Seriously, one of the best channels on this platform. Thank you for everything you do G.S... You're saving hearts, minds and lives out here in the real world.
The one phrase that sends me into the stratosphere faster than anything is "That is how it has always been done!" I hate that phrase and, a lot of times, it is pure bs! There is always room for improvement, I don't care what the goal is. Great video! No, I don't use epsom salts on anything unless I have inadvertently stepped on a nail. They are great for drawing out toxins in wounds.
This is my favorite gardening topic. Especially since I fell victim to many of these fallacies when I began gardening 50 years ago. Here's my best tip for gardeners: if you see a gardening tip or advice that goes beyond using water and compost, do a google search on the tip, prefaced by the word "Myth". You will almost always get alternative, informed and science-based advice. I really like your practical and reasoned advice to gardeners. Thanks.
@ShinRaPresident I agree. I find it's worth taking a few minutes here and there to chop everything up. If I leave loose piles of whole plants out, even if I keep them watered and turn them they can take a couple years to fully break down. When I break things down into small pieces, I'll usually have compost within a growing season (around 6 months here, 49th parallel)
Great advice. Thank you!! I do all of my gardening between midnight and 5am... planting, watering, pruning, lounging on my bench glider, everything. 😛 It's so quiet, relaxing, and cool out in the garden night.
I just started composting this year. I started out by mixing an equal amount of dried leaves and grass clippings, directly on the ground, and watered it as I mixed it. I regularly add grass clippings, pulled weeds, torn up brown paper bags, and toilet paper/paper towel cores. Every morning, I turn it over with my bare hands so I'm able to get a feel for how it's breaking down and how moist it is. It should have the moisture of a wrung out sponge. If it feels dry, I add water. I also pick up a clump and smell it to make sure it smells sweet and earthy and not anaerobic. So far, so good. I think next season, it will be a great pile of compost!
LOL I just uploaded my latest video on watering. Watched this while it was uploading. You hit the nail on the head with watering at night. Watering in the morning during the summer almost always ends in foliage burns by noon for me. Night time daily is how I water.
Myth. Do some research. Watering during the evening has some advantages but there's no way that watering during the day results in foliage burn. Other than your opinion, I respectfully challenge you to provide any evidence-based example of foliage burn due to daytime watering. Surely there must be something more credible than simply an opinion that supports this idea?
@@priayief I think they're right about foliage burn but only if you wet the leaves, rather we should only water the ground soil when the sun is in full blast in summer, what do you think, in your experience have you watered in summer & wet the leaves in the full summer sun?
Sorry but that is not true at all. If it were true, imagine how detrimental it would be to have it rain during the day, then have it be sunny again? Wouldn't all the leaves of trees get burnt? Please do your research.
@@organicgrow4440 Offhand, I'll say I probably have watered and wet the leaves during full summer sun. But for sure, I know that there have been brief summer rainstorms that have wet the leaves, followed by clear skies and hot sun. It doesn't take much effort to find information from credible scientific sources that debunks this myth.
Vladimir Lenin thanks for sharing your experience, how hot does your summer get? We go up to around 45c here. Plants burn no matter what over, even the dessert fig leaves get scorched here so I wasn’t sure.
I watered in the evening for the reasons you mentioned. Well, I started to at first because I'm not a morning person and during the summer, it's already 70-80 degrees by 10am, so I felt like it was already too warm by the time I got out there 😅 but then it just started making more sense the more I thought about it. When most of the day is 80-90 degrees with maybe a peak in the hundreds, all the water I just gave the plants was already drying up. Plus the plants would be stressed from the heat and probably not absorbing a whole lot. So watering in the evening makes more sense so the soil is damp far longer and the plants can absorb it without being stressed. For awhile, I worried I was making a big mistake, but when nothing bad happened, I quit worrying.
I didn't know about the gravel tip. Thank you for also addressing the evening watering tip. I figure if God waters in the evening, then surely it's okay for me to do it.
Thanks for clarifying what time of day to water- I had just heard on another channel that it is harmful to water in evening! I live in a very dry climate like you, and have watered in the evening in the past just following my own instinct. Turns out I was on the right track!
When I was younger I hitchhiked across this great country several times. I often picked up work on farms. On one dairy farm they were being lowballed for there milk. So the farmers called each other up on landlines. Which was the only means of communication. It was desided that they would dump their milk rather than be robbed selling it. So we drove a stake sided flat bed out to a place where they would dump bad milk. Mastitis and such. I was shocked; the land was so barren nothing, nothing grows in the milk dump spot. Since this experience I have used sour milk on driveway cracks. Which will have considerable success. However wind blown soils will get into those cracks and weeds don't require much to reestablish themselves, plus I am not putting down the quantity that a dairy farm would. Be well and garden on. But leave the milk out of soil.Tom.
I learned that putting a shard of pottery over a large drainage hole in the bottom of the pot prevents the soil from leaking out the bottom of the pot, not that it would keep water in.
I learned this the hard way. I heard the myth of epsom salt for tomatoes and I noticed blossom end rot so I watched some RUclips videos and added calcium back in my soil and began watering and my tomatoes became healthy. I stunted the growth for maybe a month but lessons learned.
I think the tip about broken crockery or rocks in the bottom of a large plant container has some validity. Stops the soil washing out should you overwater.It helped my lemon/thyme plant from drowning by stopping its roots from plugging the hole. I did have a previous thyme plant that plugged the drain hole with its roots and even with drip irrigation, it drowned itself because I could not see the soil, the thyme was so dense. When it started to go brown, I had to look for the drip system in the pot, but then I found a pool of water and it was too late.
Best way to keep potting mix from washing out of a pot is plain old fiberglass drywall mesh tape. It's cheap, sticks in place, and will outlive most pots.
