caroline’s taking a little break today, so i’m here to share some useful gardening q&a with you!  we often get questions from readers, and caroline’s answers are just to good to keep from you!

{abby lanes}

Question: Recently I have noticed that my tomato plants – all 8 of them – are not producing anything. I got a little concerned because they are 3 feet high – they look great and happy – but no fruit! Boo!! So, i asked my gardening girlfriend what she thought I should do and she suggested that my soil may be lacking calcium. Hmmm… since I’m new to this gardening gig I think to myself: “where do you get calcium? Do I give them a little milk?” (kidding) So, i called another friend that gardens and he said to try some osmocote (sp?). I have used osmocote in the past on porch plants and they love it- but is it OK for food?? I don’t want to put any chemically stuff on something I’m going to eat. Do you have any tips? Suggestions??

Also, I have an old brick coop in the back – that needs major cleaning up – its sturdy with a tin roof (made probably circa 1930) but the open windows will need some chicken wire – and the door opening has no door (rats!). I’m pretty sure there are black widows in there and there is no way this gal is going in there to tidy it up with those monsters in there. Any tips on how to get them out? – Kristen

Answer: Hi Kristen! Non-flowering tomato plants are usually a sign of too much nitrogen in the soil. Have your soil tested at your local cooperative extension center and let them know you are experiencing non flowering tomato plants. Calcium depletion in the soil usually shows up as tomato blossom end rot – so a calcium deficiency would not be my first guess. I’m thinking they will probably have you add potash or potassium to the soil, but don’t go guessing! You can also try stressing the plants a bit – lessen up on the water for a few days. I would not use osmocote on food products – that stuff is pretty toxic to ingest. Don’t feed them anything until you get that soil test done. At this time of year it should not take long at all to get results.

Black widows! How timely as well – I found some black widow carcasses in my garage this past week and I’m on high alert now….but I’m not going to do much more than diatomaceous earth, a flashlight and a long broom to clean up the cobwebs. You can spray the chicken coop with water or use a hose end sprayer with some liquid soap mixed in to flood/kill the spiders before you actually go too far inside to clean up. Neem is also pretty effective…but you knew I would say that, I’m sure! Good luck, go in the covered up…no flip flops for you, wear a hat and long gloves. Be careful and be brave!!! -Caroline

{allison trentelman}

Question: I need help! I planted windowboxes, organic, with zinnias, sweetpeas, nasturium and cilantro. And they have bugs! Ugly little buggers, some look like beetles, others fly… but I need to get rid of them pronto. I was thinking maybe a salt water mix, or baking soda? But I really don’t want to try without advice. If you can help I would SO appreciate it! :) – Anna

Answer: Hi Anna. Thanks for your question. I would advise you to never ever use regular salt in your garden. Salt is actually really toxic for your soil and not a good idea to spray on plants. Epsom salts are a different story, but they are not effective as bug control. I would recommend knocking the beetles into a bowl of soapy water and then spraying with Neem. Here is a link to a safer, organic Neem product I have found very effective.  Beetles are tenacious and you do need to spray every few days to control them.” – Caroline

{chives}

Question: I have something eating the leaves and new buds of one of my pansies and one of my dianthus in my small flower garden…guessing they are slugs since I can’t see them during the day (better go out one night to see if I can spot ‘em!)…anyway, read to put epsom salt around the plants…did it today…think it’ll work? any other tips? (update): Went to the local landscaper today b/c the epsom salts did NOT work AND I caught one of the little buggers this morning…at the other end of the garden! anyway, she is ordering me “sluggo” – said it is safe for kiddos and pets! hope it does the trick…- Jes

Answer: Jes answered her own question! Sluggo is great for slugs and safe around kids. – Caroline

{pink princesses in the garden}

do you have any gardening questions? leave your questions here, or visit the ladybug landscaping facebook page to ask caroline directly!

wrap up: {answers} {black widows} {gardening} {organic gardening} {questions} {slugs} {tomatoes}

Hello!  I hope this finds you all cool, comfortable and enjoying your summer.

Things here in Connecticut are HOT! Oh my goodness has it been a scorcher of a week…and there is no end in sight.  But the tomatoes, corn and daisies love this weather – we have had an early crop of sweet corn available at the farmer’s market and oh what a lovely pleasure that is!  Almost makes the heat worth it. Almost!

During this heatwave we have been making an extra effort to water the gardens deeply and keeping an eye on any plants in containers, which are being watered at least twice daily.  Our days begin super early – we are on sites at 6am to take advantage of slightly cooler temperatures – and we are drinking lots and lots of water and watermelon juice.

My appetite plummets in the heat but I’m loving Bonnie’s seasonal food posts. These are the foods my body actually wants to eat in this weather.  Blueberries are big in my kitchen right now and I’ve been eating a lot of Salvadoran Grilled Corn…oh so yummy!  I found the recipe on Gourmet.com and am craving it again just writing about it…..

