gardening advice and products

How to Properly Raise Watermelons

2010-02-22T12:04:00.000-08:00

Watermelon is one of the most popular fruits in the world. You can cultivate this tasty treat in areas that possess warm weather. You can also cultivate short-season watermelon varieties if you are living in an area that possesses a cool weather.

MATERIALS NEEDED IN CULTIVATING WATERMELONS

The materials needed are fertilizers, compost makers, garden hoses and trowels, floating row covers, plants, seeds, mulch and shovels.

STEPS IN GROWING WATERMELONS

Pick a location that receives a lot of sunlight, protected from the danger of cold winds like in fall and receives good circulation of air before planting your crops. Place a lot of fertilizer into your plot since watermelons needs a good soil to grow and develop. The crop also thrives in a soil that has a balance ph but it can tolerate a 5.5 ph.

You can acquire your seedlings in a plant nursery. Place it in your plot after the soil temperature and the air temperature is exactly sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit. It is advisable to directly place your plants in your plot especially if you maturing period are very long. This type of crop also does not want to be move around unnecessarily.

Create a hole that is 2 ft. in diameter and 1 ft. deep for each seedling and add a trowel of well-process manure or bone meal. Place the transplant into the plot at the exact depth that they have been thriving into their containers. Soak them with the help of compost tea. Remember to give the plants enough area to grow. The space should be three feet for smaller varieties and twelve ft. for bigger varieties.

Place a lot of mulch to help maintain the moisture content of the soil, prevent weeds and keep the crops free from any dirt as they develop. You can also use dark plastic mulch with holes cut for the crops since it is good in maintaining the temperature of the soil.

Protect the crops with covers to maintain the temperature of the air and give young watermelons one inch of H2O every week. Remove the plant covers as the flowers of the crops grow so that bees can pollinate them. Use compost tea on the crops every 3 weeks. Wait for an additional thirty-five days after the plants are fully grown.

ADDITIONAL TIPS

If you live in a cool climate, choose smaller varieties to plant. The interior of the plant also comes in different colors like orange and yellow aside from the standard pink color. The color of the fruit has no effect on the flavor of the fruits but some gardeners said that the non-traditional fruit colors are more difficult to cultivate.

You can also keep the seeds of your crops for the next planting season by cultivating only one watermelon variety since it can cross-pollinate without any problem. Remembers that watermelons are susceptible to fusarium wilt. To prevent this problem, change crops each planting season and pick varieties that are not easily susceptible to diseases.

Please click these links if you want to know more about how to grow watermelons or how to grow watermelons in general.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_Jones_Jr.

Cordless Grass Trimmer - A Helping Hand For Garden Up Keeping

2010-02-22T05:56:00.001-08:00

You really feel bothersome while walking with the heavy machines and mowing part hat help you maintaining your garden but at the same time cost a lot to you. After a hectic day of trimming you just get a sore arm, an ailing back only. So what you all need is to have certain equipments that can facilitate you while gardening. Generally for that purpose you need a grass trimmer that trims down the weeds coming up and the grass that has mounted up or overgrown.

A grass trimmer is a device that we all use often irrespective of the garden size. It is a mandatory item if you have a garden of your own because you want your yard to look stunning and well organized that can bag a lot of appreciation for you. For this purpose you need some mower devices that can give easy and instant results.

The grass trimmers are basically used for carefully cutting the grass that is somehow missed by the big mower parts. It does not contain any steel blade instead of that it has nylon string that helps in cutting the grass more efficiently. The trimmers are available in corded or corded form. There are a lot of benefits that you can draw out of using the grass trimmers a few of them are enlisted as:

* The grass trimmers allow you to have a wonderful garden that is perfectly toned up.
* The cordless one gives noise free, environment friendly maintenance.
* It provides a cost effective as well as user friendly way to up keep.
* They are energy efficient tools that run on battery that is also of superior quality with light weight.
* It creates an effective impression and is a handy device that makes your garden look gorgeous.
* They are light weight and made of durable plastic that stays longer.
* It is more powerful than the corded one and is add on for the traditional ones.

Sometimes you find a task your best past time but the hassles that come along with that makes you betray from the same. You do not enjoy this daunting task anymore. The same case happens with gardening, I am pretty sure that you love a lavish garden that is lush and boasts about your love for nature. A garden is generally what you need to maintain on regular basis. It is not easy to skip the up keeping task as the badly managed yard will portray a negative picture.

Cordless Grass Trimmer is really important garden equipment that helps you in maintaining a clean and elegant garden. To know more about Grass Trimmers click here --> Grass Trimmer

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aliza_Levine

Vertical Versatility - Gardens Growing Up

2010-02-22T05:55:00.000-08:00

What's in a name? Trellis. Tuteur. Teepee. Tower. Obelisk. Arbor. Pergola. Different names, same function: to provide support for "climbing" plants. These uprights are perfect for ornamentals as well as for fruits and vegetables. And once the plants have covered them, birds love them too, as protected nesting areas.

Some plants don't actually climb; they may scramble, creep, or trail, but with a little help, it will look like they do. The scramblers and thornbearers, like roses and bougainvillea, can grow upward through shrubs, but for direction and design, need to be secured to a structure. As for the self-supporting climbers, their attaching methods vary.

Clematis, grapes, and sweet peas use their leaf tendrils to grab, twist, and secure the stem to practically anything they touch, even themselves. You know what a tangled mess that can be! Others, such as ivy or climbing hydrangea, have either tendrils with adhesive pads or little aerial roots that attach to rough surfaces.

Lastly, there are the twiners like honeysuckle, jasmine, and scarlet runner beans whose own stems do the actual twining. Research the climbers you're interested in to understand their attaching method. Some can weigh down a trellis, split apart fencing, tear down an exterior wall, or get under your gutters and roof.

Growing vertically is a particularly good idea if you have limited space. Encourage gourds, beans or tomatoes to stretch skyward instead of sprawling over the ground; this way, you make room for additional vegetables or a path. Vegetable-covered teepees can also cast welcome shade for other plants unable to withstand withering hot afternoon sun.

From a design perspective, towers or arbors are a visual focal point in the garden, adding height, structure, and drama, or acting as dividers for your garden "rooms". A rose- and clematis-covered trellis nostalgically invites us into an unseen, secret garden space. A pergola or arbor provides cover and a place for a bench. In the absence of trees, these pieces add vertical dimension; they are the "bones" of the garden, standing at attention in the winter when deciduous vines have dropped their leaves.

The designs for any of these structures are varied, reflecting the personalities and imaginations of those who use and/or build them. For a quick fix, purchase ready-made trellises or lattice sections at home improvement stores. Or you can create one yourself. Here are some other ideas for growing vertically:

• Use a ladder or two as a support for peas, scarlet runner beans, sweet peas, morning glories, nasturtiums, or roses! Old wooden ladders can be stained or painted to complement your floral palette, plunked into the garden, stabilized with a couple of stakes or short rebars, and planted with your favorite climbers. For twiners, tie some wire or string from bottom to top to help the vines get going.
• Try sections of wrought iron fencing, stock fencing, and turkey wire as support for clematis, honeysuckle, and hardy Mandevilla.
• Turn a bedspring frame on end and fasten to a fence for climber support. Iron or other metal bed head- and foot-boards can be used as well.
• Plant a naked market umbrella in your garden, with vines twining right up the pole, out onto the ribs and arms, hanging down like lace curtains.
• Or, use an old-fashioned revolving clothesline or discarded TV antenna!
• If you're a welder or know one, weld eight foot lengths of rebar at the top and then again with shorter lengths in two or three horizontal locations on the uprights to resemble a teepee frame.
• For more a contemporary look, use PVC poles and elbows glued together, or electrical conduit or copper pipes gracefully shaped with a conduit bender and then wired, screwed, or welded into your design.
• Use rope tied to a tree or pole and then staked to the ground in six or eight locations in a circle for the maypole-look.
• And for a very rustic and natural appearance, use bamboo, willow poles or other gnarled wind-felled branches, lashed or screwed together at top and sides.
• One of the least expensive, most sturdy, and easiest trellis is 16 foot-long "hog panel", a heavy gauge stock fencing in 36" and 48" heights. You can buy these at home improvement or ranch supply centers. First, pound two or three 24" pieces of rebar 12-18" into the ground at equal intervals on either side of the path. Next, two or three strong people must bend the panel upwards and place it inside the planted rebar. With wire, lash the panel to the rebar in several places. Place three or four panels in a line for an alley effect.

You can clothe any of these structures with your favorite climbing roses and/or clematis, trumpet vine, honeysuckle, passionflower, grapes, kiwi, jasmine, climbing Hydrangea, potato vine, or climbing vegetables. If you are going to plant Wisteria, remember that it becomes huge, woody, and heavy, requiring an extremely sturdy structure such as a pergola or arbor! Be creative and enjoy growing vertically!

© 2010 Sandy P. Baker

Writer, speaker, and gardener focusing on habitat gardening, lawn reduction and alternatives, drought tolerant garden design, trash to treasures garden decor, and garden crafts. Live and garden in Sonoma County, California. Master Gardener for ten years.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sandy_P._Baker

How and where to buy Bulbs

2010-02-22T05:50:00.000-08:00

Buying bulbs is fairly easy, but it takes more than just money to do well. You need to be able to distinguish between a good healthy bulb and one that is less so. You also have a wide variety of places to buy bulbs, some which will have expert help and some without.

A healthy bulb with be firm, plump, and relatively heavy for its size, just a like healthy onion will be. Soft, mushy, or shriveled bulbs, as well as ones with moldy patches are ones to avoid. Bangs, bumps, or bruises can indicate mishandling and are obviously not great.

We buy our bulbs at a variety of places. Catalogs are great as they often have enormous selections, but you cannot examine the bulbs. Ordering from a reputable source is usually fine. Garden centers and nurseries are wonderful, as the staff is usually very helpful and knowledgeable, and often quite passionate as well. They may be more expensive however. Hardware and home improvement stores may have some help available. Their bulbs are usually prepackaged, for example in a box or a net bag, which makes them tough or impossible to examine, although prices are often cheaper. Grocery stores also carry bulbs, packaged similarly to hardware and home improvement stores. Do not expect any help at grocery stores, but they are convenient and I sometimes get bulbs there.

One quick tip that's responsible for many of my flowers and lots of cost saving. Sometimes in the late fall you can get awesome closeout deals on bulbs! For example, last November my wife bought several hundred flower bulbs for next to nothing that we immediately planted. The flowers should start coming up soon!

Harold writes on gardening and home improvement. See his latest articles at Stair Tread Rugs and also at Braided Stair Treads

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Harold_Baldwin

2010-02-22T05:47:00.001-08:00

There are three sizes of apple trees to choose from. These are the dwarf tree, the semi-dwarf, and the standard. The dwarf apple tree grows to about 5 to 8 feet tall, the semi-dwarf grows to 12 to 16 feet and the standard 20 to 30 feet. The dwarf varieties will not produce as much fruit as the semi or standard trees, however the wait for apples to develop are faster with a dwarf tree.

When considering what kind of apple trees to plant in your yard, you will also want to take into account the kind of taste you're looking for in the apples. The most common apple trees for home growing are honey crisp, granny smith, macoun, liberty, and red delicious. If you desire an apple that has a sweet taste then you'll want to go with the honey crisp. If you're looking for a tart tasting apple, the granny smith is the best choice. For a real crisp and firm apple, macouns are the best choice and for pie making you will want to go with the liberty or red delicious apples.