Scott, thanks for your comments about watering in the evening. I live in Saskatchewan, Canada, and our climate sounds like it's very similar to Colorado. For years I have been watering in the evening, it seemed to be the best time of day to do so, and I never had a problem. But it did go against the advice of most professional gardeners - thanks for clarifying this. I also appreciated your video "Understanding Wood Ash in the Garden ", again, another example of advice that requires a second look - it's definitely not appropriate for our area, where the soil tends to be alkaline. I really enjoy all your videos - I've been gardening for a number of years, and your information is really helping me to be a better gardener. Thank you.
I'm growing my first garden and all I've done is water the hell out of the tomato plants once a day with filtered water around midnight when I get home from work. I check them before work as well and sometimes give them a second watering. I'm using moisture retention with fertilizer soil. I've sprayed on the ground around my pots for bugs and so far no bugs trying to destroy my plants. I have tomatoes on almost every plant at this point as well as on my peppers. My romaine lettuce has multiplied so much I pulled out 2 bunches by the roots, repotted them and took them to my neighbor to feed his tortoises.
@@TheNapalmFTW they're not getting on the plants at all. The plants are in 5-10 gallon buckets. I'm only spraying a small space on the ground. I haven't had any bugs at all on the plants
My compost accelerator- four backyard chickens and a chop-up of green things from the yard and garden with Costco scissors ❤️🐓 Epsom salts occasionally join a water bath for my ferns and hydrangeas. Coffee grounds just go everywhere in the garden and compost (I love coffee!) I water in the evening because that’s the only time I have a chance to give everything a drink in south Louisiana. Thank you so much for the encouragement of the things I’m doing right and giving information on things I can work on.
All very sound advice, as usual. I love your videos because you don't just say do or don't, you explain the reason for everything, and why it may work under certain conditions and not under others. By the way, I've planted many trees in my life and have never staked them. Once I was rather frightened during a dreadful storm, as I saw some young trees, planted that year, tilting more than 45º under the strong winds. The next morning they were upright as though nothing had happened. On the other hand, a huge, established conifer we had on one side of the garden fell down over the fence. Luckily, it didn't hit our neighbours' roof!
Thank You for putting out another video that will make gardening easier for a lot of people. I agree that there is as lot of misinformation out there making gardening harder or not helping. Over the years I have used process of elimination to sort through the pros and cons of what works in my garden.
Coffee is also an excellent "compost accelerator" I got my pile up to 120 for the first time, now its dropped again. But I don't worry I know when its lower, the worms come in and have a feast. When it's too hot they go to my garden to relax, while the bacteria gets there fill. :) I stake my trees because we get Santa Ana winds hot fierce winds that can snap even the mightiest oak!
My friend Scott, out working in the garden today, I discovered something I had not considered: I invested in those so called Key Hole beds a couple years ago. They measure 22" X44 X44 ". That equals 7.35 sq ft of growing space. So I reduced the soil depth to 11" and took 3 of the panels to extend the beds out another 44 X 11", with cutting the corners in half. This increased my growing space to 25 sq ft. (11 X 44 X89") I don't need 22" of soil depth as 11 or 12 is plenty for carrots, beets, squash and beans and even tomatoes. These "Key Hole" beds are vinyl and are guarenteed for years not to break or break down. So, it's been a productive day in the gardening plan. I can still use my trellice for early peas to climb up.
I throughly enjoyed this video -- -- hahahahahahahaha. Sometimes even some gardeners don't use their common sense on things in the garden. I remember before "Google" or "RUclips" that I would grab either a book from my parents house or one from mine on whatever was needed and would have to read to find the solution to the problem.
The coffee ground myth is about the same as the "never use pine needles as mulch because it will acidify your soil" myth. It takes years and years of using nothing but pine needles to acidify your soil even a little bit, especially if you are using other organic materials in your compost and mulch. i use the lasagna method myself, that was made famous by Ruth Stout.
I saw online articles citing scientific studies showing that the caffeine in coffee grounds actually slows down plant growth. I try to avoid coffee grounds, except in my compost pile.
The watering-in-the-evening thing is super frustrating. You're more likely to get rain at night than during the day! If that myth was true, then forests everywhere would be devastated every time it rained. Same thing for daytime watering and raining during the day. Thankfully I learned this when I got into bonsai and before I started gardening. In bonsai, you either water it when it needs it, or it will D.I.E. So yeah, there might be some times that are more optimal than others, but at the end of the day all that matters is that it's getting watered AT ALL.
I remember an article in a Tacoma newspaper that featured a man who had an amazing clematis. He said the secret to his success was that he enjoyed drinking coffee near the plant, and when he drank his fill, he would pour the remaining milk-laced coffee on the clematis.
OK, I agree with all this, but I did read an article recently. It was pertaining to the coffee grounds. I know they don't help acidifying soil, this was pertaining to caffeine. Supposedly University of Oregon did a study and found that it can caffeinate your soil. The reasoning was plants like cocoa, coffee, tea gained caffeine to kill off other native competing plants. In other words the caffeine can cause a nutrient lockout. The watering, I always water in the evening, it's 90 by 10 am here this week. We live 1/2 mile from the Cumberland river in mid TN. There is so much dew most nights it sounds like rain dripping from leaves. I don't think my small amount of water is going to make a difference. Love the informative videos, keep it up!
Living in Colorado evening watering is the best. I totally agree with watering at night. If I water in the morning my new plantings are so wilted by the end of the day.
Good tips. Also great advice that if they have or have not worked in the past for an individual, then just keep doing what you are doing that works. Thanks Scott
Everything that makes working in the garden easier is a good thing. Thanks Scott. That Peacock, made of iron I guess, in the background looks really good. Cheers
The only time when I used to use Epsom Salt is when fir trees (and relatives) starts to getting brown. It can save them. Beside that I crew up to the fact that it is damaging to plants/soil.
