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Vol. 4, Num. 29, July 16, 2009 (Read It Online) We have more tips and photos from readers as well as an article by Ellen Brown about Sunken Beds for Arid Climates. If you have any garden tips or photos to share, feel free to submit them on one of the contest pages. Be sure to give a "thumbs up" to post that you like that are marked as "Contest Contenders". Your ratings are used to pick the winners. Thanks for reading, The ThriftyFun Team
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By AngelLoveInOhio from Wooster, Ohio
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Rate It: It rained all day today and when I got home from work I took pictures of the wet flowers. Source: My yard. By Kflocey from Gladwin, MI
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Rate It: To complement a pale retaining wall, I'm using May bushes as cascading plants along the top. By ausjulie from Sydney Australia
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Rate It: Lilies are a beautiful, bursting sign of summer's arrival. However, and most unfortunately, they don't last as long as we would hope. I have some in a large planter, and I planted annuals around them so when they're finished blooming the annuals will continue to give a show throughout the summer. Last year I planted Pentas in front of the lilies which hid the fact that I cut the stems back on the lilies after they where done their show. The Pentas bloomed till the seasons' finale! By Deb H. from East Brunswick, NJ
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Rate It: Use Containers for Gardening During Droughts Our Province is in a severe drought, so we have many flowers in pots and planters.By Ragteller from Tofield, AB Canada
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If you garden in an area with poor soil fertility and drainage, you're probably familiar with the advantages of planting in raised beds. Less familiar, however, may be the concept of sunken beds - beds dug down to sit slightly below the soil surface. The Advantages of Sunken Beds For gardeners in arid climates, sunken beds offer several advantages to raised beds and ground level beds. They are designed to capture maximum rainfall and retain moisture, so they dry out less quickly, keep roots cooler, and lessen the need for irrigation. Below grade walls also cast a small amount of shade, which gives garden plants a slight reprieve from scorching summer temperatures. Assessing Your Site Unfortunately, not all arid garden sites are good candidates for sunken beds - for example areas prone to frequent flash floods. As many gardeners in the southwest can attest, desert soil can also be hard to excavate - sometimes literally as hard as a rock. The usual culprit is caliche, a hardened deposit consisting of calcium carbonate. Also referred to as deadpan, caliche beds can form impermeable cement-like layers in the soil that prevent water from draining, roots from developing, and cause soil to skyrocket to the alkaline end of the pH scale. Layers of caliche can vary from a few inches to a few feet thick, and may be nearly impossible to dig through with a shovel unless first soaked with water. Even then it becomes very heavy and clay-like and removing it is a lot of work. Gardeners who find themselves unable penetrate layers of caliche by hand need to consider if their garden is large enough to make enlisting the help of experts worth the cost. Digging Sunken Beds If you decide your garden site is a good candidate for digging sunken beds, you will prepare them the same way you would any other new planting site. First you'll need to dig down at least 24 to 30 inches deep, screen out any existing caliche, and fill the beds back up with a mixture of soil and compost. This ensures the soil will have sufficient drainage, and that plant roots have sufficient amounts of organic matter and adequate space to grow. Adding organic matter will also help neutralize imbalances in the soil's pH. Beds should be refilled so that the top of the bed is a few inches lower than the original grade. Leave native soil around the sides of each bed as a path. Its compact nature will also help direct rainwater toward the beds. Mulch Like Mad Mulching reduces the stress of plants growing in dry soils by slowing down the rate of evaporation. Add a thick layer (3 to 5 inches) of organic mulch around plants as they emerge to keep soil cool and help retain moisture. Using straw or compost will also add extra organic nutrients to the soil. Native plants (those naturally adapted to dry conditions) should not be smothered in mulch.
