Happy Garden - September 24, 2009

Vol. 4, Num. 39, September 24, 2009 (Read It Online) We have a very interesting article by Ellen today, about setting up your own sundial. If you have any experience with using your own sun dial, be sure to leave feedback about it on the article page. Please keep sending in your tips and photos of your garden this time of year. We would love to hear about harvests, preparations for winter and any Halloween/Harvest yard decoration ideas. Thanks for reading, The ThriftyFun Team Send to a Friend! Submit Your Gardening Tips Submit Photos of Your Garden Submit a Gardening Request Edit Your Subscriptions: To edit your ThriftyFun subscriptions, click the Update Profile/Email Address link at the bottom of this newsletter. Today's newsletter contains: Photos: Garden: Filling Containers Frugally Garden: Peaches Tips and Articles: Setting Time With A Simple Horizontal Sundial New Requests: Separating Fruit Trees That are Growing Close Together Finding Hummingbird Vine Seeds Do Copperhead Snakes Have a Cucumber Odor? Clearing Land and Selling the Trees Removing Vine Tendrils From Brick Walls Storing Potatoes for Planting in Spring Insects Causing Lawn to Turn Brown Today's Sponsor: Crafting for Fun and Money! If you are an avid crafter, capable writer and own a digital camera, you are eligible to participate. Submit your craft projects to ThriftyFun and we will pay $15 for any crafts that we publish. More Information: Click Here: http://www.thriftyfun.com/post_craft.ldml Photos: Garden: Filling Containers Frugally Like so many other gardeners, I lust after the magazine cover decks and porches pictured overflowing with color. But I've also priced out some of those containers at over $40 each, just to buy the annuals needed to fill them. And that can be ONE container. Since I have over 50 containers to fill each season, I've learned many ways to get a lush look for less. First, pick your annuals wisely;-). For me, one six pack of salvias is about $1.50 and will fill a large container within a few weeks. The bright red is not my favorite color as I lean to the "Monet" palette of blues and pinks, but the red does make a bright cheery statement and the hummingbirds love it! I have two big white pots in front of my picture window and those salvias are workhorses all summer long. At a combined cost of $3.00, that's a lot of punch for a sunny area (they'll look sad and listless in the shade). I also use smaller Terra cotta planters that I can pick up for $1.00 or less at garage sales and put in one six pack of begonias. These are also hard workers and will bloom all summer in the shade, asking little in return. For $1.50, I've got a little table display for about three months here in Wisconsin. Another idea I've started to put to good use is to mix in perennials dug from my yard to give the displays a lusher look. I saw this done at Olbrich Botanical Gardens, came home and dug out astilbe, daylilies, hostas and others from the garden and put them in plastic pots. Then I put the plastic pots into bigger planters. The reason for the double potting is that plastic retains moisture better and at the end of the season, I can pop out the plastic container, plant and all, and over winter put this by my shed. All of these hardy plants come back bigger and better each year. And, of course, an empty Terra cotta planter is MUCH easier to move into the garage for its winter quarters. Cost of the perennials - Free! And if they get too big for their plastic containers, I just sell them at my annual garage sale and start digging more divisions. If you don't have them already, Terra cotta and other planters are easy to come by. Spend a weekend going to some garage sales or estate sales and you can usually pick them up for $1 or less. If that doesn't work, just post on Craigslist or Freecycle or even put up a note at your local grocery store and someone out there will have a pile gathering dust in some back shed that they'll be glad to sell or give you. The bigger the better in containers as the larger sizes retain moisture better and the plants just seem happier. Put a layer of grass clippings or leaves from your yard in the lower half of the planter. This helps keep in moisture and vastly reduces the amount of planting soil you need to buy, which can be expensive. I know some people suggest dumping your soil each year and starting new. I've never done this and had no problems. The soil actually gets richer as the grass and leaves break down and enrich the potting soil. You just need a tiny bit of topping off the following year. Some annuals can be wintered over inside for even more cost savings. I've been quite successful doing this with geraniums in the front window, but not successful with many other annuals. I'd love to hear others' experiences with annuals indoors. So as the fall gets chilly, pull out your garden notebook and ask how you're going to make-over your own porch or deck into a magazine cover paradise next spring. Happy gardening! Source: http://thefrugalmillionairess.blogspot.com/ By frugal millionairess from Wisconsin Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf99909778.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Garden: Peaches Here are my peaches this year. I haven't had any peaches on this tree for the last few years, it almost died and has been making a slow comeback. This year, the tree was loaded! I hadn't realized how many until I came back to see what I could salvage. We harvested in mid August and then again a few weeks later. The later ones were riper and I was able to easily remove the pit. Some of the under ripe ones I put in a paper bag to ripen. This would have been fine, except I forgot about them and I had some yucky peach mush to clean up. I made peach pie and peach refrigerator jam. I also have a full gallon bag in the freezer with sliced peaches. I'll use them in the winter when we want a taste of summer. Hope next year's harvest is even better! By Jess Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf73430608.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Tips and Articles: Setting Time With A Simple Horizontal Sundial By Ellen Brown Thousands of years ago sundials were the primary means used to keep track of time. Early sundials tracked the length of daylight through changing seasons, dividing the hours from sunrise until sunset into equal parts. Although they still exist, today's sundials are often thought of as little more than decorative relics for the garden. If you set them up properly, however, they can still be used to tell "solar" time. Here's a simple way to set up horizontal (flat) sundials. How Sundials Work Sundials indicate time by casting the sun's shadow onto a surface (known as a dial) that is inscribed with numbers or symbols representing hours in the day. With some models, it's also possible to determine the month or day of the year, and get information on the horizon and the equator. A Few Important Terms Celestial North: True north as opposed to the magnetic north on a compass. Where Polaris is located in the sky (the last star in the handle of the Little Dipper