Remedies
March 15, 2010
Garden's Alive has organic solutions for gardening problems
I got my Garden's Alive catalog today and it has a $25 coupon which is good even if you spend that amount or less, so it's tempting to order something. Garden's Alive specializes in organic pest, disease and insect control and have many trademarked products that are enviromentally safe. The first 8 pages are concerned with lawn care.
For example they have a weed and feed lawn amendment which stops weed germination. One of the main ingredients is corn gluten which smothers seedlings. This corn gluten is a by product of corn starch or corn syrup and there are no restrictions on entering and using the lawn after application. I am not a fan of turf lawns; having a one specie lawn is hard to maintain; it's not natures way to just have one plant in a area. I like to let whatever wants to grow in my yard have a chance. Dandelions are some of my favorite spring flowers and when they go to seed, the goldfinches love them. But that's just me. If you are one of the people who love the soft turf of bluegrass for example in every corner of the yard, this WOW!® SupremeTM Pre-Emergent Weed Control And Lawn Fertilizer may be the answer.
One item that does interest me is the Enz-RotTM Blossom End Rot Concentrate Spray. Many of my tomatoes and some peppers get blossom end rot and this is a disorder caused by a deficiency of calcium in the soil. It typically occurs after rapid growth followed by a prolonged dry spell, or extended periods of heavy rain. They recommend spraying during periods of rapid growth or after excessive rainfall to restore calcium and prevent blossom-end rot. So this could be a good solution to a problem that has plagued me for years.
They sell fertilizers for particular crops, strawberries, vegetables, corn, root crops and herbs, all trademarked. They have soil activaters and fertilizers for trees, shrubs and flowers. it's really an amazing variety. They sell composters and compost starters and worms and beneficial insects. There are safe insecticides for both indoors and out and flea control for pets.
The Garden's Alive catalog is only 50 pages or so, but it certainly covers myriad garden problems and solutions. Their phone ordering system is outsourced to India which some people found to be a communication problem, but most of the reviews of service were positive. I'm thinking of a bat house to my grandchildren along with a mushroom its which should be fun for them to watch grow.
At Garden's Alive
March 12, 2010
Tree Bark Protectors for the newly planted trees
If you've put in some fruit or shade trees and want to protect them from animal and pest damage, there are several solutions. The one featured here has several advantages. It is made of tough plastic mesh which neither the tall deer nor the small rabbits can bit through. The open mesh prevents moisture and mildew buildup as it lets air circulate freely around the trunk. Because it is mesh and not a solid vinyl cover, it cannot harbor insects and won't inhibit growth.
The tubes blend in, are easy to install, come in three lengths and in bundles of five. They should do the job!
At Tree Bark Protectors - 48 Inch
February 19, 2010
Territorial Seed catalog has everything I need
It's time to order seed and the Territorial seed catalog is here. Although i spend time perusing every catalog that comes, I keep coming back to Territorial to buy everything but the specialty items that have caught my eye elsewhere. Here I get all the standard vegetables whose seed I haven't saved from last year's garden and also the hybrids that I have to buy new every year.
Territorial is located in Oregon and their catalog covers everything from artichokes to Zznnias, with ten pages on tomaotes and again on lettuce and European greens. I'm always amused to see Purslane in the greens section of catalog because it grows as a weed in my garden and the first few years, I tired finding a way of making it delicious and failed. Now I till it under as it makes a good green manure. They have large section on herbs and also flowers and are introducing a gorgeous orange red Coral Reef echinacea that comes only as a plant, but would really brighten a tall border.
The catalog includes fruits and berries and the obliatory seed starter kits. There are greenhouse growing supplies and season extenders. Now red mulch is being sold as well as the red Kozy-coat water filled plant protectors which I'm going to try as my family is coming in early summer and it would be great to have some tomatoes for them to pick. I'm also getting the BirdBlock protective netting. It is 3/4" propylene mesh and will go over my corn row to see if I can keep the crows and bluejays from eating the corn before I can get to it.
It's a great feeling to know the seeds are ordered and on the way. I can sit back and relax and wait for the soil to warm up(and dry out!)
At Territorial Seed
February 16, 2010
Some thoughts about what to do about leached out soil.