Apple trees are susceptible to 4 different diseases. These consist of conditions called fire blight, apple scab, apple rust, and powdery mildew disease. There are several kinds of trees that are less likely to contract these diseases. These are the enterprise, liberty, redfree, and freedom apple trees.

Now, on to how to best plant an apple tree. You'll want to pick a place in your yard that gets plenty of sunlight and preferably with early morning sun since this will help to reduce the chances of the tree getting the powdery mildew disease. Make sure the place you have chosen has good air circulation. The best time to plant apple trees if you live in the North is in early spring. If you reside in the South the best time to plant is in the fall.

Be sure to remove the weeds and grass from the spot you have picked in order to form a bare circle about 4" in diameter. Be sure to keep the trees roots moist during the time its waiting to be transplanted. Soak the roots in water 30 minutes prior to planting. When purchasing an apple tree its best to buy a bare root stock tree that is not any older than one year.

Begin digging a hole approximately twice the diameter of the root. Spread out the roots in the hole and make sure the bud union is raised about 2" above ground level. The bud union is where the scion meets the rootstock.

You don't want the bud union too low of a level. The reason for this is it could cause crown rot.

Apply water as you fill the hole back in with soil so any air pockets can be removed. At this time, add any soil amendments if needed. Water again after the transplant is complete. To help retain some of the moisture, apply mulch around the plant about 2"-3" deep.

Patton has a garden of his own that includes a dwarf apple tree. Gardening is a great way to relax while having the satisfaction of producing your own crops.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Patton_Andres

When to prune your roses - Awesome Gardening tips

2010-02-22T05:46:00.003-08:00

Pruning roses is important. It will make them healthier, prettier, keeps your plants within bounds, direct growth as you like, and of course improve flowering. It's also easy to do but when should you prune your roses?

A big pruning right before they start growing, in the late winter or early spring, is great. If you do that well, there will be little to do during the growing season except for cutting beautiful roses and occasionally removing spent roses (deadheading).

The actual date for this pruning varies depending on your climate. You will ideally do it after the coldest temperatures have passed and any winter damage is over. If you protect your roses it will be around when you remove the protection - about a month before the last frost of the season. If you wait too long and the plants are growing vigorously, they will be unhappy and delay blooming, often weakening the plants.

Fall pruning should typically be avoided. If fall pruning stimulates new growth such as new shoots or canes, they may die from the cold weather as new growth is fragile.

Pruning is not hard and knowing when to prune isn't hard either. I typically prune around when I am truly sick of winter, usually in March which is ideal where I live. Your timing of course will vary. Make sure you use good sharp pruning tools, which are less likely to damage plants, and take good care of your tools as well.

Prune well and expect beautiful roses!

Harold Baldwin writes on gardening, home improvement, and safety. See his latest articles at Stair Tread Rugs and Braided Stair Treads

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Harold_Baldwin

A home herb garden. 6- herbs to grow

2010-02-22T05:46:00.001-08:00

A home herb garden is ideal for any enthusiastic cook who values flavor in their food. Most of the herbs that we commonly use for cooking are easy to grow, and once you have experienced the pleasure of picking fresh pieces for the pot, you will never want to be without freshly grown herbs.

This does not mean that you need to have a large garden. In fact you do not need a garden at all - because a large variety of herbs can be successfully grown in containers. Even if you live in an apartment building on a high level, you can grow them on a reasonably sunny windowsill.

What you decide to grow in your kitchen garden will depend largely on what you use for cooking. But you can also add other herbs, just because they look and smell nice. Four great herbs to start out with are parsley, chives, chervil and tarragon. Chop up an equal number of each of these to make the traditional French blend, fines herbs. Sprinkle into salads or use in cooked egg, chicken and fish dishes. These subtle herbs do lose flavor when cooked, so it is best to add them when the food is almost cooked, or even just sprinkle over the top to create a delicious garnish.

Parsley is one of the most common herbal species that people grow at home, and it is easily grown from both seeds and seedlings. There are two main types, curly and flat-leafed, both of which are a particularly rich source of vitamins and minerals. You can use all parsley fresh, or you can dry the leaves and use them dry at a later stage.

Chives, which are part of the onion family, are also easy to grow, and you have a choice between ordinary onion chives and garlic chives. Chop up their stems as a garnish and use, when they flower, their pink, edible flowers in salads.

Chervil is a hardy annual herb that grows best in damp, shady spots in the garden. It looks a lot like parsley and is used in much the same way. Like parsley, you can use chervil leaves fresh or dried.

Tarragon has a much more subtle and sophisticated flavour than most other herbs, and it is an essential ingredient in French cuisine. Although there is a type of Russian tarragon, French tarragon is considered to be the true type. Apart from its use in cooking and for garnishing, tarragon is commonly used to flavour white wine vinegar.

Rosemary is another very easy-to-grow herbal species. If you know someone with an established bush, just break off a piece, pull the needle-like leaves off the lower part of the stem, and stick it in the ground. It is equally at home in a regular garden or in a container, and can also be used fresh or dry.

Bay trees are another favourite, and they too may be grown in the garden or in a pot. It is a good looking plant that you can keep trimmed if need be. To dry the leaves, hang a branch in a dry, dark, well ventilated place and then remove the dry leaves from the stem before storing in an airtight container. While most people use dry bay leaves, you can also use them fresh, preferably shredded before use.

Henry Thomas is an herb gardening enthusiast who has grown herbs for over 15 years and enjoys helping others get started in this amazing activity. For great information on home herb garden, visit http://herbgardening-ultimatesecrets.com/.

His newest book, "Herb Gardening - Ultimate Secrets", teaches beginners herb gardeners everything they need to know about.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Henry_Thomas

how to start vegetable seeds early

2010-02-22T05:45:00.000-08:00

1. Make sure to follow the planting guidelines for how early to start seeds indoors before planting them outside. Some seeds can be started indoors a couple of months early, while other seeds should be started within weeks of transplanting them outdoors.

2. Use the right soil to start your seeds in. I have found that potting soil is terrible for starting seeds in. Yes, potting soil is rich in nutrients but the soil is very light and can allow the seed to be uprooted when watered even lightly. I prefer a mix of good garden soil and compost soil. You will get a nice medium bodied soil with loads of nutrients. You can also purchase seed starting soil from garden centers which works just fine.

3. Make sure you have adequate lighting available for your plants. During the first week or two while the seeds are just starting to germinate, sunlight is not as important. However, once the seedlings emerge from the soil sunlight becomes very important. Adequate lighting can be natural light from a window or artificial lighting from fluorescent or plant lights.

4. It is usually best to make sure the plants (especially during germination) are in a greenhouse type environment. Store bought mini "bio domes" work great as well as putting them in a clear sided container with some plastic or even saran wrap over the top. You can remove the plastic lid on your container once almost all of the seedlings have emerged. Having an enclosed area will help keep the soil warm and moist.

5. Make sure to water the plants but not too much. The soil should be kept just damp and not soaking wet to the touch.

6. I like to start my seeds in peat pots which can be found in many different sizes. These pots allow you to transplant the seedlings to the garden without disturbing the root system since the whole pot gets buried in the ground. If timed correctly I find that the peat pots are almost falling apart by the time I plant them.

7. Before transplanting (minimum a week) your seedlings to your garden, be sure to harden off the seedlings to the outdoor conditions by setting them out in a sunny location during the day then bring them inside if the temperatures dip to low in the evenings. This will reduce further the transplant shock that the plant can go through when they are planted to the garden.

Steve Gunther is passionate about vegetable gardening. Though only introduced to gardening himself a couple of years ago, he has immersed himself in the gardening community. Steve is currently starting a website dedicated to vegetable gardening http://getready2garden.com/ and a blog: http://getready2garden.blogspot.com/.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steve_Gunther

how to care for knock out roses

2010-02-22T05:44:00.001-08:00

Upon hearing the word rose, a vision of beauty and perfection often comes to mind. However, to gardeners, growing roses has always been a challenge from planting day 1 to bloom. What of the pruning, the cleaning, disease-protection, deadheading, etc. just to make the rose bloom, more so to keep it blooming. One may wish that if only there is a singular tool that can handle those things then care of the rose will be less of a chore. Better yet, if only there is a rose that can tend to itself, giving you more time in appreciation instead of backbreaking maintenance.

Actually, there is such a rose. It's the knockout rose a self-cleaning, hardy repeater that needs no more than the most basic of rose care. A masterpiece, it is now almost perfected by Bill Radler who sweat brows and broke backs to breed more than 600 seedlings a year in his basement under fluorescent lamps.

He started the quest to make a hardy repeater and has used almost every cultivar available. Then in 1988, by crossing two very hardy varieties, Razzle Dazzle and Carefree Beauty, his labor paid off. He produced what is to be known as the Knockout Rose.

A sure knockout, it is a very hardy bush that can withstand weeks unplanted and without water and still be able to regain its regality in mere weeks. (This is not to suggest that you should leave it alone. I am merely demonstrating the capacity of the plant. Kids, don't do this at home.)

The knockout rose is also a repeat bloomer. It typically grows new bloom every five to six weeks starting spring. It blooms three times a year, sometimes more, depending on the health of the rose. It was also bred with the rosarian in mind. It is self-cleaning. That means it rids itself of spent flowers and leaves thereby relieving the additional chore of deadheading to encourage new flower growth.

In the year 2000, the knockout rose won the All America Rose Award which immediately lifted it to fame. Within that year alone, more than 250,000 seedlings have been sold. In that year alone, it became known to almost every rosarian.

A sure success, the knockout rose is still being developed by Radler until today. The only drawback so far of the original knockout rose is that it lacked fragrance. This is about to change. It is so far the most studied variety of today and new models are released regularly. Almost every hardiness zone now has a knockout rose suitable for planting. Whatever the case, knockout roses are known to withstand cold temperatures.

Today, several varieties of the rose had already been released. There is now the Double Knockout (red), the Pink Single Knockout, the Double Pink Knockout, and the Rainbow Knockout. A fragrant variety has already been developed - the Sunny Knockout. Who knows what more are in store for this hardy hybrid.

You may have noticed that I almost haven't discussed anything about the care of knockout roses. That is because only minimal maintenance is needed to grow it. Like any other rose, all it needs is 6 inches of water every week during summers, spring pruning to shape, winter pruning for protection, plenty of plant food (to sustain flowering), and a proper soil.

You may want to grow companion plants but the knockout rose itself is very resistant to a lot of fungal, viral and bacterial strains.

Radler really redefined the way we look at roses. From being avoided for being fussy to being harnessed at its full potential, the rose is yet to show more tricks from up its sleeves or sepals (you know what I mean).

Cedric James is a rose gardening expert. For information on caring for knockout roses, visit http://www.rosesguides.com.

Back Yard Bird Garden

2010-02-22T05:43:00.000-08:00

Backyard birds can be very enjoyable. I can't think of many thing that I would rather do with my grand children. Children often have a second sense when it comes to animals. It's funny the way they behave when they see a bird or any other wildlife. What they say is unforgettable. "Look Papa there is a red one." I still think of the little guy yelling it out. Call me mushy but I really do love it. Because of the great experiences with my grand children, I've learned to make my backyard much more bird friendly.

