Making Compost
• Try to have equal parts of green and
brown. For green: manure, shredded
leaves, ashes, food wastes like peelings,
coffee grounds, egg shells, hair. For brown:
corncobs, hay, paper, sawdust, vegetable
stalks, seeds, nutshells, pine needles
• After rains, or put water on mulch pile,
cover with an old tarp or black plastic so
the mixture cooks
• Turn pile often, try to do before a rain,
cover
• Compost piles work by generating heat and
biological activity to decay organic
material
Compost Container
Alternatives
• Bag-black plastic garbage bags
• Bin-make your own from boards, logs,
bricks, concrete blocks, chicken wire,
other fencing
• Can remove the bottom of a metal
garbage can, wobbly so needs support
with stakes
• Fireplace-unused outdoor fireplace, or
barbecue pit
• Compost= “black gold” for a garden
Encourage Breakdown
• Worms-earthworms
• Pour a drink-dump a can of regular
cola, sugar will hurry up
decomposition
• Mix up a starter tonic: ¼ bottle of
beer; ¼ c. of ammonia and gallon
of warm water
• Ready in 14 days
• Interior temperature should be 180
degrees
How's and Whys of
Ingredients
• Ammonia-helps encourage leafy plant
growth
• Beer-enzyme activator helps release
nutrients locked in soil plus starts organic
activity
• Molasses-source of sugar that stimulates
chlorophyll formations of plants
• Seaweed-natural hormone that stimulates
and increase plant growth
• Soap-softens soil, removes dust, dirt, and
pollutions so that osmosis and
photosynthesis can more easily occur.
• Tea- contains tannic acid, which helps
plants digest their food faster
Spring Cleanup
1.As soon as you can, remove all of last year’s foliage (even
if there is a little snow on the ground).
2.Before growth begins, sprinkle a mix of 5 lbs. of natural
organic food and l lb. Epsom salts per 100 sq. feet of garden
soil
3.Feed plants with All-Season Green-Up Tonic: l can beer, l
c. ammonia, ½ c. liquid dish soap, ½ c. of liquid lawn food, ½
c. molasses or syrup
---Add water to 20 gallon sprayer and apply every 3 weeks
after plants start to grow
4. Use Total Pest Control one week later, repeat every 2
weeks.
Garlic cloves 6, 1T baby shampoo, l qt. Water, spray plants
5. Keep soil damp, but not soggy.
6. Thin, trim, pinch back plants
7. DO NOT pick vegetables if under stress from extreme
drought, extreme temperatures or excessive humidity.
Water, or let cool off, or dry then start.
Ready to Plant
• Companion plants help each other grow by
supplying nutrients other needs and
warding off insects
• Asparagus- Tomatoes
• Beans- Beets, Cabbages, Carrots,
Cauliflower, Cucumbers, Potatoes
• Corn- Melons, Peas, Pumpkins, Squash
• Spinach- Strawberries
• Onions- Beets
• Radishes- Cucumbers, Lettuce, Peas
• Carrots- Chives, Leeks, Lettuce
Transplanting
• Don’t transplant a seedling until has 4
leaves ( show: for starting plants)
• The second set of leaves are the “true
leaves” which helps the shock of
transplanting
• Water plants thoroughly 24 hours
before transplanting
• Before planting roots in soft mud. Use
Transplant Tonic=1/2 can of beer, 1 T.
ammonia, l T. instant tea, 1 T. baby
shampoo, l gallon of water. Use 1 cup
for each plant transplanting.
Secrets
• Dry eggshell in microwave or
oven, crush, add to planting mix
for quick calcium fix or soak in
water use, get same results
• Peppers love acidic soil, bury a
book of matches under each plant
sulphur in matches increases
acidity
• Red-Hot Repellent
• Keep insects or worms off of
flower bushes, cabbage plants,
etc. lightly dust with cayenne
(red) pepper in morning while
plants are still wet with dew
Bug Control
• Natural Bug Juice= ½c. marigolds, ½ c.
geraniums, ½ c. garlic, 10 gallons of
warm water, Mash finely, sprinkle over
and around vegetables
• Fruit Trees Insect Tonic= l c. honey, ½
c. vinegar, water to almost top of gallon
milk jug, add 1 banana peel. Hang in
tree. Use ½ gallon jugs still use 1
banana peel. Works!!!!
• No more spraying with insect spray for
bugs.
• Beans- coffee grounds for bugs
• Nail by tomatoes to prevent cut worms
Bare-root Plants
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Root Revival Tonic
1 T. liquid dish soap
¼ c. brewed tea
1 T. Epsom salts
1 gallon of water
Let plants sit in this tonic up to
24 hours. This will revive the
plants and get them ready to
grow
Roses
• Give your roses a bath once a week
with a solution of 1 T. liquid dish
soap with 2 gallons of warm water.
• Odds are you will not need any
chemicals
• Powdery Mildew is a fungus. ¼ c.
BS, 1T of vegetable oil, 2 qts. water
Spray early in the morning and when
needed, every 2 wks. Works well
Cut roses off of the vine above a fiveleaf cluster to encourage new
growth. Letting roses die on the vine
is an invitation to pests and diseases.
Winter ready roses by pruning the
back in the fall, cutting back only
enough so they don’t whip in the
wind. Rose cones help by preventing
excessive pruning promoting sturdier
plants and heartier growth in the
spring.
Don’t paint cones will absorb heat
and damage roses.
Instead of cones, use card board boxes,
laying flaps flat on the ground at the base
of the bush.
Weight down the box by putting rocks or
soil on the flattened flaps. Remove after
the last hard spring freeze. Can cut off
top (bottom) of the box and easily
covered for freezes.
Use All Season Clean Up Tonic
1c. liquid dish soap
1c. Chewing tobacco juice 3 fingers of
chew in
cloth, soak in gallon hot water
1c. Antiseptic mouthwash
Mix all in 20 gallons of water, use sprayer
to put on plants
Never feed roses after August 15th
where temps drop below 20 degrees.
If you do, new growth won’t mature
to get through the winter
Energize your old roses with rotten
bananas
Work bananas, skin and all into the
soil around the base of the bushes.
Potassium in the fruit and skin gives
your roses a power-packed boost
ROSES –ONIONS ON CALL
Use onions to discourage aphids from dining
on your roses.
Chop up a medium onion, place in blender
with one quart water, pulverize, strain off
liquid.
Add 1 t. of liquid dish soap to the onion juice
Liberally spray mixture to your rose bushes
with a hand-held mist sprayer
Feeding Flowers
3 steps
Primary fertilizer beginning in the
spring
Snacks---when flower plants show
themselves. No rules every 2-4 weeks;
liquid 20-30% fertilizer; grow faster
 Vitamins –really a plant enhancer;
liquid on ground not plant; powder
best because last up to 5 years
FRUIT TREES
• To keep bugs off of fruit
• Tonic
1/2 c. vinegar, l c. honey, fill one
gallon jug
with handle, and one banana peeling
Hang from fruit tree
Worth saying over!
Because works well!!!!
Geraniums
• Put in a paper bag during the
winter months in a cool place
• Pull out, plant!
• Also leave in planters and put in
front of a southern exposure
• Must be well drained
• Easy to propagate