Hort Shorts
- Systemics are pesticides harmless to the plant and to any animal or person who eats them, but they make the plant itself toxic to pests (insects, fungus, etc).
- Place wire cages over tall-growing tomato plants, or secure them to wooden stakes with discarded panty hose or strips of soft cloth.
- Some annuals that can be cut and dried for fall and winter indoor decoration include: celosia (cockscomb), helichrysum (strawflower), statice and globe-amaranth.
- Some annual flowers to plant now include: sweet alyssum, ageratum, scabioasa, marigold, nasturtium, zinnia, balsam (touch-me-not), cosmos, tithonia, crotalaria, petunia, and verbena.
- Dull lawn mower blades chew the grass, leaving jagged edges that sometimes become entry points for diseases.
- Replenish mulch around trees and shrubs.
- Tall-growing dahlias and gladiolus are often difficult to work into annual and perennial flowerbeds. They are out of scale with lower-growing flowers. Instead, try planting them in rows as vegetables.