Search
Latest topics
» Square Foot Gardening In Singaporeby markqz Yesterday at 2:58 pm
» Saucy Lady Tomato Seeds
by OhioGardener 12/7/2024, 5:13 pm
» Ohio Gardener's Greenhouse
by sanderson 12/7/2024, 2:11 am
» Interesting Marketing for Compost
by sanderson 12/7/2024, 2:09 am
» N & C Midwest: Nov. Dec. 2024
by cyclonegardener 12/5/2024, 10:50 pm
» Mark's first SFG
by markqz 12/2/2024, 11:54 am
» Indoor Lighting for Kitchen Herbs & Lettuce
by Jjean59 12/1/2024, 10:37 pm
» Famous Gardening Quotes
by OhioGardener 11/29/2024, 11:05 am
» Happy Thanksgiving from the USA
by Scorpio Rising 11/29/2024, 8:50 am
» Kiwi's SFG Adventure
by KiwiSFGnewbie 11/28/2024, 2:48 pm
» Cooked worms?
by KiwiSFGnewbie 11/28/2024, 2:45 pm
» Happy Birthday!!
by sanderson 11/28/2024, 3:14 am
» Catalog season has begun!
by sanderson 11/28/2024, 3:13 am
» Butterbaby Hybrid Squash (Butternut)
by Scorpio Rising 11/24/2024, 8:19 pm
» How does green turn to brown?
by OhioGardener 11/21/2024, 4:58 pm
» Tree roots, yeeessss.....
by sanderson 11/20/2024, 2:21 am
» The SFG Journey-Biowash
by has55 11/19/2024, 7:37 pm
» What are you eating from your garden today?
by OhioGardener 11/19/2024, 8:27 am
» New SFG gardener in Auckland
by KiwiSFGnewbie 11/16/2024, 11:25 pm
» Thanksgiving Cactus
by OhioGardener 11/12/2024, 5:40 pm
» Need Garden Layout Feedback
by markqz 11/9/2024, 9:16 pm
» Thai Basil
by Scorpio Rising 11/8/2024, 8:52 pm
» How best to keep a fallow SFG bed
by KiwiSFGnewbie 11/8/2024, 8:11 pm
» Preserving A Bumper Tomato Harvest with Freezing vs Canning
by plantoid 11/7/2024, 11:36 am
» What Have You Picked From Your Garden Today
by OhioGardener 11/5/2024, 2:29 pm
» Greetings from Southeastern Wisconsin
by sanderson 11/5/2024, 2:01 pm
» Spinning Compost Bin-need some ideas
by rtfm 11/2/2024, 7:49 pm
» Growing fruit trees in Auckland
by OhioGardener 10/31/2024, 4:23 pm
» Vermiculite -- shipping sale through 10/31/2024
by markqz 10/30/2024, 2:27 pm
» N & C Midwest: October 2024
by Scorpio Rising 10/30/2024, 10:38 am
Google
Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
+19
martha
jerzyjen
Patty from Yorktown
Mirjam
rds1955
Kabaju42
SirTravers
Retired Member 1
gridgardener
boffer
choksaw
lakemom
swripley
nidiyao
chocolatepop
timwardell
Lavender Debs
nancy
Amy in Idaho
23 posters
Page 2 of 2
Page 2 of 2 • 1, 2
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
This sounds like one of those threads that could fit right into the "Off Topic" section...Like having the Off topic section created into threads called:
Canning
Storage
Tips & Tidbits
Greenhouse
etc, etc...
Canning
Storage
Tips & Tidbits
Greenhouse
etc, etc...
rds1955- Posts : 67
Join date : 2010-03-02
Age : 69
Location : Md's eastern Shore
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
wow, so many great tips... I also got one: To protect your eyes from being poked by stick holding up your plants, you can glue walnut shells to the tops. I decorated mine first, but that's not really necessary. Mine are ladybugs:
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
OK jam, that is WAY cute. But here is the thing; I've never poked my eye with a stick, I actually said it out loud when I read your post. Now, next time I go to the garden you just know what will happen ....right?
Deborah .....wondering if it is to early (ummm in the year, ya, that’s it) to crack open a beer?
Deborah .....wondering if it is to early (ummm in the year, ya, that’s it) to crack open a beer?
