Timely Tips Many thanks to a listener of The Garden Show on CFRB. After discussing pest control on tomato crops, I received on e-mail with a helpful tip. Plant dill between tomato plants. Sow dill seeds among your tomato plants to deter/repel tomato caterpillars. A simple and effective solution.

The Groundskeeper at markcullen.com received an e-mail reminder of the 'dangers' of growing Trumpet Vine, Campsis radicans. This vine produces beautiful blooms which attract hummingbirds, wasps and bees to the garden. It transplants easily and is very hardy. The problem with the beautiful plant is that, in ideal conditions, it can be extremely invasive. A Trumpet Vine grown in full sun with fertile soil will take over an area very quickly if not contained. If you decide to try Trumpet Vine in your yard choose a location which is bordered by driveway, sidewalk or brick pathways. This will help to control the spread of the plant. Deadhead the vine and prune it back each spring and fall to control its size. I have found that Trumpet Vine causes a rash if I do not wear my gardening gloves. Handle with care.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation This year I will be writing a monthly column for The Heart & Stroke Foundation's website. These articles can be found on their 'Features' page on the 1st of each month. Sign up for the Heart and Stroke monthly newsletter and learn how to live a heart-friendly life!

Gardening for Health "Growing your own vegetables is good for your body– not only because they’re full of heart-healthy nutrients, but they also provide a way to feed your soul. Here’s why.

Much has been said about the benefits of gardening for your health. In my more than 25 years of gardening, I have witnessed the creation of a whole new industry called horticultural therapy. People in this field, who are trained professionals, harness gardening activities into something that goes way beyond a hobby. They bring people and gardening together in an effort to help people deal with health issues – mind, body and spirit.

I picture the Earth acting like a sponge for our problems. You go out, dig a hole, drop a plant in it and firm the soil around it and move on. What you leave behind is a tiny part of the stuff that was weighing heavily on you before you went out there. Well, that’s how I see it anyway.

But it’s more than that...."

Read the entire article, starting July 1st, at www.heartandstroke.ca.

(Reprinted with permission of the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Want to receive heart-healthy recipes, nutrition and physical activity tips to your inbox every month? Then subscribe to Healthline, the Heart and Stroke Foundation's free monthly e-newsletter today.)

For more great garden stories, pick up a copy of my most recent book A Sandbox of a Different Kind, Personal Reflections on the Canadian Gardening Experience. By Mark Cullen.

In central Canada it was a wet month in June. More than twice the rainfall of last year and way over the annual average for the month. However, that did not spoil things for me – hope the same for you.

Truth is, I am spending much less time setting up sprinklers and hoses and much more time doing what I enjoy the most of all – planting. At the beginning of July it may surprise you that you can still sow zucchinis, cucumbers, snap beans and peas and still expect a fine crop by the end of the season. That goes pretty much for the whole country.

I was impressed the other day, to see just how aggressively my wife Mary was using up the beautiful green leaf lettuce in our veggie garden. Picked at it’s prime, her timing was right no! I commended her when she responded, “Leaf lettuce? I haven’t picked any leaf lettuce.” Seems that our family of 21 chickens have been chowing down while I have had my back turned – probably cleaning out the hen house. What fooled me was the neat and tidy plucking of the crop …. And they stopped dead at the red leaf lettuce and mowed the green stuff down to the ground.

Our chickens do not do anything neatly. They scratch, peck and poop on everything. But then, they are chickens. Not the brightest things in the world if the size of their head means anything. Nice brown eggs though.

I have been thinking lately about all of the sayings that we use in popular language for which we can thank the lowly chicken:

"pecking order" – there is one

“chicken s___” – they have no conscience when relieving themselves with regards to when, where or who steps in it. It is petty, pretty much useless stuff [other than as compost starter]. Like the saying goes.

"chicken feed" – at the price of the stuff, ‘Chicken feed’ is taking on new meaning. Now when someone says that something or other is ‘just chicken feed’ I think ‘expensive’. why did the chicken cross the road? – because they are pretty stupid.

"tastes like chicken" – must taste good to them, to answer my earlier question – otherwise, why would they keep pecking each other?

