The Wonders of Corn Gluten Meal and Molasses For Your Lawn
Last week I wrote about using vinegar for controlling weeds. Right now, I’m sure a lot of folks are thinking about putting some “weed and feed” products on their lawns. The weed killer in most of those products is 2,4-D, which is terrible for our pets and children to walk upon. There is an organic alternative that you may want to try.
I’ve read that corn gluten meal makes an excellent preemergent weed kill for lawns. It also contains a fertilizer analysis of about 9-1-1, making it a great organic “weed and feed” product for lawn. You have to apply it at the right time, though, before the summer weeds emerge, generally between Feb. 15 and March 15, so it may be getting too late.
Texas organic gardening guru Howard Garrett says to make a tea from corn gluten meal by mixing six to eight cups with 100 gallons of water. Spray lawns at a rate of 35 gallons per acre. You can also broadcast the dry material at a rate of 15-20 lbs. per 1,000 square feet. The liquid application supposedly works better, but I have never tried either.
Personally, I don’t put too much care into my lawn. I’ve been working really hard at getting rid of my lawn and turning it into garden space, and I encourage all of you to do the same. I don’t eat grass. And there are prettier things that I can grow.
Corn gluten meal is not the same as cornmeal. Corn gluten meal is made from only the endosperm of the corn, unlike cornmeal, which is made from the whole kernel.
I’ve been noticing some ants around my place lately, so it’s time to start applying molasses again.
I don’t know why, but molasses seems to keep ants, especially fire ants, away from my garden. Last year I applied dry molasses at a rate of around 10- 20 lbs. per 1,000 square feet. It did a pretty good job of keeping the ants away most of the time. I probably need to reapply sometime soon.
For individual mounds, you can kill ants with a mixture of water, liquid molasses and orange oil. Mix about four ounces of orange oil and four ounces of liquid molasses in a standard two gallon watering can, and fill the can with water. You want to use a watering can that has a removable shower head so it will pour a solid stream of water.
Once you mix the solution, gingerly walk over to the mound so you don’t disturb the ants. If you make a bunch of noise, the worker ants will protect the queen by moving her deeper down in the mound. You want to surprise them so you have the best chance at killing the queen.
Start by pouring a stream of the solution down the middle of the mound. Use about half of the two-gallon can. Then pour the rest in a circular motion out to the edge of the mound.
In the Garden
Someone the other day told me, “I finished putting my garden in.” I kind of scratch my head whenever I hear people say things like that, because I’m never finished “putting my garden in.” Everybody thinks about gardening right now in the springtime, but it’s more of a continuous process for me.
We are blessed to live in Fayette County, where we can grow vegetable crops nearly yearround (except for that week we had last month). Unfortunately, the gardening industry thinks spring is the only time to plant a garden. Many stores stop stocking gardening supplies between late summer and spring.
It is definitely time to plant our spring crops, though. I started planting tomato and squash transplants last week. I need to get some cucumbers in the ground. I’m holding off a few weeks to plant pepper and eggplant transplants. They seem to like the weather a little warmer during their early phase of growth.
If you are reading this when the paper comes out Thursday, you can still make plans to visit my plant sale on Friday, March 19. It will take place outside the Fayette County Record Office at 127 S. Washington St. in La Grange. I plan to set up around 8:30 a.m. and I’ll be there until I sell out. I will have several varieties of heirloom tomatoes and basil. I hope to see you there.