Transcript provided for the hearing impaired.
Alright today on Repairs101 – tips and tricks for working in your garden in yet another edition of my Life Hacks series.
One of the worst things you can do to your tools is leave them outside in the elements where rust sets in quickly and wooden handles shrink and crack and end up giving you blisters the next time you go to use them. Keep your tools clean and dry, off the ground and under cover if not indoors.
You’ll be able to manage most any pruning you need to do in your garden with some secateurs or some loppers. Old axes and hatchets are ideal for chores like stump removal.
And you know what? A Swede Saw will cut just about anything you need to cut. I bought this saw more than thirty years ago when I was in Scouts and I needed it for winter camping. I gotta say: nice work, Sweden. I really got my money’s worth.
You can level the top of your hedge like a professional landscaper just by running a piece of string between a couple of posts.
Always cut branches so as to leave behind the Branch Bark Collar. It’s a fairly obvious collar at the joint between the two branches. The collar is the tree’s defence zone. Left intact it will petrify and become indigestible to decay rot organisms.
You can start fruit tree seeds in a fold of wet paper towel inside of a sealed zip-lock bag. Here I have some lemon seeds that have already developed their root-spurs.
Paper egg cartons make a great no-cost biodegradable seed starting container for annuals.
Now most people reach for a small hand trowel when they go to dig up a wild seedling – but use a shovel and dig out an oversized ball of dirt to collect as much of the tree’s root as possible.
Put your seedlings in a Cold Frame to protect them from late frosts and to extend your growing season.
For a lush green lawn that requires little maintenance – set the wheels of your mower to ride in the lowest holes – providing the most clearance over rocks and sidewalks and letting grass grow as long as possible.
Use Sunlight dish soap and water in a spray bottle for a biodegradable pesticide that controls pests like mites and aphids.
Undiluted, ordinary white vinegar in a spray bottle can also be used as a natural herbicide to control weeds.
Alright keep your lawn maintenance equipment in top condition by not using corrosive chemical pesticides and herbicides. That stuff tastes terrible.
Alright thanks for watching and don’t forget to subscribe.
Top 10 ++ Lifehacks for Gardeners and Gardening Enthusiasts – propagation, pruning, pesticides, transplanting, and tools / tool care tips for working smarter not harder. Also some recycling ideas and environmentally conscious choices available in every home for combating pests and weeds.