It's become clear to me through posts and PMs that there are some gardeners here just waiting for the chance to discuss gardening!
So, I was thinking... how do you use gardening, or how does it affect you if you need a break, need some respite, need to relax, need inspiration....how do you use it as a therapy tool in caregiving?
What are your activities: Do you go out and pull weeds, read a magazine, design new beds? Look through garden catalogues? Go to garden stores?
And what interests have you added to your gardening? Visit estate or garden displays? Do you go to garden shows?
Does anyone design and plant Knot Gardens? Raised bed planters? Assistive gardens? Pollinator gardens (and have you thought of ways to help the bees and butterflies?)
Are your gardens primarily for pleasure or food, or a mix of both? Do you grow plants for medicinal purposes? Which ones, how do you harvest and process them? Any suggestions?
Do you grow plants that can be used in crafts, such as grapevines for wreaths and lavender for lavender wands? Do you make herbal products such as creams, lotions, chapstick?
What else can you share about gardening and the means in which it nurtures your soul?
Those pots did not come in the end of last summer. But, I do have a window well with a frog family. Better there than in the house! Ribbit!
I know I have to expect some hitchhikers when I bring in my plants, although I check carefully there are usually some little spiders or pill bugs that show up over the following weeks but crickets are a new one. I suppose it's possible they might have walked (hopped) in on their own because instead of a screen door I've just got one of those magnetic curtains - better than nothing but not terribly secure against anything larger or more determined than a house fly.
Another says they will eat our fabrics.
Placing a strong spice out will deter them, as well as lavender cuttings. Cinnamon, cayenne, pepper.
Did you take the plants back outside CWillie?
Not sure, but more could hatch?
(big bugs=ick=shudder)
I've had to deal with one that waltzed boldly into my office as I was online and now I found another one down in the laundry room. Dare I hope there are no more?
Tomorrow, full harvest moon on Friday the 13th. Stay in and safe all.
I do liken the idea of a resident beaver. But, most likely not around here.
Wouldn't that be nice - to have your own tree management animal?
Just dreaming....
BTW, those DR 400s are like what my father had.
DR Pro 400
DH did a lot of research before we chose this one. We use to have a Tomahawk it worked great too.
But that was decades ago. Machines are probably battery operated now, although they can still jam.
The only thing I can suggest is to see if you can find some YouTube videos and comparisons on shredders. (Or I can post on my gardening forum for you.) I did that when I was debating buying a tiller; the video was very helpful, as it clearly demonstrated which was the better tiller.
And I do know about fussy (also backstabbing, nosey and antisocial) neighbors as well as lawn Nazis who measure homeowners' grass.
I do put almost all the twigs I collect in the natural garden I've created below my 2 walnut trees and I can pile a lot of leaves there too but there is still a lot more stuff than that area can handle.
LOL about the corn stalks, I tried to grow some ornamental corn for Fall decorations but the wildlife thought it was delicious!!
I've considered buying an electric chipper shredder but the reviews on them are mixed, I'm not certain they could handle the large stalks of annual and perennial flowers that are my biggest stumbling block - has anyone tried one?
Leaves get raked and are used to cover all the beds, but more are raked around the perennials, kind of like a leafy tire. I'm saving and collecting branches of trees and shrubs I cut down if they're at least 1" or so in diameter, or attractive, for my wattle fences. Other unwanted branches get put out for pickup.
One thing I do plan to do is make a wattle circle to surround vulnerable plants, and put more leaves in there. I lost almost all my roses over the years, and I think it was b/c of winter winds.
Dead flowers and veggie plants are mixed in amongst the leaves, unless they're from my Sedum, and I just let them lay where they've toppled over. They make a nice little mound when covered by snow.
Sometimes I leave pumpkin vines out in the open over the winter. I kind of like seeing spaces where the vines have grown still reflecting signs of summer activity.
Grapevines usually end up as wreaths, but if I can't accomplish that, I just leave them and trim them back next year.
But unless there are insect, blight or other unwanted issues, everything from the garden gets composted, even unripe veggies (if they're too unripe to take inside and ripen in a brown bag).
The small twigs are more problematic b/c they can't be raked easily, and when put out with unwanted branches, end up falling through and remaining on the lawn instead of being picked up. I've thought of getting a shredder for them, but I'm trying to think of cheaper options.
