Maine Observer: How the battle over strawberries was won

When we first built our home I decided that I was going to grow strawberries. I cleared a patch of earth, surrounded it with a 2-foot fence and planted a large group of seedlings. The next year I added a few more plants, and the result was a fledgling strawberry patch. Annually, I would wait with great anticipation for the … Read More

SolarCity To Erect Netting To Protect Solar Panels From Home Runs

New York Yankees radio announcer John Sterling has a pretty good home run call: “It is high. It is far. It is … gone!” While that is exciting for a call at Yankee Stadium, home runs don’t garner much excitement for SolarCity and its solar array behind town hall — just past the outfield fence of the town’s recreational softball … Read More

New city council bill could force Mets and Yankees to extend protective netting

Protective netting at ballparks has been a hot-button issue in the past few years. Fan injuries from scorched foul balls and flying bats aren’t uncommon, and they can be horrific. MLB issued recommendations for protective netting in December 2015, but didn’t mandate that teams make any changes. New York City councilman Rafael Espinal Jr. doesn’t think that the New York Mets and the New York … Read More

Calls to ban commercial netting in Boyne River

SOME of the biggest names in Gladstone’s recreational fishing sector have had enough of our waters being “pillaged” by professional anglers. Ernie Vaughan, who runs the Tannum Crab Classic, said himself, Boyne Tannum HookUp president Jen McGuire, and the owners of Pat’s Tackle World and Boyne Island Bait and Tackle wanted something done about it. Mr Vaughan said he’s concerned … Read More

Should Padres extend safety netting after fan injury in stands?

While injuries are rare at major league games in comparison to how many balls (and the rare bat) go into the stands, questions about ballpark safety arise whenever an incident occurs. The discussion was renewed here after a Padres fan was injured by the bat that flew out of Hector Sanchez’s hands during Thursday’s game against the Rockies at Petco Park. So how do you … Read More

Netting could protect berries from squirrels

Q: Will squirrels eat strawberries? A: We love strawberries, many birds love strawberries, slugs and snails love strawberries and apparently squirrels do, too. As if robbing us of pecans, apples, tomatoes and birdseed were not enough. You may want to try netting supported with hoops like a row cover or with a similar apparatus to protect your berries from Squirrel … Read More