The rolled turf on the south side showed brown spots after a year; in winter it dried out completely. Is there still a salvation?
The lawn has starved to death, and in some cases it is also likely to be snow damage. You should fertilize three times a year and do not forget to water. Scarification is only carried out after the second mowing.

Grass no longer wants to grow on a north-facing area under trees. Is there an alternative to bark mulch?
Spread compost on the area and then plant ground cover such as ivy or elven flower.

The cherry laurel hedge is brown and dead. Can she still be saved?
I would leave it there and see if it drifts fresh. It is clearly drought damage, the plants have died of thirst.

When can I start fertilizing the oleander?
As soon as it is outside, it is fertilized and watered.

Bay leaves, citrus trees and Japanese spindle bushes have feeding damage. What to do?
The black weevil is at work here, and nematodes can help. However, these small roundworms are only released when the soil temperature is ten to twelve degrees.

What can I do about the uninvited overgrowth of ivy in the neighboring garden?
My advice, learn to love ivy. It does not harm the trees and fulfills its role as a ground cover excellently.

How do I keep ants at bay? Where is there a remedy?
Diatomaceous earth can be found in every warehouse and garden shop. The powder can even be used indoors and it is guaranteed to work.

The quince has many brown spots on the leaves in summer, fruits are crippled. What’s this?
Ui, you have to be careful. The harmless but annoying leaf tan, which also spreads to the fruits, can be combated with all fungicides (e.g. horsetail extract). However, if it is the fire blight, it becomes dicey. If the leaves are hanging brown as if burned, it is a sign of it. Then the community has to be informed.

One often sees sacks of wood chips to fill the raised beds. Do you like that?
I think every bed is good. The chopsticks are certainly the second best choice, pruning would be even better. I recommend adding organic fertilizer (horn shavings, sheep’s wool pellets or brown grain) to the wood chips. Important: The wood chips are the bottom layer, followed by compost and at the top 20 centimeters of potting soil (garden soil with compost) or packing soil.

The oleander survived even the minus ten degrees on the terrace. But the leaves are mottled gray, some tips are brown. What should I do?
Wait! The tips are believed to have frozen off and the leaves had spider mites last year. Oleanders should never be covered, the air is too dry there. As soon as the coldest weather is over, put it outside in the rain.

The Buddleia has grown extremely. When and how much should I cut?
The so-called butterfly lilac should be cut very strongly in spring – to a good 50 to 70 centimeters, so it remains compact in growth. Although it is a magnet for insects, conservationists do not like to see it because it is very strong. It is therefore best to cut off the flowers immediately after they have finished blooming and enjoy the many butterflies.

A seven-year-old transplanted walnut tree was initially well leafed, but now the branches look dry. Cut back or tear out?
Transplanting older trees is always a risk, because the fine fiber roots that supply the tree are far from the trunk and are lost when moving. I would wait and see if he still drifts. Old trees from the nursery have to be transplanted almost every year to keep the rhizome compact.

I want to hang up nesting boxes. When is the best time, how far should the distance be?
The sooner you hang the nest boxes, the better. Be careful that cats cannot reach the boxes, so place them at least three meters above the ground. The distance between the boxes should be five to ten meters, depending on the food available.

How long can you use old seeds?
Some seeds are only very short-lived, others germinate for years – for example tomatoes. The same applies here: just try it out, nothing is lost if it doesn’t work.

I only have seed compost from the previous year at home. Can i use this?
According to the motto “better than nothing”, I would take it. If you want to be absolutely sure, you can steam the earth again: fill an iron pot (without plastic handles) with earth, put a metal lid on it and put it in the oven for half an hour at 80 degrees.

I don’t want to buy plant fertilizer, but I have a lot of compost. What can I do?
Very simple: prepare compost tea. Fill a cloth sack with compost and hang it in a bucket of water. Then pour the tea undiluted into the container plants the next day. You can pour the earth two or three times, then sprinkle it on the beds.

The earwigs in the raised bed eat the plants. What can be done against it?
On the one hand, I would dust primary rock or diatomaceous earth. Set up clay pots with wood wool as traps and settle the earwigs.

The daffodils are almost unable to get through the foliage that I left on your advice. Shouldn’t I put it away after all?
There are foliage, such as maple and magnolia, which form a very dense carpet and make it difficult for daffodils to get through. I loosen the leaves with a leaf rake, distribute them and leave them next to the daffodils, because leaves are a valuable source of humus.

