The joy that comes from sharing ideas and plants is contagious. As a result, there are many wonderful “hacks” that are often shared between gardeners. This article will provide you with a few “hacks” that can make your gardening (or orcharding) even more joyful.

Gardening hacks

Growing lettuce: You need only plant a few of your favorites. Then, rather then pulling them up when you harvest, simply cut the lettuce off about 1 to 2 inches above the ground. Now, continue to water, and within a few weeks you will have another lettuce to harvest.

Carrots: To grow large and beautiful carrots, all you need to do is dig a V-shaped trench about 12 inches deep and six inches wide at the top, then fill it with a mixture of sand, compost material (peat moss, etc.) and some of the dirt you dug out. Water it thoroughly, then plant your seeds about 2 inches apart the next day. Be sure to keep them watered. You will be very impressed with the product – a large, straight carrot.

Squash: Probably one of the biggest challenges when growing squash is squash bugs. There are several ways to deal with them. Place newspaper on the ground where you intend to plant squash, mixing small aluminum-type pieces in the soil before you plant. Since squash bugs hibernate in the ground, lay pieces of wood (approximately 6 inches by 12 to 16 inches) around the squash.

Every few days or so, check the bottom of the wood. If you have squash bugs, they will usually be found there; simply kill them and replace the wood. Make it a habit to check any leaves around dead leaves for squash bug eggs and smash them.

Strawberries: Keep the strawberries separated by about 12 inches and then cut off the “daughters.” These are the long, slender tendrils that grow out from the plant and produce additional plants. By cutting them off, the energy (nutrients) that would have gone to them goes to the main strawberry plant.

Tomatoes: A simple trick to increase the size and number of tomatoes is to prune them. First, cut off any branches off the tomato plant that touch the ground. Then remove the new growth that usually forms between two limbs. Lastly, make sure that only companion-type plants are grown near the tomato plant.

Keeping the birds out: More than once I almost gave up keeping the birds out of our orchard and garden. Honestly, there is to my knowledge no 100 percent way to do this. There are, however, several things that help, and there are lots of things advertised that are suppose to work but don’t.

I recommend you build a scarecrow out of PVC pipe, making it a female with large flowing skirts and holding a shiny metal rod. Move it every week or so. After Halloween, you can buy scary skeletons that can be dressed like women that actually move and make sounds – they really work.

You can buy whirligigs that spin and reflect light that sometimes scare away birds. Also, long strips of reflective material hung on trees and around your garden sometimes work.

Expensive owls and equipment that make the sound of a gun going off every few minutes may work for a short while, but in the long run it doesn’t have any effect. We tried owls and the gun noise only to find out that after a while, the birds would actually sit on them.

Grasshopper invasions: Thank heaven we don’t live in East Africa or Pakistan, India or China. As of right now, they are being invaded by hundreds of billions – even trillions – of locusts that have and are destroying all their crops, inviting a famine.

Check for nymphs (immature grasshoppers). They are usually found in open or vacated fields. Spray them with Sevin, and do not let them get ahead of you. When they develop into full-fledged grasshoppers, you must guard your garden/orchards against them. Since I do not use chemicals in my garden, I resort to natural techniques.

Gather juniper boughs that have an odor and have some berries on them. Spread them all around your garden and they will tend to scare off most grasshoppers.

Or, make an organic spray from grasshoppers by collecting a quart jar full, placing them in an old mixer, adding water and wizzing them for a couple of minutes. Screen out the debris and then spray it in your garden. You can also add garlic and hot peppers.

Are your seeds good? It is always a good idea to check out your seeds before you plant them. This is done by placing a few seeds in a glass of water. If most float, throw them away.

Another method is laying them on a damp piece of toilet paper and folding the paper over several times. Check them in about seven days, and if they have not sprouted, they are probably not good. Throw them away.

Orchard hacks

Remove dead limbs/branches: Dead limbs/branches attract insects, and they in turn will eventually attack the healthy limbs/branches. This, in time, can have a profound negative impact on the health of your fruit trees. Always remove the dead limbs/branches as soon as they are discovered.

Proper fruit thinning: As soon as your fruit is about 1 to 2 inches in diameter, you should start thinning. About the first of July, the fruit is the right size to start thinning. The fruit should be separated between 5 and 6 inches apart.

In the case of apples, leave the king fruit, which is the fruit that is the largest and always the center fruit of the five blossoms (fruit). Believe it or not, this will produce more and better fruit than not thinning.

Proper fertilization: For the best results you should always fertilize at least three times a year (four is better). This should be done at the last of February, the first of June and the first of September. A fourth fertilization should happen at the last of November. This will provide you with a healthy crop every year and reduce the loss due to early dropping of the fruit.

Monitor fruit trees regularly: By knowing the different tree diseases, you can walk through your orchard regularly and discover any diseases, then know what appropriate action to take. There are many inexpensive books about fruit tree diseases that can be bought and quickly pay for themselves.

If you discover a disease you don’t understand, contact your local farm store or, if you live in this county, give me a call and I will try to identify the disease and explain how to deal with it.

Tree pruning: Correct pruning is a must if you expect to have large, nutritious and beautiful fruit. If you hire someone, make sure they know what they are doing and have them provide who they have worked for and how they learned to prune. I would recommend you learn how to do it yourself.

In our community, classes are taught several times a year on this subject and most are free.

Tree posture and correct distance between trees: If any of your trees are bent, leaning over or have crooked limbs, they should be corrected when you plant them. Do not wait until they are several years old.

For best results, I recommend there be 8 feet of space between your trees and that the aisles be at least 12 to 16 feet apart. This will allow you to work with a tractor between the rows of trees.

Proper tree limb angles: You want your tree limbs to be strong enough to carry a heavy load of fruit. To do that, you want your tree limb angles to be less than 20 to 30 degrees. To realize this, it is a good idea to make a few limb stretchers and insert them in the limbs where the angles are too steep. Be careful when inserting them so you do not break the limbs.

I hope some of these ideas will help you with your gardening/orcharding this year and for many years hereafter. Good luck.