Pests can invade, destroy, and annoy both the garden and the gardener. While bugs are an inevitable (yet sometimes rewarding) presence in your garden, you don’t need harmful chemicals to ward off these little visitors. Many tried and true organic solutions can zap away pests without the toxic residues of chemical pesticides, which can leak into the ground and contaminate the groundwater that eventually flows...
“Oh, I can’t draw.” This is invariably the thing I hear when I’m having a conversation with someone, probably in a work context, and probably with someone who’s trying to explain to me how something would work in their head that we’re going to try and build together. It’s what I hear when I ask them if they could sketch out the idea they’re...
A test is done when you want to know whether your soil is acidic, neutral or alkaline. Why does it matter? Most plants need a fairly neutral soil so they can retrieve all the nutrients from it that they require, but some are more fussy and may want it more acidic or alkaline. By testing, you can determine if a garden location will be...
Don’t throw out those used coffee grounds: Your plants need ’em. Composting is a low-maintenance way to minimize personal kitchen waste, create cheap, nutrient-rich fertilizer, and contribute to the health and productivity of a personal or community garden. Compost is a great gift for plants: It naturally helps replenish the nutrients drawn out of the soil by their roots. Good thing, then, that the...