‘chicken’ - They are. Chicken, that is. Walk up to them, drive the lawn mower near them, when thunder booms and lightning strikes – they run to their roost and huddle together. Come to think of it, our dog Rosie is part chicken.

In July the garden reaches its ‘first stage of annual maturity’. The perennials that looked so good in June are out of bloom, for the most part. Peonies and roses that have finished blooming should be deadheaded – the spent flower removed. No need to take a long part of the stem, just the finished blossom.

We ‘deadhead’ perennials and some flowering shrubs like lilacs, to channel the energy of the plant into foliage and stem production. The leaves are the food factory of a plant. They convert the energy of the sun into sugar that is stored in the roots of the plant in fall and winter. This store-room of energy provides all of the potential to make for great blossoms next year. In case you were wondering.

Unless you used ‘Once and Done’ or ‘Feed and Forget’ fertilizers [which last the whole season with one application] on your shrubs, roses and perennials, now is a good time to give them another shot. I use a lot of ‘blood and bone meal’ by Green Earth: the organic gardeners approach. You can choose your own brand – CIL and SoGreen are both reliable brands.

We take Silver!

I am pleased to report that the Toronto Star did a ‘consumer test’ of the new Mark’s Choice push/reel type lawn mower and it came in second out of 6 tested. The winner was the new Gardena model, which is narrower, lighter and more expensive [but a great machine, no kidding!] So there you go – the Mark’s Choice cut the widest swath of grass at 20 inches and cuts the highest of any lawn mower that I have seen on the market –up to 2 ½ inches.

We [garden communicators] keep saying that you should cut your lawn higher than we have in the past – the higher the grass blades the deeper the roots. Keep this in mind what ever you use to cut your lawn. My power mower is set at 3 inches.

Birds. Have you noticed the abundance of baby birds lately? I have – I am filling my 11 feeders every second day [vs. once a week or so during the winter] and reading the paper is becoming a test of my skills to concentrate as the little darlings keep hitting the windows. Fortunately there have been very few casualties to report. Much worse than the window-wipe-outs are the dead baby chipmunks, mice and frogs that I harvest from our swimming pool skimmer most mornings. In our nuptial job allocations, this one belongs to me.

Real Food = Farmers markets. This month in the markcullen.com newsletter we are featuring links to farmers markets. After reading Micheal Pollins’ best seller ‘In Defense of Real Food’ I thought that you might like to feed yourself with locally sourced produce this summer. We really do live in a land of plenty – and lets face it – is there really a raspberry more tasty than the ones that we grow ourselves? Or our local farmer grows for us? Beats the red coloured globs that they harvest like wood somewhere in parts way south of where you live in middle of winter.

Be sure to look for your free copy of Harvest Ontario [if you live in Ontario] at Home Hardware. 120 pages of pick your own veggie farms, farmers markets and places to stay.

It is July – remember to swing in the hammock. You are a gardener –this is your time.

Yours,

Mark

Merchant of Beauty

My Yahoo! Blog Don't miss my weekly blog on Yahoo! The goal of my blog is twofold: to provide you with timely advice that will help you to succeed in your garden and to share my gardening experience with you.

We will take this journey together — knowing that the more that we learn about gardening in Canada, the more we realize how little we know. There is no end to this. Which is the beauty of it really.

Farmers Markets Across Canada

British Columbia. www.bcfarmersmarket.org

Alberta. www.albertamarkets.com

Saskatchewan. www.saskfarmersmarket.com

Manitoba. www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/food/upick/markets.html

Ontario. www.farmersmarketsontario.com

Quebec. www.pommesenfete.com/membres/membres.htm

New Brunswick. www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca

Nova Scotia. www.nsfarmersmarkets.ca

Prince Edward Island. www.gov.pe.ca/af

Newfoundland. www.homemakers.com/Life&Times/travel



Gardening Life's Summer Forum Get ready for summer! Join the Gardening Life on-line forum, July 16th, to get answers to your gardening questions.

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MARBLE MOUNTAIN

Cape Breton is a bonny isle with villages so quaint

And fishing pools and picnic spots galore,

But there's a place the dearest

And to my heart the nearest,

It's Marble Mountain on the Lakes Bras d'Or.

