Many people don’t realize the importance of hardening off your gardening plants. When you harden off or adjust the plant to direct sunlight and wind slowly you improve its chances of being healthy or producing faster and better crops.

Why is hardening off important?

Most plants are started in greenhouses in controlled environments. Direct sunlight is buffered by glass or plastic and often times there is little or no wind for the plant to get used to. If you subject the new tender plants to bright sun and wind it causes stress to the plants, burns leaves and can even kill them. Any stress or plant damage leaves the plant open to diseases and insect problems later on.

How to harden a plant off.

• Start slowly. I usually put the plants under a tree for the first day with dappled lighting for a few hours and a gentle wind.
• The next day the plant will get 1 ½ of sun, preferably in the morning when the sunlight is not as direct.
• Each day I add an hour. If the plants look like they are wilting I put them in a little shade. After 7 days the plants are ready to plant in the ground.

Tips:

• Plant you plants in the late afternoon and preferably on a cloudy day.
• Keep a cover handy just in case you have a plant that seems to need a break from the sun in the next few days.
• You can harden the plants off in the garden. This is a little more work and I find its easier to do this before you plant. In the garden you need keep the plants shaded most of the day and uncover them an hour more each day. I usually uncover them in the morning and evening when the sun is weaker and keep them shaded from noon to 5 pm. It will take 7 days to acclimate them to the sun and wind.

Your plants will grow better hardening them off.  It takes a little time but the end result is worth it.

Tags: hardening off garden plants, improving your new plants harvest, healthy plants, insect control

This last week I was foraging and rescuing plants from roadways and houses that were about to be torn down.

I picked up Daffodils, Tulips, Paper Whites, and Irises in bulbs. I also rescued Beebalm, Yarrow, Violets and Echinacea. These plants I use for herbal purposes.

Add to the group; Forget me Nots, Black Eyed Susan’s, Chinese lanterns and Lily of the Valley. I have two plants to identify but they came from a perennial bed of a churches garden so I know they are a better plants but I have no idea what they are. I will probably take them to a local garden center for identification.

I collected over 400 new plants and with my normal yard work and several garden projects underway I need to store these plants until I can get them in the ground.

How to store plants until they can be planted

• Dig a trench or roto-til an area about one foot wide and as long as you may need it. Six inches deep will be a good depth to loosen soil. Loosen the soil and take out any grass clumps if you have them. I usually choose a shady area for plants I am storing.

• Place the plants loosely in the soil and water them well. Note: if you have a spare garden bed this will work also.

• Cover the soil with a groundcover to help the plants roots stay moist and to stop the roots from drying out.

You  need to get the plants in their new home as quickly as possible to let the roots start to regrow and to let the plant to recover from being moved. I try to get the plants in the ground in two days or I will put them in pots and transplant them in the fall.

I also have several grasses to pick up and some ferns to move. Hopefully the weather will cooperate more than it has in the last week.

Rescuing plants is a great way to add to your plant selection plus I like saving a plant, particularly from houses that are being torn down. 

Tags: foraging plants, rescuing plants from roadways, how to salvage plants, frugal gardening

A natural and organic way to help keep bugs and pests away is to grow a plant that bugs dislike.

For each kind of bug there are certain plants you can grow next to your plants to help keep those bugs away. Using a natural pest control is better for the environment and your flowers and vegetables.

Below is a list that may help you control some of those nasty bugs.

• Ants – Plant Spearmint or Peppermint to keep ants away. If you plant it near your house it will help to keep the pests away.
• Aphids are those tiny whitish bugs that love rose bushes and many other flowers. Plant Basil, Catnip, Chives, or Nasturtium nearby to repel aphids.
• Flea Beetles and Potato Beetles – Plant Catnip nearby to keep them away. When all else fails you can pick them off.
• Japanese Beetles – Plant Geraniums or Garlic to keep them away. Also use the okra plants but plant the okra in pots and mover them around your yard. Japanese beetles are attracted to the bright flower and chew on the leaves, which are toxic to them and they will die. I place them near the plant bothered but not close enough to attract the bugs to the plant.
• Mosquitoes – Plant Rosemary or Basil to keep the bugs at bay.
• Tomato Hornworm – Plant Borage near your tomato plants to keep them away.

Feverfew, Geraniums and Marigolds repel many different kinds of insects. They are a useful addition to flower and vegetable gardens and add color to a vegetable garden, which is always a plus.

Chives, onions, and borage repel many pests so I scatter these plants throughout the yard.

Growing plants to discourage certain pests can be effective but don’t always solve the problem. Healthy plants and proper care go along way to promoting a great garden and landscape.

When all else fails for me I either hand pick bugs or use a liquid garlic spray that I make myself. I do not use any boughten sprays.

Tags: planting plants to control bugs, natural bug and pest control, using plants for organic pest control