I am a villain when it comes to plants. I’ve been known to kill silk plants. Yes, really. I watched the leaves fall from a silk arrangement after I’d moved it around a bit and set it out. Generally, house plants are dead within a month, and the longest we’ve had one is six weeks.

I wasn’t always like this. I used to have beautiful house plants. African Violets were my favorite, as well as Dieffenbachia, Schefflera, Mimosa, Chlorophytum, Pothos, English Ivy, and Amaryllis. I used to have loads of flowers outside, some from scratch like Gladiolas, Freesia, Nasturtium, Sweet Peas and Morning Glories, and of course greenhouse purchases like Petunias and Marigolds.

I started killing the house plants when I was pregnant with Care, and since then it’s been a non-stop spree of brown leaves, dry roots and teeny-tiny wee bugs. It didn’t seem to matter what I did, they were gone quickly. So now I leave the gardening to the child that sucked all my green-thumbery right out of me, sometime around her sixth month of gestation. Some day, I hope to get it back…. I miss living in a jungle.

This year, we’re progressing from the container garden, to a doubled 4×4 ‘square foot’ gardening theme. We’ll still have to use the containers for various things, like the cucumber (with cage to climb!) and zucchini (with cage to climb!), tomato plants and probably the peppers, but the 8×4 garden is going to have all kinds of summer yummies; peas, green and yellow beans, radishes, carrots and parsnips. I’m hoping to find some space to put in four potatoes (pails, small containers, even boxes!) so we can have fresh baby potatoes to go with the carrots, peas, and beans… mmm… depression stew! Okay, not so much depression stew, but that’s what my family called it… it’s basically creamed veggies, and we usually serve it with bbq hamburgers or sausage.

Here’s a few tips/recipes for some natural ways to take care of fertilization, slugs, weeds, and mosquitoes (you want to sit outside and enjoy your garden without being drained of blood by nature’s little vampires!)…

Compost Tea

Ingredients:
1 gl compost (older, but active) with 1 c manure blended in
3 gl rainwater or rested water (tap water set to sit out, difusing chloring and fluoride)
2 tbsp molasses (blackstrap is best)

Materials:
5 gl pail
aquarium air pump with hose
long dowel or stick for stirring
spare pillow case or cheesecloth (to strain)
hand sprayer and/or watering can

Instructions:
Prepare the air pump and hose as you would for an aquarium. If you don’t have the bubbler stones, I’ve been advised you can cut several small holes in the hose and that will work as well, so long as the end has a plug that is secure. Place the hose in a circle around the bottom of the pail, leading up and out to the pump. Secure that end to the side of the pail with duct tape, if you prefer.

Add the compost/manure mixture to the pail, making sure it is loose and light, and that the hose has been covered. Add the water and molasses. Give it a bit of a stir, and then turn on the pump. Let it run for two to three days, then using the pillow case, strain it into another pail. It should smell like earth, not rot. If it smells of rot, don’t use it.

You can spray this tea directly onto the plants, or soak the soil with it. Unless you intend on leaving the bubbler on and adding another tablespoon or so of molasses over time, you need to use the tea within a day or so.

Natural Slug Control

Citrus halves – cut your favorite citrus (orange, grapefruit/lemon) in half, spoon out the meat of the fruit and place the halves around your garden. Slugs will crawl in, and before you go to bed, you can collect the halves (slugs and all) and toss them away.

Coffee – make a weak coffee solution and spray your plants and the soil. This will deter slugs, if not kill them.

Beer trap – place beer in a large container lid, and bury just to the lip in the garden. The slugs will come to party, and not be able to drive home… early in the morning, remove the trap and get rid of the bodies.

Copper – carefully cut a copper scrub pad into sections, and stretch them out, and place around the edge of your garden, planters or around the base of your plants. The copper will cut into their bodies and kill them, if they don’t react to the electric shock they’ll get as the copper reacts with their slime. Even circular bits of copper tubing work, so you can try that as well.

Diatomaceous Earth – this is nothing more than ground up, fossilized shells of one-celled organisms called Diatoms. Sprinkle around your garden, plants, planters, etc. The shells cut into the bodies of the slugs, and kills them.

Non-Toxic Weed Killer

Ingredients:
white vinegar
2 tbsp table salt
1 tbsp liquid castile soap (or 1 tsp dish detergent, if you must)

Materials:
500 ml hand sprayer
measuring cups

Instructions:
Measure salt and liquid soap into the hand sprayer, fill to within a half-inch of the top with vinegar and give it a gentle shake to blend. Spray liberally on offending weeds, taking care not to spray your grass and plants.

Mosquito Trap

Ingredients:
1 c water
1/4 c brown sugar
1 gram of yeast (1/7th packet)

Materials:
2 l plastic bottle
tape
black material to cover

Instructions:
Cut the plastic bottle in half.

Mix the sugar with the hot water, and let it cool. Pour the mixture into the bottom half of the bottle, and add the yeast. No need to mix; it creates carbon dioxide, which attracts mosquitoes.

Put the top half of the bottle upside down into the other half of the bottle, and tape them together. Wrap the bottle with something black, and leave the top uncovered. Place it away from your seating area or garden. This works for about two weeks before it’ll need to be replaced.

Happy gardening!
<3 JL