Making your backyard more bird friendly can be a simple task or an elaborately involved one. Some things as simple as to keep the grass longer in one place is enough to entice a ground nesting bird to nest there. Placement of bird houses, bird feeders, or even a bird bath will make the passer byes want to stop for a visit.

If you are willing to get serious then all natural areas made up of different layers of plant growth is what you need to think about. Like in the Northeast, high canopy trees such as Sugar Maple and Beech make up the high layer. They are dominant trees. Then comes the intermediate sized ones like the Hornbeam and the Serviceberry. Next comes the tall shrubs such as Spicebush and Witchhazel, then smaller shrubs such as aromatic Sumac and Mapleleaf Viburnum, and last we have the ground cover. Partridgeberry and Mosses are intertwined with vines such as Virginia Creeper and Wild Grape.

Birds use every single layer for a multitude of needs. The Wood Thrush usually sits atop the highest tree and sings from way up high. Their nests are built in the tall shrubs, they find their food digging in the leaves on the ground. They even build their nests with other layer materials, like Grapevine bark, leaves, and also mud.

When designing your garden just be sure to copy the layer effect. A good rule of thumb is to plant tall trees along the edge of your property. Followed by smaller trees, and as you get closer to your house plant some large shrubs, then small shrubs. After that when you you are close to your house put some ground cover, Bunch grasses, and Wildflowers. After these are well established, plant or encourage vines of some kind.

Different birds eat different foods at different times of the year. In the Spring birds need energy for parenting. Feeding on Blackberries, Mulberries, and Wild Cherries gives them just the energy they need. Fall feeding requires fatty fruits such as flowering Dogwood, Spicebush, and Mapleleaf Viburnum to build fat reserves for the long trip South. While winter stay birds need abundant,persistent fruits such as Conifers, Bayberries, Hawthorns, Crabapples, and Sumacs. The persistent fruits help them survive subfreezing temperatures. The same fruits are also important for early Spring migrants such as Bluebirds Robins, and Thrashers. So when you plan your garden make sure that you include a variety of plants that can help sustain the different birds that visit your garden all year long.

I've watched wildlife ever since I was very young. So after I got married to my wife she started going with me. Now I think she knows more than I do about wildlife and the outdoors. It brings me so much joy now bringing my grandchildren with me and teaching them about the outdoors. They love to sit and listen to the birds and outer things in the woods. That's why we started this computer thing so other people could enjoy life more.

http://www.birdhomesplus.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Greg_Walczyk

Composting Alternative - Food Digesters For Small Back Yards

2010-02-22T05:41:00.001-08:00

If you want to compost, but you do not have the room for a large compost bin, you might consider a smaller back yard food digester. These handy little devices are the easiest way to create compost from all of your kitchen scraps and since they are completely contained, they will not attract pests, such as rats.

The digester is usually made from plastic and can be half buried in the ground to aid in decomposition of materials. Unlike regular compost bins, you can add in meat, pet waste, dairy, bread and processed foods, because pests cannot access the digester.

This completely eliminates the need to throw any kitchen waste into the garbage, ever. Every year, about one third of our garbage accounts for kitchen waste. By using a back yard food digester, we can eliminate the need to throw these foods into the landfill.

Your digester should be installed in a well drained sunny location, away from outbuildings, shrubs or wood piles. You can surround your digester with plants to not only disguise it's presence, but to take advantage of the nutrients that leach from the digester. If you intend to use your digester for a lot of pet waste, be sure that you do not place it near edible plants or vegetables.

Although your digester has the ability to compost meats, they should not account for more than 50% of the total amount of materials that you add to your digester. If you notice that your digester has a bad smell, you can add sawdust or peat moss into it to reduce the smell.

If you already have a compost bin or area, the digester is a great addition for things that you would not normally add to your compost. You may want to have more than one digester, because they can fill up pretty quickly. It is not advisable to use the contents of your digester in your garden until at least one year has passed since you last added things to it. This will eliminate the risk of any diseases or toxins being spread on your garden. Once you are ready to utilize the contents, it will most likely have a strong odor. The best way to deal with this is to "dig it in" to the area you want to add it.

The main difference between a "digester" and a "composter" is that you do not have to harvest the contents of your digester. The contents of the digester simply seep out the bottom once they become decomposed.

Elysse writes on a variety of topics including one on Worm Composting Bin. Read her latest article on the topic at Worm Compost Bin.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elysse_Biaca

When to plant vegetables

2010-02-17T06:55:00.000-08:00

Don't know when to plant the vegetables ? Well, no nobody knows exactly. All i can say is that it all depends upon the vegetable you choose and the type of sunlight or rain it requires. Most leafy vegetables grow well in summer, since the have a lot to do with chlorophyll, and the sun's light is just what they need. If you are planting flowers, then it's best to start during the end of winter. If you are growing corn, its best to plant it during spring. You might want to have a look at the videos below.

How to start a vegetable garden:
The below video should give you a good idea about vegetable gardening.

How to Start a Vegetable Garden -- powered by eHow.com

I'll regularly update this page, so if you need more info, stick around.

Thanks

how to deal with garden pests

2010-02-16T09:39:00.001-08:00

While tending to my own garden, I have found that one of the most
frustrating things that can happen to a gardener is to walk outside to
check on your plants. It’s just a routine walk to make sure that your
garden is thriving, but you end up finding holes in all of your plants
that looked fine only hours before. The explanations for some of these
plant-destroying holes are garden pests. Some of the main garden pests are
slugs, worms, caterpillars, birds, snails, and the occasional gopher.
Although you can never wipe out these pests entirely, after all your hard
work in the garden you have to do something.

Insects are one of the worst things to have in your garden; they can live
under the soil, in old weeds or piles of leaves, or in a number of other
places. In order to help keep insects away, always try and eliminate
places in your garden and near your garden that these insects and other
plant diseases could be living. Remove old leaves, weeds, or any other
decaying matter that insects and diseases could be living in from your
yard. Also, regularly turn over your garden soil and break apart any
clumps of dirt so that you can eliminate the living spaces any insects
that might be hiding underground.

Another way to rid your garden of the pests is to use dormant spray, which
is used to keep destructive insects and diseases under control. It is best
that you use dormant spray when your plants are dormant, usually around
February or early March. I have used dormant spray many times on my garden
and it has worked wonders on keeping insects out. But as I learned from
experience, dormant spray is only effective if you follow the correct
instructions. When I first decided to use some on my garden, I just dumped
it everywhere in hopes of killing everything harmful. Unfortunately I
ended up killing my entire garden along with my neighbors. Some insects
can be beneficial to your garden though, so be sure to find out which
insects help your garden.

Another pest problem I've had besides insects has been birds. Whenever I
see birds in my garden I run outside a chase them away, but as soon as I
step inside they come right back. The solution that I've come up with to
keep the birds away from my garden is to put a bird feeder in my yard.
Instead of costing me time and money by eating my garden, the birds eat at
the bird feeder. In the long run it’ll save you money. Not only can a bird
feeder help keep birds away from your garden, but they can also be a new
part of your yard decoration. Although not completely eliminating my bird
problem, my bird feeder has made the problem smaller. Getting a dog has
also helped.

If you start seeing mounds of dirt around your yard, and your plants keep
unexplainably dieing, you can assume that you have a gopher problem.
Thankfully, this is one of the few garden pasts that I haven't had.
However my friend has struggled with a tremendous gopher infestation, so I
decided to research it. Gophers are rodents that are five to fourteen
inches long. Their fur can be black, light brown, or white, and they have
small tails. One method of getting rid of these root-eating pests is to
set traps. The key to successfully capturing a gopher using a trap is to
successfully locate the gopher's tunnels and set the trap correctly.
Another way to get rid of them is to use smoke bombs, which you place into
the tunnel and the smoke spreads through out it and hopefully reaches the
gopher.

If you suspect that your gardens are being pillaged by any of the pests I
mentioned, I encourage you to try your hardest to eliminate the problem as
soon as possible. The longer you let the species stay, the more
established it will become.

Container gardening for dummies

2010-02-16T09:38:00.001-08:00

Sometimes, the urge to garden might be stomped out by other circumstances,
such as living arrangements or space constrictions. If you live in an
apartment, you can’t really operate a full garden, just because you don’t
really have a yard! I think that one of the best solutions for this
problem is to grow plants in containers. You can hang these, or just
arrange them on your patio, window sill or balcony. Just a few baskets or
pots, and your whole living area will look much classier and nicer.

A benefit of growing in small containers is the fact that you can move
them around to suit your needs. If you rearrange your furniture and you
think that it would look nicer if it was in the other area, it’s no
trouble at all to scoot it over. As long as the lighting is about the
same, your plant shouldn’t mind the transition at all. Another benefit of
the containers’ versatility is the fact that you can adapt it to simulate
any environment depending on the type of soil you fill it with and where
you place it.

If you are trying to make an aesthetically pleasing arrangement of
containers and plants, you can adjust the containers to be at different
heights by hanging them from the ceiling or placing them on supports.
Hanging them will allow you to make the most of the space you have. This
is called “vertical gardening”. If you pull it off right, you can make a
very pleasing arrangement of plants while conserving your valuable space.
If you live in an apartment, you know how important it is to conserve
space! One method of vertical gardening is the use of a wooden step
ladder. If painted correctly, you can arrange all the plants on it in a
beautiful, stylish cascade of color.

The maintenance of container plants takes slightly more time, since you
have to water more often and go around to each individual container.
However, the square footage for container plants is much less than that of
an actual garden, so the time spent on maintenance and watering is more
balanced. It is important that you don’t over-water your container plants,
as this can be just as fatal to their health as under-watering.

When choosing containers for your plants, you’ll want to buy them all at
once along with some extras in case they break or you add more plants
later. You don’t want them to be all the same shape and size, but
definitely the same style so that the compliment each other. Plastic
containers are the best and require the least amount of watering, but if
you want to stick with clay or earthen pots then you should line the
inside with plastic. This helps it retain water more, as the clay will
soak up water.

Another thing to remember when buying pots is the fact that the size of
the pot will ultimately constrict the size of the plant. Make a careful
choice of pots according to what you wish to grow in each one. If you
search for the plant you chose on the internet, you should be able to find
specifications as to how much root space it should be given. This can even
be an advantage for you if you choose a plant that can grow very large. If
you only have a limited amount of space for it, you can constrict it by
choosing a pot that isn’t large enough to support huge amounts of growth.

If the benefits of container gardening sound appealing to you, then you
should start planning out your container garden today. If you write a list
of all the plants you desire to have, you can do the necessary research to
find out what size and shape of pots you should get. After that, it’s just
a matter of arranging them in a way that makes your home look the nicest.

Get your garden a fountain and increase it's beauty

2010-02-16T09:37:00.001-08:00

A great way to spice up your garden is to add a water feature. These can
be both soothing and aesthetically appealing. I've found that there’s
nothing more relaxing than sitting on a bench next to my garden and
listening to my fountain while I read a good book or do some studying.
Putting in a water feature is fairly easy and relatively inexpensive, and
will add immensely to the pleasantness of your garden. Also, the
maintenance level is minimal.

