Gardening Tips-n-Tricks
Newspaper.
Your old newspapers make an ideal weedmat when placed between rows of seedlings.
They also help retain the moisture in the soil.
Your old newspapers make an ideal weedmat when placed between rows of seedlings.
They also help retain the moisture in the soil.
Slug Control
Calcium powder sprinkled around plants will deter slugs, as will crushed dry eggshells
Calcium powder sprinkled around plants will deter slugs, as will crushed dry eggshells
Cucumber Beetle and Cabbage Butterfly.
To deter the Cucumber Beetle and the Cabbage Butterfly, plant some Greek Oregano amongst your vegetables.
Fruit Fly Mixture.
To 1 litre of hot water mix:
1 cup sugar.
2 tablespoons cloudy ammonia.
2 teaspoons vanilla essence.
Use plastic cordial or large soft drink bottles and burn 4 to 6 holes 3/4 way up the bottle. Fill with mixture to near the holes. Tie in fruit trees or stand upright in vegetable garden.
1 cup sugar.
2 tablespoons cloudy ammonia.
2 teaspoons vanilla essence.
Use plastic cordial or large soft drink bottles and burn 4 to 6 holes 3/4 way up the bottle. Fill with mixture to near the holes. Tie in fruit trees or stand upright in vegetable garden.
Hand Pollination
Hand pollinate pumpkins, melons, zucchinis and cucumbers to ensure good fruit set. Simply find the flowers that have a small fruit underneath (the female flowers) them, then find the flowers that don't have the small fruit (male flowers) and transfer the pollen to the female flowers.
Sowing Delicate Seeds.
After you have planted delicate seeds like Begonia or Snapdragon it is important that the seeds are not dislodged. Water the trays by soaking in a container so the water soaks through from underneath.
Successive Sowing.
To avoid a glut of produce, try successive planting. Keep sowing seeds every week or fortnight to stagger the harvest time.
Orchid Tip.
Add canunda shells to the potting mix to add calcium which helps strengthen orchid spikes.
Organic Insecticide.
Rhubarb leaves can be used to make an organic insecticide which is very effective against leaf eating insects.
Rhubarb leaves can be used to make an organic insecticide which is very effective against leaf eating insects.