I went out into the garden today to check out what was still growing and viable. I was hungry for greens. The kale looked good and I wish i had planted more of it. It's so hard in the fall, when there are vegetables I'm trying to give away, to think about planting a couple of rows of kale. The broccoli was still putting out flower heads and I harvested some for dinner. I brought the pruners with me and trimmed the plants to they might produce more as the weather warms up. The small beets were ok, but the big beautiful ones had heaved out of the ground and been frozen. There were carrots, of course, and they are sweetest this time of year and have to be eaten soon as they will rot if it warms up.
But what a mess to clean! First dig!
Then take to outside faucet:
Rince off with the hose and voila! they are ready to bring inside
They will taste fantastic.
All in all, I have enough greens to eat if the road goes out and I am stranded for weeks. But the rains have been hard and the soil in the garden was muddy and compacted so that my boots got stuck in mud in a couple of places. I was very disappointed in the ground cover I planted. The quail must have eaten most of the vetch and legumes. Only some rye is growing and it adds the least amount of nutrients to the soil. It's going to take a lot of work to get a rich loam out of this mess, but I've done it for years so I know it can be done.
One of the things I'm going to try is to mix this Azomite with the compost and fertilizer I put in each row before I plant. I've never tried it, yet I'm sure after this winter, my soil must have been leached clean of minerals. So I'm ordering several pounds of Azomite and I'll report on it's usefulness. The rest will be up to the truck loads of manure and compost I'll put in the garden.
At 2 Lbs of Azomite - Organic Trace Mineral Soil Additive Fertilizer - 67 Trace Minerals: Selenium, Vanadium, Chromium
February 5, 2010
Aloe Vera is a plant that every home should have
The plant will be in a 3 1/2" pot and is about 8" tall. It's an easy plant to grow and has a long history. It flourishes in warm and dry climates, and many people mistake it for a cactus, but in fact it is a member of the Lily family. It stays moist where other plants would wilt and die, closing its pores to prevent the loss of moisture. It originated in Africa, today Aloe Vera is grown and harvested in many areas of the world. When the leaf is squeezed a soothing gel comes out which you can apply to rough, chapped or burned skin.
The History Ancient records show that the benefits of Aloe Vera have been known for centuries. Its therapeutic and healing properties have survived more than 5000 years. George Ebers first discovered its antiquity in 1862, in an Egyption papyrus dated 1500 BC. Greek and Roman physicians such as Dioscorides and Pliny the Elder used it to great effect as a medicinal herb. Researchers have also found the ancient Chinese and Indian cultures used Aloe Vera. Egyptian queens associated its use with their quest for physical beauty, while in the Philippines it is used with milk for kidney infections. . Nowadays, although chemical medicines are very effective in healing, long term use and complicated interactions with other drugs can cause terrible side effects for patients. Consequently more consumers and scientists are turning back to look at more traditional, and often natural, therapies which, for so long, have been neglected.
At 1 Aloe Vera - Medicine Plant -Burn Plant -Miracle Plant
January 28, 2010
Thermostatically Controlled Outlet comes on at 35°F, goes off at 45°F
This is a great idea for those of us who have a greenhouse or unheated room, anywhere a freeze needs to be avoided, yet don't want the expense of heating it all the time. The outlet plugs into any 15 amp socket and turns on automatically and goes off automatically according to air temperature. Just what is needed, for example, in a greenhouse to keep the seedlings frost free. It turns on at 35 degrees and off at 45 degrees. So simple and such a energy saver as well as keeping free from the anxiety of a sudden freeze. Each unit has two recepticals for use with more than one heating device. There are five models each of which has it's own temperature controls. The one reviewed here is for frost protection.
At Farm Innovators Thermo Cube Thermostatically Controlled Outlets Model TC-3 - On at 35°F, Off approx. 45°F
December 2, 2009
Ground covers will transform bare dirt into lawn and flowers
I'm building a house and all around the building site the ground is muddy and scarred. So just before the rains I drove into town and bought rye grass, something called sod buster, and some wildflower seed. It took a couple of hours to spread the seed. I could have used this Earthway 1001-B Precision Garden Seeder with 6 Seed Plates, but time was precious and I had to get the seed broadcast before the rain.
I used 50 lbs of rye seed(local feed store) and 25 lbs of sod buster mix(Peaceful Valley farms #SCM620). The sod buster will be good on the flat where heavy machinery has compressed the soil into hardpan. The wildflower seeds were pricey(again Peaceful Valley #SWF620) but I think they will be worth it. I planted them right around the house where mud and puddles make walking unpleasant. In the spring there will be flowers of all kinds making the landscape lovely. Transforming this
hopefully into something like this
Right now, after the rain, we have the small beginnings of the transformation.
