Friday, May 26, 2006

Composting
Water district suggests even, odd watering daysOregonLive.com - Portland,OR,USA... Aerating the lawn is recommended once a year. Use composting or other soil amendments to improve water absorption and water-holding capacity.
Composting

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Boil water to foil weeds

Tips on killing weeds the organic way.
1. You don't need to use chemicals and expensive weedkillers. Pour boiling water on weeds growing in the creacks of your cememt or flagstone walks. It will kill the existing weeds, as well as the seeds waiting to grow.
2. Use vinegar and salt, pur in a spray bottle, and spray directly on weeds. Becareful not to get on your flowers.
3. Baking soda used directly on crabgrass, but avoid getting it on the surrounding lawn. Works best in warm climates where warm-weather grasses, like St. Augustine, Bermuda, and Bahiagrass, flourish.
Happy gardening

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

Five Tips on Composting

Five Tips on Composting
The great thing about composting is that you can throw a bunch of leaf clippings, food scraps, and dried leaves into a pile and they will decompose into crumbly, nutrient-rich compost for your garden. Depending on the size of your compost pile, what you put in it, and how you tend to it, this process can take 3 months to 2 years. If you want to get compost in a hurry, there are a few things you can do to speed the process along...more Five Tips on Composting

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Organic Gardening

Organic Gardening

Not everyone has room for a garden, but some things, such as tomatoes, carrots and melons, can be planted among flowers and even grown in pots.

There is a difference between chemical fertilizers and organic plant food. Chemicals cause rapid growth with the plant having an overabundance of water in the cells, Armstrong said. This makes the plant weak and also attracts many more insects.

Organic plant food builds a healthy soil with abundant microorganisms that provide nutrients for the plant and allow more oxygen to get to the root.

"The plant will be stronger, more vigorous and will suffer fewer problems from insects," Armstrong said.

Organic Gardening

Thursday, May 04, 2006

Organic Gardening

Organic Gardening
Lettuce That Can Stand the HeatWashington Post - United States... feet in height if you let it, and eventually making flowers. ... types, which are so crunchy and sweet my boys pick ... Use a soil rich in organic matter to hold soil ... Summertime…and the Eatin’ Is EasyNashville Scene - TN, USA... Tennessee’s oldest organic farm, Long Hungry Creek Farm, is ... Harvest grows a wide variety of flowers, available by ... like I needed to figure out my priorities. ... Organic Gardening

Monday, May 01, 2006

Carpenter Bees-Friend or Foe?

Carpenter Bees-Friend or Foe?

Although they are big and fearsome looking, carpenter bees don’t sting people (as with other Native bees, the males can’t and the females don’t). But they are great pollinators who will double the amount of food and flowers in your gardens. AND they rarely—if ever—cause any real damage to wood. The bees are just starting to build this year’s nests in preparation for mating. If you act quickly, you may be able to ‘move’ them without killing any wonderful buzzers-to-be. Wait till they’re all out looking for flowers on the next warm sunny day, and quickly plug up their holes with steel wool or metal screening stapled overtop. You could also spray or brush some almond oil around the area—Cornell researchers found that it repels carpenter bees. Just don’t spray the bees! (You can find almond oil in bulk anywhere massage therapists buy their supplies.) Then drill some ‘starter holes’—same size as the bees make—into big unfinished blocks of cedar, pine or other soft wood and hang them in a protected area facing South or East near the deck for the bees to use instead. Long term, you’ll need to paint, varnish or replace (with metal or fiberglass) unfinished softwoods like cedar and redwood on the outside of your home. Yes, I know you used those woods because you thought you wouldn’t have to do those things, but they are very attractive to wood-boring bees. Again, these big buzzing puppies are beneficial in the garden, don’t sting, and don’t cause structural harm. Honest. Reference books note that homeowners almost always overreact to the non-threat they pose. So take a chill pill and enjoy the extra flowers.