Good to see both sides i have good and bad results for them all lol Ive heard lots of good and bad advice from fellow gardeners Its different for everyone and garden A friend wants to help me at times but her style is way different from mine We clash and teach eachother ive learned gardens are a very personal thing ;)
I water in the early morning before the sun hits my tomatoes. The ppl that grow the same variety at the same time are asking why mine are so big. I think its how I plant them sideways. Huge root system provides fast growth that's outstanding . Plant em sideways and use a time released plant food. Keep em wet especially when blossoms are present. Roma is a good one to grow. By sideways I mean dig a trench. Lay plant into the trench and bury it all except one set of leaves. It works. Big plants...mucho tomatoes.
The best thing I make and use is bio-char, when it is done correctly, it will keep nutrients locked up, provide sulfur and oxygen to the soil and retain water....also can be charged with compost tea before using......
I put flat rocks or concrete ruble at the bottom of my pots. I have pots as large as 30 inched in diameter and some small pots. I notice that when I water, very soon water drains out the bottom hole.
Epson salt is added to grows for the magnesium sulfate. Sulfates add flavor and sweetness to veggies and fruits. Mag/sul is also particularly good for cannabis plants. It's a fruit enhancer not a "growth enhancer"
I would be so curious to know how you got started with RUclips and what motivated you! You just seem like such an untypical and wonderful presence on this website, I can't help but wonder how it came to be
@@GardenerScott Thank you for the reply!! It's still a long way to the winter (unless you're in the Southern hemisphere?), but I'll definitely check out more of your Monday livestreams *
My favorite time to water is in the evening and I seldom have any issues except for one year when the slugs were bad. In my area we get 2 months of really hot weather and if you don't water in the evening the plants are wilting by 11am. The sun evaporates morning waterings before the plants can take it all in and then you end up giving "life support" at 2pm so all your fruit doesn't drop and/or your plants don't die. Speaking of watering in the heat if the day, this is one myth I've heard all my life, "if you water in the heat of the day it will burn up your plants" but I've never found any truth in it unless you're watering overhead. Although I prefer not to water at the hottest point (unless I have to) bc its inefficient.
6,400 views & only 57 comments tells me you may have intimidated a few gardeners Scott. 😂🌽🍊🥦🍋🥑Not me though. On the subject of blossom end rot in tomatoes, I found that the problem was the clay soil locking up the nutrients between me watering them in the morning & when I returned home at night. Gypsum & Boron (maybe Borax?) was the remedy until I could introduce some clay-breaker stuff to the soil. Loved this video & thanks from Australia🦘🦘🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅(no blossom end rot on these babies) LOL.
I've heard you don't put meat scraps in your compost. Well I hate wasting anything, so I put everything in my compost! I delight in seeing the little bones that show up later, adding a bit of structure to the soil.
You're doing fine. Meat might attract animals that will dig in the pile, but I think that's can be a good way to get others to do the work of turning the pile.
One thing I've noticed, and it might be confirmation bias, is that coffee grounds seem to deter ants. I have a problem with ants all over my property, and they used to be all over my garden plants and building nests in the garden, damaging the roots. I started amending the soil with large amounts of used grounds (from a local coffee shop that roasts their own beans) and the ants vanished from the garden, though they're still everywhere else.
Amazing videos Gardener Scott I love your wisdom. What do you think of adding powdered eggshells and vinegar to provide calcium for blossom end rot in tomatoes? I'm a new gardener and have done the Epsom salts etc...this is fascinating stuff 😆...and rice water to feed the beneficial bacteria? Bokashi bran additive?
The eggshells really don't add calcium in a form plants can use. Most soil has enough calcium and regular watering is the best solution for blossom end rot. Organic matter in the soil, like compost, will feed the bacteria best.
Thank you for the tips , I think I’ve fallen for most of these ! I do try not to water at night though as I have a slug problem and dry soil at night dues seem to slow them down
I just switched my watering schedule to try and save my garden from a snail problem. Have you noticed much of a difference? Anything else you know will keep them away? They are decimating my beans.
@@amberlomu4112 arguably the easiest slug control are ducks. You can always butcher them in fall and stuck them in your freezer, good quality meat for the year. Another option is to sprinkle some salt on each slug, they'll die that way - though it's not the most humane thing to do. The best option, however, is to make your garden hedgehog, frog and snake friendly. Leave small piles of rocks, leaves and sticks around. Make it easy for those creatures to move around. They will DECIMATE your slug and snail population in no time! If you're using raised beds, just throw the slugs you find on the ground. IF you have a big infestation and you're using mulch, it might be a good idea to scrape it in fall, so the slugs can't lay eggs in it. Less eggs in fall means smaller infestation during the next season. Hope it helps!
Thank you! I switched my watering schedule and saw much less damage this morning so I think it helped. I have also stapled some sandpaper to the edge of my raised beds to keep them out and I made a bug spray from onion, garlic, mint, and cayenne pepper. I wanted to go the duck route but I already have 2 cats and two dogs and a newborn so my husband nixed the idea. No more creatures to take care of. I also live in a fairly urban areas so I think frogs and other natural wildlife are not really an option.
I potted a blueberry tree in a large terracotta pot yesterday and for the first time ever put some rocks at the bottom of it. Should I take it out and remove them do you think? Wish I watched this earlier 🤦🏽♀️ Thank you, great tips 😊
As long as the pot is big enough and soil depth is enough it may be okay. Just realize you probably won't have roots growing in the layer of rocks. And be aware of how easy it is to over water.
@@TheNapalmFTW I have had comfrey wild in every yard I've had before I even knew what it was and most of the Homesteaders I watch use it regularly. Hopefully you find some soon.
Thanks for an informative video. Every morning after coffee I put the grounds and remaining coffee in a five-gallon bucket outside that I throw kitchen scraps as well. after the bucket is full I will distribute to my plants and fruit trees. Is this a good practice?
Great video Scott , i agree with all but the tree staking i always stake , they do seem to need some support until they fully catch especialy when on dwarfing root stock.
The reason for not watering in the evening I heard, is that then the slugs and snails become active and watering the ground wil make it easier for those creatures to slide over it.