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Rate It: Saving Your Garden from Torrential Rain Last year, around the end of summer, there was a big storm that formed off the coast of Baja California. We saw it on the Weather Channel. We live in the Midwest, and we had no reason to believe that storm could possibly come our way, but it did, and it came with a vengeance that we'd never seen with weather before. In just a few days time, we had over 11 plus inches of rain, come down on all of us. We were frightened, but then I remembered my dad. When I was a young teenager, we had some frightful downpours. My dad dressed up, and he went outside with a spade, a fork, a shovel, whatever was needed, and he dug and dug for his life and ours. He made a kind of trench, that directed the water away from our home. This is what I did this last late summer. My trench was no where near the width that my dad dug. I used a garden hoe, and I made the trench as deep and wide as it needed to be. The trench needed to be about two inches wide. I also dug the trench deep, so that the water could spill away from the house, down the trench, and out into the yard. It was only a few inches deep, just enough to get the job done. I had a pumpkin patch with four sunflowers at one end of it, that I was especially proud of, and the pumpkin plants seemed fine, but the sunflowers were saturated and drooping from the torrential rains. I knew they wouldn't make it, so I dug and dug, and I pulled mud up onto the land. I dug little tiny islands around all of the sunflowers, and pulled mud and muck up around onto the land, in a way that the rain wouldn't get back to the sunflowers or pumpkin plants. Even though my dad was in heaven, I knew I was doing the right thing, it's what my dad would have done to save the plants. When I first faced those torrential rains, I was scared. I dressed up like a person in a snowstorm. But I grabbed a garden hoe, and I faced it, and I made it through the storm. I kept thinking of my dad, and how he cut something like a gully into the landscape to drain the rain away. What my dad made was a whole lot bigger than what I made, but what I made was big enough to drain the rain away, and save all of us. Even though we had about 11 inches of rain or more, we never got drowned by it, our home was safe, but we were never the same again. I am truly thankful that I went through the experience of my dad creating a drainage system during a big rainstorm, otherwise, I may not have known to start digging with a garden hoe. I am truly thankful that even though we might get a lot of rain, it can safely be diverted with a simple garden hoe. God Bless Thriftyfun! Source: This source is truly me. There is no book, website, or magazine. I'm me being me! By Carol L. from South Bend, IN Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf15207198.tip.html
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Rate It: Reuse Plastic Cupcake Trays to Start Seeds Use cupcake trays from the grocery store bakery for mini greenhouse to start plant seeds in. Each cake compartment holds a peat seed starter pot nicely. All you need to do is use a soldering iron to melt some drainage holes and a couple vent holes on top. Use peat seed starter pots in each cake compartment. When plants get bigger just remove the peat pots and reuse your cupcake greenhouse over and over. By Kim from Kansas Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf89109558.tip.html
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Rate It: I like to put a trash bag, folded in half or to whatever size I want it and held down by rocks out in the garden and then when it rains, the water puddles and makes a great bird bath. They appear to just love it. You can use recycled plastic or garbage bags for it. They enjoy taking a bath so much in the summer. By Robyn Fed from Hampton, TN Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf37681864.tip.html
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Rate It: I use my grass clippings to mulch my containers.; for my flowers or my veggie plants. It keeps the soil moist and breaks down to fertilize the soil. By Karen from Ansonia, CT Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf57188111.tip.html
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Rate It: Keep Your Garden Pots Moist With a Diaper Help your pots and hanging baskets keep some moisture by adding a baby diaper in the pot. If you decide to take away the plastic, be sure to water soak the diaper first before emptying the contents into the soil. The dust from the dry contents is not healthy if inhaled. I soak the diapers before putting them in my pots. They hold a lot of water. By kwinters from Jackson, MS Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf73304658.tip.html
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I have some Crepe Myrtles in my yard and I would like to keep them short. What shall I do? Hardiness Zone: 8b By ladyinpinkm4 from Birmingham, AL Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf30985479.tip.html
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Rate It: Planting Instructions for Hyacinths I have never planted bulbs before. I am interested in planting Hyacinth bulbs. Do they need full sun, partial sun, or shade. I am new to this and have no idea. Thanks. Hardiness Zone: 6a By brunnet from Richboro, PA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf21413109.tip.html
