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Rules for Cats who RUN the house!!!

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Fri Apr 27, 2007 3:32 am

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I thought that some of these "rules" would make you smile!!! All from a cat's point of view....

CHAIRS and RUGS...........

If you have to throw up, get into a chair quickly. If you cannot manage in time, get to an Oriental rug.If there is no Oriental rug, then shag would be sufficient. When throwing up on a carpet, make sure you back up while doing so, to make sure the mess you leave is as long as a human foot!!

DOORS.....

Do not allow closed doors at any time in your house. To get a door open, stand on hind legs and hammer with forepaws, once door is open, it is not necessary to use it. After you have an outside door open, stand halfway in and out and think about several things. This is particularly important during very cold weather, rain, snow, or mosquito season!

BATHROOMS........

Always accompany humans to the bathroom. Make sure they let you in( see above rule regarding doors)
and then simply sit there and stare at them.!

PLAY........

This is REALLY important. Get plenty of sleep during the day so you are fresh for playing kitty games in the middle of the night. The best place to play is in the human's bedroom, preferably under the bed!!

BEDTIME........

Always sleep right on top of a human when you decide to get some sleep during the night. If they try to move, make it clear( and you know how) that this is not allowed.!!

Humans can be taught if you start early and remain totally consistent.

Mrs 'G'

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The More You Give...

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2007 9:30 pm

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To thank those of you who were so kind in sending me your best wishes on my move, here is a little thought from me:

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When funds are low and debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to cry,
When care is pressing down a bit,
Rest if you must, just don't you quit!

Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when your hardest hit-
It's when things seem worst,
That you must not quit.


Mrs Greenthumb.

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All About Berries.

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 5:00 am

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To prevent strawberries from touching the soil, cut a large doughnut shape from a piece of bubblewrap and put around the plant like a collar.

To grow beautiful blueberries or cranberries. occasionally water with a mixture of two tablespoons of white vinegar to one quart of water. They love acid soil and grow best in soils with a PH below 6.5 You can also fertilize them by using coffee grounds, work them into the soil around the base of the plants, about once a month.

To keep Rabbits away from strawberries, sprinkle Black pepper in your garden around and over the strawberry patch. Rabbits have a keen sense of smell and are repelled by the scent of pepper. When it rains make sure to re apply.

Remove berry stains from your hands with lemon juice.

To kill earwigs ( and who doesn't want to !) fill a jar lid with corn oil and place it in the garden. The earwigs are attracted to it and then they drown

Cranberry Jello, is the only flavor of jello derived from genuine fruit, rather than artificial flavoring.

Strawberries that are planted on a slope facing south will fruit at least a week earlier than strawberries planted on a slope facing north.

Twigs and foliage of cherry trees are poisonous, and, if eaten, cause death, so watch out for your children.

Mrs"G".


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Leaving Old Friends.

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 4:43 am

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We have made the decision to move from Ontario, to another province in Canada. This has been a hard decison to make, but due to certain circumstances, we had no choice.

The biggest dilemma I have is leaving my many plants behind. I have a very special feeling towards my plants, I have been growing them for 10 years,and we have been through many battles, against weather, disease, insects etc. and we have survived!! So now I have to leave them behind.

Having them spread out over 2 acres, means that there
are many of them, and also many unusual varieties that I have specially cultivated over the years.

I have been secretly digging up the ones that I really like and putting them in holding area, to see if I can possibly fit them in to the moving van. As`the movers cost out the load by weight, my husband has been very strict with what we take with us.

So somehow, I am going to get these plants into the moving van.!!!

I also have a plant sale on, and that is a lot of work. I have been digging up clumps of plants and trying to remember what they are all called. I used to know them off by heart, but somewhere along the way, I seem to have lost my memory!

My poor garden looks decimated, holes everywhere from plants that I have dug up, plants trodden down by the large feet of some males, helping their wives to dig out plants, no sensitivity to my "family".

I also notice, that the small group of plants that I have stashed away, is getting bigger!! How can I leave my favorite Hydrangeas, Daylillys, Roses, Vines, and other Perennials. That is just too much!!

We have only a small station wagon, which has to take 2 large Golden Retrievers and 3 cats and of course my husband . We`are travelling 3000 kms, to our new destination, so the trip will be fun?????

I am thinking that I could sneak some plants in between the cat cages and the dogs, or another thought was that they could all fly there, and I could FILL my wagon with all my plants and drive myself.

Common sense has prevailed however, and I will have to box up the plants, put them in wet newspaper, and send them by mail. Or should I wrap up my husband and animals in wet newspaper, and send THEM by mail?
The thought is tempting!!!!!

Mrs"G".



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Get Your Beans Growing!!