I have huge fake stone flower pots (actually styrofoam like things) and I put nice big rocks in the bottom of them then fill with potting soil. The rocks weigh the pots down and prevent tipping in high winds. Never thought the rocks were preventing drainage. But it’s not gravel just 2 10 pound rocks.
You haven't used Bokishi have you. I didn't get it for compost, but it works like a dream. I lived in Hawaii for 28 years and I used it in teas for the plants. It's from Japan and it is bran fermented with molasses. It's wonderful and you can make it yourself. If you sprinkle it on every few layers, not a lot, it does accelerate the composting. It's loaded with bacteria and microbes. Try it. Catia
I haven't done it yet, but will soon as part of my personal gardening research. I've checked in my area and haven't found a good source for the bran or inoculant. Thanks.
Be careful with container drainage. If you have holes in the bottom of your pot, and you should have, you should put some broken croc to cover the holes do they don’t get plugged with compost.
Ooooh, I bought some "compost accelerator" (mycorhizae /mycelium). I was skeptical from the start! But it was inexpensive so I thought I'd just try it. Haven't seen any difference at all, at least none that probably weren't going to happen anyway. I guess you have to ask yourself if you will have fun just trying it even if it doesn't work, and if you will have enough fun from just trying it for that alone to be worth the expense, go ahead.
This is timely! I’m so glad you talked about compost as it’s a it of a mystery to me! I water my pile when I water my plants growing in the ground, is that too much? ♥️☀️🌷🌻🐝😎
ALERT!!! I found my first squash bugs on pumpkin plants this morning. One bug on each of my two healthy plants. They are fertilizer now. Had major problems last year with them. Zone 7a northern NM. Where do they come from??? Also, would the calcium in milk aid as tomato supplement for blossom end rot? Two developing tomatoes have it, other tomatoes are fine. Should I prune off these tomatoes or let them grow?
I stopped asking where bugs come from a long time ago; they just appear when we don't want them. Milk really doesn't much usable calcium for plants. Gypsum is a much better amendment if you have a calcium deficiency. You can let the tomatoes grow and still eat the fruit if you choose.
Gardener Scott do you think end rot would produce a pheromone to attract bad bugs? Also can peppers use the gypsum treatment too? Which is a faster availability of calcium to plants - gypsum or bone meal? Thank you! You have enlightened my observation level of watching all the insects in garden. I have seen unique spiders, dragonflys, various types of bees, flys, hoverflys, saw a ladybug recently, a potato beetle on my sunflower this am and so many others. I never knew the high desert had so much diversity. I feel like a kid again. I manually dug and removed many fat white grubs from a bed and threw them in a bird bath near garden and since then I have seen some birds thrashing in garden making some small holes and disturbances within soil and straw possibly feeding on more grubs!?! After watching every video of yours, I have gleaned so much from you and Lily as I am in my third year of gardening. I thank you for this and your service to our nation, sir. Everything in garden has gone so well this year; corn is starting to tassel, sunflowers starting to bloom, marigolds budding and flowering now, tomatoes exploding, letting spinach flower now to collect seeds, however these recent pests and now end rot in tomatoes and possibly bell peppers has me worried going into post-summer solstice season. I’m nervous sometimes while at work what is happening at home in the garden! PS - Peas are still going strong!
Gardener Scott, For the used coffee grounds, is it bad for your plants if the grounds are from decaffeinated coffee? Some gardeners who swear by amending their soil with coffee grounds encourage people to get free spend coffee grounds from coffee shops, where the spent coffee grounds are all mixed together.
I have been using Epsom salts a few times on my tomato’s. Also crushed up eggshells. I did notice my leaves are curling a little. Do you know what would cause the curling?
Seriously, one of the best channels on this platform. Thank you for everything you do G.S... You're saving hearts, minds and lives out here in the real world.
I appreciate that! Thanks so much!
Just found him, watching so many videos in a row and could not agree more!
The one phrase that sends me into the stratosphere faster than anything is "That is how it has always been done!" I hate that phrase and, a lot of times, it is pure bs! There is always room for improvement, I don't care what the goal is. Great video! No, I don't use epsom salts on anything unless I have inadvertently stepped on a nail. They are great for drawing out toxins in wounds.
This is my favorite gardening topic. Especially since I fell victim to many of these fallacies when I began gardening 50 years ago. Here's my best tip for gardeners: if you see a gardening tip or advice that goes beyond using water and compost, do a google search on the tip, prefaced by the word "Myth".
You will almost always get alternative, informed and science-based advice.
I really like your practical and reasoned advice to gardeners. Thanks.
Thanks for the info tip. Very cool.
Thank you for exposing the facts about composting "boosters."
In general people make composting *way* more complicated than it really is.
@ShinRaPresident I agree. I find it's worth taking a few minutes here and there to chop everything up. If I leave loose piles of whole plants out, even if I keep them watered and turn them they can take a couple years to fully break down. When I break things down into small pieces, I'll usually have compost within a growing season (around 6 months here, 49th parallel)
I'm very happy to see skepticism and scientific thinking being correctly applied here to a topic where it is uncommon. I like your style. Thanks!
I feed my coffee grounds to my worms. They love them.
Great advice. Thank you!!
I do all of my gardening between midnight and 5am... planting, watering, pruning, lounging on my bench glider, everything. 😛
It's so quiet, relaxing, and cool out in the garden night.
I just started composting this year. I started out by mixing an equal amount of dried leaves and grass clippings, directly on the ground, and watered it as I mixed it. I regularly add grass clippings, pulled weeds, torn up brown paper bags, and toilet paper/paper towel cores.
Every morning, I turn it over with my bare hands so I'm able to get a feel for how it's breaking down and how moist it is. It should have the moisture of a wrung out sponge. If it feels dry, I add water.
I also pick up a clump and smell it to make sure it smells sweet and earthy and not anaerobic. So far, so good. I think next season, it will be a great pile of compost!
LOL I just uploaded my latest video on watering. Watched this while it was uploading. You hit the nail on the head with watering at night. Watering in the morning during the summer almost always ends in foliage burns by noon for me. Night time daily is how I water.
