Free Mulch from County

QuestionHi - My county gives free mulch away. Im alittle nervious about using untreated mulch in my yard. It looks ok to me, but should i put something on it to kill bugs termites etc. Thanks!! An

holes in the ground

QuestionWhat causes small unmounded nickle/dime size holes in the bare dirt around my home foundation? AnswerHi Carla, This time of year, the most likely culprit is a vole or a field mouse. A little later (la

White fungus in soil

QuestionHello, We live in the foothills of Northern California. We have raised plater boxes for our vegetable garden. THe box that weve used for tomatoes for three years has developed large pockets of white fungus-l

Soil/Drainage Question

QuestionWere trying to landscape our house and we have discovered some very disturbing mud bubble type things under our topsoil. When you walk over them the ground waves like youre walking on top of a water bed, but

bare spots in my lawn

QuestionWhat can I do about bare spots in my lawn? I think it may be from tree roots. AnswerHi Don, Proper soil preparation is the key. The soil under a tree is very competitive real estate. &nbs

removing rocks from soil

QuestionI have a gajillion rocks in my yard. I spend time picking rocks instead of weeds. Is there any equipment or a device on a homeowner scale that will remove rocks from soil? When I was a kid, my da

Flower Bed attached to the house

QuestionDear Sir, I have two flowers bed attached to my house; the beds are covered with Fabric and mulch on top. Are the flower beds dangerous to the foundation of my house (maybe because it is a wet area a

urine feces, in out door potted plants

QuestionI live in the city and cats are using my outdoor potted plant garden as thier litter box how can I stop this activity...... AnswerHi Claire, Here are a few things to try... Your local garden center will hav

Red Tip Photinia (Fraseri) and Chlorosis(?)

QuestionHello James, I have a number of 8 - 10 Red Tip Photinia planted in silty soil. Last year most of them had the light green to yellow leaves with brown spots. I was told that the problems wer

amendments

QuestionWHat is a compost amendment? Can I use it rather than potting soil? what is its purpose? AnswerHi Kaycee, a compost amendment is anything organic added to the soil to improve the texture and has been aged s

Anaerobic tea

Question I need a good recipe for anaerobic compost tea.How long to mix and how to tell when it is ready to put on garden? AnswerHi Jack, In a five gallon bucket... two cups of compost, two cups of composted manure

Creating my own Cacti & Succulent soil.

QuestionHi, Im new to Cacti & Succulents and someone was kind enough to send me a bunch of clippings of both Cacti & Succulents. I know that they need minimal watering but I wanted to see if I can make my own

Mud and rocks bubbling from ground.

QuestionQUESTION: I have noticed since I moved to my property where I live 2 years ago, that in the spring there are holes in my yard about 4 inches diameter and have mud and rocks at the openings. The mud and

Killing grass in grassy field

Question Due to the death of my grandmother I have inherited a house and one acre of land. I would like to find an inexpensive way to kill the grass on the 1/2 acre of field. Salt has been suggested. &nb

heavy metals

QuestionHi , James: If you find me annoying, then feel free to delete this mail. but to clearify myself, I treat this information as a proper resource like a profesional webpage. And it is going (It must be) to be c

unwanted grass.... tricky area

Questionlink below the question is a photo of the spot Im working on. I want to add a raised flower bed around a tree....before filling in my prefered soil, would I need to eliminate the grass first? that woul

curling leaves

QuestionMy grand daughter in LAS Vegas recently planted a lemon and a lime tree. The lime is doing well but the lemon leaves are curling...The trees are about two and a half feet tall and had fruit which they remove

soil condition

QuestionTwo years ago I started some garden boxes on my property. I know I need to get the soil tested but have not done it yet. The main problem, other than small veggies is this. The raddish and

old raised bed soil

QuestionHi, and thanks in advance! I am working at a care facility that has raised planters/beds. How can I know what if anything needs to be done before we plant veggies and flowers this year? I h

arizona soil

QuestionHello- I am a beginning gardener. I live in Arizona about 60 miles south of Phoenix. My soil here is dirt. It has a few pebbles hardly no sand just dirt. I have a 40X10 space in my y