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Green:what if your garden went green?

Green:what if your garden went green?

Tired of your gardening hours being wiped out by weeds, gnats and other slugs? Before you rush on the chemicals of the first garden department that you come across, discover these few tips. Have an exterior worthy of the greatest gardeners and all without polluting? Nothing could be simpler!

Pesticides, fertilizers and herbicides:enemies to avoid

That's a number that will leave you speechless! In France, between 13 and 15 million Sunday gardeners use 8,000 tonnes of pesticides per year. Figures that alert, especially since these products supposed to help you have a beautiful garden are very bad for your health. Some may even play a role in the onset of cancers, weakened immune systems and other health issues...something to give the creeps!

If the temptation to use chemicals is great, keep in mind that natural products are just as effective and potentially less dangerous.

Weeding without polluting:our recipes for eradicating weeds

Vinegar

Dandelions creeping into your beautiful garden or vegetable patch? Mix 5 L of water, 1 kg of iodized salt and 200 ml of white vinegar. Spray and see results 1 hour later.

The cooking water

Boiled potatoes or rice for your lunch gratin? Don't throw away the cooking water, it contains starch, and weeds don't like that! Spray the boiling liquid on the offending plants, the extreme heat of the water will literally cook them.

Boiling salted water

Pour boiling salted water at the base of the plant. Be careful not to touch the leaves of your beautiful plantations:excess salt is bad for biodiversity.

Baking soda

Sprinkle it on patio joints, walkways and garden flagstones. Baking soda is very powerful against moss and creeping plants that make your exterior look neglected.

Feeding the plants:long live nettle manure!

Nettle manure is a popular natural fertilizer for green gardeners (and plants!). The advantage is that you can concoct it at home. To do this, macerate 1 kg of chopped nettle leaves in 10 L of water. Stir every other day or so for ten days. Filter the solution to extract only the liquid. Dilute this fertilizer in 10 times its volume of water, spray it on your plants, flowers and vegetables in the vegetable garden.

Keep away the undesirables with kitchen ingredients

Slugs, gnats, slugs, ants... Are these critters giving you a hard time? Open your kitchen cupboards. They are full of natural ingredients to use without moderation to protect your plantations:

  • Potatoes protect salads from slugs:place slices of raw potato at the base of your lettuce, escarole, Batavia...;
  • Leeks keep carrot flies away:plant them right next to them;
  • Coffee grounds and black soap are excellent anti-aphids:put them on the leaves and roots of your roses;
  • Ants hate mint:collect a few leaves and scatter them in strategic places.

A 100% green pesticide against lovers of leafy vegetables

Infuse 1 minced head of garlic in 1.5 liters of hot water for 24 hours. Spray this precious mixture on your salads, cabbage and other leafy vegetables, every other day for 15 days.

Use less water:tips to reduce the bill

Water is life, as the saying goes. Indeed, to have a garden to make the neighbor green with envy, you will have to water it regularly. Here are our suggestions for caring for your plants while protecting the planet:

  • Collect rainwater:it's free, and it's the best water possible for the garden, because it doesn't contain any harmful substances.
  • Water at sunset:the plants are less greedy at this time of the day;
  • Adapt the quantities according to the age and variety of the plants:you will find all this information on the Rustica website;
  • Consider the nature of the soil in your area:clay soil retains water well:the Gerbeaud site will help you find this info.

Applications to help you with organic gardening

The Internet also invites itself into the garden. Indeed, there are loads of sites and apps to help you garden responsibly:

  • BioCalc:If you don't know how to use your natural fertilizers, this app is for you. It allows you to dose fertilizers according to your plants;
  • Gardening, My organic vegetable garden:an ultra-comprehensive book on organic gardening transformed into an application;
  • Organic Gardening Mag:Tons of handy tips to satisfy your eco-friendly garden cravings.

Having a beautiful garden without polluting is possible, easy and super economical. To your smiles, it's time to garden green!