General Tips

Year round tips for your garden.

I'm adding to these general tips all of the time, so whilst they may seem a bit haphazard at the moment, in time they they will branch off into different sections.

Subject	Tips
Safety	Garden chemicals can burn the skin, wear a mask, goggles, gloves and overalls. Don't use chemicals in windy conditions, wait for a dry, still day. Use ear defenders when using noisy equipment. Always wear sturdy shoes or boots when gardening. A ladder will sink on soft ground and slip on hard ground, get someone to hold the ladder at the base. The safest angle to use a ladder at it 75^o (approximately 1 foot out for every four rungs of the ladder). When using power tools, wear close fitting clothes (or overalls), goggles and sturdy footwear. A residual circuit breaker should be used when using electrical tools. This will immediately cut the power if the cable is cut or the tool develops a fault.
Seeds	If you have small expensive seed, such as pansy or busy lizzie. It's a good idea to mix the packet of seeds with silver sand (or wallpaper paste) before sowing into a seed tray / pot, as this will provide a much better distribution of plants and make it easier to prick out seedlings. This also gives the added benefit of that you can see where you have sown.
Animals	Check bonfires for animals (hedgehogs, frogs, toads, mice etc.) before lighting. For tips on scaring animals away from your garden please see the pests & diseases page.
Ponds	Children are drawn hypnotically to water. Consider filling in the pond with large pebbles (easy to remove when the child has left home :-)), filling with sand to make a sand pit (although make a cover for it so the local cats don't start using it as a toilet) or fit a sturdy 4" steel grate over the pond.
Paving	When laying paving next to grass, ensure that it's below soil level to avoid catching the lawnmower blades
Fencing	To reduce the rotting of fence posts, stand them in a container of preservative for a couple of hours before using.
Potting On	When moving houseplants into a larger pot, the plant will grow roots rather than produce flowers. So leave the potting on until after the flowers have finished.
Watering	When watering plants in the border, make sure that you give them a really good drink. Just giving them a short watering encourages the roots to develop closer to the surface of the soil, making the plant less drought tolerant and more susceptible to be rocked by the wind.
Herbs	Tarragon has an aniseed flavour. Always taste some before you use it in cooking, the strength varies dramatically between plants.