Published: July 03, 2008 02:04 am         

Ace of Spades: Don’t let berries ripen too far; that’s what birds, bugs want

Originally published in the June 27, 2008, print edition.

I want my lawn to look good this summer. Please give me some tips to make this happen.

If you would like your lawn to continue to look attractive, I urge gardeners to raise their mower height to 3.5 inches. If there is a shortage of rain this summer — and we still have our hottest days of the summer coming — raise the mower height to 3.75 inches. You will have a nicer lawn and your neighbors will notice this, too.

You’ve previously printed a successful way to have tunnel-free apples. Would you share your ideas with The Land readers again?

The phone is still ringing and the computer is full of messages for the “organic milk jug” idea to have cleaner apples this summer and fall.

It’s the apple maggot fly that pierces the apple skin, lays its eggs (which develops into a worm-like maggot) and leaves a trail through the apple. The key is to catch them before they get on the apple.

Fill an empty one-gallon milk jug half full with a 50/50 water and white vinegar mixture. Then add one cup of white sugar and a banana peel. Cut a hole the size of a quarter at the top corner of the jug. Once you have attracted many flies and insects, empty the container and repeat the process.

For a large tree hang at least three jugs. With a smaller tree, you might try two half-gallon jugs, cutting the amount of sugar to a half-cup in each.

You may also go the chemical route, but make sure you spray your trees after each rainfall, always using gloves and a mask while spraying.

Soon my raspberries will be ready for harvest. How can I stop birds from eating them?

The best way to keep birds out of the raspberries is a light-weight nylon cover. Always pick raspberries, just like strawberries, when they are ripe. An over-ripe raspberry or strawberry will attract more birds and the little speckled fruit bugs. Another idea that has worked for gardeners is to hang several small milk jugs in the immediate area, using the same ingredients listed above.

We have many raccoons in our area, doing damage in the garden. What is a good bait to catch these in a live trap?

Judy from Freeborn reported that using a broken egg in a small container in the trap will attract both raccoons and skunks. Other ideas include using an open can of tuna or dog or cat food as bait, or adding marshmallows in a small dish in front of the live trap.

If you have a tip or an idea to help another gardener please e-mail me and I will include your idea in a future column.

It seems as though every year my sedum plants fall over. How can I stop this from happening?

Before it even begins to flower, put a small fence around the plant. Once the flowers have developed, this is the time they begin to fall over. The larger the plant, the more important it is to put a fence around it. These are a beautiful fall-blooming perennial flower.

     

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