Hydrogen Peroxide Garden Uses

How Green Does Your Garden Grow?

This summer we saw the true fruits of our labor in a garden overflowing with herbs, veggies and fresh fruits. After an early battle with an over abundant and over long production cycle of snails, we finally got them beat back to reasonable numbers and then the garden took off.

Our lilies and stalk flowers are now towering overhead - never seen anything like it… and the herb garden is literally twice the height and volume it achieved last year - lemon balm is four feet tall - oregano, lavender, penny royal, marjoram, thyme and spearmint are all topping 2 and half feet - Gargantua Herbs! We started the basil late, but even it is catching up quickly.

Tomatoes, eggplants and squashes all thriving and producing nicely.

So what was the secret? Well… of COURSE it includes our best buddy hydrogen peroxide - but it also must be attributed to a rock dust infusion.

This year, as Spring was just springing, we took a good supply of last year’s rock dust - which, after sitting out in its outdoor bin over winter had become large soft rocklike clods, and literally just broke them up and tossed them into the gardens until we’d used them all up - and put a nice fat layer of this soft smeary mushy wet “slip” over everything - we didn’t even bother to work it into the soil - after all it was wet enough to seep in on its own.

Then we routinely sprayed with a 1 ounce to 1 quart solution of 3% hyrdogen peroxide in the early weeks - when fog was thick and moisture and damp were the norm (hence the snail explosion!).

After that we continued to water at least once a week with this solution - right into the soil - helps to give those roots the oxygen they need when they’re busy doing serious growing - and voila! HUGE results!

If you need to find the rock dust, look for agrowinn - they make the best rock dust of any we’ve ever found - oh - and we can’t forget the last ingredient - our own home grown worm castings! First batch was ready this Spring as well…

We didn’t have huge amounts, but a little worked into the top soil around new young plants gives them real staying power…

We’ve been watering the Aloe Vera in the window sill with the hydrogen peroxide as well and it’s so big we need to get new pots for it! (Promise we’ll post pictures of all of this in the next few days!)

Happy Gardening! Keep it Green and keep it Healthy!

Edited: August 13th, 2009 under Articles, Garden Uses - No Comments. Tags: agrowinn, green garden, healthy green garden, herb garden, herbs, hydrogen peroxide, natural fertilizers, natural gardening, rock dust, veggies, worm castings

An Experimental Applicataion for Weevils in Alfalfa

This is a new story we just came across through
some of our friends in the hydrogen peroxide world…

Seems there was a farmer in Iowa who was having
a rather serious weevil problem in their alfalfa fields.

Now, if someone had asked, most likely I’d have
suggested they start with a 3 percent solution to test
if there was any improvement…

But no one asked.

I’ve used hydrogen peroxide to heal all kinds of plants
for many years, but I have to tell you, I never use stronger
than 3 percent solutions. Usually half that is adequate to
do the job for most house plant pests and diseases. I often
use a 50/50 dilution in the garden outdoors as well. (50 percent
3 percent solution and 50 percent water. That’s pretty mild.

Turns out, this farmer was pretty serious about solving
the problem, and went at it in a way we never would have
expected. They used 35% Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide
straight on a 10 by 10 foot section of the crop.

I was sure the next thing I’d hear was that the crop had just
given up and died in that 10 foot square patch. But that is not
what happened.

Instead, the crop was fine, and the weevils were gone. gone,
not only from that 10 foot square, but for a major distance…
as in, no weevils in that field at all after the application. And
the alfalfa? Seems the 35% hydrogen peroxide didn’t bother it one
bit.

Now, I have to find out if they sprayed the area down with water
after application… and how long after application, if they did…
because this just seems remarkable to me.

I’m working on tracking down the rest of the story and will be sure
to post an update when I can get more information on this one…

I won’t go so far as to recommend using straight 35% hydrogen peroxide
on any plants myself just yet; but this story came from a very reliable
source, so I’ll just have to keep after the details and follow up until I
can get more information.

