BANDIT'S TIPS

Tip #1. Are pill bugs & earwigs raising havoc in your garden? Here’s an effective trap for them...take a 8 to 12 inch clay pot and fill it with potato peels (and /or cabbage leaves) and damp newsprint or rags. Place the pot upside-down in the problem area then check it every few days. Empty the pests into a tub of hot or soapy water to get rid of them.

Tip #2. Control cabbage root maggot and cutworms with a piece of 6" square tar paper (available at hardware stores). Simply punch a 1/2" hole in the center and a slit out to one side then slip the square around your young plants for an effective deterrent.

Tip #3. Is arthritis keeping you from digging up your garden? Try this neat idea. For all those tools you have trouble holding onto,(shovels, rakes etc.) slip a piece of foam insulation tube over them. This stuff is available at building centres, it is used to insulate water pipes and is quite cheap. When put on tool handles it keeps your hands protected from painful vibration & shock, and it makes the handle warm and easier to hold onto!

Tip #4.Slip a short section of old garden hose over the shoulders of your spade. It will give your shoe a better grip, the edges won’t cut into your feet and, if you sharpen the working end with a flat file, you’l be amazed at how much easier you can dig!

Tip #5. Take time to enjoy the flowers!   For they’ll be gone before you know it!

Tip #6. Compost tea!
Don’t throw out that leftover tea, coffee or even the leftover water from boiling vegetables... add it to your compost!. These liquids are rich in nutrients and will add important moisture to your mix!.. throw tea bags & coffee grinds in too!

Tip #7. Don’t waste lawn clippings, use them as a wet mulch to suppress weeds and add good nutrients around the base of shrubs, trees, rhubarb, potatoes etc. The clippings slow water evaporation and the composting action keeps the soil warm at night.

Tip #8.When transplanting to new terra Cotta pots be sure to soak the pots for at least a half hour in water, your plants will take to the transplanting much better. New pots are very dry & will dehydrate your soil if they aren’t soaked first.

Tip #9. Control flea, cucumber, & potato beetles as well as other bad bugs by dusting your plants lightly with garden lime. Do this in the morning when the dew is out and the lime will stick better. This also works great on fruit trees too!

Tip #10. It is a proven fact that if you pick your lettuce early in the morning rather than in the evening, you’ll find it is much, much sweeter. So no more last minute salads!

Tip #11. We all know tools work better when they are sharp but how often do we think to sharpen our shovel? Use a fine mill file to give your shovel a "Tune-up" & you’ll be amazed at how much better it will perform! Try it!

Tip #12.Vinegarize your weeds! ... Yep! straight vinegar effectively kills weeds in unwanted areas. In the lawn, spray it on dandelions and other nuisance weeds when the weather is nice and dry for a few days. The weeds will shrivel up and die. This also works great for grass in sidewalk cracks and other hard to control weed areas. It’s even enviro-friendly!

Tip #13.Are the raccoons digging up your garden or worse yet your garbage?? Try this trick...FOX DROPS! Yes a few drops of fox urine around the area will keep the coons away for good!. You can buy the stuff at quality sporting goods stores.

Tip #14. Great earwig bait & trap. Mix 1 part molasses - 3 to 5 parts water.  Fill a shallow jar 1/2" from the top. Place in troubled area.  Empty regularly!

Tip #15 When putting young pepper plants in the garden, push an empty toilet paper tube over  and into the soil around them to guard against cut worms.

Tip #16 Use an old coffee filter to line the bottom of clay or plastic pots. Water can still seep out but your soil will remain in the pot!

Tip #17 Compost all your kitchen scraps! compost is the best soil builder there is. It builds dark, rich, spongy soil that tills easily, holds more water and nutrients and grows healthier crops. Composting is not difficult or messy. You'll find a lot of good books at your local garden shop or library which show you the various ways to build a compost heap or bin. It's really simple and by composting all your scraps you'll cut your household garbage by 25%!. Plus you can include leaves, clippings weeds etc. from the yard...no need to burn them anymore.

Tip #18 Encourage Ladybugs in your garden. They are known to devour 200 aphids a day as adults and even more in the larval stage. They are also very voracious predators of scales, spider mites, mealybugs, and other insect eggs. To encourage them in your garden, plant marigold, butterfly weed and tansy. You can also purchase a ladybug home or shelter to encourage them to spend the winter in your yard! Ladybugs are an excellent natural pesticide....so do the right thing and avoid using chemical pesticides whenever possible.

Nearly mature aligator-like Lady bug larva...has a big appetite for aphids!  Eggs are clusters of tiny white or yellow-orange oval upright eggs on leaves near aphid colonies. Eggs hatch in 3-5 days, babies are solid black about 2mm long (1/16"). Don't spray them with pesticides! The larva eat aphids for 2-3weeks then they pupate and become adult lady bugs.

~~Do you have a tip you’d like to share?? ~~ email us and we'll may include it on our page