gardening
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Organic Gardening Techniques
Posted by admin on 18 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
Organic gardening simply means reducing chemicals in your garden. When you start planning how to reduce the use of chemicals in your garden, imagine how a primary forest grows. In a primary forest, you will find a thick layer of hummus on the ground and plenty of beneficial critters in the soil, including earthworms and fungi.
Additionally you will also see a variety of trees, shrubs, and groundcovers that have grown together in mutually beneficial tiers. A primary forest typically hasn’t seen the introduction of non-native and often invasive species that may shift an ecosystem out of balance. Yet unfortunately, most of our created urban landscapes are over-run with non-natives, often times creating a challenging environment for the gardener.
Creating the Perfect Garden
Posted by admin on 16 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
For creating the perfect garden, the first thing you need to keep in mind 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. Below are some of the main garden ideas for you to pick from.
If you’re just looking for something to look nice in your yard, you may want a flower garden. These are usually filled with perennial flowers. 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. Flower gardens are what paradise means.
Organic Gardening Basics
Posted by admin on 12 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
Gardening in organic way rather than chemicals is important for not harming our ecosystem. We are part of this eco-system and if we’ll kill the nature, it means, we are killing ourselves.
Gardening experts J.I. Rodale and Sir Albert Howard are considered the modern pioneers of organic gardening. Organic gardening looks at your garden as a living ecosystem, and uses the laws of nature to produce healthy plants that are resistant to diseases and pests. As humanity we need to be responsible for the earth. Please see this website with information on composting and organic gardening written by Sir Albert Howard back in 1946.
One of the great things about basic organic gardening techniques is that they are applicable to any kind of garden you grow, from flower gardens, to herb gardens, to your vegetable garden. So, there is no excuse for us. Organic gardening focuses on building up the soil, using native plants and plants appropriate for your garden, and looking for a natural balance in your garden. We must recognize that pathogens generally attack weak plants that are not properly adapted to their environment and that live in poor soil. Therefore, if we work our soil and encourage the presence of beneficial soil organisms, our plants will generally be stronger and more resistant to pests and diseases.
General Flower Diseases
Posted by admin on 08 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
It is definitely one of the most fascinating jobs/hobbies planting flowers. Yet these living beings are easily subject to diseases and it is important to take the necessary measures before it happens.
Let’s start.. Usually mid to late summer is the time diseases get a hold and become noticeable in gardens and landscapes. Powdery mildew, gray mold (Botrytis), and black spot on roses are some of the more common diseases to watch for on your flowers.
Powdery mildew, as its name suggests, resembles a white powdery mildew on leaf surfaces of plants. It also may attack stems and flowers if severe, according to a University of Vermont Extension leaflet. Leaves eventually turn yellow, then brown, and finally die. Although not fatal to plants, it makes plants unattractive and may weaken plants over several years. Annuals that may be infected most commonly include zinnias snapdragon, and verbena. Perennial flowers that may be infected commonly include delphinium, lungwort, and garden phlox. Yet this disease is not something not controllable, actually choosing cultivars (cultivated varieties) resistant to this disease is one of the easiest methods of control.
Gardening FAQs
Posted by admin on 30 Jun 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
Here are some general guide for your gardening pleasure and experience.
Question: What types of cool-season plants will perform in partial shade and that are inexpensive? How much sunlight do they need, or can they grow in shade? If not in shade, are there any flowering winter plants that will last all season that are cheap?
Answer: I recommend Pansies, Violas and Petunias. Also, in November, purchase some inexpensive seed packets of Giant Imperial Larkspur (lots of them). Sow them on top of roughed up soil and they’ll bloom in early Spring. Most of these plants need sun for proper blooming, but will do fine in partial shade. Now is a good time to plant the Pansies, Violas and Petunias since the weather is (or will be) cooling. When planting them, I recommend you put a touch of blood meal and/or bone meal in the planting hole with each plant. Follow the label directions. Click on the link for more information on other cool-season bedding plants for gardening zone 8.
Pruning Roses
Posted by admin on 25 Jun 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
Pruning your roses is easy, but it’s like so many things in life, you need to do it regularly, every year in fact, to see results.
Below are the steps that will hopefully help you properly prune any of the bush or standard roses such as hybrid teas, grandifloras and floribundas.
a. Wait Until Your Roses Are Dormant
The climate where the following pictures were taken is very moderate, so roses rarely go into a full dormancy or completely lose their leaves. These roses have, however, been through several hard frosts, are in a slow-growth mode, and ready to be pruned back.
b. Clean All Debris Away From Plants
Clear away grass and leaves, anything that might harbor insects and diseases.
How to Deadhead Roses
Posted by admin on 25 Jun 2008 | Tagged as: gardening
Roses are most beautiful ones of the flowers. They give the impression of paradise. Of course it is important to know how to deal with them, especially deadheading:
Most heavy pruning of roses is done during the dormant season, and we are pruning for health, shape, vigor, and superior flowers when we do so. Some pruning however does need to be done during the growing season but our goals at this time of year are different.
Pruning in the spring or summer generally is done to shape the rose, or if it is a rose that will continuously flower, deadheading, or the removing of old flowers needs to be done in order to encourage the rose to reflower.
Deadheading repeat-flowering roses has many advantages. Not only will it conserve plant energy and produce more flowers, but it will also remove hiding places and food for insects which often become pests in our garden. It may even permit minor improvements in air circulation, thus reducing the potential for fungal diseases like powdery mildew and leaf spot.