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2007 2:31 am

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To get bean seedlings off to a good start in cold soil at least 2 weeks before your early target date, slice open the sides of black garbage bags to make long sheets and place the plastic on your garden bed, as mulch.

Secure the plastic in place with stones and then plant the pre-sprouted seeds in holes in the plastic at the proper planting intervals. The heat from the plastic warms the soil an additional 3-4 degrees
Fahrenheit.

The plastic sheets can be rolled up at the end of the season and re-used another year.
Make certain that you water beneath the plastic sheet with a drip line or soaker hose.

FLOSS YOUR BEANS!!

String waxed floss across your garden just a few inches above a row of bean plants. Attach floss to stakes. Using scissors, cut a dozen or more strips of foil one inch wide by five inches long.

Tape the strips of foil along the string of dental floss every few feet.

The strips of reflective foil , flapping in the breeze, will repel birds.

HOW ABOUT A SLINKY?

Hang several Slinkys in a row from the side of the house or an overhang, this will give your beans a trellis to "slink" their way up.

SPIDER MITES.

To kill spider mites on bean plants, mix 2 tablespoons of pepper sauce, 2 of garlic powder and 3 drops of dishwashing liquid, add 2 cups of water, mix all into a sixteen ounce spray bottle and spray on your plants.

FOR YOUR INTEREST............

The Asparagus Bean can grow pods up to 3 feet long.

In the sixteenth century, peasants in England relied on dried beans to survive a famine.

In the seventeenth century, people ( foolishly,)believed that eating beans cured baldness!

During World War II, the US army floated water-proof bags filled with beans from ships to beachheads,to feed American troops.

Don't forget Jack and his Beanstalk!!!

Mrs'G'.



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Do your knees need help??

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2007 6:37 pm

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I am so fed up wasting money on buying knee pads for my gardening pants . They end up at my ankles or around my feet and I get so mad, I just throw them away.
So, I have made knee pads of my own, and I will share this " fabulous" design with you!!!

Take a piece of fabric ( old blue jeans) and cut it to fit like a large " pocket" over each knee of your gardening pants. Then cut a piece of foam rubber to fit into the "pocket" on each knee and when you are crawling through your canna lilies etc , your knee pads will stay put.
When you want to wash your gardening pants, then just slip out the foam and when your pants are dry, hey presto! you are good to go again!

INEXPENSIVE GARDEN LIGHTS.

I read`this tip and I thought it was worthwhile passing on.
Get any strong glass jar, the bigger the better, and empty it out and wash it well. Could be a mayonnaise jar, pickles etc.
Pour 2 or 3 inches of sand into the jar, then insert a white pillar candle.
They look lovely in the garden at night,down a driveway or grouped together by your favorite garden spot, or to welcome visitors to your home.

Try it, let me know how it works for you.

Mrs "G"


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Stop and Smell the Manure !!!!

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 5:47 am

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When I was very young, we lived on a farm in rural Scotland. My father looked after the animals and the crops and my mother would do the cooking and cleaning, making jams and jellies and other good things to eat. At that time, I was an only child and never had anyone of my own age to play with, and as a five year old, this, to me, was a problem.

To make me feel better, my parents bought me a doll carriage, all shiny and new, with white lace bedding and pillows. I only had one doll, so I pushed her around the garden for a while, talking to her as a five year old would do. But I was getting rather bored, as she never made any sound.

As I passed the chicken coop I had an inspirational idea. I opened the coop door (which I was not supposed to do) and looked for Molly, our biggest, oldest hen. I managed to lift her up and take her out of the coop and proceeded to dress her in my doll's shawl and bonnet. I then put her in my new doll carriage and was delighted when she seemed not to mind this new form of transport.

I happily pushed her around the yard for quite some time. When I spoke to her she would cock her head to one side and cluck at me. This appealed to me more than my silent doll companion. What I did not know was, as she was "talking" to me from one end of her body, she was doing something else from the other end! I only found this out when I had tired of the game and lifted her out of the carriage. To my horror, I saw this messy, stinky, mess on my lovely white lace bedding!!

This was my first close encounter with "manure". As I became a gardener, I realized just how valuable manure would be in my life. It was to become like liquid gold, the answer to healthy green plants.

In my novice days, I ordered manure from the local farmer. When he came with a tractor load and dumped in on my front lawn, it was just fresh. If you've been close to fresh manure, you will know how revolting a smell it has. So there I was, taking wheelbarrow loads of this "stuff" for days, to get rid of the odor. It seemed to penetrate my clothes even after they had been washed.

