Successful Farming – August 2019

Successful Farming magazine invites you to share ideas with our readers.

Submissions should be precise. Include a sketch or photograph when

needed. If your idea is used in print, we pay $400 for the Idea of the

Month, $200 for ideas that appear with drawings, and $100 for

unillustrated ideas. All material submitted becomes the property of

Meredith Corporation. If your idea is used, you give Meredith the right

to use it in any manner. Enter idea(s), a daytime phone number, email

address, and complete mailing address at Agriculture.com/ideaentry or

mail to Successful Farming Magazine, All Around The Farm, 1716

Locust Street/LS257, Des Moines, IA 50309-3023.

a l l a r o u THE FARM

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Ideas from farmers since 1929. Compiled by Paula Barbour, Content Editor

Send us your ideas

Illustrations: Lant Elrod

drill bit carousel

I made this revolving drill bit holder to hold bits and

reamers for my drill press. The center axle is a barbell

from a weight set, and the plates are scrap steel. I welded

different size pipes to hold the bits’ shanks.

This keeps the high-carbon steel

bits separated as the manufacturer

intended; if they rub together in

storage, they’ll get dull.

Roger Johnson

Chandler, Minnesota

August 2019 | Successful Farming at Agriculture.com 75

home security on a budget
I bought personal pull alarms for under $10 apiece on
eBay. We hang these alarms from a cup hook near each
door. At night when we lock up, we loop the lanyard
attached to the device’s metal pin on the doorknob. If the
door is opened, the pin pulls out, and a high-decibel alarm
sounds. Occasionally, we check and replace batteries.
Justin Emerson | Henderson, Tennessee

out of the actions of babes

Our hanging baskets were drying out; I couldn’t seem to

get all the potting soil wet by just watering them. One day,

our 2-year-old set one in her swimming pool. Realizing the

soil soaks up water through the holes in the bottom of the

basket, I started doing this overnight once a week. No more

wilting baskets, even after 10 days on vacation.

Kevin Witkop | Albion, New York | [email protected]

help for flowers and vegetables

Instead of salvaging our old metal hay rings as scrap metal,

I’ve repurposed them as a trellis for cucumbers and flowers.

They line one end of my garden, and I’ve used others in areas

such as a flowerbed near one of our outbuildings. They not

only function well but also look neat.

Natalie Gruber

Bowman, South Carolina

[email protected]