export_ofoct.com

[00:00.69] It would not be autumn without planting advice from Associated Press gardening expert Jessica Damiano.

[00:10.80] Damiano recently wrote about her experience planting garlic cloves.

[00:19.83] She was concerned not just about protecting them from low winter temperatures.

[00:26.47] She was worried that animals would dig up her bulbs and eat them.

[00:32.58] Tulips, daffodils and garlic, for example, produce bulbs that bloom in the spring in places that have four seasons and cold winters.

[00:47.72] To keep away animals, Damiano put netting over the soil and covered it with straw to a thickness of 10 centimeters.

[01:00.74] She said this is good to do with any bulbs, especially ones like garlic, tulips and crocuses.

[01:11.36] That is because animals like to eat the bulbs of these plants.

[01:18.27] Netting or a kind of fencing called chicken wire can serve as a physical barrier that prevents animals from digging up plants.

[01:30.22] Such barriers do not block sunlight and water from reaching the soil.

[01:38.73] Damiano said they can be secured to the ground with pieces of wood or rocks.

[01:46.96] They can be removed in the spring.

[01:50.68] Straw is a good mulch material that helps keep the temperature of the soil from changing too much.

[02:00.77] That can help avoid damage to plants caused by freezing and thawing conditions. It also keeps the soil from drying out.

[02:13.80] Protecting soil is important during the winter when cold dry weather can damage even the strongest plants.

[02:24.43] Damiano said it is important to use straw, not hay, in your garden. Hay is animal feed.

[02:35.32] It contains tall grass, alfalfa, clover and other seeds that will cause problems in your garden.

[02:46.22] She said straw is leftover material from crop harvesting.

[02:52.60] It is better because it has fewer seeds.

[03:01.37] Damiano also said straw is less likely to contain chemicals used for insect control on crops.

[03:09.60] Straw is also good for other purposes around your house, the gardening expert noted.

[03:16.77] Damiano does not like to use some popular fertilizers such as bone meal, blood meal or fish fertilizers.

[03:29.52] She said hungry animals might find such fertilizers appealing.

[03:36.43] She also advises not to leave parts of bulbs on the ground in your garden because they might be a sign to animals that there is food nearby.

[03:50.51] There are many products meant to keep away animals that eat bulbs, which include squirrels, rabbits, chipmunks and others.

[04:02.99] Damiano does not use repellants because they must be must be replaced often.

[04:09.90] She said she does not like doing garden work when it is cold outside.

[04:16.80] Some repellants can be used to treat bulbs before planting.

[04:21.85] But, she said, they wear off over time.

[04:26.36] Damiano considered a physical barrier like netting or chicken wire to be the best defense.

[04:35.40] But, she added, the repellants and other methods can be effective so long as you are diligent.