Happy Garden - February 5, 2009

Thank you for all the gardening tips and photo submissions! Keep them coming! Spring is coming up, do you have any tips for getting your garden ready for spring? Feel free to submit them here:

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Thanks for reading,

The ThriftyFun Team

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Photos:

• Garden: Keep Your Garden Child Friendly
• Garden: Gazing Ball Found New Life
• Craft: Valentine's Day Candy Dish
• Craft Project: Suet Birdseed Wreath
• Gardening: Dianthas, Hostas and Asiatic Lilies

Tips and Articles:

• Freeze Birdseed to Kill Insects
• Kill Weeds Between Paving Stones
• Use Yarn to Wick Water to Houseplants
• Research Shows Weeds Becoming Resistant to Glyphosate
• Bamboo Wigwam for Climbing Plants
• Product Review: Mini LED Indoor Plant Light
• Take Seasonal Photos Of Your Home
• Orange Peels to Keep Cats Out of Plants

New Requests:

• "Magic" Lawn Formula
• Bonsai Plants Leaves Fell Off
• Insects in House Plant Soil
• Getting Rid of Weeds in Rocks
• Cut Roses Not Opening

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:
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Garden: Keep Your Garden Child Friendly

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Garden: Gazing Ball Found New Life

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Craft: Valentine's Day Candy Dish

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Craft Project: Suet Birdseed Wreath

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Gardening: Dianthas, Hostas and Asiatic Lilies

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Freeze Birdseed to Kill Insects

Whenever you purchase wild birdseed, always place it in the freezer for 48 hours before opening bag. This will kill any insects present such as confused flour beetles.

By Clay from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

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Kill Weeds Between Paving Stones

For those that have cobblestone or brick pathways! Nasty spore growing weeds will bust through cement. Living in the lower Keys of South FL, I've dealt with some very destructive weather. As of now ,I have been pounding sand in between my rebuilt brick pathway. Those nasty weeds that spread my bricks and sea shell garden get a good dose of CHEAP SALT! After a couple days, they pull out easy! Saves on the finger knuckles and expensive weed killer. Also, I heard that cheap WHITE VINEGAR can help rid those weeds. Do not apply any salt next to your living gardening area.

By Cindy from Key West, FL

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Use Yarn to Wick Water to Houseplants

To keep house plants watered while on vacation is quite simple. Place A bowl of water near plants with yarn running from the water to a hole made in the dirt with the other end of the yarn buried. The yarn will carry water to the plant as needed. It really works!

By Debra from Hampton,Tennessee

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Research Shows Weeds Becoming Resistant to Glyphosate
By Ellen Brown

What Gardeners Can Learn

Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum, non-selective herbicide commonly used on perennial plants including grasses, sedges, and broad-leaved weeds. Most gardeners have either heard of glyphosate or used herbicides that contain it in their gardens. It can be found in familiar products like Roundup, Rodeo, Touchdown, and Pondmaster. Due to its repeated overuse, researchers have recently found 13 species of weeds that are now resistant to glyphosate.

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Bamboo Wigwam for Climbing Plants

A handy gadget I've created is based on something I once saw in a catalog that joined bamboo poles together at the top to create a wigwam for vine plants. The company wanted almost $7.00 for a pair so I made my own by using margarine tub tops.

I punched holes with a single hole puncher around the edge of the top. Depending on what kind of vining plant I use and how many stakes are needed, I punch 3 to 5 holes. Then slip the hole-punched tub top over one end of each of the stakes and spread them out to create the wigwam.

Push the bottom ends into the soil a couple inches to secure them. Depending on how thick your stakes are, you may have to enlarge the hole a bit by cutting 3 or four small slits around the punched hole.

By JoAnn S.

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Product Review: Mini LED Indoor Plant Light

Product: Mini LED Indoor Plant Light

Manufacturer: Sunbeam

Cost: $1.00

Here's another bargain I found at the Dollar Tree store. It's a black plastic battery-operated indoor plant light. Size is 6.75 x 1.75 inches. It has a photocell that automatically turns it on in the dark, and off in daylight. It has a 4 inch long spike that you can stick in the dirt and you can aim the light, or you can remove the spike and use it as a nightlight. It uses 3 AAA batteries, and is also great to put in a dark corner or porch area where you want some light at night.

By jantoo from Kenosha, WI

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Take Seasonal Photos Of Your Home

Here is a tip that you should begin right now, in the event you ever decide to sell your home:

Take seasonal photographs of your home's exterior (with your holiday lights and decorations up, after a snowfall, with the autumn leaves, in spring with all your bulbs in bloom, the rosebushes in full glory, etc.) Place these in an album, when you get ready to sell your home, these make a seasonal sales pitch no matter the ACTUAL season!

Source: Our own idea

By Diana from Prospect, KY

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Orange Peels to Keep Cats Out of Plants

Put orange peels in your potted plants, cats hate the citrus smell. Replace every week when they start to get dry. Store the extras in the freezer in a plastic bag so that when you run out of oranges you'll still have the peels.

By Melmarr from Michigan

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"Magic" Lawn Formula

Some time ago, when I lived in Florida, a person at Home Depot gave me a "magic formula" for a healthy lawn. Some of the ingredients were: Instant Tea and ammonia, along with a couple of others. It was fantastic. Can anyone provide me with the formula to be used with a 20 gal sprayer?

Leo from Houston, TX

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Bonsai Plants Leaves Fell Off

I was given a bonsai plant from my daughter for Christmas. I placed it outside in the shade and all its green leaves fell off and now its a brown color. Its still got strong roots so hopefully I haven't killed it. Please help. What have I done wrong?

Debbie

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Insects in House Plant Soil

Does my Spider plant soil fungus gnats? After watering my indoor potted plants, within about 36 hours, I noticed a soil surface infestation of what looks to be fungus gnat larvae. A large number of the larvae look like whitish thin worms from 1/4 in. to 1/2 in. long. I wasn't able to see the notorious black tip on the end of the body. The rest are about the size of a nail head with 6 legs and antenna.

Also I am finding a number of what looks like large eggs, about 3/16 in. diameter from God knows what insect species. They are yellowish to amber in color with watery yellowish goo inside and a thin brittle clear shell. What the heck could they be? Aliens? Am I wrong about the fungus gnats? Any suggestions? Help!

Tim from Buffalo, NY

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Getting Rid of Weeds in Rocks

I have all rock in my yard, but weeds are coming in like crazy. I need a money-friendly tip to get rid of all of these. It is a huge area, and I have been spraying vinegar, but I may not be using enough. Anything else you can recommend? We have had 80 degree weather after a large rainfall, so that is against me, too.

Susan from CA

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Cut Roses Not Opening

I received a dozen red roses and for one week they stayed closed. I thought they would finally open but 8 days later they are showing black edges and don't appear to be opening. Does anyone know why this would occur?

Beth from MA

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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