Posts Tagged ‘garden’

Finding The Right Deer Repellent Recipe Online

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

Any gardener that lives in a rural area can tell you that it is not the weather or the bugs that cause the most damage, it is the deer. These furry creatures not only eat virtually every plant in the garden but have the unique ability to trample down the surrounding ones while in the process of having dinner. Many of these gardeners have taken to using a homemade deer repellent recipe of some type in order to combat this ever-increasing problem.

While there are a wide variety of these recipes available, the majority of them tend to utilize the same basic ingredients. The list of ingredients is likely to be found already in the home or a brief and inexpensive trip to the grocery store can secure all that is necessary. Almost every one of these recipes, while containing some different ingredients, all seem to use eggs as a base.

The eggs in the mixture act as an adhesive, to keep the mixture on the plants for a period of time. The eggs will also help the mixture withstand some light weather conditions and the occasional spray from a garden hose. The entire egg is not wasted as many of the recipes will call for use of the shells along with the contents.

Since deer react to taste and smell when it comes to a repellent, many people will add ingredients along the lines of cayenne pepper, onion or Tabasco sauce into their repellent mixture. When gearing the mixture towards assaulting the sensitive nose of a deer, garlic may also be added.This will give it an even more offensive odor.

Household soap products may also be used to make an effective deer deterrent mixture. Ordinary dish soap, when mixed with water, then sprayed on the plants will create a lasting memory in a deer’s mind after taking just one bite. Deodorant soap, on the other hand, is a very effective tool in that the odor that it emits immediately sends deer off in another direction.

These combinations of ingredients are applied to the plants by using some type of spray equipment. This can come in the form of a recycled spray bottle from glass cleaner or other household product. For those with a large garden with too many plants to spray by hand, a pump type sprayer, the same type used for spraying insecticides and weed killer, is recommended.

The pump sprayer also cuts down on issues of tiredness or the cramping of a hand while covering a large area. When using the mixture that requires that the eggshells be left in, this may be applied by simply sprinkling it out of the bucket or pail. Both of these methods can be quite effective in ensuring that all of the plants get the proper coverage that they need.

A deer repellent recipe, when mixed properly, should slow down or completely stop the flow of deer traffic in the garden. These recipes were made to be as eco-friendly as possible along with not causing any undue harm to the animals. Some online browsing will bring all of the different recipes to the gardener so they can make a proper decision.

There are many home-made recipes to repel deer. Please visit our site at www.thebestdeerrepellent.com to check some out… You might like the rotten egg recipe or the Texas Pete… People have created some very unusual recipes to make sure that deer stay away from their plants. Some work and some… I don’t know… try and see..

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What A Shopper Must Know When Buying Patio Furniture Helps You To Make Good Choices

Monday, March 15th, 2010

Summer is almost here and you are planning on some new patio furniture this year. It is a considerable investment if you need everything to furnish your patio all at once. Plan on taking some time to research what is available online and off. Keep your projected price in mind. There are suggestions about what you should know when buying patio furniture.

Indoor furniture may be sat on, jumped on and eaten on, but outdoor patio furniture is exposed to the weather. Thunderstorms, gentle persistent rain and the like can put a strain on your outdoor pieces. It should be washable of course.

There are stores with bargain prices. Many reasonable prices make the good pieces fall within your price range. If you choose aluminum, make sure you plan to bring it in on a windy day. If you have fancy cushions, perhaps plan to cover them to keep them clean.

List the furniture you need in order of importance. For large families with kids, the study redwood picnic table might be a safe buy. It is just like the ones in the public parks, only prettier. When the kids scratch it, you will not have to worry. You can relax and enjoy the summer. If the kids spill soda on it, no problem.

Summer is meant to be fun. Enjoy hot dogs (kids spill ketchup), hamburgers (kids drop pickles) and soda or cool aid (kids spill both). In fact, you may have some guests at your picnics that are adults and spill their beer.

First on your list is a picnic patio table and chair set. Patio umbrellas are a colorful addition to the decor. Add a three-piece set of couch, love seat and chair to the mix. You may have a lot of guests at your outside gatherings. There are lovely sets in all materials and price ranges.

