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| THE CASUAL GARDENER, Shawna Coronado Safe For The Earth Ice Melt = = = = = = = = = Dear Casual Gardener, I’m sure it will be Spring soon. I count the days, hours, and minutes until I can get out and dig in the dirt. Is there anything we gardeners and naturalists can do outside right now besides scrape the driveway and measure our snow gauge? Signed, Needs To Stay Active = = = = = = = = = Dear Active, There is no denying that activity becomes difficult this time of year. Many people enjoy being out in the snow when the weather is above zero. Most frequently I see people out on the paths walking and running with their family. Birdwatchers can be seen filling up birdfeeders and hiking through the districts forest-preserves. Local natural areas also encourage cross-country skiing. These enthusiasts are the ones who scrape snow ardently and find any excuse to get outside to enjoy the outdoors. All these activities would be fantastic for you to get out and energetically pursue. However, my feeling is when the weather becomes subzero you must be extremely careful not to expose skin or slip on ice. Because of the excessive ice, I choose to walk on the treadmill during this type of weather and dream of summer gardening while I’m doing it. Ice is a problem this time of year for every one. Perhaps, like me, you have cleverly titled your driveway, “The Ice Skating Rink.” Once it hits subzero temperatures with -30 wind chill, I am loathe to attempt the clearing of the driveway. Because of this, and also because I am a wicked and cruel Mother, I send my children out to the mailbox to retrieve the mail for me on -30 days. Normally, they come running in exactly .03 seconds later with rosy cheeks and mail in hand, the quick dash to the mailbox a simple task. This week, however, I watched as my seven year old cheerfully dashed out onto the ice rink. Within seconds she careened out of control with arms pin-wheeling and legs flying. She landed hard on the ice with an “umph!” and a whack. She came limping back up to the door, tears in her eyes, and gave me a look that would melt the heart of any ice queen. With a horrifying guilt only a Mother can have, I realized I had not scraped or salted the driveway and the poor kid nearly got a concussion because of it. Of course the salt box was empty and most of the stores were sold out, so I went online to frantically search for a solution. What I discovered was a whole list of garden and pet safe ice melting products. Salt based ice-melters are not “green” or safe for your garden and only work to about 15 degrees. They cause damage to plants, trees and grass. It is unsafe for pets and children and runs off into our ground water and sewage areas. There is an organic compound is pet safe and flowerbed/environment safe. It’s effective to 20 degrees below zero and offers a better alternative for your home and family instead of using salt or other chemicals to melt ice. In fact, there are so many brands of safe ice-melt I was surprised. My advice, if you are interested in finding a green ice-melt product, is to go to your local pet or hardware store, or go online and search for “pet safe ice melt” – you will find a lot of products to help you defeat the ice monster. If you’d like to learn more about safely cleaning ice away, go to this Gardens Alive web page: http://www. gardensalive.com/article.asp?ai=725&bhcd2=1203526764. It has detailed information and links to other ice and snow removal experts. By the way, my daughter DID get her revenge and at the same time gave me some winter outdoor activity. We came home the day after her fall, Ice Skating Rink still in place, and she noticed a mail package sitting on our front stoop. She casually set me up. Smiling, she said, “Mom, I’ll get the package, YOU get the mail.” I swear she looked at me with a twinkle in her eye. I started off for the mailbox and what-do-ya-know, felt my feet slipping and sliding. I gradually picked up speed as I raced down the driveway towards my destination like a skier in a downhill race. Shrieking loudly, legs gyrating wildly, I achieved lift-off about half-way down landing hard in a bone-charring belly-flop and spun to a halt next to the mailbox. Ah yes… revenge is sweet. Please send your gardening questions for Shawna Coronado, The Casual Gardener to dearshawna@thecasualgardener.com or The Casual Gardener, P.O. Box 358, Warrenville, IL 60555. www.thecasualgardener.com |
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