Edited: May 15th, 2007 under Articles, Garden Uses - No Comments.

Fighting Fire Blight and Other Bacterial Diseases with Hydrogen Peroxide

Do you have trouble with bacterial diseases on fruit
and ornamental plants?

You might want to try using a spray bottle of 3 percent
hydrogen peroxide to combat the problem. You can apply
the hydrogen peroxide directly to plant leaves, bark and buds
where the blight or disease is visible.

The hydrogen peroxide is a great bacteria killer, and will not
harm most flowering shrubs and fruit trees. (Some extremely
tender plants can become slightly “burned” but this is rare.)

Howard Garrett of the Dallas News includes this little snippet
about using hydrogen peroxide in his columne today:

It soon will be time for my fruit trees
to bloom. I have two ‘Moonglow’ pears that suffered
from fire blight last year.

I bought copper soap fungicide for use during
dormancy. The directions for this spray indicate
that it also can be used on blossoms. Is that
a good idea?

R.S., Mount Pleasant

I’m not a fan of copper products.

Try this: Spray 3 percent hydrogen peroxide now
and again when the trees are in bloom. Hydrogen
peroxide is very effective on other bacterial diseases
and should work in this case. Let me know how it
turns out.

Seems hydrogen peroxide has a lot more ways of being useful
in the garden or around the house than most of us thought!

Edited: March 9th, 2007 under Articles, Garden Uses - No Comments.

Hydrogen Peroxide Garden Applications

Hydrogen peroxide is a natural part of the plant metabolic system and is produced and synthesized in different systems within plant structure. It is a natural compound produced in the breakdown of plants as well, particularly well suited for water garden applications.

In the home garden, a 3 percent solution in a mister works well to combat black spot leaf disease on roses, gardenias and other susceptible plants. Simply mist the leaves one to two times a week between or just after waterings.

It is also an excellent soil oxygenator, and can be applied in a dilute solution of one half cup 3 percent hydrogen peroxide to one gallon of water. This application will often restore damaged or injured plants within weeks, particularly drought stricken plants.

In stronger concentrations, hydrogen peroxide makes a great weed killer. Rather than spreading toxic chemicals over your garden to kill unwanted plants, use commercial agricultural grade sodium percarbonate, the dry form of hydrogen peroxide and dilute to a strength of 10 percent solution. (Approximately twice as much water in the dilution as a straight application of the dry concentrate). Apply directly to the unwanted plant or plants.

When using higher concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (over 3 percent) always wear protective rubber or latex gloves. Nornal gardening gloves are not waterproof and higher concentrations of hydrogen peroxide will burn your skin as easily as they will burn the weeds you want to eliminate with them.

Edited: November 27th, 2006 under Garden Uses - No Comments.

Keep Outdoor Fountains Clean and Clear with Hydrogen Peroxide

Outdoor fountains add beauty and tranquility to the garden landscape. The cascading water is soothing to the ear and pleasing to the eye.

But when those waters become green and filled with slime and algae, the effect is not only no longer beautiful to look at, it can become a source of foul odors, mosquito and other insect breeding and a potential health hazard.

To keep outdoor fountains sparkling and clean, treat them to a regular draining, cleaning and refilling with fresh water. To kill slimey algae and overabundant growth in the fountain an application of sodium percarbonate in the cleaning process is recommended.

Sodium percarbonate is a dry form of hydrogen peroxide used in cleaning and agriculture. It is generally available in a 27 percent dilution strength powder. This is a high strength solution and should be handled and applied with care. Use rubber or latex gloves when applying the sodium percarbonate to the drained fountain surfaces for cleaning.

Between cleanings, keep the fountain water fresh and clean by adding 1 to 2 cups of 3 percent hydrogen peroxide for every ten gallons of fountain water. This will keep the bacteria and algae growth to a minimum without harming the fountain or any creatures in the environment who might drink the water it contains.

Edited: November 27th, 2006 under Garden Uses - No Comments.