Usually, people install fountains for the benefit of the natural ambience
it provides. For some reason, being around a gorgeous scene of water gives
you a positive energy. This is also good if you practice Tai Chi or some
form of yoga or meditation. The constant drone of the water is exactly
what most people need to concentrate on what they are doing. Even if
you're not into that kind of stuff, just being in a garden with a fountain
has a sort of meditative quality to it, even if you're not trying to do
so. I recommend it to anyone.

When you first decide to put in a fountain, you need to put great care
into picking out one that will go well with the rest of your garden. If
you have any other decorations, you want to consider if it goes well with
your motif. Does the fountain you're considering stand out in your garden
like a sore thumb, or does it look like it was meant to be there? If
you're like me, you can't naturally tell whether the fountain will be a
good addition to your garden just by looking at it. So my solution was to
bring my sister (a natural at fashion design and that kind of stuff) along
with a picture of my garden to the store. I was able to get her expert
opinion, as well as see for myself what it would look like. By doing this
I was able to pick a beautiful rock fountain that goes marvelously with
the rest of my garden.

However, I still had a slight problem with supplying my fountain with
power. You see, my garden isn't very close to my house. I thought it would
look pretty tacky to run an extension cord across my yard, so I had to
come up with another solution. I discussed my situation with a Home Depot
employee, and he quickly found me the exact solution I needed: an
extension cord meant for being buried! All it took was a few hours of
digging a small trench across my yard, and I had power to my fountain
without an unsightly cord running across my yard. After I got over this
little hitch, my fountain plan went beautifully.

So if you're looking for a way to make your garden a more classy and
beautiful place to be, I hope you consider installing a fountain. The
whole process is surprisingly inexpensive, and I think that you will be
very happy with the results. Having a fountain in your garden is not only
soothing, but it also adds a lot of character to an otherwise bland
garden. Remember, gardens are not just for giving us vegetables! A garden
is a place to go when you want to retreat from the outside world and dwell
in your own thoughts with no disturbance.

Installing a Drip Irrigation System

2010-02-16T09:36:00.001-08:00

If you’re looking for ways to keep your garden watered without wasting too
much time and money, you’ve probably gone through a lot of options in your
mind. Maybe you’ve considered a sprinkler, a hose, or a good old-fashioned
watering can. All of these methods might be convenient, but most of the
time you will end up wasting water on plants that don’t need any more. If
you live in a drought stricken area like I do, you know that every bit of
water counts. I ended up getting a drip irrigation system. I haven’t
regretted this decision at all.

When you install a drip irrigation system, you can choose one of two
varieties: above ground and below ground. The above ground version drips
small amounts of water continuously onto the ground, and allows it to soak
in. It is all regulated from a pressure controller, which ensures that the
water just comes out at a drip instead of a spray or a stream. These
pressure regulators are very inexpensive. The whole drip system can be set
up with a pressure regulator and a garden hose with holes poked in it
(although it is ideal for you to get a pipe designed for this type of use,
I’ve found that the hose method works acceptably).

The underground system is a bit more of a pain to install and maintain.
But if you’re really into the aesthetic aspect of your garden and don’t
want any visible watering system, then you might consider it worth it.
It’s essentially the same as the above ground version, only a small trench
is dug for the hose or pipe prior to any planting. This allows the water
direct access to the roots for the most watering efficiency. Plus, you can
impress your neighbors by having a beautiful garden without ever going
outside to water it! They’ll be baffled.

To choose between the two systems, you need to take several things into
account. Do you have the same plant layout year round? If it is always
changing, you probably won’t want to bury your hose. It can be a pain to
dig it up and re-align it with all your new plants every year or so. Even
if your plant layout never changes, you need to consider how much you
really mind seeing a hose in your garden. If it really bothers you to the
extent that you’re willing to work for a few hours to get rid of it, then
by all means bury it. But otherwise I would suggest staying above ground
if for nothing else than the convenience of repairing and rearranging.

One of the main advantages of the drip irrigation system is its
efficiency. Instead of spraying large amounts of water willy-nilly like a
hose does, it makes the most of your precious water by putting it exactly
where it is needed. It can also provide your garden with constant
watering, instead of just having to go thirsty whenever you’re not around
to water it.

So if you’re looking for an easy, cheap, convenient, and efficient
alternative watering method, you should go out to the gardening store
today and purchase the necessary items to install a drip irrigation
system. I think you’ll be surprised at how much easier it is to maintain a
garden after you have it.

Optimizing Your Garden for Drought or Water Conservation

2010-02-16T09:35:00.000-08:00

Living in Colorado and being a gardener has been rather stressful in the
past few years, as this state has been undergoing a rather severe drought.
The city is imposing watering restrictions which are not giving enough
water to lawns and plants. I’ve had to renovate my garden to make it more
water efficient. Now, because of the techniques I’ve employed, I’m the
only one in my neighborhood with a garden that isn’t completely brown. So
if you live in an area that is going through a drought or if you just want
to save water, I suggest you use some of these techniques as well.

First, I took out all my plants. The soil I was using didn’t retain water
very well, so I had to water about twice as much as necessary in order to
get it to actually absorb into the roots. If you have this same problem,
you can fix it by loading the soil up with lots of compost. This not only
prevents water from escaping, but encourages the plant’s roots to be
healthy and able to survive more.

Once I was done optimizing the soil for my new low water consumption plan,
I was ready to replace all my plants. I decided that the placement of all
my plants would reflect the amount of water necessary to keep them alive.
All the plants that don’t require much water I placed in on one side of my
garden, and then just progressed in the amount of required water to the
other side of the garden. As a result of my new arrangement, I don’t have
to waste water on plants that don’t need it as much.

The installation of a drip irrigation system was another move on my part
that reduced the amount of water I needed to fully water my garden. The
great thing about these systems is that they constantly drip into your
plants, so that every single drop is absorbed. With traditional watering
systems, usually the roots get too overwhelmed with the sheer amount of
water in the soil. Thus, lots just seeps right past. This is all taken
care of with the drip system.

If you still seem to need more water than you can supply to your garden,
you might consider which plants you could replace with less water
dependent plants. If you want a good shrub that doesn’t use up more than
its share of water, look for Heavenly Bamboo. It is not only tolerant of
droughts, but looks rather decorative in any garden. Herbs such as
rosemary are useful in preparing meals, and are rarely thirsty.

If you’re trying to find flowers that will still be lush and beautiful
despite the lower amounts of water, look for penstemon varieties like
Garnet, Apple Blossom, Moonbeam, and Midnight. You can attract
hummingbirds and butterflies with varieties like Cosmos and Yarrow. The
best part about all these plants is that they don’t look rugged and
withstanding, but they sure are. Your neighbors wont be saying “Look at
them, they downgraded their plants just to withstand the drought. What
chumps!” Instead they will be marveling over how you keep your flowers so
beautiful in the midst of the watering regulations.

One of my favorite drought resistant plants is the Lavender plant. I could
go on for pages about it. A large group of Lavender plants looks
unbelievably gorgeous in your garden, and hardly requires any water to
flourish. Pineapple sage is another personal favorite. It is a 2+ foot
shrub that smells strangely of pineapple. It’s another major attracter of
hummingbirds, and the leaves are also useful to add taste to drinks.

So if you are in the position I was, and you’re dealing with a drought and
perhaps watering regulations, I suggest you try some of the things I’ve
mentioned. Even if you’re just trying to conserve water or be generally
more efficient with it, I think you’ll still be able to benefit.

Important factors in garden creation

2010-02-16T09:33:00.001-08:00

So now you've picked out what type of garden you will have, what the
location will be, and what kind of fertilizer you need, now is the time to
really get started in choosing your garden environment. First you'll want
to choose what your garden barriers will be. What will separate your
garden from the rest of the world? Next you'll want to choose the
decorations and support for your plants. Often some kind of metal mesh is
necessary to keep your plant standing up. You will also want to choose how
much soil and fertilizer to buy, and how to arrange all the plants in your
garden.

Choosing a border is actually a fairly important step in getting your
garden started. It might not actually affect the well-being of the plants,
but having a garden is a fairly aesthetic ordeal for many people anyways.
So usually you will want to choose between metal and wood. You can stack
up boards around the perimeter of your garden, and give it a rather nice
cabin look. If you're looking for a more modern look, you can obtain some
metal lining at your local home improvement store for rather cheap, and
installation is medium difficulty.

Finding something nice-looking to support your plants can be a little bit
more challenging. Sometimes a short metal pole can work well, but often
for plants such as tomatoes you will need a wire mesh for it to pull
itself up on. You can find these at any gardening store, usually
pre-shaped in a sort of cone shape ideal for plants. The plant just grows
up through it, and usually it will last until the plant is grown enough to
support itself. After that you can take a pair of wire-cutters and just
snip it free.

Deciding how much soil to buy can be slightly easier. Look up information
on your plants and find out the ideal soil depth. Then dig out that much
from your garden, take the measurements, and find out the exact amount of
cubic feet of soil that you will need. Go to the store and buy it,
preferably adding on a few bags just so you can replenish the supply if it
compresses or runs out. If you live in an area where the ground is rough,
dry, and barren of nutrients, then you might even want to add a few inches
of depth to the original recommendation.

Arranging the plants is rather important to the success of your garden.
I'm not talking about some kind of feng-shui thing, but depending on your
watering, some plants might hog all the water and leave the other plants
high and dry. Some plants have longer roots than others, and are more
aggressive in the collection of water. If you place one of these plants
next to a plant with weaker, shorter roots, it will quickly hijack the
water supply for itself, and choke out the other plant.

I hope I've led you to realize that placement isn't the only important
thing about a garden. There are many other factors that might not seem
very significant, but spending a proper amount of time considering them
could change the outcome of your garden. So if you're working on building
a garden, use and reference you can (the library, the internet, and
magazines) to look in to some of the factors I've mentioned.

How to pick the right location for your garden

2010-02-16T09:32:00.001-08:00

Once you have picked what garden you want, there are many other factors
you need to decide before you actually get to work with your gardening
tools. Mainly you need to choose its location. This is usually decided by
several factors: How you will water it, how much shade it needs, etc. Some
of these questions can be very important in deciding whether your garden
lives or dies, so don't take them lightly. You need to take each one into
special consideration.

Choosing the garden's location within your yard is one of the more
important things to decide. You want to choose a location that will
provide an ideal climate for the plants in your garden. I don't know what
type of garden you're dealing with so I can't give you specific advice,
but if you do a Google search for the plant you're dealing with then
you'll find a plethora of sites informing you about the perfect conditions
for its growing. After this, it's just a matter of finding the most shaded
or most sunny spot in your yard.

Another deciding factor is how you plan on watering your garden. If you
have a sprinkler system already installed for your grass, then it could be
a good idea to put your garden in the middle of your yard. Then it will
get watered at the same time, and require no extra work from your part.
But if this doesn't provide for a good location for your garden, then you
might end up watering it by hose or dragging a sprinkler out there. In
this case, just make sure your garden is within the ideal distance for a
hose to reach. While this might not seem like a good thing to base the
entire location of your garden on, you'll be surprised at how nice it is
to plan out in advanced.

Getting the perfect amount of shade for your garden can be a difficult
endeavor. Once you have a basic idea for where you want your garden, you
might want to watch it and record how many hours it spends in sunlight and
how many it spends in shade. Compare your findings to an online web site,
and you should be able to determine whether the spot you chose is ideal or
not for planting and starting your garden in. Of course the amount will
change as the seasons change, but this should give you a good idea of what
to basically expect for the rest of the year. If necessary, later you can
put up some kind of shade to protect your garden from getting too much sun.

