Gardening gizmos are items you may find useful when working in the yard and garden--and you may actually feel you can't live without some.
A sheet of heavy-gauge plastic is a time-saver, a back-saver, and on windy days, a sanity-saver when raking leaves. You roll up the plastic sheet and stuff it into a trash bag. It unrolls slightly to keep the bag open and upright so you can stuff it full of leaves (figure A). When you finish filling the bag, simply lift the plastic sheet out by its handles, and the bag is ready to close. Once you've filled the bag with leaves, dump them in the compost pile rather than tossing them in the trash.
A pecan picker-upper is another good back-saver. The manufacturer says it's also handy for picking up other kinds of nuts, as well as golf balls, small stones, and so on. You simply roll it around on the ground, and the nuts get caught up in the spring. Release the contents by loosening the spring.
Water conservation is a hot topic in gardening circles, and many people are developing new ways to save water. A product aimed at doing just that is a watering advisor (figure B). Resembling a rain gauge, this device is filled with water and placed in the lawn or in a flower or vegetable garden. Water then evaporates at the same rate as healthy turf grass of plants. Check the gauge now and then to determine when you need to water. For instance, most plants need at least one inch of water a week, so as soon as the water level drops one inch, you know it's time to water. The day or date you last watered can be set by rotating the scale on the top of the unit (figure C).
The water bubbler (figure D) is another water saver, and it's great for watering the base of plants, which is the preferred way to water most plants. The bubbler converts a high-pressure stream of water into a gentle flow, allowing the soil to absorb water slowly and preventing wasteful runoff.
Another gizmo redirects runoff rainwater and puts it to good use so it doesn't erode your garden. When attached to a gutter downspout, the perforated plastic unrolls automatically when it rains and gently waters nearby plants. It rolls back up again when it stops raining.
Those of you who love growing plants in containers, including houseplants, but forget to water them regularly, can use a gadget that serves as a houseplant water sitter. A contoured tank hangs onto the side of practically any pot (figure E), and a watering head goes into the soil (figure F). As the soil dries, a tube draws water from the tank into the pot so the soil stays evenly moist for up to three weeks.
The Apex Grip is a product that enables gardeners who do a lot of vertical gardening with climbing or vining plants, such as pole beans or sweet peas, to create a support system for those plants. You push a dowel rod or bamboo cane into each of six holes (figure G) to have instant support. The grip accommodates poles up to roughly three-quarters of an inch in diameter and any length you like. Once assembled, push the poles into the ground, and plant at the base of each.
Birds can be effectively controlled without using nets by merely using a strip of reflective tape (figure H). When sunlight hits it, the reflection startles birds and sends them flying elsewhere. For best results, the tape should be installed on stakes above crops prone to damage and spaced roughly 30 feet apart. It should be removed once crops ripen because birds will get used to the reflection in time.
A dunk is highly effective for controlling mosquitoes in water gardens, bird baths, roof gutters, or anywhere else water accumulates (figure I). The active ingredient in the dunk is a live bacteria that kills mosquito larvae without harming fish or birds. One dunk will treat an area up to 100 square feet and lasts 30 days. For smaller areas, the dunks can be broken into smaller pieces.
Plastic containers can be converted into a number of handy devices using one of several fittings that screw onto all kinds of containers (figure J), including milk, motor oil, antifreeze, and detergent bottles. These fittings can turn your container into a pouring spout, a funnel, even a sprinkler.
You can find these gardening gizmos and many more at your local nursery, home-and-garden center, or hardware store for less than $20 each.
Resources Eco-Spout
Perforated plastic for gutter downspout, distributes runoff
M. S. Harman Company
6469 Niclolas
Columbus, OH 43235
Phone: 614-442-1210
Toll Free Phone: 800-449-1210
Fax: 614-442-7599
Email:
info@sprinklersandspouts.com
URL:
www.sprinklersandspouts.com
Plant Sitter
Armchair World
2240 Federal Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90064
Phone: 310-477-8960
Toll Free Phone: 800-434-6119
Fax: 310-477-4910
Email:
plants@armchair.com
URL:
www.armchair.com/store/trav/away.html
Water Bubbler (Model #: 315)
Gilmour
Website:
www.gilmour.com
Birds Away Tape
Reflective tape for deterring birds
Dalen Products Inc.
11110 Gilbert Dr.
Knoxville, TN 37932
Phone: 865-966-3256
Toll Free Phone: 800-747-3256
Fax: 865-966-6404
URL:
www.gardeneer.com
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