One is to create raised beds, with the twigs broken up into smaller pieces and mixed in amongst other added substances, like the soil and leaves. One of the women on my favorite garden forum is experimenting with Hugelkultur. More good information can be found at these hits:
https://www.bing.com/search?q=hugelkulture&form=IENTHT&pc=EUPP_DCJB&mkt=en-us&httpsmsn=1&refig=6795ebc35f4b436bc48f85ac72f4ca44&sp=-1&pq=hugelkultu&sc=8-10&qs=n&sk=&cvid=6795ebc35f4b436bc48f85ac72f4ca44
I'm still up in the air about this, and raised beds entirely, although if I raised them more and more, it would be a lot easier on my back, which prompted thoughts of 2 - 3' high wattle circles holding leaves and small twigs for decomposition.
I use old raggedy sheets, doubled over, or tarps, for hauling the leaves back. It's easier on the back than to hand rake mounds of leaves over large areas of land. You could use large pieces of plastic as well, if you have any. Something like the plastic covering mattresses would haul a good sized bunch of leaves. But I don't know where you'd find that many plastic mattress covers!
Plastic bags from dry cleaning are larger, but still not as large as sheets.
Maybe Lowes or Home Depot or hardware stores would have big pieces of plastic to discard, since they offer large lawn machines, and now those huge blow-up holiday characters.
I would think a piece of plastic or whatever that protected riding lawn mowers or tractors would carry a lot of leaves. So a tractor place might have some plastic to discard...something like a John Deere dealership. Or car dealership? I sometimes see cars wrapped in some kind of white covering.
A neighbor hires someone to "seal" his big boat ( about 15- 20 footer) over the winter, so there must be a source where that contractor gets large pieces of plastic. I do know that you can buy them, as one of the other gardeners on the forum I mentioned posted a link for plastic in large quantities. Let me know if you want it and I'll search the old posts.
Oh, and if you have corn stalks, then they can be tied around a lamp post for a nice rural type decoration. I sometimes buy waterproof ribbons to use outdoors.
We compost on the ground in areas we are preparing to plant or areas that need a little extra. Granted, I live in the desert and we don't have soil, we have dirty/sand or rocks, so ours needs a lot more amending.
Just my thoughts on using all of that material.
Neem oil, milky spore and dropping them in buckets seem to be options.
I've never used either, but haven't had that much of a problem except during specific times. If I remember correctly, Chinese Lanterns attract them.
Since you'd probably be sitting down, or at least not standing while removing them, I think something sprayable would be best for you. I've picked them off (wearing plastic gloves), put them in a baggie, then double bagged them and squashed them.
http://organicgroup.freeforums.net/search/results?captcha_id=captcha_search&display_as=0&page=2&search=Search&what_at_least_one=Japanese%2Bbeetles&what_exact_phrase=Japanese%2Bbeetles&when_between_end=08%2F10%2F2019&when_between_start=01%2F01%2F2018
Something I've been using inside for gnats is wintergreen isopropyl alcohol, which smells better b/c of the wintergreen fragrance. I use a spray bottle. I've never tried it on the beetles, but it does knock out small sugar ants and gnats.
If I find any other good references, I'll post back.
Sometimes you have to spray 2xs if you don't get good coverage.
I hope you get rid of those pesky buggers. I would also sprinkle the ground with cayenne, the burro to lay their eggs. Ugh!
NOW I have these HUGE, UGLY Japanese Beetles on my favorite "Double Delight" rose bush. I am SOOO frustrated!!! The rose bush was Mom's favorite and she could see the roses from the kitchen window. The beetles are SO HUGE -- the size of a fingernail! UGH!?! I need a simple solution for treating these beetles as I have trouble standing and have to use a wheeled walker. (Not the easiest thing to use on grass.) Luckily the rose bush is next to the patio.
Someone suggested Sevin ?!? but you have to be SO careful using it that I really don't know if I can handle the product safely.
I was going to start my wattle fence this week when I take down some trees by the garage...now I'll have to rethink everything - I WANT a knitted fence!
At a supermarket, watching a man was tapping and knocking at the watermelons one after another, a woman came up to him and asked him what he was looking for when he tapped and knocked. The man replied: "I don't know. I just know I have to do that. If I just come and pick one without doing it, people will think I'm crazy."
1 - since they are unfamiliar I don't know when they are ripe or whether or not they are very poor specimens
2 - the price. I'm curious Glad, how much did that monster cost?