The energy that the Sprucewold slugs have put into devouring plants overnight this year is amazing; there should be research done harnessing their energy. The deer can barely hold a candle to their plant eating prowess. The slugs are so plentiful due to the extreme wet and damp conditions that we have had a couple sliding across the windows of the cabin! In dry years, there have been very few, but this year Slug Bait has done little to deter them and the traditional method of beer in containers has not been helpful at all. There are plants that are supposed to be slug resistant, but like deer, it is hit or miss. The gardening website Spruce.com suggests woody or fuzzy plants like lamb's ear, spurge, catmint, or silver mound. I have Jacob's ladder and plenty of ferns, which are also recommended, and they seem fine so far. We'll hope for a dry August!

 

The Boothbay Region Art Foundation's second floor gallery will be the site of Sprucewold resident Suzanne Marinell's solo art show, "Contemplation of Maine," which can be viewed for the month of August. If you have not visited the Art Foundation, now is the time to take in the wonderful artwork on display and for sale on the first floor, and see Suzanne's beautiful paintings on the second floor gallery. The Boothbay Region Art Foundation is at 1 Townsend Avenue, and it is located across from the Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library on the main square. It is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. 

 

Speaking of the library, I was sad to miss Maine mystery author Barbara Ross last week for her lunchtime lecture about crime fiction at the open air series on the library lawn. Her cozy Maine Clambake Mysteries series is heavily inspired by the Boothbay region. The newest addition to the series will be published in January. Ms. Ross's mother-in-law once owned the former Seafarer Inn on Union Street at the head of the harbor. According to the Register, Barbara became interested in local culture and industries. The inn was the original home of our own master carpenter Elmer Berquist who built the first log cabins on Crooked Pine Road in Sprucewold in 1923. I'm always attracted to Maine themed books. I enjoyed "Midcoast" by Adam White, who grew up in Damariscotta, and "Lucy by the Sea" by Elizabeth Stout, which takes place in coastal Maine during the COVID lockdown. 

 

An event that I did not miss was the annual Home & Garden tour sponsored by the Boothbay Region Garden Club, "The Sea Around Us" 2023. There were three homes in East Boothbay, one in Southport, and two in Boothbay Harbor. Sprucewold residents Karen and Paul Jones opened up their beautifully restored cabin now called Lola's Lodge. Several years ago, neighbors George and Joanne Carlisle came to the rescue when it needed repair, then it was purchased by the Joneses. The cabin was delightful, and it was nice to have others see an historic cabin brought back to life in the beautiful surroundings we appreciate every day in Sprucewold.

 

Firewise Events coming up are: Annual Chipping Day on July 28, and Firewise Cabin Assessment with Maine Forest Ranger Kent Nelson on Aug. 8. Please see Sprucewold Association president Susan Otto Goodell's latest email on July 23 for more details. As always, please email Ralph Kimball for any Firewise information. The annual meeting of the Linekin Heights Association will be at 9 a.m. on the Green on Saturday, Aug. 5 and will be followed at 10 a.m. by the Sprucewold Association meeting also on the Green. The Sprucewold Association's Annual Potluck Picnic is Aug. 5 at 5 p.m. with more to follow next week. 

 

Susan Otto Goodell will write the column next week; please send her any information you would like to share.