After you've determined the ideal place for your garden and whether it has
the right amount of sunlight, and whether you will be able to conveniently
water it, you're one step closer to actually starting your garden. Of
course there are other factors that I have overlooked here, but mostly you
should be able to decide whether your location is good or not based on
common sense. Just think: If I were a plant, would I be able to flourish
here? If you can honestly answer yes, then I think its time for you to
head out to your local gardening store and buy the necessary soil and
fertilizer to get started! Have fun!

Want to garden like a professional gardener ? You gotta choose the right tools

2010-02-16T09:31:00.001-08:00

If you’re thinking about taking your gardening seriously and getting out
there every day to increase the attractiveness of your garden, then you
will want to get the right tools to help you in this. You might be tempted
to go out to the store and just buy the nearest things you see, but you’ll
be much happier if you put lots of thought into the styles and types of
tools you’re buying. There are styles designed just for gardening, and
you’ll be better off buying those.

You can find most of the tools you will need at your local gardening or
home improvement shop. Usually the employees will be simply thrilled to
assist you in finding the ideal tools. If you go to a shop that
specializes in gardening, you can usually get some advice in addition to
service. Gardening store employees are usually an untapped wealth of
wisdom, and they are how I learned almost all that I know about gardening
today.

If you are having a hard time finding the right tool or if you want to
save some money, you might try looking online for the supplies you need.
You’ll have to pay the shipping costs and wait an extra week or two, but
often if you buy more than one tool, the total savings will be worth it.
You should always buy from a reputable seller, though, and search around
beforehand for anything negative that people had to say about their buying
experience.

As far as basic digging tools go, you might already have all you’ll need.
There are several types that you should get though, for different specific
tasks. A round point shovel is good for digging holes for plants. A spade
is necessary for all the more intricate work. A garden fork you might not
use as much, but I have one in my tool shed and I’ve been thankful for it
on multiple occasions. Having these different varieties of digging tools
can help you to minimize the work you have to do. For example, if you try
digging a big hole with a little spade then you’ll end up rather tired.
The same goes if you are attempting to do more detailed work with a big
clumsy shovel.

A rake is an absolute necessity. You most likely already have one, but I’m
guessing it’s a lawn rake and not a garden rake. There is definitely a
difference, and if you try to use a lawn rake in a garden then you will
not be happy with the results. Same if you buy a grading or a contractor’s
rake. You’ll want to look for a bowhead rake. I’ve found these are the
best for gardening purposes. They will provide you the maximum control and
accuracy, so you don’t accidentally tear up your precious plants.

As far as hoes go, I don’t believe any gardener should have less than 3.
There are so many useful varieties on the market that I have a hard time
recommending just one, and that’s why I’ll tell you all the ones I usually
use. The one I use the most is the onion hoe, which is very lightweight
and ideal for small cultivations and weeding. The Warren hoe is a larger
model, with a pointed end. If you need to make a hole or dig out a pesky
weed, this is the one for you. There are several other varieties, but I
recommend starting with the ones I mentioned. As you progress in your
gardening savvy, you will find the need for more types.

Most people believe that gardening just consists of a simple spade. But
there are many, many tools with many more variations that you will use in
your gardening career. Usually you can start with just a few different
tools, but you’ll always find that you can use more varieties for special
situations. It’s just a matter of recognizing when one tool could be more
efficient than another.

Tips to save your garden in winter

2010-02-16T09:30:00.001-08:00

Some people believe that when the weather starts getting colder and the
leaves start to fall, it is time to put away the gardening tools and wait
until next spring to work on their garden again. Wrong. Winter is an
important time to maintain your garden's health and assure yourself a good
crop for next year. You may think that might take to long to prepare your
garden, but the truth is that it takes less than one day to prepare your
garden for the upcoming winter.

When the nighttime temperatures drop to less than forty-five degrees
Fahrenheit for more than four days in a row, or frost is forecasted for
your area (usually around late October or November) you know its time to
begin preparing your garden. You should begin by evaluating your garden
design, check which plants grew well in the past season, and which plants
did not do well. Fall is a good time to decide which plants will remain in
you garden next year, and which ones should go.

It is also a good time to decide which new plants you want to grow. To
make your garden more colorful and healthy, be sure only to plant the more
hardy plants during the fall so that they can withstand the winter. Some
plants that will do fine being planted in fall are: rudbeckia, Aster
Novi-belgii, Anemone Japonica, panicle hyandea, endive, escarole, and
Brussels sprouts. You can find all of these and more in gardening
magazines or your local nursery.

After you have finished this you should begin cleaning up your garden.
Begin by pulling out weeds that may have cropped up, and raking fallen
leaves. Weeds and rotten leaves can carry insects and diseases that might
be harmful to your garden. You should also rid your garden of spent annual
plants, and harvest your vegetables and other plants that cannot withstand
the winter weather. After fall has come and gone, the leaves will be off
your trees and you can see the rotten branches. Trimming off the unwanted
branches from your trees isn't necessary to your gardens health, but may
help later on by not dropping branches on your plants and not blocking too
much of the sun.

Prepare a healthy soil for gardening

2010-02-16T09:29:00.003-08:00

If you’re getting ready to go on a new garden venture, you need to prepare
your soil to ideally house your plants. The best thing you can do in the
soil preparation process is to reach the perfect mixture of sand, silt,
and clay. Preferably there would be 40 percent sand, 40 percent silt, and
20 percent clay. There are several tests used by experienced gardeners to
tell whether the soil has a good composition. First you can compress it in
your hand. If it doesn’t hold its shape and crumbles without any outside
force, your sand ratio is probably a little high. If you poke the
compressed ball with your finger and it doesn’t fall apart easily, your
soil contains too much clay.

If you’re still not sure about the content of your soil, you can separate
each ingredient by using this simple method. Put a cup or two of dirt into
a jar of water. Shake the water up until the soil is suspended, then let
it set until you see it separate into 3 separate layers. The top layer is
clay, the next is silt, and on the bottom is sand. You should be able to
judge the presence of each component within your dirt, and act accordingly.

After you’ve analyzed the content of your soil, if you decide that it is
low on a certain ingredient then you should definitely do something to fix
it. If dealing with too much silt or sand, it’s best to add some peat moss
or compost. If you’ve got too much clay, add a mixture of peat moss and
sand. The peat moss, when moistens, helps for the new ingredient to
infiltrate the mixture better. If you can’t seem to manage to attain a
proper mixture, just head down to your local gardening store. You should
be able to find some kind of product to aid you.

The water content of the soil is another important thing to consider when
preparing for your garden. If your garden is at the bottom of an incline,
it is most likely going to absorb too much water and drown out the plants.
If this is the case, you should probably elevate your garden a few inches
(4 or 5) over the rest of the ground. This will allow for more drainage
and less saturation.

Adding nutrients to your soil is also a vital part of the process, as most
urban soils have little to no nutrients already in them naturally. One to
two weeks prior to planting, you should add a good amount of fertilizer to
your garden. Mix it in really well and let it sit for a while. Once you
have done this, your soil will be completely ready for whatever seeds you
may plant in it.

Once your seeds are planted, you still want to pay attention to the soil.
The first few weeks, the seeds are desperately using up all the nutrients
around them to sprout into a real plant. If they run out of food, how are
they supposed to grow? About a week after planting, you should add the
same amount of fertilizer that you added before. After this you should
continue to use fertilizer, but not as often. If you add a tiny bit every
couple of weeks, that should be plenty to keep your garden thriving.

Basically, the entire process of soil care can be compressed into just
several steps… ensure the makeup of the soil is satisfactory, make sure
you have proper drainage in your garden, add fertilizer before and after
planting, then add fertilizer regularly after that. Follow these simple
steps, and you’ll have a plethora of healthy plants in no time. And if you
need any more details on an individual step, just go to your local nursery
and enquire there. Most of the employees will be more than happy to give
you advice.

Obsticles of gardening

2010-02-16T09:29:00.001-08:00

One of the most hazardous things that can happen to your plants is
weather. Many a garden has been demolished overnight because of this
phenomenon. And seemingly, there is nothing we can do to prevent it. Of
course, if weather didn’t exist at all then we wouldn’t have those nice
sunny days that are beneficial to the growth of our plants. But then
again, we wouldn’t have the tragic hailstorms that tear down everything
we’ve worked for so many hours to grow.

When rain starts to fall, usually the first reaction in a gardener is pure
joy. After all, this means you don’t have to worry about going out and
watering it manually. The natural rain fall can’t be anything but good for
all your thirsty plants, can it? Well once that same gardener starts to
see the gorgeous rain drops turn into small globules of ice, usually a
complete emotional breakdown is in order. I know this from experience,
because when I was a blooming gardener I had my garden completely
demolished by about 10 minutes of severe hail.

When I first learned my lesson on the damage hail can do, I quickly
devised a method of coping. I began to keep large clay pots within 10 feet
of my garden, so that at any sign of hail I could run outside and have the
plants sheltered in a matter of seconds. This saved me from being forced
to watch my plants be ripped to pieces on multiple occasions. I’ve never
dealt with hail more than an inch in diameter, but I’m guessing that if
there had been any baseball sized chunks then those pots would have been
quickly demolished.

However, as the number of fragile plants in my garden grew, it became
slightly impractical to have a pot for each plant, and run outside to
place each one before significant damage had already occurred. After much
thought, I ended up building a horizontal, retractable screen mechanism
made out of a strong but flexible wire mesh. At any sign of rain I could
pull the screen out over my entire garden and have instant protection. Not
only did it let the rain through, but the collected hail provided a steady
drip of water for as much as a day afterwards. This project cost me
several hundred dollars, and more blood, sweat, and tears than can be
measured with earth dollars. Therefore I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone.

If it’s too late for you, and you’ve recently lost your precious plants to
those wicked balls of ice, then you’re probably looking for some way to
help the plants recover. Unfortunately there aren’t many choices for you.
The best thing you can do is give them the tender care they deserve, and
attempt to nurse them back to health over a long period of time. The
several weeks after being severely damaged by hail are vital to whether
the plant survives or not. If you expect more rain or wind, you should
keep the plant covered. In this brittle stage, even raindrops or a strong
breeze could cause more damage.

So if you live in an area that experiences frequent hail, you should
definitely have some emergency plan for protecting your plants. Sitting by
and watching them be ripped to shreds should never be an option!

The Psychology Behind Gardening

2010-02-16T09:28:00.001-08:00

I don’t know what it is about a garden that has always drawn humans to
them. But they’ve always been very popular, and an integral part of
peoples’ lifestyles. Most religions feature gardens as the settings for
some of the biggest events According to Christianity, humanity was started
in a garden and the son of God was resurrected in a garden. The Buddhist
build gardens to allow nature to permeate their surroundings. Almost every
major palace and government building has a garden. But what’s so great
about them? They’re just a bunch of plants, after all.

Of course, the reasoning is fairly obvious behind why people grow food in
gardens. It’s to eat! If you live off the fat of the land and actually
survive on stuff from your garden, it’s easy to understand the reasoning.
But I’m thinking about those people who plant flower gardens just for the
sake of looking nice. There’s no immediate benefit that I can see; you
just have a bunch of flowers in your yard! However, after thinking
extensively about the motivation behind planting decorative gardens, I’ve
conceived several possible theories.

