Chemical smell in garden soil.

QuestionWhen I purchased my home, about seven years ago, I created a series of three circular raised beds of varying height. The soil of each garden rests against the blocks of the higher bed next to it. The excepti

silver soil bugs

Questionhi i have 5 different flowers growing and they all seem to be doing very well, except all of a sudden there are these lil tiny tiny sliver/gray bugs all through out the soil. I had an ester lily that got a s

soil around my rhubarb

QuestionIve been told the soil my rhubarb has too much nitrogen and thats why my plants wont turn red. If this is true, what can I do to even out the nitrogen content. Green rhubarb tastes the same, but

Soil killing my flowers

QuestionI think my soil is killing my flowers in one of my garden beds. How much soil should I remove in order to put fresh new soil? Should I buy potting soil and regular top soil and mix it 50/50? Ans

new soil wont absorb water

QuestionHi James, We just enlarged a planter (for bamboo) with castle wall blocks. Since my local landscaper was out of the black humus I usually use I bought his bulk potting mix which he said would be find for a p

Killing weeds through river rock

QuestionMy sister has river rock surrounding her pool and back deck. Just spent three days pulling weeds. Do you know the best way to get apply a weed killer so it penetrates the soil through the rocks? The soil is

grass seems to be dying despite watering schedule

QuestionI live in Southern Oregon and have somewhat of a clay soil base below my lawn. I also have part of my lawn that stays in the sun ALL day long and part that gets shade half of the day. This summer

Large area of backyard to muddy for many months of the year we cant use it!!!

QuestionWe have a large 6 x 6 metre shed in our backyard and as a result it shades most of the grassed area in the backyard. During the winter months the grass gets that wet from rain and the shade not allowin

plants that replenish soil nutrients?

Questionhi, im an avid gardener, and i made myself a large garden that usually provides abundant food and the plants there grow pretty well; but this year, for some reason, the plants are small, dry and wilted. I

Lime Useage

QuestionI have heard that spreading lime on your lawn will assist in growth as well as color. If so, when is the best time to do this and should I ariate first? AnswerHi Paulie, Its important to keep the pH around

Fertilizer recommendation for lemon

QuestionMy lemons do not grow well. I do not know fertilizer doses necessary for lemon tree. My garden is four years old. Please inform me about recommended NPK dose time of application and way of application and re

Soil for Hydrangeas

QuestionHi,I recently planted a hydrangea. Although it has no blooms on it yet, I am curious to know if I need to add nutrients to the soil. I performed a ph, phosphorous, nitrogen,and potassium test. The ph is 6 an

improving soil

QuestionHello Jim. (1) How does one add organic material (manure etc) to a flower bed when the bed is covered with mulch? (2) I didnt do any fertilizing in the spring. Is it too late to fertilize my trees and shr

soil prob

QuestionHI, I love growing flowers but they dont look as good as I would like. I think its the soil. Today, I put humus around all the perennial plants that are a couple of years old. I dug it in for abo

sick evergreens

QuestionI live in a very sandy area and recently, last 3 months, planted evergreen are starting to turn a little yellow from the bright and healthy green they were. What can i do to help them continue to grow Answe

Extremely hard ground

QuestionThe ground in our yard is extremely hard. It is difficult to get anything to grow there well. I once borrowed my fathers tiller to help the problem, but the ground is so hard that it BROKE the ti

Topsoil

QuestionI just recently expanded and leveled our front and back yard (slight grade away from the house). I had to use a lot of fill which was rocky earth. Now I need to cover the whole front and back yard with topso

Planting pine trees

QuestionAt the base of our hill 15 feet high we want to plant pine trees, about 1 inch in diameter. Water is bleeding out from the base of the hill. Can we plant them there and if so how.?? AnswerHi Steve, My first

araucaria

Question Araucaria tree I have one specie of ARAUCARIA in a pot for 6 years, suddenly the tips are brown, loosing slowly its branches. Can I repot it? when? how do I care for it? will I have to donate it, to save it

garden lime and pickling lime

QuestionIs the garden lime (powder type) the same as pickling lime? AnswerHi Victoria, It is not the same. Hydrated or pickling lime changes the pH rapidly and generally is only used in the garden for odor co