November 4, 2009
Green Light Organic Home & Garden Insect Contol Spray is tested on aphids
This time of year, aphids attack the kale and broccoli which I have left in the ground to overwinter. The Russian Kale plants let me know they are suffering by curling over. Sure enough when I inspect, they are covered with grey aphids. Now I love this kale. It is one of the sweetest kales, and I can harvest it all winter so it's upsetting to loose plants to aphids now. I have pulled plants that seemed totally infested, but decided to try Light Green Organic Insect Spray on a few plants and see if it did the job. I sprayed today. I like the fact that this spray can be used up to the day of harvest. I'll report back in a few days to see if the spray worked.
At Green Light Organic Bioganic Home & Garden Insect Contol Spray - 24 oz Spray #80224
October 22, 2009
Organic Mulch Block will help winterize your garden
If you have an area that you want protected this winter from heavy freezing or if you have a spot all ready to plant and don't want it to get beaten down by rain and snow, you should consider mulching it. This coir mulch is a 100% organic and biodegradable. It provides a thermal blanket for your entire garden keeping soil cool in summer, warm in winter, and moist all year round. In addition to saving water and insulating the garden, this premium ground cover looks great as a decorative top-dressing for pots and baskets. It expands to cover 3 sq.yards.
At Element 1001 6 100% Organic and Biodegradable Original Mulch Block
October 12, 2009
PlantHouse looks great, is easy to set up and will keep your tender plants alive.
This portable, pop up greenhouse is perfect for extending your growing season and protecting your plants.The greenhouse set up the easiest it has ever been. Screened vent openings allow for air circulation and closing the vents will promote and maintain high humidity levels. The PVC material is UV resistant for longer life. Solar heat from the sun heats your greenhouse during the day while an electric heater will be needed on freezing nights or in cloudy or snowy conditions. Folds up easily into a compact storage carry bag and includes shade cover, stakes, high wind tie downs and free storage bag with sholder strap.
At PlantHouse 5' Clear
October 5, 2009
Agribon extends the growing season so you enjoy your summer crops longer
The first frost is expected this week and one of the ways to extend the season of your tender plants like tomatoes or beans is to cover the rows with Agribon. Agribon row covers are a better value than similar products because Agribon row covers are heavier, tougher covering, at the same time letting in light and keeping the plants warmer.
- Agribon AG-19 row covers provides up to 4ºF + frost protection for valuable, frost sensitive perennials and sensitive vegetables.
- Safe guards against early and late frosts.
- Prolongs growing seasons and increases yields.
- Excellent wind and insect control.
At Agribon
September 24, 2009
Tyco Black Plastic Sheeting 20X100 is the gardener's best helper
Black plastic sheeting does multiple jobs in my garden. It cuts off sunlight to kill weeds, it protects a cultivated area from weather and weeds, it keeps the soil warm around plants so the the growing season is extended. I cut the sheeting in strips to go between rows early in the season to save myself weeding time and trouble. I used it successfully over an area where I didn't want the blackberries to spread. I keep it around the edges of the garden where the grass wants to invade. Wonderful stuff! Makes my gardening so much easier.
At Covalence Plastics 4ML BLK 20X100 20-by-100-Feet 4-Millimeter Tyco Polyethylene Plastic Sheeting, Black
September 14, 2009
Havahart Trap catches Squirrels and chipmunk size pests
Recently, I had a ground squirrel problem in the garden. The little sucker was digging under plants and killing them. I don't use poison as it gets in the food chain so I used a Havahart trap which is a handy device for any gardener. Not knowing what bait to use, I used cheese, taping it down on the spring, and voila! two days later, I had my culprit. I then drove about five miles away and let the critter loose in the woods where he or she would not hurt anything. Problem solved! These traps are great tools and come in various sizes depending on the problem animal.
At Havahart 1025 Two Door Cage Trap for Squirrels 17.5 x 5.25 x 7.25
August 27, 2009
Squirrel Baffle Keeps Squirrels out of your Bird Feeder
We got a bird feeder which closes when a squirrel tries to get on the perch, but it doesn't stop squirrels from climbing the pole and knocking the seed on the ground which then keeps them and their friends coming back for more. This baffle wraps around the pole and keeps them from climbing it and solves the problem! Allows more bird watching and less squirrel chasing.
At Wrap Around Squirrel Baffle, 18" Black
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