I was thumbing through the July/August 2013 AARP Bulletin (yeah, I am “of that age”) and I came across the publication’s fourth annual “99 Great Ways to Save” list.
The list offers a bunch of imaginative, creative ways to save money in finance, shopping, cleaning, home, beauty, health, travel, food, entertainment, car/gas, “your favorites” and garden.
After reading their tips, I must say that I don’t agree with all of their ideas for saving money in the garden.
Here are their “green” suggestions — and my thoughts in parentheses:
* Keep deer away: Pouring or spraying a “rotten egg” cocktail around plants will keep deer from eating them. Just mix six raw eggs in two gallons of water. (It might work, but there are a lot of “smelly” anti-deer products for sale that work, though I will say that they are pretty pricey. Also, I don’t like taking a chance on spraying raw eggs around the yard.)
* Bugs be gone: Forget bug zappers and pesticides. Hang a fabric softener sheet adjacent to – but not touching — outdoor light fixtures to keep flying insects away. (There are thoughts that fabric softener sheets will keep pests away. I’ve never heard about putting them near lights, however. Be careful to not put them too close.)
* Mow it yourself: Use a manual lawn mower instead of a power mower or hiring someone to do the work. (I agree that a manual mower is a great idea. It would cut down on gas usage, as well as noise and air pollution. Just make sure you are healthy enough to cut your lawn “by hand” and that your plot is not too big to take on.)
* Mooch off mulch: Ask garden crews clearing trees and brush if they’ll dump their payload of wood chips at your place. (If I don’t know where mulch came from, I don’t trust it. Crew mulches, like free town mulches, can have just about any seeds mixed in — weeds, invasives, poison ivy … you name it. For me, it’s not worth the risk.)
* Cover up weeds: Save money on weed killers by spreading several layers of newspaper (old “From the Ground Up” columns, perhaps?) on the soil before mulching. Avoid expensive and toxic weed killers by dousing weeds with scalding water or a white vinegar/liquid dish soap spray. (I agree, great alternatives.)
* Fall planting: People get the urge to plant in spring, but in most climates the best time is the late summer or fall, when new plants’ chances of survival are better and when they’re often marked down at nurseries. (I concur, the cool temperatures of early fall are ideal for new plant/root establishment, as well as dividing. It’s also a great time to pick up season-ending perennial deals at local nurseries.)
Email: edel@northjersey.com. For the latest in gardening news, head to Ray’s garden blog at northjersey.com/compostings or follow him @ twitter.com/njgardening.
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