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
Lavender Debs wrote:[color=#1f5b22]Deborah .....wondering if it is to early (ummm in the year, ya, that’s it) to crack open a beer?[/font">
Somewhere in the world, right now, there's a slug who needs tended to. I think you should vicariously support that gardener by offering up sympathetic ammunition.
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
@Deb: I can't believe you never poked your eye... it's happened to me so many times... Maybe I should look out better when picking a fruit or doing anything in the garden, but I know myself...this helps, and it looks cute too.
Watch your eyes!
Watch your eyes!
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
Old soda/pop bottles as plant clotchs for young seedling transplants
choksaw- Posts : 459
Join date : 2010-03-02
Age : 49
Location : New Port Richey FL.
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
Hi,
I cannot believe that nobody has mentioned using venetian blinds as garden tags. Cut a piece with cheap scissors and use a pencil or sharpie marker. Bamboo makes makes a good support for bean tee pees. Use zip ties to hold it together. Boiling water will kill weeds in your garden path, upon contact (thus making it very satisfying.)
Patty from Yorktown
I cannot believe that nobody has mentioned using venetian blinds as garden tags. Cut a piece with cheap scissors and use a pencil or sharpie marker. Bamboo makes makes a good support for bean tee pees. Use zip ties to hold it together. Boiling water will kill weeds in your garden path, upon contact (thus making it very satisfying.)
Patty from Yorktown
Patty from Yorktown- Posts : 350
Join date : 2010-03-05
Location : Yorktown, Virginia
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
I've been grabbing a few extra bamboo chopsticks everytime i get chinese or sushi. I have quite a collection now which makes great plant markers for my seedling pots. Traditional markers are just too big. Just gotta write small.
jerzyjen- Posts : 210
Join date : 2010-03-03
Age : 48
Location : Burlington County, NJ - Zone 6b
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
darn, I felt so brilliant using clear nail polish and was going to suggest it. Oh, well, I should feel happy that I am not alone in the world as the only brilliant person.
martha- Posts : 2173
Join date : 2010-03-03
Age : 67
Location : Acton, Massachusetts Zone 5b/6a
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
Maybe it's not a Tip or trick, but if you keep a journal of your activities and when you did them, you'll have a tremendous aid you can refer back to time and again to refresh or remember specifics and special items which can aid in becoming a better gardener and a steward of the land...
rds1955- Posts : 67
Join date : 2010-03-02
Age : 69
Location : Md's eastern Shore
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
rds1955 wrote:Maybe it's not a Tip or trick, but if you keep a journal of your activities and when you did them, you'll have a tremendous aid you can refer back to time and again to refresh or remember specifics and special items which can aid in becoming a better gardener and a steward of the land...
Wow, I think that's the best tip yet. Larry Sagars, probably the most well known master gardener in my area, likes to say something along the lines of how a dull pencil beats out a sharp mind. Write down what you do at the beginning of the season, and then if all goes well (or bad) you know for sure what you did.
Last edited by Kabaju42 on 4/3/2010, 10:28 pm; edited 1 time in total (Reason for editing : typo correction)
Kabaju42- Posts : 249
Join date : 2010-03-03
Location : Salt Lake City, UT
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
Amy in Idaho wrote:I love the feedback! I especially like the idea of laminating a grid and keeping it in a ziplock next to SFG. Saw an awesome idea today: plastic spoons as plant markers, write on the back. So much cheaper.
Amy in Idaho,
Thanks for the tip on spoons. I used it today. As I am new to this, I am trying to document what I do for future use. I was able to use a sharpie and write the date, veggie, plant or seed and how many I planted.
As for laminating a grid, do you write on it before you laminate it or do you use a dry erase marker after?
Jim
ralitaco- Posts : 1303
Join date : 2010-04-04
Location : Southport , NC
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
I actually use a WET erase marker after. Just make sure that you are able to wet wipe it off. Some markers/laminated papers work better than other
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
Hi Jim, good idea keeping a log. I have read that is several threads. Wish I had done it when I first started gardening. This year I am. Laminated grid idea was chocolatepop's. I thought it was great, help me remember what I planted where.
Amy in Idaho- Posts : 53
Join date : 2010-03-26
Age : 45
Location : South East Idaho (Zone 4a/4b)
Re: Useful tidbits. Tips anyone?
I love the ideas. I use many of them.
