VIDEO: Gardening Tips from a Master

Master Gardener Leroy Wolff doesn't follow the common rules for gardening and he told Patch it has made all the difference.

Wolff held a class at the Tuesday night and provided several tips and secrets to growing the perfect garden this spring.

Born on a farm, Wolff has been gardening his entire life. He typically has more than 60 blooming plants in his yard, 32-ounce tomatoes and over 4-foot daisies.

Wolff passed a few of his most treasured secrets on to Patch:

• Gardens and flower beds need an inch and a half of water per week, so get a rain gauge. Grass needs an inch of water per week.
• Rotate where you plant your plants. Don't plant your garden in the same place year after year. The soil may have diseases.
• Keep track of what and where you plant.
• Don't stir your perennial beds until after Memorial Day, but do pull weeds out from around them.
• Cut your plants back in the spring, not the fall. Wait until they begin to sprout before you cut them back.
• Don't use common household markers to label plants because they usually wash off before the end of the season.
• Rototill your garden in the fall. Worms don't regenerate!
• About 6 square inches of soil should have four to six worms. If not, bury leaves and compost to attract more worms.
• Don't use full-strength Miracle Grow on newly started plants.
• Never use fertilizer in a garden.

Check Trenton Patch for upcoming events featuring Wolff.

Questions on gardening? Contact Leroy Wolff at the Master Gardening Hotline, 734-727-7240, or by e-mail at lawolff@wowway.com.