Question of the Day

Please tell me about ashes from a wood-burning fireplace. How much can I use in the garden? Are they good for blueberry bushes and asparagus?Wood ashes are good for the garden because they contain potash and lime. Apply them to the soil in the spring or fall, 4 to 6 pounds per 100 square feet. However, fresh wood ashes will form lye when first applied, so do not use them on plants in active growth. It is best to apply ashes before planting and see that they are thoroughly mixed into the soil. They are good for most plants, especially root crops and fruit trees. Wood ashes should never be used on acid-loving plants like blueberry bushes.

Advice of the Day

By wisdom peace, by peace plenty.

Home Hint of the Day

To clean a sink drain or garbage disposal, pour in 1/2 cup of baking soda and flush with very hot water.

Word of the Day

RainbowRainbows are formed opposite to the sun by the refraction and reflection of the sun’s rays in drops of falling rain. The raindrops are responsible for the colors of rainbows. They break the sunlight up into the full spectrum of colors, each drop acting as a sort of miniature prism. Each color emerges at a slightly different angle on each raindrop. When millions of raindrops gather, the spectrum shows up as distinct bands of color — each with a different length. Red is the longest and violet the shortest band. The arc is most pronounced when the Sun is close to the horizon.

Puzzle of the Day

What sort of face does an auctioneer like best?One that is for-bidding.

Born

• Andrea Palladio(architect)– 1508
• Jonathan Swift(satirist)– 1667
• Mark Twain(writer; pen name, Mark Twain; real name, Samuel Langhorne Clemens)– 1835
• Sir Winston Churchill(British Prime Minister)– 1874
• Lucy Maud Montgomery(author)– 1874
• Donald Ogden Stewart(actor)– 1894
• Clyfford Still(artist)– 1904
• Virginia Mayo(actress)– 1920
• Dick Clark(entertainer)– 1929
• David Mamet(dramatist)– 1947
• Mandy Patinkin(actor & singer)– 1952
• Billy Idol(singer)– 1955
• Bo Jackson(football & baseball player)– 1962
• Clay Aiken(singer)– 1978
• Elisha Cuthbert(actress)– 1982
• Kaley Cuoco(actress)– 1985
• Dylan Cash(actor)– 1994

Died

• Oscar Wilde(writer)– 1900
• Sister Kenny(nurse who developed a method for treating victims of the disease infantile paralysis)– 1952
• Johnny Roventini(radio and TV ad pitchman in the 1930s and 40s)– 1998
• Gertrude Ederle(first woman to swim the English Channel)– 2003
• Pierre Berton(author)– 2004
• Evel Knievel(stunt motorcyclist)– 2007
• Paul Walker(actor)– 2013
• Jim Nabors(actor and singer)– 2017
• George H.W. Bush(41st U.S. president)– 2018

Events

• Anniversary of Mark Twain’s birth– 1835
• The Mason jar developed by John Mason was patented– 1858
• U.S. patent was issued to Johann Waehner of New York City for a necktie fastener– 1875
• Comedienne Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz married– 1940
• Meteorite hit Ann Hodges in her home in Sylacauga, Alabama– 1954
• Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics scored his 20,000th career point– 1990
• A pristine copy of Action Comics #1, famed for the first appearance of Superman, sold for $2,161,000. It was the first comic book to break the $2 million mark.– 2011
• Discovery of 215 fossilized pterosaur eggs in Gobi Desert, China, announced– 2017

Weather

• The Erie Canal closed due to severely cold weather– 1835
• A Midwest cold wave brought a temperature of 17 degrees below zero F to Minneapolis– 1964
• A tornado claimed 2 lives in Simsboro, Louisiana– 1996

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