Homemade organic recipes
Potassium bicarbonate Fungicide
Mix 4 teaspoons (about 1 rounded tablespoon) of potassium bicarbonate into one gallon of water.
Spray lightly on foliage of plants afflicted with black spot, powdery mildew, brown patch and
other fungal diseases. Potassium bicarbonate is a good substitute for baking soda. There are
commercial EPA registered as well as generic products available.
Baking Soda Fungicide
Mix 4 teaspoons (about 1 rounded tablespoon) of baking soda and 1 tablespoon of horticultural
oil into one gallon of water. Spray lightly on foliage of plants afflicted with black spot,
powdery mildew, brown patch and other fungal diseases. Avoid over-using or pouring on the soil.
Potassium bicarbonate is a good substitute for baking soda. Citrus oil and molasses can be used
instead of horticultural oil.
Vinegar Fungicide
Mix 3 tablespoons of natural apple cider vinegar in one gallon of water. Spray during the cool
part of the day for black spot on roses and other fungal diseases. Adding molasses at 1 tablespoon per gallon will again help.
Compost tea
Manure compost tea is effective on many pests because of certain microorganisms that exist
in it naturally. Here's how to make compost tea at home. Use any container but a plastic
bucket is easy for the homeowner. Fill the 5-15 gallon bucket half full of compost and
finish filling with water. Let the mix sit for 10-14 days and then dilute and spray on
the foliage of any and all plants including fruit trees, perennials, annuals, vegetables
and roses, and other plants, especially those that are regularly attacked by insects or
fungal pests. It's very effective for example on black spot on roses and early blight on
tomatoes. How to dilute the dark compost tea before using depends on the compost used.
A rule of thumb is to dilute the leachate down to one part compost liquid to four to ten
parts water. It should look like iced tea. Be sure to strain the solids out with old
pantyhose, cheese cloth, or row cover material. Add two tablespoons of molasses to each
gallon of spray for more power. Add citrus oil for even greater pest killing power.
Cornmeal Juice
Cornmeal Juice is a natural fungal control for use in any kind of sprayer. Make by soaking
horticultural cornmeal in water at one cup per gallon of water. Put the cornmeal a nylon
stocking bag to hold in the larger particles. The milky juice of the cornmeal will permeate
the water and this mix should be sprayed without further diluting. Cornmeal Juice can be
mixed with compost tea, Garrett Juice or any other natural foliar feeding spray.
Garlic Pepper Tea
To make garlic/pepper tea, liquefy 2 bulbs of garlic and 2 hot peppers in a blender 1/2 to
2/3 full of water. Strain the solids and add enough water to the garlic/pepper juice to make
1 gallon of concentrate. Use 1/4 cup of concentrate per gallon of spray. To make garlic tea,
simply omit the pepper and add another bulb of garlic. Add two tablespoons of blackstrap
molasses for more control.
making compost
A compost pile can be started in sun or shade at any time of the year. Good ingredients
include leaves, hay, grass clippings, tree trimmings, food scraps, bark, sawdust, rice
hulls, weeds, nut hulls and animal manure. Mix the ingredients together in a container
of wood, hay bales, hog wire, concrete blocks or simply pile the material on the ground.
The best mixture is 75-80% vegetative matter and 20-25% animal waste, although any mix
will compost. The ingredients should be a mix of coarse and fine-textured material.
Avoid having all the pieces of material the same size since the variety of sizes will
help air to move through the pile. Oxygen is a critical ingredient. Turn the pile at
least once a month; more often speeds up the process. Keep the pile moist, roughly the
moisture of a squeezed-out sponge, to help the living microorganisms thrive and work
their magic. Compost is ready to use when the ingredients are no longer identifiable.
The color will be dark brown, the texture soft and crumbly and the aroma that of a
forest floor. Use compost in all bed preparation and as a high quality mulch around
annuals and perennials.
Tree Trunk Goop
Mix 1/3 of each in water and paint on trunks: diatomaceous earth, soft rock phosphate,
manure compost. Paint onto cuts, borer holes or other injuries on trunks or limbs.
Reapply if washed off by rain or irrigation.
Tree Trunk Goop
Mix 1/3 of each in water and paint on trunks: diatomaceous earth, soft rock phosphate,
manure compost. Paint onto cuts, borer holes or other injuries on trunks or limbs.
Reapply if washed off by rain or irrigation.
