Roundup contamination

QuestionHelp! I asked my gardener to dig up a patch of lawn so I could plant some vegetables. Before I could say anything, he had sprayed the grass with roundup to kill the grass. How long will I need to wait befor

Soil Acidity

QuestionI live on Long Islands South Shore (Woodmere) and am planning on growing tomatoes, cucumbers, and a few herbs in my garden this summer. Without going to the trouble and expense of having my soil tested, can

Weed Killer for Garden

QuestionMy grandfather plants a garden in his yard every year but is having a problem with weeds. He sprays with Roundup before tilling but throughout the growing season the weeds return and take over. Does a spray

strawberries

QuestionQUESTION: hi if a farmer tells me that he sprayed strawberries with pesticides before they blossomed and none after that, wouldnt the pesticides still have ablsorbed into the strawberry? is there a cov

using recycled paper

QuestionQUESTION: I am a teacher and we have a lot of shredded paper in our school. I am part of a community garden (organic) and thought of using the shredded paper between the raised beds to prevent weeds. We use

lye on flowers

QuestionQUESTION: Is it okay to place lye directly on flowers or in flower bed to fight against pest, such as caterpillars, and so forth. Thanks, Marilyn ANSWER: NO NO NO never, it will kill all the bees and benefi

munched green bean sprouts

Question Green Bean In Denver my green bean (Contender bush) sprouts are coming up looking like they have been chewed on. Radishes came up fine in this same raised garden bed. Im not sure what pest does this

wax beans

Questionthis is my first time gardening i live in ne pa my leaves are being eating im not sure what is eating them how can i prevent this from happening? my mom told me to use dish washing soap but not sure what thi

Green Bean Plants not doing well

QuestionI have 3 raised beds in my garden area and this is the second year that I have planted green beans only to see them suffer. The come up out of the ground and then they start to die before they are more

sunflowers

QuestionQUESTION: I recently planted two sunflowers outdoors that I started indoors from seed. something demolished one of them. first knocked it over near the ground, then, two days later, all the leaves were gone.

watermelons

QuestionHi, Im growing watermelons.Do you recommend putting something underheath the melons to help protect them from ground rot.Ive grown melons before and I had some success but I also loss a lot for v

Detecting pesticides

QuestionAn old organic gardener taught me how to use chicken manure and grass clippings to make fertilizer and grass clipping mulch suitable for Florida soil (basically sand). My problem is (and Ive asked FL A

leaf fungus

QuestionHello, I raise Myrtus Communis, (true Myrtle) in central florida. For years I have been plagued by a type of leaf fungus that I cannot find anything to alleviate this problem. The tiny new leave

cow dung

QuestionHello! how should i use cow dung in my garden? AnswerTo use cow dung in the garden you can either compost it: http://www.avant-gardening.com/composting.html (how to make compost) or you can use it as a manu

Sugar and Charlotte Brunkhorst

QuestionI ran across this site a few months ago when I was looking for lawn fertilizers. Charlotte Brunkhorst suggested using sugar. I copied her suggestions to my computer and saw again today re the sug

Growing Pumpkins--Follow Up

QuestionQUESTION: Firstly, I have never gardened, ever. This is my first attempt, I need help! Here goes: I planted pumpkins in my garden a few weeks ago (I know, Im a little late, but its Houston and always hot).

Pest biting through pole bean stems

QuestionHi, Something is biting through my pole bean stems 2-3 inches above ground. I think its mice since it stopped in one garden after I caught several mice (and a mole or vole) in mice traps. But it started in m

Eldarica Pine Tree

QuestionWe have a grasshopper infestation this year and noticed, almost, over-night that over half of the needles are gone. Only about a quarter of the (top part of tree) needles are left. They have apparently been

Green Beans fail to produce pods

QuestionI am in Southern North Carolina. I planted Kentucky Wonder beans in May. They came up well, I trellised them; they bloomed (and bloomed). However, I have harvested only a half dozen beans.

Loquat trees producing fruit

QuestionI have planted many loquat seeds and now have 5 trees, ranging from 5-10 years old, but they have never made fruit. I love the fruit and would like to have fruit-bearing trees. Is there anything