Digging Around the Internet

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While perusing all the new items at a horticultural tradeshow this past month, my mind began wandering as I tried to think of the most important items technology has contributed to help make the gardener’s life easier and more enjoyable.

Myriad plants have been found or developed to enhance the garden and decrease required maintenance. Research has discovered that some gardening chemicals are detrimental to the environment, removed them from use and provided others that are safe.

Engineering has progressed to the point where a powerful gas engine is small enough and light enough to power small hand tools, and these power tools now sell for an affordable price.

All these technological offerings are great, and I look forward to even more, but the one item that I have to give the Blue Ribbon to for being the most beneficial to my gardening, bears three little letters: www.

I practically had to be dragged kicking and screaming to the computer before I ever used the Internet. Then I saw the amount of information available to each of us, literally at our fingertips. This source of truly useful information seems endless, especially if you know how to look for that information.

Start Your Search Engines

Your local public research university is the best place to start researching gardening questions on the Internet. Most institutions have research and other fact sheets posted on their Web sites where anyone can view information appropriate for his or her garden. If you live in Kansas, for example, you are better off finding out what annuals grow best in your area from Kansas State University, rather than Mississippi State University.

I have bookmarked my local university’s Web page, which is www.hfrr.ksu.edu/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=583. This site is similar to many other institutions with pages for publications, about common pests and for newsletters talking about timely developments in the garden. Publications that previously required a trip to the extension office are now available electronically here.

Google, Yahoo and Lycos are all in the running when the conversation turns to which search engine is best. But if you are a gardener, the granddaddy of them all is PlantFacts, or PlantFacts.OSU.edu/web/.

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