Smokin’!It used to be the pits, but...

Smokin’!

It used to be the pits, but cooking outdoors with a portable smoker is easier than ever.

Meco, which has been producing barbecues and smokers since 1959, manufactures a stainless steel smoker that uses both charcoal and electricity. Fully portable, the smoker ($193) can be transported to the stadium for tailgating parties or to the park for picnics.

Sliding doors allow the cook to monitor water and wood-chip levels while the food is smoking.

Another key feature: two nickel-plated grids with handles, which provide a bigger and safer surface to cook on.

You can use the unit as a grill by removing the center section.

For the nearest retailer, call (800) 251-7558.

Critter Control

When you want to kill insects that devour and destroy your flowers and garden, there’s only one line of attack: Bug Off!

Good bugs “are just as effective as pesticides,” according to Steve Hazzard, president of Organic Control Inc., an L.A. company that has been selling beneficial insects to consumers for 20 years.

Using good bugs doesn’t have the negative side effects of chemicals.

OrCon sells nine bugs that help keep plants healthy.

There are nematodes, microscopic worms that destroy more than 200 kinds of soil-dwelling and wood-boring pests such as grubs, flea larvae, cutworms, weevils and fungus gnat larvae. Earthworms help get oxygen to the roots because they eat and burrow all the time. Earthworm castings, an odorless byproduct of earthworms, help retain moisture and prevent root burn.

Flea Destroyer stops fleas before they can attach to people and animals. Decollate snails attack the brown garden snail and eat their eggs. Ladybugs devour aphids, scale, thrips, mites and leaf hoppers. Green lacewings eat aphids too, along with mealybugs, whitefly larvae, mites, thrips and more.

Thrichogramma goes after many kinds of moths and leaf-eating caterpillars, including tomato hornworms, boil worms and gypsy moths. Praying mantises eat just about anything that crawls in front them, but favorites include beetles, spiders, caterpillars and grasshoppers.

OrCon bugs (about $6-$18) are sold in most Orange County nurseries.

On the Spot

This primer hits the spot.

Glidden’s Prime Interiors Spot Primer lets you cover scuff marks, spots and stains on interior walls without having to prime the entire surface.

“It masks the stains that can often ruin a painting project,” says Dave Mauer, manager of product planning for Glidden paints. “The spot primer also provides an evenly sealed surface that’s ready for top-coating with just one coat.”

The spot primer comes in a small jar with a built-in brush, so it isn’t necessary to buy an entire gallon of primer and spend time cleaning brushes and rollers for a small job.

Spot Primer ($14) is available at most paint stores, including Home Depot.

For information, call (888) 774-6371.