The mountain there slopes gently till it meets the sandy beach,

And the sea birds swiftly skim the waters o'er,

The days are long and lazy

And the evenings warm and hazy

In Marble Mountain on the Lakes Bras d'Or.

The people there are friendly and as Scottish as the kilt,

And they meet the stranger with an open door;

The common age is eighty

And the favourite name is Katy -

In Marble Mountain on the Lakes Bras d'Or.

The pleasures there are many, you may bike, or ride, or swim,

Or visit with the folks, or roam the shore;

The tea is always ready

And it's good and strong and heady,

In Marble Mountain on the Lakes Bras d'Or.

So when this term is ended and provincial tests are past,

And the happy, carefree (?) days of school are o'er,

You'll find me there square dancing

(I may even try romancing!)

In Marble Mountain on the Lakes Bras d'Or.

  JULIET CARSON, XII-2

    From The Brown and Gold Annual (MGBHS) 1953

Morrison Glace Bay High, Glace Bay, Nova Scotia Note: This poem that Juliet White wrote when she was in high school was forwarded to me by Frances Oram. A lady at the Sydney Farmer's Market who went to school with Juliet copied it from a yearbook and gave it to Frances. I will print a copy to give to Russell as he doesn't frequent email. I hope you enjoy the sentiment. - Maggie



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The United Church of Canada

Schedule of  Services

All services – 10:30am unless otherwise noted

July    6    Orangedale- Food Bank Sunday

13    St. Matthew’s

         20    Forbes

         27    Malagawatch Anniversary Service – 3pm

  Aug.   3    Orangedale – Food Bank Sunday

10        St. Matthew’s

17        St. Matthew’s Anniversary Service – 2:30pm

24        Forbes

31        Orangedale

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Drugmakers Offer Aid To People 'on the Edge' - Some Patients Who Lack Insurance Find Ways To Receive Pricey Pharmaceuticals for Free

By Justin Moyer Special to The Washington Post Tuesday, July 1, 2008; HE03

A diabetic with a history of thyroid cancer who is also struggling with a neurological disorder and gastric reflux disease, Patricia Hewitt is well aware that she's not a prime candidate for health-care coverage.

"It's a miracle that I'm upright," Hewitt says, recounting the list of prescription medications she depends on daily. "I'm really dancing on the edge."

After surviving a diabetic coma in 2001 and losing her health insurance in 2004, Hewitt, a freelance writer based in Fort Myers, Fla., found herself financially devastated. In the face of mounting prescription costs, she turned to a little-discussed option in the ongoing debate about providing health care to the un- and underinsured: prescription assistance programs (PAPs).

"I have found enough programs I financially qualify for to cover $8,500 of my $10,000 annual prescription bill," Hewitt says. "That's a lot of dollars."

Offered by major pharmaceutical companies and publicized through Web-based information clearinghouses and TV ads, PAPs have blossomed where good corporate citizenship meets good public relations. The result: Big Pharma gives free medication to patients with low incomes, quietly transforming the lives of those clued into PAPs' existence by knowledgeable physicians and service providers or through their own Internet research.

"There's an awful lot of drugs out there on PAPs," says Richard Sagall. The founder of Needymeds.com, a free, not-for-profit Web resource that connects patients to programs for 3,500-plus medications, Sagall was a physician with a family practitice in Bangor, Maine, and an interest in Web design when he heard about PAPs from a medical social worker.

"I thought it would be a good idea to get the information she had up on the Web and see what happened," he says. The response was staggering: From its humble beginnings as a thought experiment in 1997, Needymeds.com now logs 10,000 unique visitors on a typical weekday. Turns out that there are not only plenty of people who need free medication -- drug companies are lining up to give it away.

"All the major products we offer are available" through these programs, says Karissa Laur, director of patient assistance programs for pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca. The drugmaker's first PAP, initiated in 1978, provided access to the breast cancer medicine Nolvadex. In the three decades since, the company has sponsored a number of need-based programs, including one targeted at uninsured individuals with annual incomes below $30,000. Approved patients enroll for a year at a time and contact AstraZeneca every three months for refills. "It works just like a mail-order pharmacy," Laur says.