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Rate It: Getting Rid of Subterranean (Ground) Termites Does anyone have any tips on how to get rid of ground termites without using chemicals or pesticides? We have 2 mounds that we need to get rid of before they start infecting my house. We live in a wooded area and do not want to hurt the local wildlife or my pets for that matter. Any proven suggestions would help? Thanks. By acassel from Pipersville, PA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf51213973.tip.html
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Rate It: I live in Georgia and this is the first time trying to grow Strawberries here. I have grown them in Florida and they did great, but they are dying quickly and have not produced much fruit. What can I do to save what I have left? Hardiness Zone: 7b By Horsewzl from Macon, GA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf71596716.tip.html
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Rate It: How do I get my Hydrangea plant to bloom? Hardiness Zone: 7a By annek4 from Northford, CT Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf28087837.tip.html
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Rate It: What is zinc sulfate? By LEW2 from Modesto, CA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf86172163.tip.html
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Rate It: I think my Tomato plants are suffering from blossom end rot, how can I fix this? I'm afraid I've been watering too much, every morning until the soil looks wet. I don't want to cut back too much and shock the plants, what do I do? Hardiness Zone: 8a By hanmay3 from Atlanta, GA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf47417928.tip.html
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Rate It: I heard you could use Dawn for indoor plants. It what situations is it useful? Hardiness Zone: 8b By MOLLY13 from FL Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf62745240.tip.html
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Rate It: Getting Rid of Volunteer Trees We lost several trees to the drought. One Poplar had an extensive root system. We ground out the stump and now we have 100's of volunteers. How do we kill them without killing all the grass? Or do we sacrifice the grass and replant next year? Hardiness Zone: 8a By christinaamacauley from Charlotte, NC Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf76424056.tip.html
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Rate It: I have at least 50 houseplants. I re-potted many over the years and have never had a problem with gnats, now I do. I try to let the soil dry out as much as I can without harming the plants. These little stinkers won't go away. How can I get rid of them? Should I poke holes in the soil for ventilation? Would it help to dry the soil out? Is there some kind of bug poison I can use? Thanks. Hardiness Zone: 10a By nerakk from Hesperia, CA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf85907386.tip.html
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Rate It: Zucchini Plant Not Producing Fruit Why is my Zucchini only making male flowers and no fruit? Hardiness Zone: 9a By teaped from Hackberry, AZ Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf11807625.tip.html
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Rate It: My cantaloupes have had hundreds of blooms for several weeks, but no fruit forms. Bees and yellow jacket wasps are visiting the blooms constantly. What can I do to get fruit? Hardiness Zone: 7b By jspears from Argyle, TX Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf89852084.tip.html
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Rate It: How do I kill poison ivy? It has grown excessively this Spring. Thanks. Hardiness Zone: 7b By maere6836 from NJ Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf344848.tip.html
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Rate It: Homemade Natural Pesticide for Vegetables I am looking for a natural bug killer that I can spray or sprinkle on my garden plants. The bugs are eating my kale and collard greens. Hardiness Zone: 5a By Sunset_Key_Gal from Tipton, IN Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf11207718.tip.html
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Rate It: Growing Potted Plants on Balcony in Cairo I live in the suburbs of Cairo on the 8th floor. My apartment faces northwest, lots of dust, wind, and humidity especially in summer. I love plants, but unfortunately did not succeed with growing any on my 2 nice balconies. I am seeking advice, as nothing is surviving. By amani from Cairo, Egypt Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf78502876.tip.html
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Rate It: Leaves on Gardenia Turning Brown My Gardenia was beautiful when it came from the florist shop, and it said partial sun on the tag. However, it has been over a month and it is doing awful. Most of the leaves turned brown, dried up, and have fallen off. There are only a few green ones left, what should I do? Hardiness Zone: 6a By morbetomommy from KS Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf89509713.tip.html
