GardenHacker:
not your typical seedy site...

Garden Cures for Garden Ills

There are a lot of cures for ills in the garden, most of the "off the shelf" varieties are now being poo-pooed as destructive, eco-unfriendly, poisonous, etc. There are many books available that have a plethora of quick fixes, tonics, and more "guaranteed" to help your ailing garden, which I'll cover in a future installment. For now, I'll share a few of the better links I've found:

• From The Tinker's Garden.com - "...Rooting Roses with Willow Water The rooting capability of Willow Water was discovered in the 1960's by Dr. Kawase of The Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center at Wooster.
  To make Willow water for rooting difficult woods plant cuttings do the following. Cut the current years tender green growth from any Willow tree. Remove the leaves and cut the small stems into 1 inch pieces. For best results crush the cutting with a hammer or split the stems. Place the small stem cuttings in a small container and cover with 2 inches of Hot water and cover. Allow the stems steep 24 hours. ..." Link
• From Nichol's Garden Nursery, as well as NewScientist.com, a good cheap cure for powdery mildew: "...Milk may have potential as a fungicide. A report in the October 16 1999 edition of New Scientist suggests that spraying diluted milk on cucumbers and courgettes (zucchini) may be effective in killing powdery mildew, caused by the mold Sphaerotheca fulinginea. This could be a significant benefit for organic farmers trying to meet the growing demand for chemical free vegetables. ..." Link the recipe is as follows: 1 part Milk 9 parts Water
  Also note, from the Tinker's Garden: "...Bettiol found that a weekly spray of milk at a concentration of at least 10% (1 part milk to 9 parts water) significantly reduced the severity of powdery mildew infection on plants by 90%. While some gardeners may be tempted to increase the concentration of milk for more control, Bettiol found that once concentrations rose above 30%, an innocuous fungus began to grow on the plants. ..."
• Save your eggshells during the year until you have enough for your planting. Put a little potting soil into each shell and plant your seeds. When the seedling get big enough to plant in the garden just crush the shell as you put the plant in the hole, shell and all. As times goes on the shells will break down and release calcium and other essential minerals into the soil. This is especially useful with tomatoes because the extra calcium will help prevent blossom end rot. - Link
• Citrus oils are being used for everything nowadays, makes me wonder what Tropicana and Sunkist did back in the 20th century with all their rinds. "...Herbicides made from various citrus oils and from oils of cloves and cinnamon work every bit as well as concentrated vinegar, and they smell a whole lot better, too. 'Actually, I know of at least one product that combines citrus oils and concentrated vinegar for that one-two punch," James says. "But again, although that may sound like the basis for a tasty vinaigrette, these products should never be used for cooking or eating.' ..." Link