Myth. Do some research. Watering during the evening has some advantages but there's no way that watering during the day results in foliage burn.
Other than your opinion, I respectfully challenge you to provide any evidence-based example of foliage burn due to daytime watering. Surely there must be something more credible than simply an opinion that supports this idea?
@@priayief I think they're right about foliage burn but only if you wet the leaves, rather we should only water the ground soil when the sun is in full blast in summer, what do you think, in your experience have you watered in summer & wet the leaves in the full summer sun?
Sorry but that is not true at all. If it were true, imagine how detrimental it would be to have it rain during the day, then have it be sunny again? Wouldn't all the leaves of trees get burnt? Please do your research.
@@organicgrow4440 Offhand, I'll say I probably have watered and wet the leaves during full summer sun. But for sure, I know that there have been brief summer rainstorms that have wet the leaves, followed by clear skies and hot sun. It doesn't take much effort to find information from credible scientific sources that debunks this myth.
Vladimir Lenin thanks for sharing your experience, how hot does your summer get? We go up to around 45c here. Plants burn no matter what over, even the dessert fig leaves get scorched here so I wasn’t sure.
I watered in the evening for the reasons you mentioned. Well, I started to at first because I'm not a morning person and during the summer, it's already 70-80 degrees by 10am, so I felt like it was already too warm by the time I got out there 😅 but then it just started making more sense the more I thought about it. When most of the day is 80-90 degrees with maybe a peak in the hundreds, all the water I just gave the plants was already drying up. Plus the plants would be stressed from the heat and probably not absorbing a whole lot. So watering in the evening makes more sense so the soil is damp far longer and the plants can absorb it without being stressed. For awhile, I worried I was making a big mistake, but when nothing bad happened, I quit worrying.
I didn't know about the gravel tip. Thank you for also addressing the evening watering tip. I figure if God waters in the evening, then surely it's okay for me to do it.
Oh my gosh! Exactly what happened to me 2 years ago! I used Epsom salts and had tomato problems all season!
I was wondering about epsom salts. I have seen it recommended so many places. Thanks for the information, as always!
Thanks for clarifying what time of day to water- I had just heard on another channel that it is harmful to water in evening! I live in a very dry climate like you, and have watered in the evening in the past just following my own instinct. Turns out I was on the right track!
When I was younger I hitchhiked across this great country several times. I often picked up work on farms. On one dairy farm they were being lowballed for there milk. So the farmers called each other up on landlines. Which was the only means of communication. It was desided that they would dump their milk rather than be robbed selling it. So we drove a stake sided flat bed out to a place where they would dump bad milk. Mastitis and such. I was shocked; the land was so barren nothing, nothing grows in the milk dump spot. Since this experience I have used sour milk on driveway cracks. Which will have considerable success. However wind blown soils will get into those cracks and weeds don't require much to reestablish themselves, plus I am not putting down the quantity that a dairy farm would. Be well and garden on. But leave the milk out of soil.Tom.
The best compost accelerator is Chickens, other than that, Scott is absolutely correct. I love composting, it's fun and very rewarding.
I put coffee grounds in compost too!
I learned that putting a shard of pottery over a large drainage hole in the bottom of the pot prevents the soil from leaking out the bottom of the pot, not that it would keep water in.
I learned this the hard way. I heard the myth of epsom salt for tomatoes and I noticed blossom end rot so I watched some RUclips videos and added calcium back in my soil and began watering and my tomatoes became healthy. I stunted the growth for maybe a month but lessons learned.
I think the tip about broken crockery or rocks in the bottom of a large plant container has some validity. Stops the soil washing out should you overwater.It helped my lemon/thyme plant from drowning by stopping its roots from plugging the hole. I did have a previous thyme plant that plugged the drain hole with its roots and even with drip irrigation, it drowned itself because I could not see the soil, the thyme was so dense. When it started to go brown, I had to look for the drip system in the pot, but then I found a pool of water and it was too late.
Best way to keep potting mix from washing out of a pot is plain old fiberglass drywall mesh tape. It's cheap, sticks in place, and will outlive most pots.
Scott, thanks for your comments about watering in the evening. I live in Saskatchewan, Canada, and our climate sounds like it's very similar to Colorado. For years I have been watering in the evening, it seemed to be the best time of day to do so, and I never had a problem. But it did go against the advice of most professional gardeners - thanks for clarifying this. I also appreciated your video "Understanding Wood Ash in the Garden ", again, another example of advice that requires a second look - it's definitely not appropriate for our area, where the soil tends to be alkaline. I really enjoy all your videos - I've been gardening for a number of years, and your information is really helping me to be a better gardener. Thank you.
I'm growing my first garden and all I've done is water the hell out of the tomato plants once a day with filtered water around midnight when I get home from work. I check them before work as well and sometimes give them a second watering. I'm using moisture retention with fertilizer soil. I've sprayed on the ground around my pots for bugs and so far no bugs trying to destroy my plants. I have tomatoes on almost every plant at this point as well as on my peppers. My romaine lettuce has multiplied so much I pulled out 2 bunches by the roots, repotted them and took them to my neighbor to feed his tortoises.
@@TheNapalmFTW they're not getting on the plants at all. The plants are in 5-10 gallon buckets. I'm only spraying a small space on the ground. I haven't had any bugs at all on the plants
My compost accelerator- four backyard chickens and a chop-up of green things from the yard and garden with Costco scissors ❤️🐓 Epsom salts occasionally join a water bath for my ferns and hydrangeas. Coffee grounds just go everywhere in the garden and compost (I love coffee!) I water in the evening because that’s the only time I have a chance to give everything a drink in south Louisiana. Thank you so much for the encouragement of the things I’m doing right and giving information on things I can work on.
