Helpful hints/Gardening Tips

[Keesh]

Does anyone have some tips on Environmentally friendly weed deterrents?

[Blaiddwen]

After establishing my rows, before I put down mulch, I lay landscape fabric over the garden, this keeps the weeds down and helps with moisture retention.
I found a pretty good tip on the web one day for tomato plants, prune the leaves every now and then. Leaves use up alot of the plant's energy, pruning the larger leaves, and some of the suckers, will allow the plant to grow thicker, stronger, and bear more fruit. We planted our garden 6 or 7 weeks ago, and we have tomato plants up to our chins , one of them currently has 11 tomatos on the vine, total tomatos on vine today is 79.
We also planted marigolds in and around the garden, they keep the rabbits out of the garden while they attract bees and butterflies. The birds and bees are doing a pretty good job of keeping unwanted insects at bay, as are a couple of spiders.

[Whitemane]

Another useful technique is solarization. This is good for preparing a planting area or weed control in brick paths and patios.

Cover the area in something black, such as a tarpaulin or black plastic drop cloth. Weight it down thoroughly, and wait for a few days of sunshine. The solar heating bakes the soil, killing most weeds without the use of herbicides.

[Whitemane]

The use of cat and dog poo in compost is questionable. The trouble is that various bugs and other nasties can be transmitted into the compost from pets, that then don't die in the compost because it doesn't heat up sufficiently.

Yes, I have heard that before, but in general, if you have animals in the house, you are already exposed to whatever bugs and worms are around. The main concern for pregnant women is toxoplasmosis, which is transmitted not only by the litter. Therefore, any woman living with a cat is generally exposed if the cat is infected. As for worms: My cats are wormed regularly, so I know they are okay, and I have no problem with using their litter in my garden. If that is a worry - there are so many cats in the neighbourhood that use the gardn as a litter box anyway, so all veggies must be thoroughly cleaned.

Just be careful in general...

Rabbit droppings are a brilliant fertilizer. High nitrogen and slow-release as nature intended. You can also make an infusion from them (rabbit tea) that can be used as a quick nitrogen application. We kept house bunnies for many years, and they contributed greatly to our garden.

[treegod]

I've got goats and chicken, which produce very good compost.

Have to be careful with the chicken poop though. It can be too potent for the garden. Everyday I take them compost, and put it in a container of four palletes. When it gets fairly full we take what's on top and put it elsewhere, where we start a new compost pile. The stuff at the bottom is well composted and ready to be used for the garden. It's also where we put all the coop bedding, and grass cuttings.

For the question at the top of this page (despite it being from 2009) mulch is very good. Just put it around the base of what's already growing there. This also helps retain moisture (very useful here in Spain), protects the soil and give it some nutrients too. Weeds that grow up can be uprooted and put directly back on the soil where they were, so becoming part of the mulch. There might be some plants for which this isn't advisable (if they're very invasive)

[RedSky]

everything sounds good above. if it is just a few or rather for localized spots, a strong vinegar solution caN HELP. We have mucky clay soil here and pulling weeds is nearly impossible except in the garden beds. in the beds a small hoe can help cut them off under ground but those tend to return. some folks her use a propane torch, conditions permitting. I have resorted to digging patches out but I don't relish that task.

bill

[Whitemane]

everything sounds good above. if it is just a few or rather for localized spots, a strong vinegar solution caN HELP. We have mucky clay soil here and pulling weeds is nearly impossible except in the garden beds. in the beds a small hoe can help cut them off under ground but those tend to return. some folks her use a propane torch, conditions permitting. I have resorted to digging patches out but I don't relish that task.

bill

You can break up clay soils by digging in wood ash. I'd have to check the quantities, but if you grill or barbecue regularly, or use a wood-burning fireplace, save the ash and dig it in to the soil. Apparently, the ash components lower the zeta potential that causes the clay to clump.

[RedSky]

Thanks! I'll give it a try next patch I clear.