Photograph by Gabriele Stabile via Gourmet.com

So this week we are going to talk about slugs and snails. I have to say, these guys don’t give me as much grief as the Japanese Beetles do. I’ve battled them for years, and have finally found a way to decrease their numbers in my gardens.  And it is pretty simple -  I  use clean gardening practices, handy gardening friends, hand picking and  Sluggo to deal with slugs & snails.

He Packed His Bags And Left Home For Good This Time by eggman studios on Etsy

What are clean gardening practices?

Basically this means that I understand the life cycle and habits of the slugs and snails and create a gardening environment that is hostile to them. Slugs and Snails feed after sundown and early in the morning, love shady and moist areas and have to climb up my plants to get to the tender and nibbly worthy leaves. They love deep applications of mulch and garden debris – wonderful places to hide, and I think I hear them squealing for joy every time I drive past someone with their sprinklers turned on past 4 pm….what a bunch of lovely damp areas for the crawly guys to explore that evening.

Snail Meeting pocket mirror by papersparrow on Etsy

So:

Don’t water in the evenings – water early in the morning.  Except containers, which are watered twice a day if needed.  (I water my containers when I arrive home from work and first thing in the morning)    Keep your garden clean and clear of plant debris. Clean up after yourself every time you are out there - don’t leave plastic plant pots laying about in the garden after you have planted the plants they contained, clean up piles of leaves and dead plant material, don’t apply more than 3 inches of mulch (at most….2 inches is usually more than enough) remove dead plant material and generally keep a tidy and clean garden.

This may seem like obvious advice, but who hasn’t felt lazy after a day of planting and left bits and pieces to go out and finish tomorrow…or next week…or next month…or next year.  And many people water in the evenings thinking that is the right thing to do.  If you are doing this then STOP! Water early in the morning and water deeply.  This will help prevent lots of garden issues, including pests and diseases.

Who are my handy gardening friends?

Toad House by Mymothersgarden on Etsy

Frogs!  Toads!  Snakes! Birds! Ducks! Yes please – you are welcome in my garden at any time!!

These guys are my handy friends.  I keep my garden organic and animal friendly so nature can come on in and do lots of my dirty work for me. I create homes for toads by overturning my broken flowerpots, putting them in a cool, shady spot and making certain there is enough room for the toads to hang out in during the day. I lay shallow containers of water throughout shady parts of my gardens -my niece calls them fairy bowls, but I call them toad ponds. These encourage animals to come and make themselves at home…and perhaps stay for a lovely dinner of slugs!  I keep a clean birdbath and create areas of my garden where I allow plants to go to seed so the birds can eat them.  I welcome the snakes – knowing they may eat a frog here and there, but they will mostly be eating slugs.  Simply allowing an ecosystem to thrive out in my backyard reduces the need for much input from me.

Summer Slug Notecards by bumblejack on Etsy

Handpicking of slugs and snails:

Here is my preferred method of dealing with slugs.  And most garden folk will knowingly smile when I tell you this:  wood. Yes, good old fashioned pieces of old non treated wood throughout my garden.  I lay them down, the slugs love the damp shade they provide, I turn them over in the morning and drop the slugs into a container of water.  I give the slugs to the ducks in my life…they like them lots better than bread!  Goodbye slugs.

Beer traps are another method, and although I do not use them, some swear by them. Basically you fill a shallow dish with beer, set it out in the garden and let the slugs come on over and drink till they drown. Empty and refresh the traps every couple of days. Some people add extra yeast to the beer (it is the yeast the slugs are attracted to, not the alcohol!)  I’m not a beer drinker, and hate the smell of stale beer, so this method has never appealed to me.  But it might be your favorite thing ever, so here are some easy to understand instructions on building your own beer trap.

Snail Cross Stitch Pattern by andwabisabi on Etsy

Sluggo:

This is an iron phosphate based product that is safer to use than conventional slug killers.  It works by poisoning the slugs. A little goes a long way, and it does need to be reapplied after a couple of heavy rains – you can watch the pellets dissolve over time.  I don’t use this much, but when I do it is usually around client containers with trailing plants. Petunias are a special love of slugs, and they can take an entire plant down in one night….gah!

There are many other “remedies” for slugs.  Coffee grounds around plants are said to work (the caffeine kills the slugs), a mixture of 1/3 ammonia to 2/3 water sprayed around plants is another method I’ve heard of.  You can try copper wire around the base of flower pots – make sure it is at least 2 inches wide, some folks swear by seaweed piled on in the garden – the salt kills the slugs and the seaweed is an excellent compost. I’ve not tried these methods yet, but if you have please let me know how it worked out for you!

On paper diatomaceous earth is supposed to work on slugs,  but I’ve seen them roll on over the stuff and be just fine!I don’t know, maybe they died later….

So there we go – slugs and snails no more.  Any questions? Any other advice?  I would love to hear from you!! Stay cool and hydrated and I’ll see y’all in the comments!

wrap up: {eco friendly} {garden} {organic gardening} {pest control} {plants} {sluggo} {slugs} {snails}