Gardening tips and tricks

Many gardeners have honed their tips and tricks over the years and the Red Dirt Master Gardeners offer the following ideas.

Sonja Becker’s favorite tool is the hula or stirrup hoe, named for its shape. The movable “scuffer” is easier to maneuver than a standard hoe. Use in garden rows and around plants to eliminate weeds fast.

Cindi Dragon sprinkles chopped flowers and leaves of “feverfew” on cabbage plants. Feverfew repels white butterflies which, in turn, prevents green worms that devour cabbage.

Judy Harvey sweetens tomatoes with sugar. Place a teaspoon of white table sugar in the hole under the roots as you plant the tomato.

Sue Hurd plants snap peas using a tomato cage as a trellis. Place the cage in the ground. Plant a row of peas around the outside and another row inside the cage.

Becky Hutson adds coffee grounds to the soil, the worms love it. The green material also repels ants and slugs and promotes plant growth. Coffee grounds can be added directly to your garden or combined with “brown” material to enrich a compost pile.

Chris O’byrne and Gayle Phipps add magnesium to the soil and green up plants with Epsom salts. Sprinkle salts on the soil or mix about 1/4 cup with one gallon water and water in. There are more beneficial uses of Epsom salts than space here allows, but you cannot go wrong using Epsom salts in your garden.

Gayle Phipps likes spreading wood shavings for mulch. This mimics what nature does to create a rich forest floor. The chips add carbon and maximize soil nutrients and moisture. Wood chips are economical to acquire, reduce weeding, and reduce landfill waste.

Everyone is invited to the Red Dirt Master Gardener meetings at noon the second Tuesday of every month. Please call 307-864-3421 for meeting location and other information about the University of Wyoming, Master Gardener organization, volunteers for a beautiful and healthy community.