Hatted Frau's gardening tip of the week

[Darryl Hattenhauer]

For a non-toxic herbicide, try the muriatic acid used in swimming pools. Just pour it straight out of the jug, like West pouring homebrew on his tonsils.

It leaves no chemicals behind. But it will damage your clothes, so wear funky duds and a pair of gloves. And it will damage your skin, as Rosie found out when she tried it as an exfoliant.

 

[Jeff]

Sheesh, Muratic acid is actually a benign herbicide?? No doubt it kills mere weeds.

I don't think a Joe can buy a more dangerous acid, using that stuff in masonry is a respirator equipped occupation.

.

 

[Darryl Hattenhauer]

Yes, you don't want to be breathing it, and it turns masonry yellow for a week or more.

A more dangerous acid? Well, I remember sitting on a car battery once as a kid. Once. It's a crude but effective alternative to butt-reduction surgery.

 

[capnjuan]

... and if you have weeds growing in the heat exchanger of your inboard boat engine, muriatic acid will not only clean the fouling, but kill the weeds and any insects growing on them. It will also convert whitewall tires to blackwalls and should be diluted before brushing teeth. (Avoid excessive use and consult your doctor in the event of an erection lasting more than four days)

 

[cjd-player]

FYI : muriatic acid is actually hydrochloric acid that has been diluted with water for retail sale ... i.e. very weak hydrochloric acid.

 

[kitniyatran]

Probably kill grass & any other desirable plants as easily as weeds.

 

[Darryl Hattenhauer]

Elrod is right, folks. Don't put it on weeds that are in your lawn.

consult your doctor in the event of an erection lasting more than four days

When that happens, I consult all the wimmins in the neighborhood.

 

[capnjuan]

Elrod is right, folks. Don't put it on weeds that are in your lawn.

Right; put it on weeds that are in your neighbor's lawn ... btw; will not harm flora made from high-grade polysytrene.

 

[Darryl Hattenhauer]

will not harm flora made from high-grade polysytrene.

The heck it won't. Not even astroturf can be exposed to this and come out alive.

 

[capnjuan]

[quote="Juan of West Palm":2k9c8h4j]will not harm flora made from high-grade polysytrene.

The heck it won't. Not even astroturf can be exposed to this and come out alive.[/quote:2k9c8h4j] If the astro turf were made out of the same stuff as those orange, polystyrene Home Depot 5-gallon buckets ... it would do just fine. I used to clean my boats' heat exchangers that way (HE from Crusader 350cid engine pictured ... weeds not usually that bad); muriatic acid poured into the HE, drained into the bottom of the bucket. Pour out acid through filter cloth into reserve bucket, repeat step one.

I'm pretty sure most astroturf isn't made from the same stuff because, if it were, it'd be orange.

 

[West R Lee]

:lol: Sheeew. OK, all kidding aside, since Darryl brought it up. Does anyone have any does and don't for flowerbeds? Plant or shrub suggestions? We're to that point, far beyond actually but have just had so much to do. Easy maintenance, fairly compact that looks good?

So far, in an area about 35' by 5', I've tilled in 200# of lime and 400# of compost to about 6" deep, we're ready for plants this weekend. I've done vegatable gardens from scratch, but never a flower garden. Any "green thumb" flower gardeners out there?

West

 

[Darryl Hattenhauer]

I don't know about flowers. Free fresh food is the only gardening I do. If I can't eat it, I don't plant it.

You might ask Coastie about his ornamentals.

 

[capnjuan]

Hi West; no sensible suggestions here other than maybe a visit to a local landscaper ... see what works in your area? weather, soil conditions, bug/disease resistance ... that kind of thing. Can you buy seed packs of Tejas wildflowers ... the kind that Ken takes pics of? Can those type plants be cultivated? J

 

[West R Lee]

Hi West; no sensible suggestions here other than maybe a visit to a local landscaper ... see what works in your area? weather, soil conditions, bug/disease resistance ... that kind of thing. Can you buy seed packs of Tejas wildflowers ... the kind that Ken takes pics of? Can those type plants be cultivated? J

Funny you should ask Cappy. We bought about 10 pounds of wildflower seeds the last time we were down in the Hill Country (Fredericksburg), but they are still packed up. I'm afraid we're a bit late to plant those this year, but they will surely be placed in the back for the bloom next year.

 

[capnjuan]

Hi West; given a choice between flowers and shrubs, I'd probably go shrubs ... cost more to get them in the ground but apart from feeding and fighting Japanese beetles (you have there?), to me they are less-labor intensive than flowers ... particularly with annuals that need re-planting / weeding / dusting / feeding every year. Where I grew up, it was all about azaleas ... very popular and the northern VA soil and climate good for them. Would tolerate the cold there but maybe might need water in the summer; your flower bed, sprinklered? NoVa not inclined to extended periods of 95+ temps. Have you already chosen some foundation plants for around the house?