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Rate It: What kind of plant is this? I want to help it grow. I saved it from a bankrupt office. Hardiness Zone: 6b By craazyuncle from Pittsburgh, PA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf64036575.tip.html
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Rate It: I've been trying to identify this plant for over a year and I still haven't found it. It looks like a miniature tiger lily with green leaves mottled with purple-brown. It grows wild here in the Sault, but I'm not sure if it's a wildflower or some kind of hybrid that escaped captivity. Any ideas? Hardiness Zone: 4a By ALANTAIN from Sault Ste Marie, ON Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf67042399.tip.html
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Rate It: What are these bugs? They are very tiny and black, so small I can't even get a good pic of them. When I step out in the yard I get these small black specks moving all over my legs! They die really easy, just by rubbing my legs, then they're gone. I don't know what they are and we're about to throw my son a birthday party in a week and I've got to get rid of these bugs! What are they and how do I get them to go away for good? By AmandaRose from Mystic, CT Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf72108334.tip.html
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Rate It: Hydrangea Leaves Turning Yellow I planted six hydrangeas along the south side of my 5 ft. fence. They are Limelights, Quickfire and Pink Winky. They've been there 3 yrs. They grow well but I'm noticing yellow leaves that are dropping off. The flowers are forming great but I'm concerned. Are they getting too much or too little water? Please help. Thank you. Hardiness Zone: 5b By lincolnshire from Springfield, IL Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf61671268.tip.html
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Rate It: How can I propagate anemones? I already have some plants growing at the moment. Thanks. Hardiness Zone: 6b By richardpeeej from UK Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf23544125.tip.html
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Rate It: I planted a tomato garden last year, but this year didn't plant. I have three healthy tomato plants that popped up spontaneously. Will they produce fruit? Hardiness Zone: 7a By jpren3 from MD Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf42252881.tip.html
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Rate It: When checking on strawberry plants, one resource says to toss the main plants and keep the runners; the other resource says to toss the runners and keep the main plant. Does anyone know which is correct? Hardiness Zone: 6a By Lizbro from Boston, MA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf44439723.tip.html
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Rate It: Why are my Lupin leaves yellow? By Mary S. Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf71650107.tip.html
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Rate It: Zucchini Rots After Blossoms Drop Off Why do my Zucchini rot after the blossom drops off? They never get to picking size. Hardiness Zone: 6b By Guilford from Chesterfield Twp, MI Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf90401564.tip.html
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Rate It: Getting Rid of Aphids and Whitefly There was a post awhile back about making your own pest control out of soap and water. I need a pest control for aphids and whitefly. Can someone help me? By mother3times from Interlachen, FL Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf91644588.tip.html
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Rate It: I have lovely cantaloupe vines that had lots of blooms that were covered with insects, but only have one melon. How do I get them to produce more melons? Hardiness Zone: 7b By mooncat2 from NC Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf42805963.tip.html
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Rate It: The Bottom of My Tomatoes are Turning Brown I'm growing tomatoes in a Topsy Turvy planter. The fruit is about 1.5 inches across, and the bottom is discolored (beige). What is the cause, and what can I do to save the other (green) tomatoes? Hardiness Zone: 9b By sandralee406 from Beaumont, TX Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf63570580.tip.html
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Rate It: Growing Rainier Cherries from Seed Can I get some help on starting Rainier cherry trees from the seeds? I just ate some and they are so good. I have saved the seeds. Do I need to dry them or soak them before planting in pots or what? Thanks so much for your help. Hardiness Zone: 7a By Mikeinva from Roanoke, VA Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf36471512.tip.html
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Rate It: Changing the Color of Lilac Flowers Is it possible to change the color of your lilac flowers from white to purple? Please let me know. Thank you. By jim/joyce from Edmonton, Alberta Post Feedback: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf99026843.tip.html
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Rate It: Looking for a frugal solution to an everyday problem? Submit your request here: Click Here
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