Plastic is easy to wash with a little detergent and rinse with the hose. Remember, the aluminum chairs may be inexpensive but they heat up in the sun and if you are wearing shorts when you sit on it, ouch! The wicker is lightweight and can blow over just as the plastic and aluminum can. Wrought iron and redwood or other wood is the sturdiest. It is long lasting and impervious to wind.

There are adorable little kids patio sets in bright colors and just the right size for those little legs to reach the floor. How fun for them to have their own special table next to the adults patio set. Older kids love to spend time sitting in a glider.

Try to follow a theme and match all your pieces to complement rather than clash with each other. Modern, rustic and Victorian styles are made in various colors and finishes. Plan ahead so you do not have a grouping that is too eclectic.

Wrought iron is a terrific choice if you can afford to buy it. It is so sturdy, yet so lacy looking. Attractive, and strong enough to accommodate that favorite uncle who comes on fourth of July and weighs 300 pounds. You would not want to seat him on aluminum for obvious reasons.

Look over all that is available. Plan how many pieces you want. Make a list of the various possibilities. Go shopping and make your selections. If at all possible, wait for the patio furniture you want to go on sale. Everyone loves a bargain. The money you save can finance your next family cook out. Now go shopping and remember what you should know when buying patio furniture.

Check out how you can do some teak refinishing to make your furniture look better. Doing the correct steps in teak restoration will have your pieces looking brand new. Head online and learn more now.

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To Landscape Or Not To Landscape?

Monday, March 8th, 2010

If you have more than a small town garden, then landscaping your garden will doubtless be one of your considerations. If you have just bought the property, or you think that it is time for a garden make-over, there are ways of going about it. The easiest technique of going about planning a garden, is to first take a good look at the landscape of your garden. This can be difficult if the garden is established and in full bloom.

Therefore, it can be better to wait until autumn or winter, so that you can see the true lie of the land. You could make a plan of the garden on graph paper and take a load of photos too. Identify the photos on the back of them and relate them to the grid on your graph paper. There may be bumps and hollows, potholes, rocky areas and even a marsh or a pond to cope with.

These are probably natural features and if you want to alter them, you will have to tackle the fundamental cause. The feature is only the symptom. Like freckles or spots! If you look at the state of affairs in this way, it makes planning simpler.

For example, a rocky patch probably means that the Earth is pushing stones up slowly but surely and if you want to clean it up, you will be picking up stones for the rest of your life. Likewise, if your wet patch is the result of natural drainage from higher ground, you will have to drain it and put in permanent drainage, since it is not going to stop raining for you.

So, you can either work with nature or you will be working against it for the rest of your life. Either that or paying someone else to do it for you. Another point is that the wildlife that uses your area does so because of how it is. If you change the landscape, your current range of wildlife might move on or just die. A lot depends on how much land we are talking about, but in general, I would say that the larger the plot, the more you should leave it alone.

On the other hand, you can put in features more easily than remove them. For example, if you have an area with poor soil, you could enrich it with fertilizer or put a pond there. Shade and existing fences or sheds should also be marked on your graph paper, although being man-made, these are simpler to do away with or alter.

Next you should decide what type of garden you want, within the constraints of the existing landscape, how much work you are willing to put into it and how much money you want to pay out on it. Enhancing the natural elements of the land is the easiest way of landscaping your garden.

If you have a swampy area, why not put a low wall around it and turn it into a pond? If you have a rocky patch, why not gather up the stones and create a rockery? If you have a couple of trees, try growing wisteria, honeysuckle or vines through them.

If you are in the shade, buy flowers that prefer the shade and vice-versa. It is a struggle to go against nature and unless you have a good reason to do it, it is not really worthwhile. Then build a patio or deck and sit outside and enjoy all the landscaping that you have saved yourself in your garden.

Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with outdoor heat lamp. If you are interested in patio heaters too, please click through to Residential Patio Heaters.

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Save Money With The Right Deer Repellent Recipe

Monday, March 8th, 2010

While there are many commercial grade repellents on the market, the casual gardener can save quite a bit of money by concocting his or her own version at home. All of these are relatively simple to make and will aid in the protection of any vegetable or flower garden. A deer repellent recipe consists of common household products coupled with food items that are normally readily available in the average home.

By using these natural recipes, a gardener can give an added level of protection to any plant under his or her care. These natural recipes ensure that no harm comes to either the animals or the plants themselves. Many of these measures are quite noxious but are in no way toxic to any of the creatures that may ingest them.