I forgot to cut back my fall raspberries. Can I do that now?
Yes, no problem. The autumn raspberries are not yet sprouting, so cut off all old shoots at ground level. If you haven’t already done so, immediately apply compost, organic fertilizer and a layer of mulch made of wood fiber and bark.

There is so much talk about weed killers. Is there a biological variant?
Yes, there is even a selection of them. These products contain the natural active ingredient of pelargonic acid, which completely burns the leaves within a very short time. Short-lived wild herbs are completely destroyed, but root weeds drift back and therefore have to be treated several times.

What to do now in the garden and on the balcony

• In the garden: Loosen the beds, free the piled roses, sow radishes and carrots, plant lettuce. It’s also the perfect time to plant roses, berry bushes, and fruit trees.
• On the balcony: Plant the first herb boxes, chives, rosemary, thyme and sage can withstand the cold quite well. If you prefer chervil, dill or parsley, you have to be careful, the plants are softened and cannot tolerate frost.
• In the room: Fertilizing is now again a must for the green heroes in the home. Now is the best time to repot. Always use the right soil, especially with orchids, choose a very loose bark substrate.
• Balcony and terrace. This is where the slow awakening begins. Herbal boxes (still without basil!) Are planted. Spring flowers are a must, because primroses, horned violets and daffodils bring the spring fever.
• In the room. The sun and the much stronger light end the hibernation of the green heroes. Whether ficus or window leaf, whether mother-in-law’s tongue or lucky feather, they all sprout new leaves. Therefore fertilize and, if it has not been done for a long time, repot as soon as possible.
• In particularly mild areas Harden the balcony flowers on sunny days, but do not take them straight into the blazing sun. Some potted plants also gradually come outside: Oleander, laurel and dwarf palm tolerate light frost. Everyone else has to go back into the house at temperatures below zero.
• Salad can be from the beginning of March be planted outdoors, as well as kohlrabi. Radishes, salads and many herbs are sown.
• Fruit trees from time to time Sprinkle with horsetail tea and microorganisms, this strengthens the leaves and protects against fungal diseases. Hang up earwigs against aphids from mid-April (clay pot on a string into which wood wool is stuffed and which lies directly on the trunk, is the “bedroom” for earwigs).
• Watch out for snails in good time and collect or sprinkle the new, environmentally friendly slug pellets. In the winter quarters of the balcony plants, destroy aphids with gentle sprays (soft soap water).
• Snowdrop nests Divide after blooming, then you can quickly reach large blooming areas. Also Winterlings can be transplanted after flowering.
• Remaining leaves remove from the lawn, but it remains under bushes. Many beneficial insects hide here – also helpful snail hunters.
• With the Forsythia flower the first spring begins. The most important work is that Cutting the roses. Shorten hybrid tea roses significantly, only cut out shrub roses and climbing roses. Cut historical roses and wild roses only a little. They bloom on the previous year’s shoots.
• Winter spray: Takes place with rapeseed oil preparations, horsetail extract, nettle extract and effective microorganisms. Spray all branches and especially the trunk soaking wet. This catches many clutches of pests.
• The elder is now also cut. The fresh shoots from the previous year get flowers and fruits on the side branches this year. Cut out very old branches at ground level to keep the wood vital.
• compost Spread in the vegetable garden, apply two to three centimeters to the beds and work in on the surface. So that the weed problem doesn’t get too big, immediately mulch – Apply wood fiber or similar in the vegetable garden and in the perennial bed. The first lawn cut is used later.
• Bulb flowers (Daffodils, crocuses, tulips etc.) fertilize. Ideally with a fast-acting organic fertilizer. Do not cut off leaves until they have turned yellow, but remove the seed pods.
• Fertilize the lawn now. Scarifying takes place after the second mowing.
• Rhododendrons fertilize, six weeks before flowering you need the first nutrients, again immediately after flowering.
• Fertilize floribunda roses. Old shrub and climbing roses usually look for the nutrients themselves with their tap roots.
• The Herb box plant on the balcony. parsley is often driven and more sensitive, the same applies to dill. The sensitive one basil but still stays in the house.
• Don’t panic though Seaweed emerge in the pond. Since the aquatic plants are not in full growth, they do not filter the nutrients sufficiently from the pond water.