Garden Tools

Holiday in bloom In case the holiday spirit is still with you, consider the Longwood Gardens' Christmas celebration, continuing through Sunday. Near Kennett Square, Pa., Longwood Gardens has an impressive fountain show, in which the fountains "dance" to music every half-hour, beginning at 11 each morning (weather permitting). From 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., the fountains offer a continuous show. There are poinsettia, tree and other flower displays on view in a heated conservatory. The gardens remain bright even after dark with 400,000 lights and an icicle and snowflake spectacle.

For many of us, Thanksgiving weekend is the official kickoff for holiday decorating. Following the national meal, we start stringing lights, flinging tinsel around, and larding the yard with embellishments that range from elegant and traditional to religious or with gazillion-watt light shows. For some, decorating the yard is prescribed - a wreath and the same electric reindeer each year. But for others, it's a chance to try something new. "Find where your passion lies," suggests Karen Babcock, associate director of Ladew Topiary Gardens in Monkton.

Police Blotter is a sampling of crimes from police reports in Baltimore City and Baltimore County. Baltimore City Southern District Burglary: A microwave oven, dishwasher, sink, faucets and a toilet - all valued at $1,300 - were stolen Monday from a house under renovation in the 100 block of E. Cross St. Southeastern District Burglary: Video games and accessories, and several pieces of jewelry - all valued at nearly $1,600 - were stolen Monday from...

I just got my soil test results back from the University of Maryland, and it seems I need to apply lime to my lawn. Should I wait until spring?Fall is the season for lime applications, so time is running out. An application now gives the lime time before the growing season to be carried by rainfall and gravity down to the root zone of your turf grass. It usually takes several months for the lime to raise the soil pH, so the sooner you get it down the better.I have a number of rose bushes that I never touch.

LONDON -- Lord Hanson, who as chairman of Hanson PLC has built a reputation as one of the business world's great wheeler-dealers, said yesterday that he would spin off 34 of the conglomerate's smaller U.S. subsidiaries into a new, debt-laden company.The plan raised questions about whether Lord Hanson was trying to shed the company's underperformers and their debt. But Hanson executives insisted that the companies to be spun off include many that are growing strongly and could thrive under the added managerial attention and investment that the new structure could provide.

Mary K. Walker, who owned and operated several Harford County general stores that were popular for more than 40 years with townspeople, farmers and sportsmen, died of heart failure Wednesday at a Bel Air nursing home. She was 81.A lifelong resident of Harford County, the former Mary Keithley worked as a nurse during the early 1930s until marrying Kenneth A. Walker in 1936. The couple opened their first store that year in Poplar Grove in the northern part of the county."They had a Mobil gas pump out front, sold groceries, and even had a barber chair in the back where Mr. Walker cut hair," said Jean Walker of Linthicum, her daughter-in-law.

BALTIMORE CITY* TRESPASSING/ARREST: Central District -- A 41-year-old man with no fixed address was charged with trespassing and walking on the highway after an officer chased him on foot from the 2400 block of Callow Ave. to the west side of the Jones Falls Expressway near the North Avenue exit yesterday afternoon. Despite an officer's attempt to hold onto the man's 180-pound body, the man jumped 24 feet down to the expressway and ran across the traffic lanes before he was arrested on North Avenue, police said.

Prepare for the British Invasion. This one, however, will be of the floral, not musical, variety. The nearly 200-year-old Philadelphia Flower Show runs March 2-10 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. This year's theme is "Brilliant!" with exhibits focusing on the landscapes, culture and beauty of Great Britain. The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society , which sponsors the event, has teamed up with Britain's Royal Horticultural Society to bring British designers, experts and presentations to the show, including Mark Lane, the head gardener for Buckingham Palace.

I have two flowering dogwoods that looked droopy and peaked this summer. The leaves had a white powder on them. Should I be worried? Is the problem wet weather?The problem is a fungal disease called powdery mildew, which is more widespread during wet growing seasons. This is not a devastating disease, like dogwood anthracnose, but should be controlled when symptoms are severe. If symptoms reappear next year, spray foliage thoroughly with a horticultural oil that is registered for use against powdery mildew.

Digging: Those who work regularly in the yard understand how important it is to have just the right shovel, spade or rake. To a gardener, tools are gorgeous. People may think there's nothing special about a shovel, but a gardener's spade is not just a spade. It's a beloved collaborator in the work of turning a yard into a garden. Tools are not often put on display in a garden, but good gardeners admire as well as use them. "The best gardeners need very few tools, but they need good tools," says Jack Allen, whose interest in having the right tools landed him a job as the tool expert at Smith & Hawken, the retail and mail-order gardening specialty company.