All very sound advice, as usual. I love your videos because you don't just say do or don't, you explain the reason for everything, and why it may work under certain conditions and not under others. By the way, I've planted many trees in my life and have never staked them. Once I was rather frightened during a dreadful storm, as I saw some young trees, planted that year, tilting more than 45º under the strong winds. The next morning they were upright as though nothing had happened. On the other hand, a huge, established conifer we had on one side of the garden fell down over the fence. Luckily, it didn't hit our neighbours' roof!
Gärtner Scott is the best!
Thank You for putting out another video that will make gardening easier for a lot of people. I agree that there is as lot of misinformation out there making gardening harder or not helping. Over the years I have used process of elimination to sort through the pros and cons of what works in my garden.
Coffee is also an excellent "compost accelerator"
I got my pile up to 120 for the first time, now its dropped again.
But I don't worry I know when its lower, the worms come in and have a feast.
When it's too hot they go to my garden to relax, while the bacteria gets there fill. :)
I stake my trees because we get Santa Ana winds hot fierce winds that can snap even the mightiest oak!
Yes, the nitrogen in coffee is exactly what compost often needs.
My friend Scott, out working in the garden today, I discovered something I had not considered: I invested in those so called Key Hole beds a couple years ago. They measure 22" X44 X44 ". That equals 7.35 sq ft of growing space. So I reduced the soil depth to 11" and took 3 of the panels to extend the beds out another 44 X 11", with cutting the corners in half. This increased my growing space to 25 sq ft. (11 X 44 X89") I don't need 22" of soil depth as 11 or 12 is plenty for carrots, beets, squash and beans and even tomatoes. These "Key Hole" beds are vinyl and are guarenteed for years not to break or break down. So, it's been a productive day in the gardening plan. I can still use my trellice for early peas to climb up.
Actually I should have said the cubic foot volume was 7.35 and 25 cu ft. Nice soil to turn over. Planning on a good amount of peat moss this season.
I throughly enjoyed this video -- -- hahahahahahahaha. Sometimes even some gardeners don't use their common sense on things in the garden. I remember before "Google" or "RUclips" that I would grab either a book from my parents house or one from mine on whatever was needed and would have to read to find the solution to the problem.
Omg I’ve been using coffee ground for the whole month! My husband said it’s good for the plant and soil! 😱😱I need to stop using it. Thx scott
The coffee ground myth is about the same as the "never use pine needles as mulch because it will acidify your soil" myth. It takes years and years of using nothing but pine needles to acidify your soil even a little bit, especially if you are using other organic materials in your compost and mulch. i use the lasagna method myself, that was made famous by Ruth Stout.
I saw online articles citing scientific studies showing that the caffeine in coffee grounds actually slows down plant growth. I try to avoid coffee grounds, except in my compost pile.
The watering-in-the-evening thing is super frustrating. You're more likely to get rain at night than during the day! If that myth was true, then forests everywhere would be devastated every time it rained. Same thing for daytime watering and raining during the day.
Thankfully I learned this when I got into bonsai and before I started gardening. In bonsai, you either water it when it needs it, or it will D.I.E. So yeah, there might be some times that are more optimal than others, but at the end of the day all that matters is that it's getting watered AT ALL.
I remember an article in a Tacoma newspaper that featured a man who had an amazing clematis. He said the secret to his success was that he enjoyed drinking coffee near the plant, and when he drank his fill, he would pour the remaining milk-laced coffee on the clematis.
I have never used compost accelerator in thirty years and always had good compost
OK, I agree with all this, but I did read an article recently. It was pertaining to the coffee grounds. I know they don't help acidifying soil, this was pertaining to caffeine. Supposedly University of Oregon did a study and found that it can caffeinate your soil. The reasoning was plants like cocoa, coffee, tea gained caffeine to kill off other native competing plants. In other words the caffeine can cause a nutrient lockout. The watering, I always water in the evening, it's 90 by 10 am here this week. We live 1/2 mile from the Cumberland river in mid TN. There is so much dew most nights it sounds like rain dripping from leaves. I don't think my small amount of water is going to make a difference. Love the informative videos, keep it up!
I have read some of those studies. The caffeine effect is most pronounced in fresh coffee and dissipates in the used grounds.
Thanks for all your videos.
Living in Colorado evening watering is the best. I totally agree with watering at night. If I water in the morning my new plantings are so wilted by the end of the day.
Glad to hear these. I often intend to try a tip I've heard but forget. I've been having pretty good success without them.
I like to put horse compost in my beatable garden. My dad did it for years and works good.
I'm hooked on your channel. I've been gardening since I was about 5 and yet I'm learning so much!
Wow! I learn so much from you, Gardener Scott! As always, thank you for sharing your knowledge!
I really like your videos! It all makes sense and is very wholesome. Thank you.
Thanks Gardener Scott! Enjoy gardening too. Thanks for the protips!
I love Scotts videos. He has an amazing gardener with sound advice on gardening. thks a lot.
I tell you this advice is some of best I've ever heard thank you for telling us the truth.
Good tips. Also great advice that if they have or have not worked in the past for an individual, then just keep doing what you are doing that works. Thanks Scott
Everything that makes working in the garden easier is a good thing. Thanks Scott. That Peacock, made of iron I guess, in the background looks really good. Cheers
I got stuck watching the peacock, nice garden addition!
The only time when I used to use Epsom Salt is when fir trees (and relatives) starts to getting brown. It can save them. Beside that I crew up to the fact that it is damaging to plants/soil.
Great content! My mother showed me to put rocks in the bottom of a pot. I am glad you have dispelled that old wives' tale!😊🌱
Good to see both sides i have good and bad results for them all lol
Ive heard lots of good and bad advice from fellow gardeners
Its different for everyone and garden
A friend wants to help me at times but her style is way different from mine
We clash and teach eachother ive learned gardens are a very personal thing ;)
I water in the early morning before the sun hits my tomatoes.
The ppl that grow the same variety at the same time are asking why mine are so big.
I think its how I plant them sideways. Huge root system provides fast growth that's outstanding . Plant em sideways and use a time released plant food. Keep em wet especially when blossoms are present.