The majority of these recipes utilize kitchen spices such as chili powder, cayenne pepper, onion, or garlic to create a coating for the plants that deter return visits. Anyone that has ever had hot wings that were entirely too hot can attest to the fact that they would never again order them from the same restaurant. Similarly, deer will likely not return to a garden that they have visited once and had this same basic experience.

Each of the mixtures, while having different ingredients to create the bad taste, all have a single ingredient that aids the mixture in adhering to the plant. The use of eggs or cooking oil is quite popular in these mixtures, to help them stick to the plants. These help the mixtures stay on the leaves even through the occasional watering or light rain.

A heavy rain or repeated watering will require that the mixture be reapplied. However, the items used to create these mixtures come at such a low cost that repeated reapplication should not be an issue. There are also other mixtures that may be created using household items that will achieve the same effect.

One of the most popular mixtures created from household products is the use of dish soap and water, liberally sprayed on the plants. This may be used on a regular basis without fear of harming any of the vegetation. To understand this effect, one only needs to think back to the first time they set a bad word in their mouth got washed out with soap.

The use of a bar of deodorant soap can also be quite effective in repelling deer from an area. Bars of deodorant soap, hung strategically around a garden or yard, can keep the deer at a good distance. This method works so well that the National Forest Service adopted it as one of their predominant procedures for controlling areas that are densely populated by herds of deer.

The appropriate deer repellent recipe can be found easily by going online. There are many different Web sites available that contain a wide variety of these recipes as well as the proper ingredient measurements . By doing some research, one can find all the information necessary to make the correct decision in which mixture to use.

If you are looking for a deer repellent recipe make sure you visit our site. One of the most effective and the least costly ways to keep the deer away from your garden is to make and use some of the recipes people have been using for a very long time. Try the one with rotten milk or the rotten eggs.

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Garden Patio Layout

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

After you have finished buying in your garden patio furniture and you have set it out as you like, it is time to park yourself in one of your new patio chairs with one of your favourite drinks and maybe a pen and paper, and take stock of the state of affairs.

Is your garden patio a bit crowded or do you have loads of room? Are there other things you would like to have out there? How about plants? Do you have enough plants and bushes – eye candy? Will you be using it only in the daytime or in the evening or even at night too? Will you need lighting, for instance?

This is where your own personal flair can be added to your shop bought furniture to make the patio truly your patio. So, if you live in a house that only has a small garden, you might want to think about things that hang rather than things that must be sited on the ground, which will take up walking space.

If you do not have much room, but you want to grow plants with edible fruit such as strawberries or tomatoes, you could get some hanging baskets. You can hang them from bushes or standard lamps or fix them to a plain wall. Similarly, you could grow herbs or other small plants in a window box which has been fixed to a wall or placed on top of it. Or fix shelving up and put boxes and pots on that.

If your patio is too sunny, you could grow sunflowers or put up a trellis or an arbour and grow vines or clematis up it. Bamboo grows quickly too. If it is too shaded, plant plenty of bright yellow and white flowers and maybe paint the walls white or pink, if you are not keen on glare.

If your garden patio is a much larger, you could add garden accessories in order to further your enjoyment. For instance, you could construct a barbecue area out of stone slabs or bricks. You could add a fountain too. A fountain makes the very soothing sound of running and splashing water and fish are a delight to watch.

For the colder months, you could construct a fireplace, if local bylaws permit or get a patio heater. They are very efficient and can keep a fair radius warm, depending on the ambient temperature.

You will probably need some form of lighting too, if you reckon on spending some evenings on your patio. I suggest a few spotlights to highlight your favourite flowers and the fountain and a broader beam light that you can read by. Do not put these lights near where you intend to sit because they will be a magnet for flying insects. However, they make a good distraction from you and will keep all but the blood sucking insects away.

For parasites such as mosquitoes, you should get some form of mosquito light. Some are very good and promise to keep a quarter or even half an acre clear of mosquitoes and other such pests.

For all these extra accessories you will need power points. Therefore, if you plan your garden with pen and paper like I mentioned at the beginning of this article, then you will be able to show the electrician where you want the points and what-not in your new garden patio layout.

Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many subjects, but is currently involved with commercial patio heaters. If you are interested in patio heaters too, please click through to Residential Patio Heaters.

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