Plant Gardens 101

I’m sure that if you are reading this, you have used some form of mulch during your gardening career. However, you probably didn’t know that there are many other options for organic mulching that you can explore. These days, many gardeners are discovering new sources of free mulch that has been there all along; an untapped resource. These include clippings from a lawn, or woody prunings from other plants in your yard. You will be surprised by how beneficial all these things can be, and how often the opportunity arises to use them.

Many gardeners have taken to spreading out their excess grass clippings across the rest of their yard. You may think this will look tacky, with big piles of grass just sitting in your yard as if you were too lazy to rake them up. However, if you spread them out enough then you won’t even be able to tell that there is an excess amount. Leaving the extra grass on the yard acts as a sort of mulch by preventing evaporation and weed growth. With this extra water, you won’t have to water nearly as much to keep your grass green. When I started leaving my grass clippings, I had to adjust the frequency of my sprinkler system because I was worried my yard was getting too much water! Read the rest of this entry →

The cellular body containing chlorophyll and thus the place in which photosynthesis occurs.

Now that spring is here, it’s time begin selecting the best plants and flowers for your garden. But before you do, have you ever been guilty of buying plants on impulse only to discover after planting them they look like the forgotten step child, making your garden look ackward? The goal of this article is to teach you how to plan a backyard garden…right now.

Step 1 - Starting with a Solid Plan

Take the time to assess your garden environment. Determine how much sun and shade your garden gets. What type of soil do you have? Is it the well draining type or does it get waterlogged easily? Take note whether your garden is sheltered or exposed to the sun and wind. Now that you have completed your homework, it’s time to buy the best plants for your situation. Read the rest of this entry →

For most landscapers, the unique beauty and spirit of something made by hand, constructed, and shaped, emphasizes the joy of creating. And even if it means having a small garden to work with, every landscaper knows the value of enjoying their craft and mastering their skills.

Having a small garden to work on does not necessarily mean less details and minor work. What should matter most is to closely assess each detail to come up with the best result.

Working on a small garden is never a problem to most landscape designers. Whether the area is large or small, the sales continue to have a gradual annual growth increase of 8% for the last five years.
In addition, from 1997 to 2002 alone, landscaping sales achieved a growth rate of almost $40 billion. This shows that the landscape designers know how to hone their craft well, regardless of the size of the area they work on.

Generally, when people describe small gardens, they refer to those areas that have straight walls, borders, lines, and/or walks. Then a problem is created because small gardens tend to create an impression of being dull, rigid, and boring. The goal of landscaping should delve into how to make the garden look alive, larger, and more appealing.

The Main Concept
The very core of landscaping a small garden is based on how a landscaper can make the most of the size of the area through plant selection.

With a small garden, having the right kind and size of plants is crucial to the outcome of the whole project.
Size is an important factor because the size of the plants that will be used in the garden should project an image of a bigger space, even if the area is quite small. The color, shape, and texture of the plantings should be coordinated.

It is best to use curves to create a visible flow to the design. Since small gardens tend to have rigid, straight lines, it is best to have curves to open up the garden to reveal its natural beauty. It is also important to create illusions that will give a small garden an effect of being larger.

Considering these, landscaping a small garden will never be a daunting task. As they say, it is all in the details. So whether it is a small or a large garden, landscape designers always take note of the details in the design.

To learn about rain lily and lilies care, visit the Types of Lilies website.

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The botanical name for turtlehead.

Redcurrants, and their less well known cousins, whitecurrants are some of the most useful, and most easily grown fruit bushes available to the gardener. Not only do they produce tasty nutritious fruit, crammed with Vitamin C and anti-oxidants but they have good ornamental value and, being extremely hardy, they will grow in colder spots and on poorer ground than most other fruit. Every garden should have redcurrants, so here are some tips and tricks to help grow them successfully.

Varieties first. For redcurrants, Junifer is early and excellent while Rovada (which is one of the best tasting redcurrants there is) crops later. Whitecurrants are thinner on the ground but I like Blanka which yields better thanVersailles (don’t turn your nose up at whitecurrants – their jelly is sensational). All the varieties named have good disease resistance.