 

[West R Lee]

Hi West; given a choice between flowers and shrubs, I'd probably go shrubs ... cost more to get them in the ground but apart from feeding and fighting Japanese beetles (you have there?), to me they are less-labor intensive than flowers ... particularly with annuals that need re-planting / weeding / dusting / feeding every year. Where I grew up, it was all about azaleas ... very popular and the northern VA soil and climate good for them. Would tolerate the cold there but maybe might need water in the summer; your flower bed, sprinklered? NoVa not inclined to extended periods of 95+ temps. Have you already chosen some foundation plants for around the house?

Nah, we haven't chosen a thing Cappy.....just prepared the soil that's all. We're trying to get another house ready to sell as we continue to improve on this one. Grass and fence have been the priorities out here in order to get our animals out here, they still live in town and we go by each day to care for them.

Neither Mrs. West and I are too big on azaleas, not that we don't think they're beautiful, it's just that eveybody and their brother has them. I've been thinking about some mixed shrubs, a Japanese maple for the flower bed, and some mixed flowers to include some amarillos (supposed to be annual I think, but we've gotten them to come back each year) along with some impatiens (annual). Maybe some verigated stuff.

Any thoughts?

West

 

[capnjuan]

... Neither Mrs. West and I are too big on azaleas, not that we don't think they're beautiful, it's just that eveybody and their brother has them ... I've been thinking about some mixed shrubs, a Japanese maple for the flower bed, and some mixed flowers to include some amarillos (perenial) along with some impatiens (annual)

I can understand ... their popularity starts to work against them ... but the Japanese Maple sure sounds pretty good ... I wish I had some better answers ... my shrubology was always a little limited and the only things I can think of are the plants that are common down here; ixora, croton, hibiscus, datura, evernia and the hedge plants eugenia, cherry, ficus ... could probably stand the summer but not so sure about the winter ...

Some of These are labeled by species ... some not but much fun to look at! J

 

[Jeff]

JD,

My Redhead is a plant maniac, as was her mother, raving plant lunatics, both of em.

Here's a pic of our humble little place when we bought it, near 5 years ago & a few shots of this Spring. There was nothing here but a couple sickly Rhodendrons, weeds & rocks. We scored a sweet deal the 1st year we were here, a friend with an extensive mature landscape called & offered to split some of her things, we came home with a pickup full to capacity of plant starts & rootballs. Took a couple weeks to get it all planted.

Local nurseries, real nurseries as opposed to Home Despot, have experienced staff, usually more than happy to offer qualified advice.

The good Capn Juan has the right idea with relatively low maintenance plantings, concept doesn't work so well when you have a partner that's crazy. We try to choose a good percentage of plants that give more than one show, pretty blooms in the Spring & Summer & flashy Fall color, or evergreens

You're doing this at just about the worst times to plant, hotter than blazes & dry. You'll have better success with less effort planting in the Fall, particlarly with trees & the expensive exotics your Mrs is bound to find.

The first planting season here I hauled in 3 yards of chicken manure & 6 or 8 yards of mushroom compost from the farm up the road . Stinky stuff & hot, I got a little carried away with the chickn poo & we lost a few things because the ground was too hot, not bad, survival rate 90% + & thriving.

Ornamental grasses are a pretty safe bet, they come on quickly & are usually pretty tough. Later, as your more exotic plantings mature you can remove the grasses or transplant them elsewhere.

http://www.naturehills.com/catalog/Pere ... Grass.aspx

I'm not sure what's in this product but it works, makes a substantial difference in the survival rate & how fast the plants come on. A little pricey but a pint goes a long way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SUPERthrive

 

[coastie99]

Cheeze !!!

Where are all our lady members ??

How about a few chutneys and pickles recipes gals ??

Perhaps one of you could run a Cuisine thread ........ Hatted Flower's got the gardening tips dep't going !

 

[Darryl Hattenhauer]

Western One,

I let the natural wildflowers grow in my front yard because they choke out weeds. My front yard has rocks and gravel instead of grass. Wildflowers wouldn't be something I'd want in a lawn. They look good taped to my car, though.

If you want to forego the joys of muriatic acid and stick to the usual method, here's a tip for those who're hip. At the herbicide section of the hardware store, I looked at all of the different brands. (I suppose in Texas the most popular one is Round-Up.) There were about 8 or 10 brands and three different poisons, but they all used only one of the three different poisons. None of them combined two or three, probably because mixing them is hazardous, so I bought one of each and mixed them. After a few hours, those weeds looked like they had been blow-torched. But maybe it will have the same effect on me before long.

You can use thorny bushes to deter burglaries. I put them in front of several of my windows so burglars won't break the glass to get it in. Some people put them just inside their fence so people wont jump over the fence. I use bougainvilla. Maybe there in Texas you could use panchovilla.

hf