Recipes for a Beautiful, Natural Garden

An advertisement for something to do with gardening arrived in my mailbox.  The advertisement contains a distracting number of words, cartoon drawings, pictures, and boxed text.  It's somewhat overwhelming, but the garden recipes it contained caught my eye.  Since this is my web journal and a place where I post things that I may want for future reference, I'll post some of the recipes here for safe-keeping.  Maybe you will appreciate them too!

Ant's Away!


5 Tbsp. cornmeal
3 Tbsp. bacon grease
3 Tbsp. baking powder
3 packets yeast


Stir the bacon grease and cornmeal together, creating a paste.  Add the baking powder and yeast.  Mix until well blended.  Place a dab of this mixture in a shallow container and set in areas where ants are prolific.  Ants will love this mixture!  And so will you, because it will eliminate them!

Spicy Critter Tonic


4 tsp. dry mustard
3 Tbsp. cayenne
2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. cloves
1 Tbsp. hot sauce
2 quarts water, warm


Stir ingredients together in a garden bucket.  Transfer a portion to a watering can and sprinkle in areas of garden where animals are venturing.  [Alma uses a recipe similar to this for her garden and it works well to keep deer at bay!]

Miracle Boost for Container Plants


1/2 cup Epson salts
1/4 cup coffee grounds [Starbucks gives them away by the bag full!]
1 Tbsp. instant tea granules
4 eggshells, dried and crushed
2 gallons of potting soil


Combine the ingredients in a large garden bucket.  Use in small planters for growing seeds, in pots for indoor plants, and more.  Great for vegetables and other plants.

Rose Heaven Tonic


2 Tbsp. instant tea granules
1 Tbsp. dry red wine powder
1/2 Tbsp. fish emulsion
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. iron [available at garden centers]
1 gallon water


Mix ingredients together in a garden bucket.  Pour 1 quart of this mixture on each rose bush every three weeks.  The result will be a fabulous display of rose blossoms!

Aphid Buster


3 quarts of water
2 Tbsp. horseradish, bottled
2 cups cayenne peppers, chopped fine


Boil the water then remove from stovetop.  Add peppers and horseradish.  Stir and steep for one hour.  Allow to cool and strain.  Toss the solids and pour the liquid into a spray bottle.  Use to spray leaves of plants that are bothered by aphids.  Also works on other small, leaf pests.

Leafy Greens Formula


1 can of beer
1/2 cup fish emulsion
1/2 cup ammonia
1/4 cup blackstrap molasses
1/4 cup instant tea granules


Mix ingredients together in a bucket.  Place in a 20 gallon hose-end sprayer and spray leaves until well coated.  You will be rewarded with shiny, vibrant leaves.

Lawn Fertilizer


1 can beer
1 can cola [with sugar]
1 cup apple juice
1 cup ammonia
1 cup lemon-scented dishwashing liquid [not anti-bacterial]
1 cup all-purpose plant food [15-30-15]


Mix everything together in a garden bucket.  Pour 1 quart of mixture into a 20 gallon hose-end sprayer.  Apply it to lawn and repeat every three weeks.

Weed Killer!


1 quart water
5 Tbsp. white vinegar
2 Tbsp. salt


Bring the water to a boil.  Stir in the vinegar and the salt.  While the water is still very hot, pour mixture directly onto weeds.  Good for tough, deeply-rooted weeds and thistles.  [Plain boiling water also works on many weeds.]

Wasp Trap Formula


1/2 cup sugar
1 cup vinegar, apple cider
1/2 cup water
1 peel of banana, chopped


Dissolve the sugar and water in a small bucket.  Add the vinegar and banana peel.  Add more water to 1 gallon amount.  Stir well.  Hang from a tree branch.  Wasps will be attracted and die.