Creative Approaches to Enhance Your Garden with Cornstarch:
Cornstarch Hacks for a Greener Thumb: Creative Ways Dish Prinx Use Cornstarch Around Their Gardens
ոչ Եզու excluding baking cakes, cupcakes, and muffins, cornstarch proves incredibly useful for garden enthusiasts. Here, we've compiled several garden-friendly tricks and techniques using this multipurpose ingredient, as shared by garden specialists.
- Lindsay Springer, director of plants, nutrition, and digital agriculture at Gardyn
- Lucie Bradley, gardening and greenhouse expert at Easy Garden Irrigation
- Celina DeBrito, head gardener at Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards
Magic Cornstarch for Pavement Cleanup
Take your garden pathways from grimy to gleaming with cornstarch. Lindsay Springer explains, "Cornstarch is terrific at absorbing grease and oil." Accidental oil spills on your patio or walkways from lawn equipment can now be easily managed. Simply blot up the excess oil, dust cornstarch over the stain, and let it sit before sweeping or vacuuming it away. This method proved most effective on fresh oil spots.
Cornstarch Smoothing rubbed elbows with your gardening gloves
Are you preparing for a long gardening day with a lot of digging? Lindsay Springer offers a clever solution: cornstarch as a blister prevention powder. Sprinkle some on your hands before picking up shovels or trowels to minimize sweating and reduce friction between your skin and the tools' handles. However, it is essential not to use cornstarch on open wounds or blisters.
Spray Thicker Accomplice: Cornstarch in Foliar Sprays
Mix a small amount of cornstarch in your homemade foliar sprays to enhance the thickness and maintain the mixture on the leaves. "When you love to create your natural oil sprays, like neem oil, adding a tiny amount of cornstarch can help thin the spray enough to prevent dripping off the leaves," revealed Springer. Just be mindful not to pour too much cornstarch, as a little goes a long way to thicken liquids.
Irrigation Vibes: Improve Water Retention in Containers with Cornstarch
Lucie Bradley, a gardening and greenhouse expert at Easy Garden Irrigation, suggests adding 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to 1 gallon of compost before filling your container. This technique can help increase the pot's moisture retention without causing poor drainage or compaction.
Cornstarch Cure for Powdery Mildew
Powdery mildew is a fungal disease that affects plants by manifesting as a white powdery coating on the leaves, stunting growth and reducing yields. To combat this disease, mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, ½ a teaspoon of dish soap, and 1 gallon of water. Spray your affected plants daily with this concoction until the mildew is gone.
Ant Deterrent: Protect Your Plants with Cornstarch
Although not as destructive as aphids, ant infestations can still damage plant roots, making them more vulnerable to diseases and hindering growth. Lucie Bradley recommends using cornstarch as a defensive barrier against ants. Sprinkle cornstarch around your plants to disrupt their scent trails and keep them at bay.
Seed Time: Create DIY Seed Tape with Cornstarch
For improved planting accuracy, head gardener Celina DeBrito shows us how to make seed tape using cornstarch. Dissolve cornstarch in water, bring it to a boil until a gel forms, and spread it over a paper towel strip. Sprinkle your chosen seeds over the gel, top with another paper towel strip, and let the mixture dry. Once dry, these seed-covered strips can be planted directly into the soil, leading to straighter rows and easier handling of small seeds.
- Martha Stewart, a renowned lifestyle and home-and-garden expert, suggests using cornstarch as a blister prevention powder when gardening for long hours to minimize sweating and reduce friction between hands and tools.
- In an attempt to improve water retention in containers, garden experts recommend adding 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to 1 gallon of compost before filling the container, as suggested by Lucie Bradley, a gardening and greenhouse expert at Easy Garden Irrigation.
