1,001 Ingenious Gardening Ideas : New, Fun and Fabulous That Will Change the Way You Garden - Forever! Book

How to Be an Ingenious Gardener	viii
Chapter 1: Terrific Tools & Gadgets	2
Nifty tools you can make, recycle, or reuse, including how to turn a plastic milk jug into
a cultivator, new uses for broken tools, protecting your pants from your pruners,
and three things you can do with an old tire
Chapter 2: Clever Compost Tips	32
What you need to know to make your own black gold—from what to put in your pile and how to keep
and new uses for old newspaper
Chapter 3: Creative Garden Care	52
Ingenious approaches to making mulch and supporting plants, clever atering tricks,
keeping row covers on, winter protection for roses, and three neat ways to make garden
pathways using broken dishes, terra-cotta, or burlap
Chapter 4: Snazzy Season Stretchers	75
Harvest your earliest tomatoes ever, learn bow to get a head start in spring,
turn everyday items into inexpensive cold frames, unlock the secrets of a four-season harvest,
and discover bow to grow a great garden under cover
Chapter 5: Sensational Seed-Starting Secrets	91
Sow like a pro,and learn new ways to make sure every seed sprouts, including presprouting secrets,
transplanting tools, the best seed-starting containers, lessons in lighting,
and how to store all those extra seeds
Chapter 6: Smart Solutions to Garden Problems	109
Strange-but-true organic techniques for confounding critters—from can't-fail companion planting
combos and five ways to protect your bulbs, to new life for old panty hose and creating a hindrance
out of human hair
Chapter 7: Great Vegetable Gardens	144
Unbeatable ideas for super crops and humongous harvests, including weed control,
space savers, heat and humidity helpers, cold care kits, breeze blockers, mud busters,
and 12 tips for terrific tomatoes
Chapter 8: Helpful Herb Gardening Hints	190
Top tips to help you get the most from these multifaceted plants—from herbs that prosper
in hard-to-garden sites and expert advice on drying and freezing, to planting a fragrant
herbal pathway and making your own healthful herbal home remedies
Chapter 9: Fun with Fruits & Berries	216
Fantastic ways to make growing fruit fun and flavorful, including can't-fail ripeness tests,
first-rate bird blockers, fruiting vines that do double duty as privacy screens,
savvy frost-stoppers, and how to make like a bee and get more peaches
Chapter 10: Fabulous Flower Gardens	232
Delightful ideas for bountiful flowers—from outstanding color combinations,
tricks to make a new garden look as pretty as a picture, and plants to carpet your garden with blooms,
to fun with foliage, revolutionary ways with roses, and containers with charisma
Chapter 11: Lively Landscaping Techniques	264
Innovative landscaping how-to that won't let you down, including solutions for slopes and
other tough spots, face-lifts for fencing, quick water garden pick-me-ups,
planting plans that make your yard look bigger, and ways to achieve pathway perfection
Chapter 12: Brilliant Bird & Butterfly Gardens	298
A host of hints to bring more color and life into your garden (and a little company, too!),
including plenty of plants that your flying friends will flock to,
and water sources that work
Resources	317
Recommended Reading	327
Index	330
USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map	342