I think one of the reasons people love gardens so much is that while we
have a natural desire to progress and industrialize, deep within all of us
is a primal love for nature. While this desire might not be as strong as
the desire for modernism, it is still strong enough to compel us to create
gardens, small outlets of nature, in the midst of all our hustle and
bustle. Since being in nature is like regressing to an earlier stage of
humanity, we too can regress to a time of comfort and utter happiness.
This is why gardens are so relaxing and calming to be in. This is why
gardens are a good place to meditate and do tai chi exercises. A garden is
a way to quickly escape from the busy world.

I’ve thought at times that perhaps we as humans feel a sort of guilt
driving us to restore nature and care for it. This guilt could stem from
the knowledge that we, not personally but as a race, have destroyed so
much of nature to get where we are today. It’s the least we can do to
build a small garden in remembrance of all the trees we kill every day.
It’s my theory that this is the underlying reason for most people to take
up gardening as a hobby.

Gardening is definitely a healthy habit though, don’t get me wrong. Any
hobby that provides physical exercise, helps the environment, and improves
your diet can’t be a negative thing. So no matter what the underlying
psychological cause for gardening is, I think that everyone should
continue to do so. In the USA especially, which is dealing with obesity
and pollution as its two major problems, I think gardening can only serve
to improve the state of the world.

Of course I’m no psychologist; I’m just a curious gardener. I often stay
up for hours wondering what makes me garden. What is it that makes me go
outside for a few hours every day with my gardening tools, and facilitate
the small-time growth of plants that would grow naturally on their own? I
may never know, but in this case ignorance truly is bliss.

Survive through draughts by using rain barrels

2010-02-16T09:27:00.000-08:00

If you’re a gardener that has an unlimited supply of water, consider
yourself lucky. There are many of us who live in drought zones where the
garden and lawn watering rules are very constrictive to the healthy growth
of gardens and plants. Many people just give up when they find out how few
gallons of water they are permitted to use, but some of us have just found
ways to cope with less water. There are many ways to optimize ones garden
to conserve water while still keeping it lush.

Some of the ways include drip irrigation (the use of a pipe or hose with
small holes to gradually seep into the roots of the plant), the placement
of plants in groups of equal watering needs (to prevent wasting water on
plants that don’t need it), and using compost or mulch to insulate the
water and prevent drainage.

But one of the best ways to keep your garden alive during a drought is to
take preventative measures. Occasionally a drought will be predicted far
in advanced, or those already experiencing a drought will be given a few
weeks of heavy rain. When this occurs, you should take the opportunity to
set up several rain barrels. Many people think this would be a time
consuming, silly thing to do. But it can save you many gallons of water,
and hardly requires any work.

Finding the barrels will probably be the hardest part. You can use your
own garbage cans, or head to your home improvement store to get a few 55
gallon plastic drums. These can be expensive and difficult to transport,
so keep that in mind before you go to the store. You will probably want to
cover the top of the barrel with a screen of some sort to filter out any
unwanted leaves or debris that might fall off the roof of your house.

Once you have your barrels ready, you’re faced with the decision of where
to place them. Usually during rainfall, there is one corner or segment of
the house that rain tends to pour off of. If you are taking the simple
approach to barrel placement, just place the barrel under all the places
where you see large amounts of drips. However, while this might be the
easiest way to place them, you won’t see very high volumes of rain in the
barrels.

If you want to take a more complicated approach to placing the barrels,
you should consider tweaking your gutter system a bit. If you remove each
individual segment and place it at a very slight slant so that all the
water is diverted to the nearest corner of the house, you can place a rain
barrel at each corner. So essentially your entire house acts as a catcher
for the rain, instead of just a few feet worth of shingles. This is how to
maximize the amount of water your rain barrel will catch.

After a heavy rainfall, each individual barrel probably won’t see very
much rain. If it looks like it won’t be raining more any time soon, it’s a
good idea to empty each barrel into one main central barrel. Seal it and
save it out of the way, for whenever you may need it. Then the next time
it starts to rain, you’ll be able to quickly put all your catching barrels
into place without having to lug around all the water you’ve accumulated
so far.

The use of water barrels might sound like an antiquated idea. However,
when you’re in the midst of a drought and you’re able to spare that extra
couple of gallons for your garden in addition the city allotment, you’ll
be grateful for every bit of time and money you spent on collecting all
that rain. All it takes is a few trips out in the backyard every time it
starts to sprinkle, and you’ll be a very happy gardener when water isn’t
so abundant.

How to save water and time while gardening with the help of Xeriscaping

2010-02-16T09:25:00.001-08:00

While having a full fledged garden is rewarding and enjoyable, lots of
people simply don’t have the time that is required to maintain it. Whether
you have too much going on at work or too many kids to take care of, you
should never try to operate a garden if you don’t think you can handle it.

For those people who are just too busy for a normal garden, I would
suggest a somewhat recent method of gardening known as Xeriscaping. This
minimal yet stylish theory first emerged in Colorado when water levels
were at an all time low. It is a great method of having a great looking
yard or garden, without having to maintain it or water it very often at
all.

Here in Colorado, many places are offering free Xeriscaping lessons in
order to encourage the conservation of water. If your area is undergoing a
drought, you should check with the water suppliers and see if they are
offering lessons. If you attend those, you will be able to get advice
specific to your region (IE types of plants to grow, how much to water
them, etc).

To some, the name Xeriscaping conjures the image of a yard that consists
of a giant rock bed. However, this is known as “zero scaping”, and it is a
considerably different concept. It focuses on reducing your yard to
nothing that requires any maintenance whatsoever. Unfortunately this is
usually just rocks. But this shouldn’t be your goal. While keeping
maintenance at a minimum, it is still possibly to retain a nice looking
yard that won’t attract the negative attention of everyone who passes by.

This might sound like it would be hard to implement without making your
yard into a hideous mess, but this is not so at all. The theory basically
involves choosing plants which are low maintenance to begin with, then
putting them each in environments that are ideal. It is usually applied by
figuring out what side of the house to place it on to get the best amount
of shade, and figuring out how to group it with plants with similar water
needs.

Get in shape with the help of your garden

2010-02-16T09:24:00.001-08:00

While gardening is usually thought of as a productive way to grow beautiful plants and obtain tasty fruits and vegetables, few gardeners have ever considered the immense amounts of exercise one can get in the process of gardening. While you can get almost as much muscle (if not more) exercise as you do working out, it is very productive at the same time.

You may wonder how gardening could possibly give as much exercise as working out. Just think about all the various facets of preparing a garden. There are holes to be dug, bags and pots to be carried, and weeds to be pulled. Doing all of these things help to work out almost every group of muscles in your body.

My brother is a fanatic about working out. Almost every time I call his house, I end up interrupting some muscle toning activity. I’ve never really enjoyed working out, though, as it seems that the constant lifting of heavy things just puts a strain on my body with no immediate positive results. But while he is into working out, I am almost equally enthusiastic about gardening. I work outside improving my garden almost every day. I think I definitely surprised my brother when he realized that I am almost as muscular as he is; but I have never lifted a single dumbbell!

Before you go out into your garden, you should always stretch out. Even if your goal isn’t to work out and get exercise, it’s still a good idea. Often gardeners spend long periods of time hunched over or bent over. This can be bad for your back. So not only should you stretch out before hand, but you should always take frequent breaks if you’re spending long amounts of time in these positions.

Weeding and pruning are some of the best workouts a gardener can get. With the constant crouching and standing, the legs get a great workout. If your weeds are particularly resistant, your arms will become particularly toned just from the effort required to remove them from the ground. If you plan on taking the whole workout think very seriously, you should always be switching arms and positions to spread out the work between different areas of your body.

One of the most obvious ways to get exercise is in the transporting and lifting of bags and pots. Between the nursery and your house, you will have to move the bags multiple times (to the checkout, to your car, to your garden, and then spreading them out accordingly). As long as you remember to lift with your legs and not your back, transporting bags and pots can give you a fairly big workout, even though you probably don’t make those purchases very often.

Mowing your grass can also be a great exercise. If you’ve got an older mower that isn’t self propelled, just the act of pushing it through the grass will give you more of a workout than going to the gym for a few hours. During the course of mowing the grass, you use your chest, arms, back, and shoulder to keep the mower ahead of you. Your thighs and butt also get worked a lot to propel the mower. Not only do you get an all around muscle work out, but it can improve your heart’s health. It’s good for you as a cardiovascular activity, as well as a great way to lose weight due to the increased heart rate and heavy breathing.

If you plan on using gardening as a way to get in shape or lose some weight, you can hardly go wrong. Just be sure to stretch out, drink plenty of water, and apply sunscreen. As long as you take steps to prevent the few negative effects such as pulled muscles, dehydration and sunburn, I think you’ll have a great time and end up being a healthier person because of it.

decorate your garden using Vines

2010-02-16T09:22:00.001-08:00

A great way to decorate your garden is the use of vines. They are very low maintenance and look good on almost anything. If you’ve got a fence or separator that really stands out in the field of green that is your garden, then growing a vine over it can be a quick and aesthetically pleasing solution. However, there are many types of vines for different situations, whether you are trying to grow it up the side of a house, along the ground, or up a tree.

Many different ground vines are available. These types grow fast and strong, and just inch their ways along the ground. They are very easy to direct, so they can make a border around your garden, or just weave in and out of the plants. I suggest using these as a hardy ground cover if you just want some green on your dirt or mulch. Usually you can find a variety that is resistant to being stepped on. It’s like a leafy, nice alternative to grass. Even if you have kids and a dog, it should have no problems staying alive.

Another type of vine that is available is a “twining” vine. This refers to their method of climbing. Twining vines require a lattice or equally porous surface to climb up, since they are not sticky at all. They just climb by sending out small tendrils to loop around whatever is nearby. I suggest using this type of vine for climbing up trees, or any type of mesh. Usually you have to guide them a lot more during their early stages, and after that they will go wherever you want them to.

Vines not only look good on the ground or on lattices, you can blend them in to the very architecture of your house. This is usually achieved through the use of vines with small tendrils that have adhesive tips. They extend from the vine and attach themselves to almost any surface. If your garden is adjacent to your house and you want something to camouflage the big unsightly wall, it’s a great idea to start out a few vines near the base. If you have a vine like the Virginia Creeper growing, then your entire wall will be covered in a matter of months. However I have seen situations where the vine got out of control. After that, you have no choice but to watch the vine take over your entire house.

One of the vines that you would probably recognize is Ivy. You see it around a lot, generally because it is so adaptable. Out of the types I mentioned above (ground, twining, and sticky pads), Ivy can fill in for pretty much anything. It makes a great ground cover, and will grow up about any surface you put it on. Although it grows quick and strong, I wouldn’t suggest growing it up your house. This is because recently, buildings which have had ivy for many years have found that it has been deteriorating the building.