Deer deterent....Hang deodorant soap (like Irish Spring....must contain tallow) in net bags or used onion bags, from stakes or fence posts around garden and dwarf fruit trees. It worked for me.
Also take the hair from your dog's brush and clip it to a pole or fence with a clothespin for the same purpose.
Plant markers....I use the venetian blinds, but I also cut plastic foodstuff lids in strips to stick in small seedling pots.
Cutworm collars from a toothpick. Break toothpick iin half and spear into soil on either side of your seedling's stem right up against the stem itself. The cutworm can't wrap around the stem.
Electroculture....Bury tin cans to an inch of their tops, with 2 or 3 small holes punched in the bottom (I use a screwdriver and a hammer) among your plants, fill them with dried manure, compost or alfalfa pellets as a fertilizer boost, fill with water. Each time it rains your crops get a feeding. I understand the electricity in the air during a rainstorm can boost the size and yield of your plants. I'm going to try it this year so I'll let you know how well that idea works.
Deer deterent....Hang deodorant soap (like Irish Spring....must contain tallow) in net bags or used onion bags, from stakes or fence posts around garden and dwarf fruit trees. It worked for me.
Also take the hair from your dog's brush and clip it to a pole or fence with a clothespin for the same purpose.
Plant markers....I use the venetian blinds, but I also cut plastic foodstuff lids in strips to stick in small seedling pots.
Cutworm collars from a toothpick. Break toothpick iin half and spear into soil on either side of your seedling's stem right up against the stem itself. The cutworm can't wrap around the stem.
Electroculture....Bury tin cans to an inch of their tops, with 2 or 3 small holes punched in the bottom (I use a screwdriver and a hammer) among your plants, fill them with dried manure, compost or alfalfa pellets as a fertilizer boost, fill with water. Each time it rains your crops get a feeding. I understand the electricity in the air during a rainstorm can boost the size and yield of your plants. I'm going to try it this year so I'll let you know how well that idea works.
quiltbea- Posts : 4707
Join date : 2010-03-21
Age : 82
Location : Southwestern Maine Zone 5A
Great Subject!
If you are having, or have ever had problems with your corn pollinating, use a big paper grocery bag to hang over the tassel. Shake the plant by the stalk, remove the bag, then repeat on the next stalk. The pollen falls and is a little closer to the silk when the breeze, if any, catches it.
Bayou Life- Posts : 47
Join date : 2010-04-03
Age : 51
Location : Jeanerette, La, Zone 9a
A novice who's overwhelmed with great ideas for the SFG
Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to share these great tips. I'm sure some of them weren't easy to come by (poked eyes especially) and took much trial and error. Your efforts are educating all of us; especially the newbies, like me.
I tried the milk crates over my sunflower seedlings, but some chimpmunk or squirrel genius' still got to them. I started with 12 and am down to just 5. Here's my tip: put them on a high roof with no nearby trees!
I dug out my old mini-blinds and am going to cut them into nice replacement plant-markers for the caked-on-dirty-rotting ice-pop sticks that are ready for the compost bin.
Large plastic tubs from store-bought salad mixes make nice tall covers in cool weather. They already saved my sprouts in 33 degrees! If they work well enough in the SFG, I won't be buying any more salad mixes until next winter!
I tried the milk crates over my sunflower seedlings, but some chimpmunk or squirrel genius' still got to them. I started with 12 and am down to just 5. Here's my tip: put them on a high roof with no nearby trees!
I dug out my old mini-blinds and am going to cut them into nice replacement plant-markers for the caked-on-dirty-rotting ice-pop sticks that are ready for the compost bin.
Large plastic tubs from store-bought salad mixes make nice tall covers in cool weather. They already saved my sprouts in 33 degrees! If they work well enough in the SFG, I won't be buying any more salad mixes until next winter!
trukrebew- Posts : 129
Join date : 2010-03-24
Location : The Garden State — Watchung, NJ — Zone 6b
Page 2 of 2 • 1, 2
Similar topics
» Starting Out -- first time gardening
» Anyone have tips for a new gardener?
» Leggy plants under lights
» First month Square Foot gardening
» New here but ere's a few tips for peppers
» Anyone have tips for a new gardener?
» Leggy plants under lights
» First month Square Foot gardening
» New here but ere's a few tips for peppers
Page 2 of 2
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum