists are certified by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) and have the knowledge and experience required to properly diagnose, treat and maintain trees and lawn health. The company is Accredited by the Better Business Bureau and has been awarded the Angie's List Super Service Award every year since 2005. The Giroud Treework for Charity program donates free tree care services to parks, historical sites and other non-profit organizations located in the Companys service area. For more information, visit the company website at http://www.giroudtree.com or call 215-682-7704.

About Angies List Angie's List helps facilitate happy transactions between nearly 3 million consumers nationwide and its collection of highly-rated service providers in 720 categories of service, ranging from home improvement to health care. Built on a foundation of authentic reviews of local service, Angie's List connects consumers directly to its online marketplace of services from member-reviewed providers, and offers unique tools and support designed to improve the local service experience for both consumers and service professionals.

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Giroud Tree and Lawn Earns Angies List Super Service Award for the Tenth Year in a Row for Tree Service and Lawn ...

News Sports Top Story Oredockers edge B/W

Ashland hosted the Bayfield/Washburn wrestling team Friday night in a dual meet. At the end of the night, Ashland came out on top of the overa

Bowman-Pieterek, Catherine Jeanne, Ashland, Disorderly Conduct Domestic Abuse incident Amended from Disorderly Conduct, No Contest, Probatio

CONCORDIA Concordia University Wisconsin officials have released the Fall Honors List for the 2014-2015 academic year, and two area students

After nearly 10 months of work involving more than a 150 workers and oversight personnel, the excavation and thermal treatment of impacted soils at the Ashland Lakefront Project is nearly complete.

Why don't we learn from our past behavior that proved to be disastrous? Why are we bent on self-destruction? I was talking with a friend about the proposed hog CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operation) in Eileen Township. This operation is at the headwaters of several watersheds which enter Chequamegon Bay and on into Lake Superior. He pointed out that the Ashland Press had two articles on the same page, one about the Superfund site (cleanup of toxic waste from a past era), and the other, an article on the CAFO hog operation. We are in the middle of trying to clean up one toxic mess and entertaining the idea of creating another.

Members of the Ashland Lakefront Superfund Cleanup Advisory Committee were told Wednesday that the 2014 portion of the Phase One work will be completed in the near future, and that proposals for Phase Two work will be made by Xcel Energy by the end of the month. According to Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Northern Region Remediation and Redevelopment Program Supervisor John Robinson, the cleanup is continuing on schedule through the winter, and that the excavation of the contaminated shore soils was now about 90 percent complete. Backfilling of the treated soils was also about 70 percent complete.

In so many ways, 2014 left an indelible mark on the Chequamegon Bay region.

Intense storms this fall breached a barge connection system in the Ashland, Wis. harbor, designed to protect the Northern States Power Superfund site. Soil and groundwater at the site are contaminated with tar, oil, metals and other chemical pollutants. The damage postponed cleanup efforts until next spring, providing more time and opportunity for the substances to spread. Research funded by Wisconsin Sea Grant could help prevent such weather-related damage and delays in the future.

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February 6, 2015

MAZAR-E-SHARIF, Afghanistan - Men, women and children sit listlessly on the unkempt lawn of a hospital for drug addicts in this northern Afghan city. Inside, the waiting area is packed with women clad in light blue burqas, each with three or four kids in tow.

Ana Gul, 35, an opium user for eight years, says she came here after failing to kick her habit because opium cures her head and body aches. "No other medicine works effectively on me now," she said. Her 3-year-old daughter is also addicted because Gul smoked opium while pregnant.

Gul and her daughter are among an alarming and rapidly growing number of opium addicts in a country that is the world's main supplier of heroin.

And the problem is only getting worse as American combat troops withdraw amid evidence that U.S. counter-narcotics programs here have failed despite $7 billion in taxpayer funds spent to tackle the source of the problem: poppy fields.

The U.S. government has paid the poppy farmers to switch to legitimate crops, such as wheat, yet poppy cultivation has proven too lucrative to slow.

In a report last year, the Pentagon said Taliban and other insurgent groups are expanding their use of illicit drug trade to fund their operations because the U.S. withdrawal has hurt Afghan government counter-narcotic activities, which had relied on U.S. air support and other assistance.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates the export value of opium trade at about $4 billion, "with a quarter of that being earned by opium farmers and the rest going to district officials, insurgents, warlords and drug traffickers."

In 2014, opium cultivation rose to record levels: more than 553,000 acres, up 7% from the year before, according to the UNODC's recently released Afghanistan Opium Survey 2014. That is turned into some 380 tons of heroin and morphine annually, 85% of the global supply, according to U.N. figures.

The domestic toll is heavy. The number of Afghans addicted to opium and other drugs has soared 60% since 2009 to as many as 1.6 million, or 5% of the population, the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction reports.

Most Afghans view opium as a medicine that treats everything from a headache to cancer. Often, it's the only palliative available in the rugged country's remote regions.

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Afghanistan's opium addiction hits new high

Sharplawns Turf Care, LLC - Applying a treatment with our Z-Spray
We specialize in lawn care applications using a combination of granular and liquid products to keep your lawn looking its best all year round. We have over 1...

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Sharplawns Turf Care, LLC - Applying a treatment with our Z-Spray - Video

Dittmer, Mo.

A quiet street and a quaint three-bedroom home drew Mike Stenzhorn and his family to Dittmer 15 years ago. He and his two children loved the neighborhood in the small community 40 miles southwest of St. Louis.

They didn't put much thought to the Roman Catholic facility across the street -- a small complex of buildings called the Vianney Renewal Center.

Stenzhorn knew the center had something to do with helping struggling priests. In any case, it seemed harmless, and the neighborhood was nice.

"If you had to live somewhere in the Midwest, and you wanted quiet, this is the place," Stenzhorn, 62, said.

But in the years that would follow, the full truth about the Vianney Renewal Center would come to light.

The facility, operated by a Roman Catholic order called the Servants of the Paraclete, cares for religious men who suffer from a variety of illnesses, including alcoholism and depression. The center also treats sexually abusive priests.

The Servants of the Paraclete would not specify how many such priests live at the center today. The Missouri State Highway Patrol's sex offender registry lists five who are convicted and who stay at the complex under court order. Other priests are sent to the center by various dioceses from around the country.

"They're putting guys there when they don't know what else to do with them," said Barbara Dorris of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests.

'It's like they were hiding something'

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Residents near center for troubled priests worry about property values

More on the scarifying process
A short video explaining the process of scarification, and it #39;s benefits. Visit us at http://lawnright.co.uk for further details. A lawn is for life, not jus...

By: LawnRight Lawn Treatment Service

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More on the scarifying process - Video

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