"Pfizer has an overall belief that all Americans should have access to medicines," says Jennifer S. Alltoft, the drugmaker's vice president of marketing. In 2007, the company helped 1.1 million patients access 7.7 million prescriptions -- $800 million worth of medication at wholesale prices -- through Pfizer Helpful Answers, an umbrella of assistance programs for the impoverished and uninsured. "[The PAP] is part of our corporate culture," Alltoft says.

But as the cost of prescription drugs rises at twice the rate of inflation, companies may need more than good corporate citizenship to justify an $800 million giveaway. Pfizer reported an 18 percent drop in net income in April, and AstraZeneca's profits dipped 3 percent in the same quarter. PAP participants like Patricia Hewitt aren't guinea pigs -- neither company tracks patient outcomes. If times are hard and political momentum for national health care is building, why is the pharmaceutical industry playing Florence Nightingale?

"These programs are run separate from the business side," Laur says. "There's no direct benefit to AstraZeneca except our commitment in getting people access to medicines."

"We found that the best way to reach the uninsured are through community and grass-roots efforts," says Gary Peltier, the director of Pfizer Helpful Answers. As part of "Cover the Uninsured Week" at the end of April, he traveled to six U.S. cities to meet with patients and service providers. "We are trying to spread the word [about PAPs] to the uninsured and underinsured themselves."

"I have heard all sorts of suggestions about companies' motivations from all sorts of different people," Sagall says. "Companies tell you that they want to be good corporate citizens, [but there's] also a marketing portion of what they do." Needymeds itself is funded by donations, including some from drug companies, and "works with the Patient Assistance Programs of several pharmaceutical distributors." But the sheer volume of information on the site and the fact that competing companies are listed makes it hard to point to a profit motive.

"We do not use financial consideration for a basis for who gets listed," Sagall says. "We have to raise money -- we don't turn it down -- but it doesn't influence what we do." Whatever motivates companies to start PAPs, the people who cannot afford prescriptions can't afford to ask. Established in 1994 to distribute donated medication to needy patients, the Arlington Free Clinic soon began connecting clients to PAPs. But because each PAP requires a separate application for each patient, service providers found themselves drowning in paperwork. When a clinic volunteer who also worked at AstraZeneca suggested that the company provide free medication in bulk, the drugmaker certified the clinic as a "disproportionate share hospital" -- that is, a health-care facility that disproportionately serves under-insured people with low incomes. The result? More medication, less bureaucracy.

"That was terrific," says Kate Wilson, director of clinical services at the Free Clinic. "[AstraZeneca] said, 'We realize that you have eligibility criteria for all of your patients. If you can verify that patients [are eligible for services at] your clinic, we will give you medications as you use them.' "

The Free Clinic is a PAP success story, but how the clinic learned of the program -- from a helpful volunteer -- highlights the communication gap between those who offer and those who need free medication. Despite the existence of Web sites such as Needymeds.com and publicity campaigns by Big Pharma, PAPs fly under the radar of many who may qualify.

Unless a proactive doctor steps forward with information, patients continue to spend money at the pharmacy that could be spent on food or gas. Wilson is a good example. She used a PAP to get free medication for her ailing mother. "It was because I worked here that I realized one of the meds she was on was available through a PAP," Wilson says. "It's not an easy process for an individual."

"All programs require an application, income documentation and doctor involvement to some degree," Sagall says. "It's not quite as simple as ideally it would be." Although not easy for the uninitiated to navigate, PAPs show how America's uninsured might soldier on without universal health insurance. It certainly seems that Patricia Hewitt, weighed down by her monthly prescription laundry list, would favor a greater role for government in health care. Surprisingly, she's less than enthusiastic. "The government couldn't possibly cover what I am already getting," Hewitt says. "I am much better off with Needymeds and a considerate doctor."

Comments:health@washpost.com.

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JULY 2008 BULLETIN

THE BRIGHTS: ILLUMINATING AND ELEVATING THE NATURALISTIC WORLDVIEW (A bright is a person who has a naturalistic worldview, free of supernatural and mystical elements.)

