A Few Winter Tips:
- Adding a clear soda (such as 7-Up, Sprite, and the like) to your Christmas tree's water supply can help its needle retention. What the tree needs most are the sugars in the soda, so make sure not to use diet.
- Spraying a houseplant-protection product like Wilt-Pruf on boxwoods, wreathes, etc. will help keep them looking fresh.
- Misting any indoor cut greens regularly with water will help prolong their beauty.
Later in the fall (late October and November) is the time to start 'putting your gardens to bed' for the winter:
- We recommend adding a top layer of humus or compost to perennials at the end of the season to protect them from the cold and aid root development during the winter.
- Cutting back perennials makes for less work in the spring, decreases the chance of trouble with fungal infections and parasites, and makes flower beds look tidier. Just after the first frost is an ideal time to cut back perennials.
- You may not wish to cut back all your perennials, however. Leaving the seed-heads of perennials like coneflower/echinacea will attract songbirds in the winter.
- DO NOT CUT BACK YOUR ROSES IN THE FALL. Trimming back roses now leaves their new growths exposed to frost and renders them susceptible to disease. Instead, cut back your roses around the end of March.
- Gardening is good exercise! As you dig and mulch, your abs are twisting and contracting resistance. All the bending, lifting,and walking burns nearly 350 calories an hour.
- To remove salt residue and clean dirty pots, scrub with a mixture of 1/3 white vinegar, 1/3 rubbing alcohol, and 1/3 water.
- To keep hollyhocks free of rust and treat blackspot, use this spray:
- 1.5 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid soap
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 1 gallon water
Blend the ingredients and pour into a spray bottle. Shake the bottle well before each use and apply to the tops and bottoms of leaves. Remove diseased foliage and dispose of it in a trash can -- DO NOT COMPOST.
- One of the best ways to rid your yard of unwanted "bad bugs" is to welcome birds. To attract numerous species of birds and promote a healthy, well-balanced garden choose seed-producing plants and shrubs. Encourage birds to set up house by furnishing them nesting materials. Berry-bearing shrubs and fruit trees attract many insect-eating birds. Water attracts birds through every season.
- Other animals can also help with garden pest reduction. Ladybugs and their young larvae feed on aphids, scale, mealy bugs and . Dragonflies can consume 300 insects a day. Box turtles, frogs, and toads love slugs, snails, and grubs. Spiders are responsible for about 80 percent of the biological control in a healthy garden. Worms work magic as they eat their way through the earth, leaving behind a network of tunnels and rich mounds of their castings (manure). Their excavations improve soil structure, increase root penetration, and allow water to percolate slowly and deeply into the ground. Before you mulch your beds to encourage a worm population, the most important thing is to stop using harsh fertilizers and chemicals.
- Empty rinds of grapefruits, oranges, limes, and lemons make great starter pots for seeds. You can transplant the rinds directly into the ground and not disturb the seedlings.
- Lawns are often plagued by a number of pests. In early summer you might notice brown patches of dead turf or small grayish moths flying over the grass as they deposit eggs. These invaders thrive on compacted lawns with a thick thatch and large, sunny, dry areas. The best strategy for fighting these invaders is to water deeply and only as needed (in contrast to daily, shallow sprinkling). You might also think about using a thatching rake to remove the thick covering, and aerating your lawn.
- Corn gluten meal -- the tough, sticky, elastic by-product of corn meal -- is rich in protein and contains an herbicide that stops weeds, crabgrass, and dandelions by inhibiting root formation and germination, and its effects last for months. To protect a newly panted (but not seeded) bed from invasion, work corn gluten meal into the top 2 to 3 inches of soil and water thoroughly. Don't fertilize the bed for a month after application, because corn gluten meal is high in nitrogen. (If the invading seeds have already germinated and sprouted, this won't be effective.)
- House Plant tips:
- Yellow leaves and bright green veins often indicate iron-hungry plants, and may also be a warning that you are over-watering. Soggy soils slow or stop the release of iron to plants. Remember to water only when the soil is dry. To determine if your plant needs water, poke your finger about one inch into the soil. If it's dry, water slowly and allow the moisture to percolate deeply into the soil.
- Stinky aquarium water is filled with nutrients and trace elements for your plants. Whenever you clean your aquarium, filter water into a watering can and use it on your plants.
- Share your shower with your plants. You'll rid your plants of grease and dust and wash away infestations from mites and white fly. Always shower plants with warm water, early in the day so that they can air-dry (remember to keep them out of sunlight until they dry). Hairy-leafed plants like violets and rex begonias are like cats -- no thanks on the shower!
- Yellow leaves and bright green veins often indicate iron-hungry plants, and may also be a warning that you are over-watering. Soggy soils slow or stop the release of iron to plants. Remember to water only when the soil is dry. To determine if your plant needs water, poke your finger about one inch into the soil. If it's dry, water slowly and allow the moisture to percolate deeply into the soil.