Roma is a good one to grow.
By sideways I mean dig a trench. Lay plant into the trench and bury it all except one set of leaves. It works. Big plants...mucho tomatoes.
Shading compost helps moisture retention and in a super rainy time, it can get overly wet.
Love the info.
The best thing I make and use is bio-char, when it is done correctly, it will keep nutrients locked up, provide sulfur and oxygen to the soil and retain water....also can be charged with compost tea before using......
Priceless information.... thank you sir !
Love when you do these kinds of videos.
I put flat rocks or concrete ruble at the bottom of my pots. I have pots as large as 30 inched in diameter and some small pots.
I notice that when I water, very soon water drains out the bottom hole.
Excellent information, thank you for debunking these myths!
Epson salt is added to grows for the magnesium sulfate. Sulfates add flavor and sweetness to veggies and fruits. Mag/sul is also particularly good for cannabis plants. It's a fruit enhancer not a "growth enhancer"
I would be so curious to know how you got started with RUclips and what motivated you! You just seem like such an untypical and wonderful presence on this website, I can't help but wonder how it came to be
I occasionally talk about that in my Monday livestream. I also plan to do a video about it this winter.
@@GardenerScott Thank you for the reply!! It's still a long way to the winter (unless you're in the Southern hemisphere?), but I'll definitely check out more of your Monday livestreams *
My favorite time to water is in the evening and I seldom have any issues except for one year when the slugs were bad. In my area we get 2 months of really hot weather and if you don't water in the evening the plants are wilting by 11am. The sun evaporates morning waterings before the plants can take it all in and then you end up giving "life support" at 2pm so all your fruit doesn't drop and/or your plants don't die. Speaking of watering in the heat if the day, this is one myth I've heard all my life, "if you water in the heat of the day it will burn up your plants" but I've never found any truth in it unless you're watering overhead. Although I prefer not to water at the hottest point (unless I have to) bc its inefficient.
Good video, I use dried kelp to get the calcium into a bio-available as well as adding potassium to the soil....
Thanks.
Hey, that was a well made vedio. Thank you.
6,400 views & only 57 comments tells me you may have intimidated a few gardeners Scott. 😂🌽🍊🥦🍋🥑Not me though.
On the subject of blossom end rot in tomatoes, I found that the problem was the clay soil locking up the nutrients between me watering them in the morning & when I returned home at night. Gypsum & Boron (maybe Borax?) was the remedy until I could introduce some clay-breaker stuff to the soil. Loved this video & thanks from Australia🦘🦘🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅🍅(no blossom end rot on these babies) LOL.
Thanks, Laurie. No need for anyone to be intimidated.
I've heard you don't put meat scraps in your compost. Well I hate wasting anything, so I put everything in my compost! I delight in seeing the little bones that show up later, adding a bit of structure to the soil.
You're doing fine. Meat might attract animals that will dig in the pile, but I think that's can be a good way to get others to do the work of turning the pile.
One thing I've noticed, and it might be confirmation bias, is that coffee grounds seem to deter ants. I have a problem with ants all over my property, and they used to be all over my garden plants and building nests in the garden, damaging the roots. I started amending the soil with large amounts of used grounds (from a local coffee shop that roasts their own beans) and the ants vanished from the garden, though they're still everywhere else.
great tips!!!
Thank you so much for putting this video together and sharing it great work, kind regards Roy
Amazing videos Gardener Scott I love your wisdom. What do you think of adding powdered eggshells and vinegar to provide calcium for blossom end rot in tomatoes? I'm a new gardener and have done the Epsom salts etc...this is fascinating stuff 😆...and rice water to feed the beneficial bacteria? Bokashi bran additive?
The eggshells really don't add calcium in a form plants can use. Most soil has enough calcium and regular watering is the best solution for blossom end rot. Organic matter in the soil, like compost, will feed the bacteria best.
You are the best in the world. I am learning so much from you. Greetings from Canada 🇨🇦
Wow, thank you!
Thank you for the tips , I think I’ve fallen for most of these ! I do try not to water at night though as I have a slug problem and dry soil at night dues seem to slow them down
I just switched my watering schedule to try and save my garden from a snail problem. Have you noticed much of a difference? Anything else you know will keep them away? They are decimating my beans.
@@amberlomu4112 arguably the easiest slug control are ducks. You can always butcher them in fall and stuck them in your freezer, good quality meat for the year. Another option is to sprinkle some salt on each slug, they'll die that way - though it's not the most humane thing to do. The best option, however, is to make your garden hedgehog, frog and snake friendly. Leave small piles of rocks, leaves and sticks around. Make it easy for those creatures to move around. They will DECIMATE your slug and snail population in no time! If you're using raised beds, just throw the slugs you find on the ground. IF you have a big infestation and you're using mulch, it might be a good idea to scrape it in fall, so the slugs can't lay eggs in it. Less eggs in fall means smaller infestation during the next season. Hope it helps!
I gather slugs at night and relocate them, still a battle though 😬
Thank you! I switched my watering schedule and saw much less damage this morning so I think it helped. I have also stapled some sandpaper to the edge of my raised beds to keep them out and I made a bug spray from onion, garlic, mint, and cayenne pepper. I wanted to go the duck route but I already have 2 cats and two dogs and a newborn so my husband nixed the idea. No more creatures to take care of. I also live in a fairly urban areas so I think frogs and other natural wildlife are not really an option.
I potted a blueberry tree in a large terracotta pot yesterday and for the first time ever put some rocks at the bottom of it. Should I take it out and remove them do you think? Wish I watched this earlier 🤦🏽♀️ Thank you, great tips 😊
As long as the pot is big enough and soil depth is enough it may be okay. Just realize you probably won't have roots growing in the layer of rocks. And be aware of how easy it is to over water.