Then I got smarter and wiser, learning that old manure is the right thing for the garden. I now make manure "tea". If you take a large bucket and suspend a long pole over the top, get a porous bag, fill it with manure and hang the manure bag over the bucket, then when it rains, the manure gets liquefied. Then you can drain it off into a smaller pail and put it on your garden as fertilizer. No matter how much money you spend on fertilizer, it will never give you the benefits of "liquid gold".

If you know a farmer or know where there is a horse farm, ask for the scrapings of old manure from the barn floor and hold your nose while transporting it to your home. You will reap the benefits ten fold.

So my first encounter with manure as a child was an unpleasant one (especially as in THOSE days you could receive a spanking, and sitting down was painful for a while), but I didn't know then how much I would rely on this 'smelly, messy stuff' to produce wonderfully scented flowers.


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Easy seed starting tape.

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2007 5:13 am

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I head out to the garden armed with a pail of water, seeds, some old newspaper and a 7-8 inch length of twine, kite string or cotton yarn. I put the twine in the pail and while it is soaking I dig a furrow for planting. By the time I have finished, the twine is saturated.

I then sprinkle a row of seeds the same length on a sheet of newspaper. I dip the twine in the seeds and plant the whole thing.

As the seeds germinate, the twine will degrade, giving a bit of organic matter to the soil.

This is a great way to tackle those almost invisible seeds such as carrots, lettuce, etc. this is much easier than the old method of mixing them with sand!.

PORTABLE POTTING BENCH!!

I remove the padded cover from my ironing board and set it up wherever I want to work. I use the flat surface and then, when I am finished, I can just fold it away until I need it again. It is a good idea to use an " Old" ironing board if you don't want seeds in your underwear!!!!

PORTABLE SEED CARRIER!!!!

My golden retriever called Hunter, just loves to roll around in the snow. When we have snow I always put lots of sunflower seeds in my bird feeders, and the birds are apt to scatter them on the ground.

So when Hunter decided to have his "roll" he did it on the ground under the bird feeders, and hey presto!
a walking sunflower container!! His back was covered in the seeds, and much to his disgust, he had to have a bath to get rid of them. So imagine all these sunflowers growing in my drainage pipes !!

Mrs "G".


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A " DUNk" for Japanese Beetles!!!

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 1:13 am

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There are many uses for vinegar these days, from gargling your throat ( UGH!!)
to drinking for stomach problems.

As I love roses, these beetles can be a real menace to them as well as corn and raspberries etc. For short-term control, hand picking is the safest and most effective measure. ( I hate doing that!)
To make this rotten job easier, place cans of vinegar solution ( equal parts apple cider vinegar and water ) next to vulnerable plants.

Early and late in the day, when beetles are not at their best, hold the can under them, and knock the beetles into the solution. Vinegar kills them quickly and is not harmful to pets or children.

You can leave the can in place until it's full, and then empty dead bugs into the compost pile, and refill the cans.

Over time this method does reduce their population, significantly.

Trouble with cut worms??

Clear plastic 12 ounce water or soda bottles make great cutworm barriers.
Slice the bottles into 3 inch high rings, then press them into the soil,( about 1 inch deep) and put them over newly planted seedlings.

Tool Caddy??

I strap on a carpenter's tool belt, with my garden trowel, pruners etc and I am all set for the day!!

"Mrs G"

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My "pet" inspiration.

Category: Organic Tips for your Garden | Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:15 am

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I had a cat for many years who became my faithful companion. Unfortunately, he passed away after 18 years, and I was devastated.


I vowed that I would never have another cat, as I did not want to go through the emptiness that his loss created.



One day my friend came to call, she raises Himalayan cats, and after we got chatting she mentioned that she was trying to find a home for a one year old male. I was surprised, as she never has problems selling her kittens and I asked why this one was still with her.

She then proceeded to tell me that he was blind, had been since birth, but she couldn't have him put down. Now, this was meant to get my sympathy, which of course it did! I heard myself say "Well I could come and see him?" only to find that he was in her car! Oh, how well she knew me!

When I saw this little bundle of white fur, with the most beautiful blue eyes I had ever seen in a cat, I was hooked! When I picked him up and held him, he was mine.

I have so much admiration for this little creature who lives in the dark. I watch him as he wanders around the floor, testing with his long whiskers as to how far he is from objects, putting out his paw to feel if he is safe to go further. Despite his handicap, he bravely goes about his day,letting nothing hinder him in his inate curiosity, as in all cats.

He has given me a new outlook on life, if at first you don't succeed, try and try again. There have been many days when I have been feeling sorry for myself, life has been too stressful, or so I tell myself, and I just want to pull up the bedcovers and hide, and then I see my little white furry friend, trying so hard to have a life, and not give in to his blindness. He has been an inspiration to me, his determination, his courage and his perseverance, are beyond words.




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