Did you know? - Random gardening tips

Some of these might be useful, some funny and some just nice to know. Please feel free to add yours to the list.

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The scientific name for the tomato is Lycopersicon lycopersicum, which means, “wolf peach.”

Cool as a cucumber? It's true ... the inside of a cucumber on the vine measures as much as 20 degrees cooler than the outside air on a warm day.

The Daisy got its name because the yellow center resembled the sun. It was commonly known as the "day's eye" and over time, was eventually called daisy.

When your hands are badly stained from gardening, add a teaspoon of sugar to the soapy water the wash them.

Foxglove is a kind of pink tubular flower which derived its name from old English belief that foxes slipped into these flowers to sneak up on their prey!

Dandelions look like weeds, but the flowers and leaves are a good source of vitamins A and C, iron, calcium and potassium. One cup of dandelion greens provides 7,000-13,000 I.U. of vitamin.

Angelica was used in Europe for hundreds of years as a cure for everything from the bubonic plague to indigestion. It was thought to ward off evil spirits.

 

German garden gnomes were introduced to England in 1847 by Sir Charles Isham (1819-1903), a vegetarian spiritualist who hoped that his 21 porcelain Gnomen-figuren would attract real gnomes to his garden in Northamptonshire. Only one of Isham’s gnomes, “Lampy”, survives: it is insured for £1 million. “Seeing and hearing gnomes is not mental delusion,” he wrote, “but extension of faculty.”

Terracotta gnomes were first made in Germany in the 1870s. They always wear red caps because that was the style of German miners. Gnomes are banned from the Chelsea Flower Show (as are balloons, bunting and flags – nude nymphs and cherubs are judged on a case-by-case basis). Gnome liberationists have been active since the Seventies in various countries: in Britain is GOLF, the Garden Ornament Liberation Front. Liberated gnomes are taken abroad, photographed in exotic places, and returned, sometimes accompanied by a new girlfriend.



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To prevent accumulating dirt under your fingernails while you work in the garden, draw your fingernails across a bar of soap and you'll effectively seal the undersides of your nails so dirt can't collect beneath them. Then, after you've finished in the garden, use a nailbrush to remove the soap and your nails will be sparkling clean.

Use leftover tea and coffee grounds to acidify the soil of acid-loving plants such as azaleas, rhododendrons, camellias, gardenias and even blueberries. A light sprinkling of about one-quarter of an inch applied once a month will keep the pH of the soil on the acidic side.

Paint the handles of your gardens tools a bright, color other than green to help you find them amongst your plants.

(Yep, I have lost many tools only because I have left them to somewhere for just a seconds… )

 

Great! So it took only over 150 years to become "allowed".

 

My late granny had an alternative way of getting her nails clean post gardening, she made bread. She was very happy to inform all and sundry that the kneading action of the dough did the trick. I used to enjoy her homemade bread until I heard this.

 

Using moisturizing hand cream may help too. I had similar problem with hands while I was working in the health center and had to wash my hands all the time. The skin became so dry that it looks like dirt ingrained to the skin. Plus why not that sugar trick too.

 

There is quite a good "hand" cream which was not originally made for hands. It was designed for applying to sheep's udders when they got sore from the lambs being a bit rough getting their milk! www.bagbalm.com. It is really sticky so best to apply at night and let it soak in by morning. Certainly my hands benefit from the stuff

 

Do pink flamingos count as gnome-like garden additions?

Herbert and Emmeline are waiting for an answer to this!

 

Use chamomile tea to control damping-off fungus, which often attacks young seedlings quite suddenly. Just add a spot of tea to the soil around the base of seedlings once a week or use it as a foliar spray.

 

Sisters, friends and enemies in the garden

“Three sisters” in gardening refers to the ancient Native American planting technique of growing corn, beans and squash together. In the modern garden we call this “companion planting”, where each plant helps one another. Corn is planted to support the pole bean, beans help by fixing nitrogen in the soil to feed the corn and squash, and squash is planted underneath to shade both the corn and bean’s roots. Together the three sisters grow in harmony.

Companion Planting with Herbs

First and foremost, never plant two heavy feeders next to each other. They will compete for the nutrients in the soil, and neither will flourish. You need to consider what each plant needs and gives back to the soil before placing any two together in the garden. Chives and carrots do well together as does dill with cabbage. Lovage works to improve the flavor and health of just about any garden plant.

Another thing to think about is scent and flavoring. Strong herbs can change the flavors and scents of other herbs or vegetables. Sometimes the change is good, as with the basil and tomatoes, or summer savory and beans. Sometimes the change isn’t so good. You will notice this with all of the mints. If you plant spearmint too close to peppermint, in time, they will both smell and taste the same. Mint does make a good companion for tomatoes though, as do thyme, sage, and bee balm. Tarragon and marjoram will help to enhance the flavor of almost any vegetable that you choose to plant them near.

And as with the feverfew and roses, sometimes herbal companion plants can help keep detrimental bugs away from your other plants and vegetables in your garden. Planting borage with your tomatoes, squash, and strawberries will help to keep tomato worms from attacking. Deadnettle planted with potatoes will keep potato bugs away as will horseradish. Planting tansy near your fruit trees will help to keep most flying insects and ants away. Rosemary is a good companion to cabbage, beans, carrots, and sage and will work to keep the cabbage moths away.

By using companion planting to keep the bugs away, you won’t need to use as many insecticides that can harm the beneficial garden insects, like the bees and ladybugs.

Some plants should be kept away from others at all costs. Dill should never be planted with carrots, Angelica, or caraway. Keep your cucumbers at opposite sides of the garden from your sage. Rue needs to be kept away from sweet basil, and no one favors fennel. It should be planted on its own.

By choosing your companion herbs wisely, you will be helping your garden to help itself with fertilization and natural insecticide repellents. Your herbs and vegetables will taste better, and you’ll have more free time to relax and enjoy your herbs.

 

Gets tar off your fingers too