Gardening may be a difficult—but rewarding—job. You’ll almost certainly encounter typical difficulties such as pests, weeds, mold, and drought regardless of your years of expertise. These problems can be emotionally, financially, and visually devastating for everyone involved.
However, one product may just help you—and it’s probably in your spice rack right now. Though eating healthy is generally preferred, using this helps your spices. Here, horticulturalists explain the most common spice you should add to your garden to prevent your plants from dying. A more plentiful harvest is on the way.
Plants can perish at any age, although they’re most fragile as seedlings (about two to three weeks after germination). The damping-off disease is one of the most typical causes of plant death in this stage.
Several soil-borne fungi are transferred throughout the earth and on soil-contaminated goods like garden tools and plant pots, causing damping-off. Root rot can occur as a result of the infection. If your seedlings are infested, they will appear healthy when emerging from the ground but soon collapse and die.
Prevent damping-off disease
The damping-off disease is not a pleasant experience—and once one seedling has been infected, it’s easy for the fungus to spread to others. Cinnamon, one spice that every kitchen should have, fortunately, is in your pantry to help. “Damping-off disease affects both seedlings and germination. Curing damping-off involves removing the fungus and encouraging healthy seedling growth, which can be accomplished using cinnamon. Sprinkle cinnamon onto the soil as you would a stack of pancakes to protect against damping-off.
Why is cinnamon such a good resource for seedlings? According to one study published in the Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, spice has potent anti-fungal effects. Cinnamon oil damaged Candida fungus cells’ cell walls and organelles, causing them to swell and eventually die. Different types of fungi can be used to mimic this process.
Rooting Agent
Experienced gardeners have used plant cuttings to grow new plants for various purposes. This necessitates using the rooting hormone, which raises the chances that your plant cutting will form roots on its own. Cinnamon can also help, according to gardening professionals. “Cinnamon is a rooting agent that does not need the addition of a rooting hormone,” says Hall. “It increases the success rate of stem cuttings by enhancing their development.”
To use cinnamon in this manner, Hall advises gathering a spoonful of powdered cinnamon and a paper towel. Wet the ends of your plant cutting stems with water and roll them in the cinnamon on a paper towel. After that, set the plants in the soil. Your stems will form roots quickly and are less prone to damping-off than those produced from seeds.
Pest Repellents
Plants may be damaged by animals, such as ants and other garden pests. Cinnamon, once again, might assist. The strong scent of cinnamon is too much for these pests to handle, so sprinkle some around the plant itself to keep them away. Rabbits and squirrels, for example, will flee once they catch a whiff of the powerful odor. It’s time to grab a huge box of this spice now. There are more pests such as slugs that deter away if you use cinnamon on your garden.