ARTISTIC ILLUMINATIONS Posted on the website are some examples of "body art," "car art," and poetry inspired by the Brights movement. To see a unique expression of individuality, check out the latest contribution posted! It is a dramatic item of art by Sylvain. Be sure to read her accompanying interpretation, too. Both are at: http://www.the-brights.net/people/expressions.html

AN OPEN DOOR AT BRIGHTS CENTRAL If you are near or planning to pass through Sacramento, California, please visit the physical hub of The Brights' Net. Brights receive a special welcome! Just email the-brights@the-brights.net to arrange a visit. As it happens, Brights Central has already had its first international caller. The humanitarian and social reformer, Dr. G. Vijayam, stopped in briefly on June 20, the date of the "northern solstice."

While in Sacramento for four days, he was being hosted by local freethinkers. Dr. V was traveling in the U.S. following his participation at the World Humanist Congress in Washington, DC earlier in the month. Dr. Vijayam is Executive Director of the notable Atheist Centre in Andhra Pradesh, India. A brief overview of the humanitarian and social reform work of Atheist Centre is at: http://atheistcentre.in/History.html

ONE LIGHTHEARTED & OUTSPOKEN BRIGHT PANS THE WEBSITE Philip (Kansas, US): "Friends, you will be happy to hear that The Benevolent Society for the Propagation of Assorted Tomfoolery and Other Sorts of Peculiar and Otherwise Absurd and Baffling Nonsense is a juggling club mostly composed of outspoken Brights, and indeed, we are spreading the good news. However, it is my duty as President to report that we have been growing concerned with the severe lack of practical absurdity and obfuscation on this official website. In other words, it lacks humor. Also, the Bright movement should fervently support mechanical lawn mowers. Thank you."

Co-Director Paul responded to Philip's indictment with a similar thrust: "I'm not sure mechanical lawnmowers are legal in California (we are in Sacramento)."

The Reality: Although individuals within the Brights constituency may support or not support lawnmowers of any variety whatsoever, the Brights movement collectively can fervently support only its stated aims and principles.

For a reminder of the three aims, visit the home page at: http://www.the-brights.net.

For the nine principles, go to: http://www.the-brights.net/vision/principles.html

GERMAN BRIGHTS VOCAL AND ACTIVEBrights Central received quite a set of responses from Germany regarding an item in the May Bulletin that concerned the German website's overall approach. There was a range of positive and negative statements, some calling the site "off track" and others saying it's "right on!" We conclude that the site seemingly represents its general constituency and European situation. The best response of all we received was one activist's call for greater cross-communication with The Brights' Network, and that call will be heeded (not just with activists in Germany, either).

ABOUT THOSE RELIGIOUS AMERICANSThe Brights movement began with a distinctly American focus, but quickly evolved. BC strives to maintain a global outlook, and we definitely appreciate assistance from the activist non-US Brights who aid that endeavor. Nevertheless, we do not hesitate to proceed with a US-centered item when it bears strongly on the overall movement, so here goes!

The Pew Forum for Religion in Public Life has just released its "U.S. Religious Landscape Survey." Findings corroborate the US's "high religiosity" ranking among the democratic nations of the developed world. To browse the well-presented data, go to: http://religions.pewforum.org

An interesting aspect of the Pew survey centers on respondents who are not affiliated with a religion. The survey puts these "unaffiliated" at 16.1 % of Americans. This 16.1% category is further apportioned into segments. After the atheists (1.6%) and agnostics (2.4%) are counted, those in the remaining segment are simply labeled as "nothing in particular" (12.1%).

In 2001, the American Religious Identification Survey had a "no religion" category (14.1% of adult U.S. citizens). Many atheists and some atheist organization began to tout the entirety of that category as "nonbelievers." Such a claim is not substantiated by either the ARIS or Pew surveys. The ARIS reported a "0.9%" "atheist + agnostic" sum, with the remainder unspecified. The Pew does delve much more deeply into the "unaffiliated" than the ARIS did with its "no religion" category.



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Things Get Wild in Western Sky as Mars, Saturn, Regulus Party

By Blaine P. Friedlander Jr. Special to The Washington Post Sunday, June 29, 2008; C04

For true cosmic excitement, start with the wild, wild west.

