I normally write articles offering tips on how to eliminate garden slugs and snails, but in this case the slug was far away from the garden and I was somewhat mesmerized by the size, beauty, and movement that this creature displayed as it traveled merrily along in its own little world without the slightest clue that it was being watched.

I received the following question this week from Richard inquiring into ways to control and eliminate smut on his sweet corn: “About half of my sweet corn patch is heavily infected with smut. I have been reading about solarizing to kill weeds. Would it work against smut?”

Okay Chuckie, you’ve enjoyed a good run for a groundhog, but the gig is up and this little chat is your not so fond farewell. We’ve spent the past few weeks getting to know each other quite well, but I have to be honest and let you know that you aren’t going to be missed, not for a second.

One thing that has always been a constant for me is that if I plant a single eggplant, flea beetles are guaranteed to make an appearance. For some reason these difficult to control pests are especially fond of eggplants and if left unattended will quickly chew hundreds of holes through the plant’s leaves.

A previous entry on controlling slugs and snails in the garden focused on trapping these destructive pests, today I wanted to share a few other methods for eliminating slugs and snails from the garden.

It’s been a rather frustrating year in the vegetable garden, thanks to a group of groundhogs that seem to have taken over the area. I knew woodchucks were very destructive and that a single animal could wipe out entire beds of healthy vegetable plants and flowers, but in the past I’ve never had this much trouble controlling groundhogs.

I’ve received several questions from gardeners expressing concern over their home grown tomatoes that develop sunken brown spots or black rot on their bottoms which totally ruins the fruit. The probable cause is a disease called Blossom End Rot which affects tomatoes, peppers, squash, and watermelons.

While looking around the garden recently, I was surprised by the many uses that I’ve found for an ordinary roll of vinyl coated garden fencing material. For me it’s the gardening equivalent of a handy man’s roll of all-purpose duct tape.