constellation). Dial Plate (or face plate): The face of the sundial that contains the numerals or symbols represeting the hours of time. Gnomon (or style): The object (shadow arm) on a sundial that rises off the dial at an angle and projects a shadow to indicate time. Plinth: Architectural support or base; the pedestal that a sundial sits on. Scientific Accuracy Setting sundials to keep accurate "clock" time involves making three adjustments: one for the location within your time zone, a second for summer (length of days), and a third for the non-uniformity of solar time (the Earth's orbit speed and the tilt of its axis varies, so without adjustments, time will vary as much as 16 minutes faster or slower at different times of the year). The dial face and the plinth also need to be set at angles relative to your latitude. Finding these measurements can be complicated. Because typical garden-center sundials are not always created correctly for the latitude their sold in, for the purpose of this article, we're going to keep things much more simple. If you're interested in obtaining a more scientifically accurate sundial, you'll need to look for manufacturers that request your latitude information at the time of purchase. Location and Placement When placing your garden sundial, choose an open spot in full sun. Lay it on a level surface (use a flat stone, tree stump, or a plinth designed specifically for sundials) where it's convenient to view. Make sure it lays level, but don't attach it permanently. You'll need to be able to turn the dial periodically to adjust it to the correct time. Determine Your "Solar" Noon Noon is the hour in your local time zone is when the clock time shows 12 pm. Solar noon, also called "sun transit", is the moment when the sun appears highest in the sky, which depends on your latitude, longitude, and the current date. It's nature's time, not the neatly divided 24-hour "human" time as shown by our clocks. To find out when (in clock time) "solar" noon happens where you live, visit the U.S Naval Oceanography Portal's website, plug in your city and state (or province), and look for your "sun transit" (listed between sunrise and sunset). http://www.usno.navy.mil/USNO/astronomical-applications/data-services/rs-one-day-us This is the clock time adjusted for your location, when the sun is highest overhead where you live (solar noon). Find Celestial "True" North Here are three easy ways to find true north (not compass north). Use the sun. In the Northern Hemisphere, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. At "solar" noon (different than clock time), it shines in the middle of the horizon and directly south. If you walk with the sun directly at your back at "solar" noon, you're heading the direction of true north. In the Southern Hemisphere, everything is reversed. Use GPS. If you have a GPS unit, set the dial to find true north, enter your location, and it will take care of the rest. Some cell phones may now have these applications as well. Use a compass. To find true north using an adjustable compass, you need to know your local declination value, or the angle difference between true north and magnetic north and north on your compass. To find out the approximate value in your area, use NOAA's Geographical Data Center. http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/geomagmodels/Declination.jsp Plug in your zip code to compute your declination value. If the value given is east of the line (negative), turn the ring on your compass clockwise; if the value given is west of the line (positive), turn the ring counterclockwise. Setting the Time At solar noon, face true north and turn the sundial so that the shadow of the gnomon falls on the noon mark on the dial. You're now on sun time! For optimum accuracy, set (or reset if necessary) your dial on one of the four days of the year that that sun time and clock time actually agree: April 15, June 14, September 2 and December 25. If you prefer, at solar noon you can also set your sundial to the current clock time. Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf19745215.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Contest! Tip Contest Submit a Tip or Recipe! Photo Contest Submit a tip with photo! The above contests are weekly. We pick 2 tip winners, 2 photo winners (1 photo and 1 pet photo) and 1 recipe winner at the end of each week. Each winner will win $25! My Frugal Life Submit a My Frugal Life Essay! New Requests: Separating Fruit Trees That are Growing Close Together I have a cherry tree and some how a pear tree also popped up next to that. Both trees bear nice fruits. How do I separate them without damaging either one? I would like to transfer the pear tree somewhere else. Thanks. Hardiness Zone: 5a By Umankad from MA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf42258058.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Finding Hummingbird Vine Seeds Where can I find hummingbird vine seeds? Hardiness Zone: 6a By thire from Paola, KS Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf36730373.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Do Copperhead Snakes Have a Cucumber Odor? Does a Copperhead snake put off an odor that smells like cucumber? By pastorjohn from Pomeroy, OH Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf11583755.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Clearing Land and Selling the Trees I have approx. 9 acres of property in Alabama that I want to clear and sell the trees. How do I get started and who do I contact? By mind of milli from Atlanta, GA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf14651773.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Removing Vine Tendrils From Brick Walls I removed vines from the brick of my house. How do I clean the brick now, since I still have the little "fingers" holding onto my brick? Hardiness Zone: 6a By jackig from OH Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf73882542.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Storing Potatoes for Planting in Spring I have an unusual purple potato that I would like to plant in next year's garden. How do I prepare and store the potato until next spring? By nickic1000 from MI Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf11332998.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Insects Causing Lawn to Turn Brown What do I do about bugs in the lawn? They are making the lawn look brown. Hardiness Zone: 10a By hanminxue from St. Petersburg, FL Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf81360501.tip.html Email to a Friend | Get Responses | Bookmark | Link | Print | Rate It: | Looking for a frugal solution to an everyday problem? Submit your request here: Click Here Today's Sponsor: Crafting for Fun and Money! If you are an avid crafter, capable writer and own a digital camera, you are eligible to participate. Submit your craft projects to ThriftyFun and we will pay $15 for any crafts that we publish. More Information: Click Here: http://www.thriftyfun.com/post_craft.ldml More Stuff Seed Swap! Swap seeds with other ThriftyFun.com users. Submit a Request... Frugal solutions to everyday problems.