The wild part starts Tuesday, when Mars, Saturn and the star Regulus-- part of the constellation Leo-- loiter together, with Mars and Regulus tightly grouped. On subsequent nights, sky gazers will observe that Mars moves toward Saturn. A new moon joins the trio on the evenings of July 5 and 6.

The following week, look west. Saturn (zero magnitude, bright enough to see in urban skies) and Mars conjunct July 10 above the western horizon. You can spot them after dusk. The ringed planet is the brighter of the two, and Mars (first magnitude) has the rusty, red tint.

Within a few days, the planets go their separate ways.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the sky, Jupiter rises in the southeast just before 10 p.m. early in the month. It reaches opposition -- meaning it is opposite the sun -- July 9, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. Thus, it rises in the east when the sun sets, and it sets in the west when the sun rises. It is visible all night and it is quite brilliant to view, as it is negative second magnitude.

By the middle of July, spy this gaseous giant planet in the late twilight (9 p.m.) in the southeast. On the evening of July 16, it rises concurrently with the nearly full moon. In fact, on July 18, the full moon rises after Jupiter.

Venus has been on vacation, hiding and basking in the sun's glow. It begins to emerge at dusk very late in July. If you observe the western horizon during the last week of the month, Venus joins Mars and Saturn in a short-lived planet parade. For the next few months, it appears to hug our horizon, and in the fall it climbs higher for all of us to observe and enjoy.

The morning sky features a hard-to-find Mercury-- fleet as ever -- skimming the eastern horizon. You'll need a clean view of that horizon to find it, and considering the Washington area's buildings and trees, Mercury will be hard to see. Nevertheless, if you look, find it in the east-northeast just before sunrise during the first half of July. Each morning, the rising sun quickly washes it away.

Events · Tuesday-- Chris Blades of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore discusses "Servicing Mission 4 and the Final Frontiers of Hubble," an update on the space shuttle Atlantis's mission to tune up the Hubble Space Telescope in October. 8 p.m. at the Space Telescope Science Institute auditorium, Johns Hopkins University campus. 410-338-4700.

· Wednesday-- Jim Zimbelman of the National Air and Space Museum presents "Asteroid Attack! The Tunguska Event 100 Years Later," a short talk about an explosion over the Siberian Tunguska area in Russia on June 30, 1908. Noon. Milestones of Flight Gallery, National Air and Space Museum. http://www.nasm.si.edu. · July 5-- Astronomer Kevin Rauch addresses perspectives in "Perception, Reality and Science: Do We Know Anything?" at the open house, University of Maryland observatory, College Park. See the night sky afterward, weather permitting. 9 p.m. 301-405-6555; http://www.astro.umd.edu/openhouse.

· July 12-- Mars and Saturn tango in the western sky during Exploring the Sky at Rock Creek Park, hosted by the National Park Service and the National Capital Astronomers. Meet near the Nature Center in the field south of Military and Glover roads NW. 9 p.m. 202-895-6070.

· July 18-- Mars Day! See a real Martian meteorite, view the planet's surface in 3-D, and find out the planet's latest research news. National Air and Space Museum. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. http://www.nasm.si.edu.

· July 26-- Enjoy the night heavens away from light-polluting urban and suburban areas as Sean O'Brien of the National Air and Space Museum leads a star party at Sky Meadows State Park, near Paris, Va. 8:30 to 11 p.m. Parking: $4. Arrive before dark. 540-592-3556; http://www.nasm.si.edu/events/skywatching.

· July 20-- Astronomer Nancy Grace Roman discusses "The Birth and Childhood of the Hubble," at the open house, University of Maryland observatory, College Park. Sky viewing afterward, weather permitting. 9 p.m. 301-405-6555; http://www.astro.umd.edu/openhouse.

Blaine Friedlander can be reached atPostSkyWatch@aol.com.

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I have asked and been told that a schedule for the churches will be provided to me to post here. Soon, soon one will show up on my doorstep and then I will post it here for the benefit of the churches and churchgoers. It is coming ... I think ...

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I'm not sure how I got there but this site is interesting reading. http://www.homegrownevolution.com./

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