NEWS
By Ellen Nibali, Special to The Baltimore Sun | May 23, 2012
The leaves on my azaleas are turning white. They look dirty underneath, too. How can I stop this? Your azaleas are infested with lace bugs. These ubiquitous insects insert their mouth parts into leaf undersides and suck out the chlorophyll. Each piercing makes a pale spot, known as stippling, and eventually the entire leaf can turn yellow and fall off. The black dots under the leaves are fecal spots. Lace bugs themselves are hard to see because they have translucent "lacy" wings.
BUSINESS
Lorraine Mirabella | May 22, 2012
Candy retailer The Best of Luck Candy & Gifts has moved to larger quarters at Power Plant in downtown Baltimore, next to Phillips Seafood. The Inner Harbor store, which specializes in bulk and nostalgia candy, gift baskets and custom favors, is double the size of the former location in Harbor East, with entrances on Pratt Street and the Power Plant promenade. Besides candy such as Blow Pops, Pop Rocks and Charleston Chews, the store sells...
BUSINESS
Lorraine Mirabella | May 22, 2012
Candy retailer The Best of Luck Candy & Gifts has moved to larger quarters at Power Plant in downtown Baltimore, next to Phillips Seafood. The Inner Harbor store, which specializes in bulk and nostalgia candy, gift baskets and custom favors, is double the size of the former location in Harbor East, with entrances on Pratt Street and the Power Plant promenade. Besides candy such as Blow Pops, Pop Rocks and Charleston Chews, the store sells...
BUSINESS
By Lorraine Mirabella, The Baltimore Sun | May 21, 2012
The struggling Sparrows Point steel mill could be sold within the next six months, mill owner RG Steel said Monday. "We're not going to be specific at this time," said Bette Kovach, an RG Steel spokeswoman, as she confirmed comments by two company executives that potential buyers were eyeing the Baltimore County plant, as well as others owned by the firm. Speaking last week to the Baltimore chapter of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries, Jerry Nelson, RG Steel's chief commercial officer, said that "people have expressed interest" in acquiring some RG Steel plants and that "I think it's safe to say everything is on the table.
NEWS
By Kevin Rector, The Baltimore Sun | May 17, 2012
Water samples from two treatment plants in Baltimore beat out samples from plants in Washington, D.C., and Delaware last week in an annual taste test, according to the city's Department of Public Works. The "Water Taste Challenge" is held each year at the joint spring meeting of the Chesapeake Water Environmental Association and the Chesapeake Section of the American Water Works Association. This year's meeting was held May 11 at Six Flags America in Bowie. Public works departments from Baltimore, Washington and Delaware competed in the taste competition.
NEWS
By Ellen Nibali, Special to The Baltimore Sun | May 16, 2012
I used to have dozens of monarch butterflies in my garden — now almost none. How can I attract them again? Research showed that the precipitous decline in monarchs a couple of years ago was mainly because of extreme weather, illegal logging in Mexico and herbicide use, which have almost wiped out the food source of monarchs — milkweed. We can't counter the first two causes but we can plant milkweed or ornamentals in the milkweed family such as butterfly weed. Without a food source for monarch caterpillars to eat, there can be no monarchs.