'Earth-friendly' gardening can solve pesticide problems

I often run into people who genuinely don’t want to use herbicides/pesticides but as one fellow recently said to me, “What am I supposed to do?” He’s a busy man who loves a green sward of lawn, but maintains its beauty with sprays of weed-and-feed and insect killer.

I do understand these problems. I face them, too, though my rough-and-tumble landscape is a far cry from his park-like surroundings. I hate the Hawkweed that bullies it way into the mix of half-wild, half-cultivated front yard. Though I rejoice to see bees and butterflies making use of their pollen and nectar, I shudder at the thought of their numbers expanding. I storm through the area, grabbing great handfuls of the flowering stems and pulling them out — or breaking them off — whichever happens, because that at least keeps them from setting seeds. And, by the way, that is one tried-and-true effort that helps, albeit exhausting.

Then, the other day, I ran across an old copy of “The Green Gardener’s Guide” by Joe Lamp’l, who once hosted gardening television programs on PBS and the DIY networks. His good sense and practical approaches for earth friendly gardening are still logical today and could perhaps solve some problems for area gardeners. Herewith, some of his time-honored practices for weed and pest control.

Weed control:

- Soil solarization by letting the sun eliminate weeds not only controls weeds but preserves the good soil microbes that chemicals can kill. Clear beds of all vegetation, water well, and cover with clear plastic sheeting that is 2-4 millimeters thick. Secure edges with rocks, bricks or poles and let the sun do the work for 4 to 6 weeks during the hottest part of summer. The intense heat (up to 165 degrees) will destroy weed seeds, soil-borne diseases and nematodes.

- Interrupt the growing cycle: Prevent next year’s crop of weeds by removing the flower heads this year before seeds form. Cut them before they can scatter and if possible, go back later to dig out the weeds. If that is not possible, the continued practice over time should eventually get them to give up.

- Vinegar is a no-fail, safe killer of weeds (and grass in sidewalk cracks). Use a spray bottle of white distilled vinegar on a sunny day and drench the weeds and leaf-base, carefully avoiding nearby ornamental plants near them.

*Newspapers are yet another possibility for some types of landscapes. To prevent weeds from sprouting, cover ground between ornamental plants with wet newspapers — black-and-white sections only. Use four layers of the paper, water well and cover with mulch. The paper will eventually decompose and benefits the soil.

Pest control:

- Encourage birds — Nature’s exterminators of soft worms and insects are a boon to flower gardens. To attract them, put out feeders and birdbaths (as Valle has been nagging you to do, lo, these many years) and plant colorful flowers in companion planting style. Some plants benefit others by attracting beneficial insects or repelling/destroying undesirable pests and diseases. Purple drumstick Alliums or catmint, planted with roses or near peonies help prevent aphids, mites, black spot and powdery mildew. Marigolds thwart nematodes, beetles and numerous other insects, and Nasturtiums — along with mint and basil attract beneficial bug and repel mosquitoes, flies and other pests.

- Simple solutions:

To eliminate ants, sprinkle boric acid crystals where they congregate.

To prevent snail and earwig damage, surround plants with diatomaceous earth, coffee grounds, sharp sands, pine needles or crushed eggshells.

To control blackspot and mildew, combine 1 tablespoon of baking soda, 1 teaspoon of dish soap, a gallon of water and spray on roses, lilacs and other shrubs and flowers, repeating every 10 days.

Neem-seed oil spray kills insects that attack fruit trees, roses, and large ornamental shrubs and also prevents damage from fungal diseases.

After reading over Lamp’l’s suggestions, I found myself recalling the early 1990s and the Master Gardening classes I took. Today’s column could have been written back then — as was my then research/dissertation on Roundup — which had reared its ugly head in the late 1970s and was hailed by the unenlightened and damned by those of our ilk in the MG camp.

Good lord, I’ve been nagging my hapless (but hopefully loyal) cooking/garden/nature readers for over 20 years now; a far cry from the earlier years as arts editor when Sandpoint’s scene was so exciting. The Festival at Sandpoint was just being born, POAC was forming, Marilyn Sabella was starting up Holly Eve (and opening her new store — Eve’s Leaves), the “Panida Moms” were deep into renovation of the beloved old theater with Karen Bowers at the helm, and incredible producer/directors like Merlyn Brown and Sue Coffey-Berg held forth with plays so professional and exquisitely acted that Spokane or Seattle could not have done better. How wonderful to have been the “recorder” for all that.

And now, in these latter years how rewarding it is to have become the cheerleader for Mother Nature. Call me lucky!

Valle Novak writes the Country Chef and Weekend Gardener columns for the Daily Bee. She can be reached at bcdailybee@bonnercountydailybee.com or by phone at 208-265-4688.