So no matter what you want to do with a vine, you should have no problem getting it to grow. You should always do your research beforehand and find out about any negative qualities the vine has (such as its ability to destroy buildings, in Ivy’s case.)

how to pick a healthy plant

2010-02-16T09:21:00.001-08:00

When it comes to getting started with your garden, you have two choices; planting seeds, or buying entire plants. Both have their own benefits. If you plant seeds and care for them every day, you will find it is a much more rewarding experience when you have a full, healthy plant. However, this method is a lot more risky. I can’t tell you how many seeds I’ve planted and never seen any trace of whatsoever.

If you choose to buy the plant from a nursery and install it in your garden, it reduces a lot of the work involved in making it healthy. However, I have found in the past that many incompetent nursery workers will absolutely ruin the future of the plant by putting certain chemicals or fertilizers in. I have adapted to this incompetence by learning to choose the healthiest plant of the bunch. Here I will discuss some of the techniques I use in my screening process for plants.

It may sound superficial, but the one thing you need to check for on your prospective plants is how nice they look. As far as plants go, you can truly judge a book by its cover. If a plant has been treated healthily and has no diseases or pests, you can almost always tell by how nice it looks. If a plant has grown up in improper soil, or has harmful bugs living in it, you can tell from the holey leaves and wilted stems.

If you’re browsing the nursery shelves looking for your dream plant, you want to exclude anything that currently has flowers. Plants are less traumatized by the transplant if they do not currently have any flowers. It’s best to find ones that just consist of buds. However if all you have to choose from are flowering plants, then you should do the unthinkable and sever all of them. It will be worth it for the future health of the plant. I’ve found that transplanting a plant while it is blooming results in having a dead plant ninety percent of the time.

Always check the roots before you plop down the money to purchase the plant. Of course if the roots are in absolutely terrible condition you will be able to tell by looking at the rest of the plant. But if the roots are just slightly out of shape, then you probably won’t be able to tell just by looking at it. Inspect the roots very closely for any signs of brownness, rottenness, or softness. The roots should always be a firm, perfectly well formed infrastructure that holds all the soil together. One can easily tell if the roots are before or past their prime, depending on the root to soil ratio. If there are a ridiculous amount of roots with little soil, or a bunch of soil with few roots, you should not buy that plant.

If you find any abnormalities with the plant, whether it be the shape of the roots or any irregular features with the leaves, you should ask the nursery employees. While usually these things can be the sign of an unhealthy plant, occasionally there will be a logical explanation for it. Always give the nursery a chance before writing them off as horrendous. After all, they are (usually) professionals who have been dealing with plants for years.

So if you decide to take the easy route and get a plant from a nursery, you just have to remember that the health of the plants has been left up to someone you don’t know. Usually they do a good job, but you should always check for yourself. Also take every precaution you can to avoid transplant shock in the plant (when it has trouble adjusting to its new location, and therefore has health problems in the future). Usually the process goes smoothly, but you can never be too sure.

How to grow your own herbs

2010-02-16T09:20:00.001-08:00

If you’re not the type of person that wants to spend their time managing
an elaborate fruit or vegetable garden, you might consider planting and
maintaining an herb garden. While the product might not seem as
significant, you’ll still enjoy the constant availability of fresh,
delicious herbs to flavor your meals with.

First you’ll want to choose the herbs that you’ll plant. You might have a
hard time doing this because of the huge scope of herbs available. But the
best way to choose is to do what I did; just look at what you have in your
kitchen. By planting your own collection of these herbs, you can save
money on buying them from the grocery store while having the added benefit
of freshness. Some of the herbs you might start with include rosemary,
sage, basil, dill, mint, chives, and parsley among others.

When choosing an area to put your herb garden, you should remember that
the soil should have extremely good drainage. If the dirt gets watered and
stays completely saturated, you have no chance of ever growing a healthy
plant. One of the best ways to fix the drainage problem is to dig a foot
deep in the soil, and put a layer of crushed rocks down before replacing
all the soil. This will allow all that water to escape, thus saving your
plants.

When you are ready to begin planting herbs, you might be tempted to buy
the more expensive plants from the store. However, with herbs it is much
easier to grow them from seed than it is with other plants. Therefore you
can save a bundle of money by sticking with seed packets. Some herbs grow
at a dangerously fast rate. For example, if you plant a mint plant in an
open space then it will take over your entire garden in a matter of days.
The best way to prevent this problem is to plant the more aggressive
plants in pots (with holes in the bottom to allow drainage, of course).

When it comes time to harvest the herbs you have labored so hard over, it
can be fatal to your plant to take off too much. If your plant isn’t well
established, it isn’t healthy to take any leaves at all, even if it looks
like its not using them. You should wait until your plant has been well
established for at least several months before taking off any leaves. This
wait will definitely be worth it, because by growing unabated your plant
will produce healthily for years to come.

Once you’ve harvested your delicious home grown herbs, you’ll want to use
them in cooking. Why else would you have grown them? Well first the
process begins with drying them out. This is easily achieved by placing
them on a cookie sheet and baking them 170 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 to 4
hours. After they’re sufficiently dried to be used in cooking, you can
consult the nearest cookbook for instructions on using them to effectively
flavor a dish.

If you want to store your herbs for later usage, you should keep them in a
plastic or glass container. Paper or cardboard will not work, because it
will absorb the taste of the herbs. During the first few days of storage,
you should regularly check the container and see if any moisture has
accumulated. If it has, you must remove all the herbs and re-dry them. If
moisture is left from the first drying process, it will encourage mildew
while you store your herbs. Nobody likes mildew.

So if you enjoy herbs or gardening, or both, then you should probably
consider setting up an herb garden. It might require a little bit of work
at first to set it up for optimal drainage, and pick what herbs you want
to grow. But after the initial hassle, it’s just a matter of harvesting
and drying all your favorite herbs.

How to create a raised bed ?

2010-02-16T09:19:00.000-08:00

If your current planting goals involve plants that require good water drainage, I am sure you know how frustrating it is to have a yard that just won’t cooperate. Some plants can handle the excess water that comes about from being in an area that doesn’t drain properly. In fact, it might just cause them to bloom more lushly. However, other plants don’t cope as well, and it will cause them to die a gruesome, bloated death. You should always find out about the drainage required for every plant you buy, and make sure that it won’t conflict with any of the areas you are considering planting it in.

In order to test how much water your designated patch of soil will retain, dig a hole approximately ten inches deep. Fill it with water, and come back in a day when all the water had disappeared. Fill it back up again. If the 2nd hole full of water isn’t gone in 10 hours, your soil has a low saturation point. This means that when water soaks into it, it will stick around for a long time before dissipating. This is unacceptable for almost any plant, and you are going to have to do something to remedy it if you want your plants to survive.

The usual method for improving drainage in your garden is to create a raised bed. This involves creating a border for a small bed, and adding enough soil and compost to it to raise it above the rest of the yard by at least 5 inches. You’ll be amazed at how much your water drainage will be improved by this small modification. If you’re planning to build a raised bed, your prospective area is either on grass or on dirt. For each of these situations, you should build it slightly differently.

If you want to start a raised garden in a non grassy area, you won’t have much trouble. Just find some sort of border to retain the dirt you will be adding. I’ve found that there is nothing that works quite as well as a few two by fours. After you’ve created the wall, you must put in the proper amount soil and steer manure. Depending on how long you plan to wait before planting, you will want to adjust the ratio to allow for any deteriorating that may occur.

If you’re trying to install a raised bed where sod already exists, you will have a slightly more difficult time. You will need to cut the sod around the perimeter of the garden, and flip it over. This may sound simple, but you will need something with a very sharp edge to slice the edges of the sod and get under it. Once you have turned it all upside down, it is best to add a layer of straw to discourage the grass from growing back up. After the layer of straw, simply add all the soil and steer manure that a normal garden would need.

Planting your plants in your new area shouldn’t pose much difficulty. It is essentially the same process as your usual planting session. Just be sure that the roots don’t extent too far into the original ground level. The whole point of creating the raised bed is to keep the roots out of the soil which saturates easily. Having long roots that extend that far completely destroys the point.

Once you have plants in your new bed, you’ll notice an almost immediate improvement. The added soil facilitates better root development. At the same time, evaporation is prevented and decomposition is discouraged. All of these things added together makes for an ideal environment for almost any plant to grow in. So don’t be intimidated by the thought of adjusting the very topography of your yard. It is a simple process as I’m sure you’ve realized, and the long term results are worth every bit of work.

Creating Microclimates to Facilitate Growth

2010-02-16T09:18:00.001-08:00

Many gardeners live in areas where almost anything can grow effortlessly.
Just plant the seeds and water it for a few weeks, and you’ve got a
beautifully lush plant. But if you live in somewhere like Colorado, you’ll
understand what its like to have a slim selection of plants that naturally
grow. It can be quite a challenge to facilitate the growth of a large
variety of plants, especially when the very world you live in seems to be
rooting against you.

Some people solve this problem by loading up their plants with every type
of chemical and fertilizer known to man. This usually works, but to me it
seems kind of unnatural to rely on man made materials to keep your plants
alive. Also, if I’m growing fruits or vegetables, I don’t feel very
comfortable eating something that is entirely composed of chemicals.

A gardening theory that I have relied on in the past to grow many types of
plants is that of creating a “microclimate” for each type of plant. This
is when you regulate the sunlight, shade, moisture, and wind factors for
each separate plant. It sounds like a challenge, and it is. But you can
regulate these factors in such a way that the plant feels just like it is
in the ideal growing conditions. This can be achieved by the use of wind
barriers, shading umbrellas, extra water, or different types or amounts of
compost.

If you’re ready to make an attempt at creating microclimates, you’ll need
to make a detailed plan in advanced. You should start by finding a large
shade providing bush or tree that will grow fast and naturally in your
area. Just look at some undeveloped plots of land and see what is there.
Most likely it grew on its own without any planting or care. This is what
you want to happen. Usually the growing of one plant can bring about the
growing of another more desirable plant.

If you have a fence in your backyard (you would be surprised at how many
people don’t) then you already have a good amount of shade to work with.
You can start the microclimate process using just the shade of the fence,
combined with (perhaps) a screen or large bush to shade your new plant for
the other half of the day that the fence doesn’t take care of. The fence
is also useful for shading against wind for very fragile plants.

Once you have established the shade, be it natural or unnatural, you have
created a slightly less harsh miniature environment. You must remember
this is a gradual process, and find a new plant to put in the shade of the
other one. Now your choices are a little more open. You don’t have to go
with a rugged plant like the one you did before; you can now choose a
plant that survives in cooler weather.

If the plant you are trying to grow next requires more moisture in the air
than your area provides, installing a fountain or small pond can fix this
problem due to the evaporation. You may think you don’t want to waste
water on a pond or fountain, but it’s all going toward the betterment of
your garden. It’s just like the watering process, only indirect. As an
added benefit, usually fountains are quite aesthetically attractive and a
great addition to your garden.

I can’t explain every stage of the process, because everyone’s goals and
setups are slightly different. But to reach your goal, you should do
research on every plant that you would like to have in your garden. Find
out everything you can about the zone that it flourishes in, and ask
yourself how you can emulate that zone within your own backyard. Almost
always you can take control of the environment and recreate whatever you
wish. Usually all it takes is some planning and strategy.

How to choose the best garden type ?

2010-02-16T09:17:00.001-08:00

If you're thinking about starting a garden, the first thing you need to
consider is what type of garden you will have. There are many different
choices and often it can be hard to pick just one, but hopefully you can
narrow it down. But by narrowing it down, you'll make the gardening
experience easier on yourself and the plants. If all your plants are
similar, then it shouldn't be very hard to care for them all. So here are
some of the main garden ideas for you to choose from.

