FOR RELEASE THE WEEK OF MARCH 6, 2000:
I have a hard time getting my 10- and 14-year old children to eat certain vegetables like spinach and broccoli. Will they eventually grow out of disliking vegetables?
They very well might, says Martha Raidl, University of Idaho extension nutrition specialist. According to Raidl, a recent study found that children’s taste buds are more sensitive to the bitter compounds normally found in broccoli and spinach. By contrast, study participants who were between 21 and 84 years old had less sensitivity to these bitter compounds. The adult subjects actually preferred bitter beverages, such as coffee and tea, and sour fruits like grapefruit and lemons.
"So don’t worry if you can’t get your kids to eat broccoli," Raidl says. "They probably will eat it when they are older. In the meantime, you can cover these vegetables with a cheese sauce to mask the bitterness and add some extra calcium."
Should I harden off lettuce transplants after I buy them–or can I just go out and plant them?
Lettuce is considered "half-hardy" and can withstand some moderate freezing temperatures, but you’ll definitely want to harden it off before you transplant it outdoors, says University of Idaho extension educator Stuart Parkinson. Not only does hardening off protect tender young transplants from frost injury, it also helps them resist insect injury, whipping, hot drying winds and other unfavorable conditions.
Harden off lettuce by temporarily taking the plants outdoors for an increasing amount of time each day over a seven- to 10-day period. Wait until the hard freezes have passed before you transplant it.
We have a young, 15-foot maple that was partially uprooted in a recent storm. Can we save it?
You often can, and it’s usually well worth a try, says Yvonne Carree, University of Idaho extension forestry associate.
First, dig a hole on the uprooted side that can accommodate the upended roots. Slowly straighten the tree with power equipment, a winch or a "come-along," being careful not to break any more roots. Where you’ve attached the cable or rope to the tree, protect the bark with burlap or some other material.
Once the tree is upright, replace the soil, tamp it well and anchor the tree with two or three guy lines attached to a point on the trunk about half-to-two-thirds of the way up the tree. Water well to remove any air spaces around the replanted roots and to help the stressed root system recover.
Can I really keep slugs out of my raised vegetable beds by attaching a copper band to the wood frames?
Copper barriers actually work quite well, says Bob Stoltz, University of Idaho extension entomologist. "They cause a reaction with the slug’s mucus–sort of like an electric shock–and that repels the slugs."
You can buy commercial copper products or you can make your own from thin copper sheeting available at the hardware store. Cut the strips at least two or three inches wide–or wider if the slugs are still getting in. Some integrated pest management experts recommend 6-inch vertical copper screens buried several inches into the soil.
Stoltz points out that if you’ve already got slugs in your raised beds, the copper bands won’t just keep new ones out: they’ll also keep the current slimy residents in. To clear out the old ones: wrap aluminum foil around asphalt tiles and nail them into the ground foil-side-up; a large nail in the center should do. Or, set foot-square pieces of board onto one-inch rails. Before temperatures rise every morning, check the traps for the slugs overnighting underneath them and dispose of the obnoxious critters.
Beer or yeast-and-water in pet-protecting covered containers also work well.