Gardener Scott Ok great.Thank you so much for your reply, much appreciated 😊
Comfrey and nettles make excellent compost natural accelerators
Hard to find comfrey in the USA
@@TheNapalmFTW I have had comfrey wild in every yard I've had before I even knew what it was and most of the Homesteaders I watch use it regularly.
Hopefully you find some soon.
I think Epsom Salts works for me in a FOLIAR spray once a season on my tomatoes.
From one Master Gardener to another. Excellent!!!
Thanks for an informative video. Every morning after coffee I put the grounds and remaining coffee in a five-gallon bucket outside that I throw kitchen scraps as well. after the bucket is full I will distribute to my plants and fruit trees. Is this a good practice?
I think that sounds like a great practice.
@@GardenerScott Thanks.
Great video Scott , i agree with all but the tree staking i always stake , they do seem to need some support until they fully catch especialy when on dwarfing root stock.
The reason for not watering in the evening I heard, is that then the slugs and snails become active and watering the ground wil make it easier for those creatures to slide over it.
The key to a great garden is Living Soil
Great information, thanks Gardener Scott.
I have huge fake stone flower pots (actually styrofoam like things) and I put nice big rocks in the bottom of them then fill with potting soil. The rocks weigh the pots down and prevent tipping in high winds. Never thought the rocks were preventing drainage. But it’s not gravel just 2 10 pound rocks.
You haven't used Bokishi have you. I didn't get it for compost, but it works like a dream. I lived in Hawaii for 28 years and I used it in teas for the plants. It's from Japan and it is bran fermented with molasses. It's wonderful and you can make it yourself. If you sprinkle it on every few layers, not a lot, it does accelerate the composting. It's loaded with bacteria and microbes. Try it. Catia
I haven't done it yet, but will soon as part of my personal gardening research. I've checked in my area and haven't found a good source for the bran or inoculant. Thanks.
Thank you for your time, it really helps us
Be careful with container drainage. If you have holes in the bottom of your pot, and you should have, you should put some broken croc to cover the holes do they don’t get plugged with compost.
Thank you for the tips.
Ooooh, I bought some "compost accelerator" (mycorhizae /mycelium). I was skeptical from the start! But it was inexpensive so I thought I'd just try it. Haven't seen any difference at all, at least none that probably weren't going to happen anyway. I guess you have to ask yourself if you will have fun just trying it even if it doesn't work, and if you will have enough fun from just trying it for that alone to be worth the expense, go ahead.
I like that you tried something new. It really doesn't make much difference and it's great that you discovered that on your own.
@@GardenerScott thanks, Gardener Scott! :D
This is timely! I’m so glad you talked about compost as it’s a it of a mystery to me! I water my pile when I water my plants growing in the ground, is that too much? ♥️☀️🌷🌻🐝😎
Probably not, but turn it and feel it to be sure.
Gardener Scott thank you!
Staking trees is often recommended for ball and bur-lapped trees as the ball can rotate within the hole. Bare root trees don’t have this issue!
You might want to go look at the studies done on adding milk.
I get early blight every year on my tomatoes can I cut the stocks off ground level and discard or should I pull out roots and all and Discard?
Early blight is a fungal disease that can survive on plant debris so removing the plants is a good idea.
Many thumbs up. Sall very good points that I'll share with friends.
ALERT!!! I found my first squash bugs on pumpkin plants this morning. One bug on each of my two healthy plants. They are fertilizer now. Had major problems last year with them. Zone 7a northern NM. Where do they come from???
Also, would the calcium in milk aid as tomato supplement for blossom end rot? Two developing tomatoes have it, other tomatoes are fine. Should I prune off these tomatoes or let them grow?
I stopped asking where bugs come from a long time ago; they just appear when we don't want them. Milk really doesn't much usable calcium for plants. Gypsum is a much better amendment if you have a calcium deficiency. You can let the tomatoes grow and still eat the fruit if you choose.
Gardener Scott do you think end rot would produce a pheromone to attract bad bugs?
Also can peppers use the gypsum treatment too?
Which is a faster availability of calcium to plants - gypsum or bone meal? Thank you!
You have enlightened my observation level of watching all the insects in garden. I have seen unique spiders, dragonflys, various types of bees, flys, hoverflys, saw a ladybug recently, a potato beetle on my sunflower this am and so many others. I never knew the high desert had so much diversity. I feel like a kid again. I manually dug and removed many fat white grubs from a bed and threw them in a bird bath near garden and since then I have seen some birds thrashing in garden making some small holes and disturbances within soil and straw possibly feeding on more grubs!?!
After watching every video of yours, I have gleaned so much from you and Lily as I am in my third year of gardening. I thank you for this and your service to our nation, sir.
Everything in garden has gone so well this year; corn is starting to tassel, sunflowers starting to bloom, marigolds budding and flowering now, tomatoes exploding, letting spinach flower now to collect seeds, however these recent pests and now end rot in tomatoes and possibly bell peppers has me worried going into post-summer solstice season. I’m nervous sometimes while at work what is happening at home in the garden!
PS - Peas are still going strong!
Def wouldn't put non expired milk in there but if I let some go past date. I tend to throw some in now and again
Gardener Scott,
For the used coffee grounds, is it bad for your plants if the grounds are from decaffeinated coffee? Some gardeners who swear by amending their soil with coffee grounds encourage people to get free spend coffee grounds from coffee shops, where the spent coffee grounds are all mixed together.
It is not bad for the plants. The spent grounds are very similar.
I would put coffee grounds in the compost heap, don’t get enough to be. a mulch so just compost them
Scott, please share your tip for cheap weed killer!
My hands mainly. I use a stirrup hoe for large areas, but have mulch in my beds and just pull weeds as they appear.
I put cardboard and some paper in the bottom of my plate's. Thinking it will decompose, is this a good practice ?
It can be an extra source of organic material.
I have been using Epsom salts a few times on my tomato’s. Also crushed up eggshells. I did notice my leaves are curling a little. Do you know what would cause the curling?
There are many reasons for curling leaves, but the most common is too much water or too little water.
Great information. Thanks!