What's in my garden bag

I have tons of garden stuff on the shelf in the garage, things I see at garden centers, or read about, and think I must try them out.  But I realize there are just a few items, the most important tools, I must have for every day gardening and they are in my Apolis garden bag. I tried several different garden bags and they are all ok but I stopped using them after a while, there was always something bothering me with them and I ended up with my tools in a small bucket.

This garden bag looks so good and is practical with lots of pockets, outside for the tools, inside for the phone and camera. 

Behind the garden bag is the Tub-trug, the 38-liter size, a lightweight garden bucket with handles, I do not need to go out into the yard without it :-) 

So, what's in the bag:

Green onions on the windowsill

Does this happen to you?
Once in a while an onion starts growing in my onion pot. Just one, all others are well behaved waiting to be chopped and diced.

Saving Nectarines

our young nectarine trees are being vandalized...

Crocs :-)

I love my Crocs!

but boy, did I drag my feet before I broke down and got them! I thought they look ugly, simple as that.  My footwear of choice for many years are Birkenstock, but they don't have the quality as they used to have, way back when.... Birkenstock nowadays fall apart when getting wet, and since I was getting tired of buying new Birkis all the time, I started looking for the perfect gardener's shoes, and here I am with Crocs.  And yes, I can't believe it took me so long to even give them a try, soft and airy and cushiony and nothing rubs nor pokes, I never trip nor lose one off my foot.


So, I am sure I am the very last gardener to rave about them, but just in case there is another straggler out there reading this, go ahead and give them a try  :D

Compostaphile or Compostaphobe... To rot or not to rot...

It is the time of year to trim back the plants and getting the garden ready for spring. I am filling up the compost bin...

I could not do without a Compost!! ...

make 'em sneeze

Weekly Gardening Tip

To 'evict' Armadillos from your yard, toss ground black pepper into their burrows.

Don't be cheap, add a handful of it  ;-)

Wait a few days and close the burrow with soil.

Armadillo, caught to take a closer look

grow Green Onions

Don't discard the white part with the roots from the store-bought green onions.

Plant them and with a little care you will soon have green onions growing in your garden or plant in a pot.

start green onions for free

Earthworms are Nature's tillers

Natural fertilizers, compost and organic materials encourage native earthworms. Earthworms are Nature's tillers and soil conditioners, and manufacture great fertilizer.

Here in Florida gardens don't get blankets of snow and ice, there's no winter break for the earthworms. Add leaves (shredded or not) to your flowerbeds, the earthworms will love you for it!

I tried worm farming a while back, but gave it up. It just wasn't the thing for me. I rather 'feed' the earthworms throughout the yard by distributing compost soil, horse manure, alfalfa pellets, and of course shredded leaves from our Crepe Myrtles. Earthworms also love used coffee grounds :-)

Save the cooking water

Vegetables for dinner? save the cooking water.Let it cool and water your plants with the broth, it is fortified with trace elements and minerals.

Crepe Myrtle flower

Go Green with an electric mower

Owning an electric mower for 2 months now and hubby being completely satisfied with its performance, I thought it is time to post about it.

It was time for us to buy a new mower, the old gas mower started to give us problems.

After researching online, we decided to give the cordless electric mower a try. The 'box-store' has the '30 day bring it back no questions ask policy', making the decision easy for us.

go green

spritz and go

Use Lysol spray to quickly disinfect gardening tools.

disinfect your gardening tools

It is important to keep your garden tools clean and sanitary. Fungus, bacteria and viruses can attach themselves to tools and are spread from plant to plant when using that tool.
I keep a can of Lysol on the shelf next to my clippers.

Ready... Set.... Mark...

I am thinking there are just as many plant markers available as there are plant species, and it sure is not easy to find the one that works for me.
My friends ask: ‘why plant markers? you are not a Botanical Garden’.... which brings me to my pet peeve: it drives me crazy to walk through Botanical Gardens and just that one plant I am curious about does not have a tag. Believe me, I flag down a worker and don’t let it go until I get that name!.... sorry for ranting…. back to markers…

Way back when, it was the first thing I did after purchasing a plant, I tossed the plant tags. Nowadays it is just the opposite, no tag, I may not buy, knowing I will spend hours and hours searching to identify the plant.

There are great plant markers available, like this one, except, they are meant for just a handful of plants:

clay markers

good to know

There is no need to work the soil deeply when adding compost or soil amendments.

85% of a plant's roots are found in the top 6" of soil.

6 inches is all it takes

don't forget those special seeds

If you want to save the seeds of a favorite flower, tie a ribbon on its stem while in bloom.
This will remind you after the flower has faded to collect those special seeds :-)

a string works too

chilly

We have a cold front visiting us, tonight the temperatures are supposed to go as low as 50F.
50F is that magic number when I bring in my Vanda orchids. Yes, they may take lower temperatures without damage, but in my experience they will flower earlier come next spring.

Vanda Cindy Banks Hilltop

Interesting...

A Daisy is a sun-like flower with the rays, or petals, surrounding a golden center. It was commonly known as the "day's eye" and over time, was eventually called daisy.

Aspirin

Aspirin cures more than headaches, it fights fungus like black spot, mildew or rust.

Dissolve 2 uncoated aspirin tablets in 1 quart of water and use as foliage spray.

I water young seedlings and cuttings I want to root  a few times with the Aspirin solution.

Aspirin is good for plants

plant shelf

A discarded CD rack I found is the perfect size for holding small pots.
DH used 4 screws to secure the shelf to the wall:

Seed Storage

This is my way to keep seeds organized:

I use a regular binder, plastic sleeves for collecting baseball cards and coin envelopes bought at an office supply store.
The plastic sleeves held pokemon cards (my son outgrew them by now) and the coin envelopes fit perfectly into the slots. I put 2 coin envelopes per card holder.

Folder with coin envelopes

Coffee Grounds

I am a firm believer in used coffee grounds for the garden!

Not only do I add all my used grounds to our compost pile, but I ever so often take a bucket to our local coffee shop and ask them to fill it for me.

I sprinkle it everywhere, in the herb and flower beds, and over the grass areas.

For some facts and information go HERE