If you're just looking for something to look nice in your yard, you'll
want a flower garden. These are usually filled with perennial flower.
Perennial flowers are flowers which stay healthy year-round. They're
basically weeds because of their hardiness, only nice looking. Different
areas and climates have different flowers which are considered perennials.
If you do a quick internet search for your area, you can probably find a
list of flowers that will bring your flower garden to life. These usually
only require work in the planting stage - after that, the flower take care
of themselves. The only downside to this is that you don't have any
product to show for it.

Another choice for your garden is to have a vegetable garden. These
usually require a little more work and research than a flower garden, but
can be much more rewarding. No matter what time of the year it is, you can
usually find one vegetable that is still prospering. That way you can have
your garden be giving you produce almost every day of the year! When
starting a vegetable garden, you should build it with the thought in mind
that you will be adding more types of veggies in later. This will help
your expandability. Once all your current crops are out of season, you
won't be stuck with almost nowhere to put the new crops. A vegetable
garden is ideal for someone who wants some produce, but doesn't want to
devote every waking hour to perfecting their garden (see below.)

One of the more difficult types of gardens to manage is a fruit garden.
It's definitely the most high-maintenance. When growing fruits, many more
pests will be attracted due to the sweetness. You not only have to deal
with having just the right dirt and fertilizer, you have to deal with
choosing a pesticide that won't kill whoever eats the fruits. Your fruit
garden will probably not produce year-round. The soil needs to be just
right for the plants to grow, and putting in another crop during its
off-season could be disastrous to its growth process. If you're willing to
put lots of work into maintaining a garden, then a fruit garden could be a
good choice for you.

So now that I've outlined some of the main garden types that people
choose, I hope you can make a good decision. Basically, the garden type
comes down to what kind of product you want, and how much work you want to
put into it. If you're looking for no product with no work, go with a
flower garden. If you want lots of delicious product, but you are willing
to spend hours in your garden each day, then go for a fruit garden. Just
make sure you don't get into something you can't handle!

What are the different ways of gardening

2010-02-14T05:45:00.000-08:00

Every gardeners are unique in their own ways and for this reason they would most likely like to have a garden that suits their own styles. Some may like to grow a hanging garden where everything weighs down in the form of creepers, while someone might like to grow an organic garden that is specially created to spread a pleasant fragrance. Below mentioned are some of the most popular gardening kinds.

Indoor gardening

This is a common way of gardening in which a person grows blossom or fruit yeilding plants just as a passion. They hold little to no plan about gardening and end up losing interest in the art after their herbs die. Even if the vegetation survive, they don't develop enough of vegetables, that can be traded or eaten for a long time. A study shows that people who grow plants at home don't really garden these properly on a daily basis, which makes one die very quickly. Once the plants are dead, you will only be able to see empty pots clinging outside their properties.

Small scale commercial gardening :

The consumers who engage in this sort of gardening typically know what they are doing and garden with a lot of understanding with them. They hire individuals who take care of these crops and water one while also trimming and defending them from insects. Most of their plants are available in local stores. The flowers that they grow are marketed in the local markets for a good price.

Large scale commercial gardening:

These individuals specialize in every kind of gardening. No matter which vegetable you need, or even if you need a christmas tree, you may be able to get one from consumers who participate in large scale commercial gardening. They invest in huge masses of land and build premises around these, for the sole purpose of gardening. Several kinds of botonists and blossom experts can be found here. Some of the rare species of crops are made available for about $750 - $1000 per plant, because of the splendor and the aroma of the flowers.

Community gardening:

As the title hints, this sort of gardening is when individuals from communities come together and vegetable trees to make their community more gorgeous and healthy. People who practise area gardening, do not anticipate monetary rewards and do it for the wellfare of their communities.

-------------------------------------

For more information on the different types of gardens, check out

http://www.hortcourses.com/gardens/gardenstyle.aspx

Should i use worms for gardening ?

2010-02-14T05:43:00.001-08:00

No matter what plant you are interested in growing, the most crucial part about farming is its earth.
An ideal land consists of several nutrients and minerals. The soils that you might buy from your local store might not be as nice as they say it is. Moreover, it might just be high-priced. But you can also try getting natural earth. The just difficulty with natural land is that is too tricky. Thus it's crucial to add earthworms to your earth, to soften it.

Earthworms not only soften the mud, they also aid in decomposting decaying materials like dead insects, decaying fruits or plants etc. They make the earth to be well drained and allow excessive water to pass away, which probably protects the roots of a grow from getting decayed.

Folks usually employ a earthworm types called Red wigllers, which usually is very common amongst gardeners. You could have perform an web search to find pics of what a red wiggler earthworm is. They are not very expensive and can be ordered at a web store. You could be surprised to know that these earthworms are actually useful since they may be used as composter to create fertilizers and manures, that may be very beneficial for your plants. By using decaying vegetables that are refined by worms and adding a little animal wastes to it could make a really beneficial natural fertilizer.

Yet another useful fact about these earthworms is that they grow really rapidly and the method of producing manure is cut down by fifty percent, thus allowing you to create manure really speedily, which you could either sell or employ on your own farms, gardens etc.

Is planning a garden tough? Here are 7 tips for a successful garden!!!

2010-02-13T07:58:00.000-08:00

Numerous individuals nowadays like to have a yard in front of their properties, in order to adorn the looks of their surrounding. But creating a yard that's beautiful and nutritious takes a lot of time and effort. It could be scary for experienced citizens as well. So here are some tips to assist you generate that makes you feel like you are in heaven.

Sustaining the wellbeing of your vegetation and yourself :

It really is very obvious that while gardening you obtain to take caution of your plants and yourself. since you will be playing with the dirt in your garden. Hence if hygiene is not maintained, you might fall ill, not to mention pass of the disease to the crops as well. If you have taken up gardening as your profession, then it's important that you stay good throughout the day by drinking lots of water and getting a creme that safeguards your body from dehydration and sun burns. Get proper gear for your head, eye and other parts of your physique as well( gloves, glasses, hats etc) so that you don't get worn out in the heat of the sun. Remember that if you have fall sick, your yard will suffer as well.

Chalk aout the land area, and have it for your yard alone:

A lot of citizens use their lands for more than one reason. They store their goods, park their vehicles on that land, even throw remains, wastes and dirty water, which makes the soil go bad, in turn causing the roots of the crops to rot. Hence allot a place where the flowers can be left alone, and no human or animal can disturb them. Also make sure that your flower flowers get both sunlight and shade.

Get proper tools for your garden:

Some of the tools that you might need are a shovel, spade, garden cutter, pruner, wheel barrow etc. These will aid you get your job done easily.

Take pauses at regular times and note down the smallest pieces of information :

If you are going to make money from the veggies, fruits, and flowers that grow in your garden, then it is important that you stay healthy like i said before and make notes of the littlest things. For ex: check the ph levels of your soil, use moderate portions of pestisides etc.

Right now, i can easily say that gardening is a very well paying job since there are lots of marriages happening every year and that citizenry is ever growing which leads to the industry for several agricultural products in our day-to-day lives. So take caution of your health and your garden for it to carry on in the long term.

Japanese Juniper Bonsai Tree Gardening

2010-02-02T00:29:00.000-08:00

Juniper trees are coniferous tress that usually grow very tall. An estimation says that there are about 50 - 67 species of Juniper plants, and are widely distributed from the northern hemisphere of the Arctic to the south of Tropical Africa. Some are also found in the mountains of Central America. But in today's expensive world, where space is a major criteria for several gardeners, we thus have our very own Juniper bonsai trees. The word bonsai actually means growing growing trees in flower/gardening pots by pruning them. So below mentioned are some of the tips and techniques in creating artificial bonsai in your garden.

Specially designed Bonsai pots are now available to grow Bonsai trees, making the gardening experience very enjoyable. But you really don't have to buy it if you have a proper container at home. Then you can buy the bonsai seeds of this tree, so that you can start growing them.

Once you have all the above mentioned requisites, you can start growing your juniper bonsai trees, right away. These plants are just like every other plant, and are green throughout the year. Taking care of your juniper plants is much of an art indeed, since you have to prune them in a systematic order. If you know what you are doing then you might end up having a majestic piece of beauty.

It's always a good idea to buy a bonsai plant that hasn't been trained before. That's because the change in the external factors usually kills them. So if you want your juniper tree to look beautiful forever, just make sure its an untrained plant and nurture it with care, just like you would do for every other plant out there.

In my experience, mild sunshine and shade are somethings that you juniper plant will love. Ensure that the mud is moist and has sufficient amount of fertilizers(liquid fertilizers) for it's steady and rapid growth. If you are impatient and want your juniper bonsai to grow quickly, you can try adding chlorophyll from the leaves of other Juniper plants. A well drained soil is a must !!!!!!!!!!

Creating bonsai plants has a lot to do with art. So make sure you get a good pair of scissors, but be gentle on your plant and prune it only 3 - 5 times a month.

Essentials tools to become an expert gardener

2010-01-23T07:38:00.001-08:00

Gardening requires the knowledge of utilizing several tools effectively. Whether its a flower cutter, a showel or a spade,
a gardener has to know it all. Another thing to keep in mind is the longevity of the tools, as bad handling could ruin them in no time. Hence today we are going to talk about the essential tools and their proper maintenance. Below mentioned are some of the most essential tools required for gardening.

Fork :
A gardening fork is something that allows a gardener to extract plants without damaging their roots. It can also be used to dig or loosen soil. While digging out soil, ensure that the soil is moist enough so that it becomes easier for you to sow the seeds. The fork should be tilted at 45 degrees to make sure that the tool does not break.

Shovel:
To dig holes, eliminate dirt and plant trees, you will need a shovel. A shovel is basically a tool that is pointed at the tip and contains a curved part where the dirt can be retained. So its crucial that you buy a good quality shovel, which is not to expensive for you either. Try avoiding shovels that have a solid metal handle as it will be very difficult to use. Instead you can buy a shovel that has a wooden body that is light in weight.

Garden hose:
Garden hoses are avaliable in various shapes and sizes, and its important to take note of depending on the size of your garden. If you are looking for a hose, then i'd suggest you go for a hose with 5 ply walls and brass fittings. A hose rack or reel is handy for hose storage

Wheel barrow:
A wheel barrow is not a very important part of your gardening kit, but it makes sense to invest a little money and save a lot of energy in the long run. The most important thing that you need to remember is to take care of the axle of the wheelbarrow, since they easily get spoilt with exposure to water, soil and fibres that could hamper its smooth functioning.

Pruners:
You can get a good pair of pruners at a hardware store. It should cost you about $10 - $15, but remember its something that you might replace frequently. So its better if you invest in a better quality pruner. WIth proper care they can last for a year or more.

Expertise is something that comes over time. So to become an expert gardener, make sure you experiment with the flowers and vegetables in your garden. Thanks for reading. Hope you liked this article as much as is loved writing it.

Welcome to my gardening blog !!!!!!!!!

2010-01-21T01:06:00.000-08:00

Hi guys, this is jason, and i am a great lover of gardens. My life totally revolves around gardens, gardening tools, flowers and fruits. Hope you like my blog :)