Sunday, June 1

Garden secrets

20 tips from the pros

A wonderful feature of gardening psychology is that we like to share our little discoveries. Here are some pointers to consider this growing season.

1. Use vinegar as a weed killer. Add one-half teaspoon dish detergent to a gallon of vinegar and spray at the roots of the invader. Vinegar disrupts the pH of the soil, killing the plant. It has been tested with thistle with good results, and railways use vinegar (albeit a stronger concentration) to maintain their thruways. For best results, apply on a hot, sunny day.

2. When working in the garden, keep a bucket of soapy water handy. I like to pick off the Japanese Beetles and dispose of them in the bucket (as opposed to the squishing method - ugh). If there are any kids around, make it a game to see who can get the most in their bucket.

3. Speaking of children, if you have any of their sleds left hanging around from our super snowy winter, use it to haul compost, mulch, weedings, etc. around. It's considerably easier than lifting them into a wheelbarrow.

4. Plastic knives make good plant markers. Write on them with a permanent marker and stick them in the ground.

5. When gardening, it's wise to avoid using smelly shampoos, deodorants or perfumes. The bees and bugs will love you, but you might not return the sentiment.

6. If you have miniscule seeds to plant, try this simple trick. Wet a piece of thin cotton string, and drag it through a bowl of the seeds. Then simply lay the string in the planting furrow, and cover as normal.

7. If your peonies fall over every year like mine do, try inserting a tomato stake in early spring to give them support.

8. To increase your compost production, insert a PVC pole (the kind with drainage holes pre-drilled in it) into the pile. This will allow more air circulation.

9. If you purchase a plant in bloom, it would be best to (gasp!) pinch the blossoms off. A transplanted plant may get stressed easily if it is trying to maintain flowers.

10. Buy small perennials. Before you pay the big bucks for the gallon size or larger, check to see if your nursery carries quart size or smaller. Perennials generally grow quickly enough to make up the difference in one growing season, and at the cheaper prices, you can purchase more of them.

11. If planting under a tree, take care. No tilling! Avoid damaging sensitive roots by using a trowel only.

12. Don't fertilize during a drought. It encourages growth that the plant can't support.

13. When marking out new bed lines, lay them out with your hose and then sprinkle flour along it to mark the edge. This is more environmentally friendly than spray paint and you won't accidentally gouge your hose with your spade.

14. If your fertilizer doesn't seem to be doing the job, check your soil pH. You may need to adjust it before you fertilize. For example, potassium won't readily dissolve in acidic soil. It will simply wash out without benefiting the plants.

15. Tomato pointers - Try putting some Epsom salt in the planting hole. Help your tomato soak up extra rays by laying a foil floor under it. Planting tomatoes with carrots, leaf lettuce, nasturtiums, parsley, onion, chives and marigolds will help ward off disease, improve flavor and increase growth.

16. Have all those long hours with trowel in hand caught up with you? To pamper your calluses, cut up a can cozy (the kind that keeps your Coca-Cola cold) and wrap it around your trowel handle. Secure with electrical tape for a hold that will last.

17. Drought-proof your garden. Work peat moss into your soil to increase the water holding capacity. Apply fresh mulch to prevent evaporation.

18. If you're considering planting a tree this year, our local extension office has a wonderful resource. You can determine which tree will work best in your conditions with their tree selector website http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/treeselector.

19. Earwigs disgust me. As creepy as they look, I need to keep in mind that they do eat spidermites, aphids, and fruit worms. If that isn't redeeming enough for you, try putting Borax down in their 'stomping grounds.'

20. Are slugs bugging you? Plant parsley or basil. They don't like them.

Mollie Uftring developed a green thumb as a teenager working in the perennial beds at Hornbaker Gardens in Princeton, Illinois. After graduating from the University of Illinois with a degree in ornamental horticulture, she worked as a landscape designer in Ohio before returning to Illinois.