I wouldn't take a chance. There is one that is for "in" ponds that is supposed to be safe to fish and wildlife is used carefully. It works well, and might be an answer for around the pond. A better answer is to wet the ground and turn the soil with a shovel for a wide border around the pond. It will make quick and easy work of shaking and raking the weeds out. Remaining weeds should die with the next couple of frosts/snows because their roots will be exposed. Then you can plant a nice border that will help keep weeds out. Reality is...you have to hand weed. Putting down a serious layer of newspapers and covering with a landscape fabric and bark is an option. But be prepared to peel the landscape fabric back every year and replace it. Dirt and weed seeds will just grow on top of it and root into it.

I can help. You have two very big considerations here. First off, tomatoes and strawberries both want an EC of 2.0 (+-) while peppers and lettuce want something on the order of 1.2. They won't grow together using the same nutrient strength. Your lettuce will turn brown with all the nitrogen and your peppers won't produce. While we're talking about lettuce; it doesn't like heat. It will "bolt" the first chance it gets. Bolting is the term given to a plant that is going to "seed" fast. You'll find that the plants get spindly and set flowers as well as turn very, very bitter in taste. If you try to lessen the EC so the peppers and lettuce will grow, the other two will die. Grow these two groups of cultivars separately. Next up: strawberries don't like their feet wet. That means, their root systems need to be almost dry (damp) to grow. Static culture would be a better method of growing the tomatoes and the strawberries. If strawberries are growing suspended in water, you'll get all sorts of fancy-sounding scientific-named diseases, which all fall under the general heading of "crown rot". Some are fungi, others mold; bottom line, strawberries and tomatoes need full sun and well-drained growing medium. Tomatoes "can" be grown in water and can even be grown using the "ramp" technique. If you choose to do so, make sure you oxygenate your nutrient water 24/7 or things get ugly! If you need more help, private email me and I'll direct you.

I grow Ozark Beauty and Cardinals. Both make huge, sweet berries. I get a 2nd lighter fall crop some years. Wonderful to have berries in September. Weird thing - they did not go completely dormant this winter. They just continued to grow and multiply! I don't use hay - I use pine straw (dried pine needles) for mulch around my strawberries. They are natural companions. The pine needles actualy improve the taste of the berries. I put the pine straw on the paths too. It keep slugs away. They do not like to get poked by the pine needles. Toss in some pinecones, too, to keep out the cats! In the South you can buy bales of Pine Straw. I wish we could here. It is the best mulch for Azaleas and other acid-loving plants and trees. It is great mulch for blackberries too. It doesn't wash or float away like the pine bark or chip mulch does. The best thing for getting rid of rolly pollies (pill bugs or sow bugs) is a good old Horned Toad. They eat ants, even fire ants and nasty old pill bugs. Too bad farmers used insecticides and killed them off. Their are not extinct, but darn near. Maybe I could import me a few from someplace. I don't use pesticides. I am getting some guineas soon. Wonder if they will eat sow bugs? Does anyone know? Annie

I have been thinking for now of using some leftover PVC 3 and 4 inch pipe. I have 10ft pieces and I can cut them in half. I have looked on-line and figured I would use my hole saw to cut some 2.5 in. holes 12 in. apart and plant in the holes. I have so many strawberries with runners that even putting them in a tower I will have many plants left. I also have small 1 in. PVC and will make a planter 5 or 6 ft long and 12 or 14 in. wide and use a fabric liner to hold the soil. I have to make sure whatever I use will not leak the soil. I was going to use wood but after a few years the wood will start to decay. The PVC is light and hopefully will last a long time, longer than wood.