Q: I'd like to get my kids interested in gardening. Are there any fast-growing seeds I can try?A: If it's a vegetable garden you're after, you can plant corn, lettuce, cucumber or watermelon. These seeds all germinate in 10 days or less. If you're looking for beautiful flowers: Rudbeckia, sweet alyssum, cosmos, and bachelor's buttons also germinate in less than 10 days.
Q: It seems like every year I have a terrible aphid problem in my garden. What kind of spray do you recommend to control them?
A: That's a common problem, and there are a few options to tackle the aphids in your yard. The first is a commercial insecticidal soap spray that you can get at a home center. Just follow the manufacturer's instructions. Here are some other aphid killers that you can make with ingredients from your own kitchen:
- Garlic spray: Grind garlic cloves. Mix them with water, then strain to form a clear solution. Spray your plants and then come back a couple days later and spray them again. The garlic spray must come in contact with the aphids to be effective.
- Hot pepper spray: Grind hot peppers into fine particles. Mix with water, then strain to form a clear liquid. Use this spray the same way as you would the garlic spray.
- Coriander and anise spray: Add coriander to anise oil, making an emulsion. Spray on plants to kill aphids. Finally, ladybugs are a great way to get rid of aphids because they just love to eat aphids. A single adult will eat about 5,000 aphids. So, consider buying a lure that will attract ladybugs to your garden -- or you can even order ladybugs online. Any of these solutions should help you with those aphids.
Money-Saver Tip:
This will help just about anyone save some money on the plants they put in their garden. It can cost a lot to go out every spring and buy annuals at the local garden center. So why not start your annuals from seeds? Seed packets are inexpensive, and there's a bonus: you'll have more choices with the seed packets than you will with the seedlings at the nursery. Now, if it's time you're looking to save, go ahead and buy seedlings. That way you'll have instant color.