Redcurrants and whitecurrants are both completely self-fertile, so there is none of the poring over books needed to decide what goes with what. Read the rest of this entry →

If you think it’s difficult to grow beautiful and healthy roses, think again. Below are a few tips that will get you well on your way.

Prepare the soil
Roses require rich and loamy soil. When choosing a spot to plant new roses pick one that gets at least six hours of sunshine a day. Roses don’t like their feet wet so stay away from areas that don’t drain well. Dig a hole twice as deep and wide as your rose bush container. Backfill the hole with a mixture of 50% compost and 50% of the soil you’ve removed. Sprinkle in slow release fertilizer per the package directions. Please the rose in the prepared hole. Make sure the soil line on the rose is at the same level as the soil line in your garden. You may have to fill the hole a little more or remove a bit of soil. When you’re satisfied, place the bush in the hole and fill the hole half way and water well. When the water has drained completely fill in the hole.

If your roses are already established freshen up their soil by adding compost, well rotten manure, or top soil. Sprinkle with a slow release fertilizer and work this mixture into the soil around the rose bushes.

Bugs and other critters
Keep ahead of bugs by inspecting the roses on a daily basis or at least twice a week. If you catch problems early they won’t become serious. Aphids love roses. Wash them off with a hard spray from your garden hose. If that doesn’t work use a spray of 1 teaspoon of dishwashing liquid in a gallon of water. The soap sticks to the aphids and kills them but it won’t hurt the roses.

If you find a grayish to white film on the leaves and rose buds it’s probably powdery mildew. It’s not serious but it will ruin the look of the flowers. Use a fungicide especially for roses. Neem is a good one.

Other problems are dark spots on the leaves, holes, skeletonized leaves and flower buds becoming brownish. Take a sample of the rose bush to your local plant nursery and they can tell you exactly what the problem is and how to solve it.

Dead Heading
One of the benefits of roses is having lots of beautiful bouquets in the house. That’s good for you and good for your roses. Flowers have only one purpose in life and that’s to produce seeds so the plant can reproduce itself. Once the seeds have set many flowers, including roses, stop blooming. Remove the flowers as they become old and the bush should keep producing new blossoms. It will help flower production if you pick blossoms in their prime as well.

Feeding and Watering
Feed your roses a slow release fertilizer per the package directions. Most roses will only need to be fed in early spring right after they’ve leafed out and late summer. Water well after feeding.

As we said roses don’t like their feet wet so water only when the top 2 inches feel dry. Roots go down about three feet so if the top of the soil feels moist the roses don’t need to be watered yet.

You can grow beautiful roses without a lot of effort.

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About Dee Power
Find more tips from Dee Power on growing roses, flowers, fruits, vegetables and trees at Easy Garden Care. Dee Power is the author of several nonfiction books. She and her daughter have created Party Ideas: Kids Read her Blog

A grass that forms compact clumps and does not spread by stolons or rhizomes. Desirable ornamental grasses are often bunchgrasses. Also called clumping grass.

Japanese gardening is a cultural form of gardening that is meant to produce a scene that mimics nature as much as possible by using trees, shrubs, rocks, sand, artificial hills, ponds, and flowing water as art-forms. The Zen and Shinto traditions are both a large part of Japanese gardening and, because of this; the gardens have a contemplative and reflective state of mind. Japanese gardening is much different than the Western style and most would say it is far more meditational and soul soothing.

In Japanese gardening there are three basic methods for scenery. The first of these is reduced scale. Reduced scale is the art of taking an actual scene from nature, mountains, rivers, trees, and all, and reproducing it on a smaller scale. Symbolization involves generalization and abstraction. An example of this would be using white sand to suggest the ocean. Borrowed views refers to artists that would use something like an ocean a forest as a background, but it would end up becoming an important part of the scene. Read the rest of this entry →

Americans are constantly searching for new ways to illuminate their environment, and commercial HID lighting fixtures are leading the way in the business sector. This innovative development in the illumination industry is gaining high status among business owners. A commercial HID lighting fixture, better known as high intensity discharge, offers many benefits. Residential Landscape Lighting and Design has a large selection of commercial HID lighting fixtures for your business, and a professional staff, who can assist you in your selection.

Commercial HID lighting fixtures provide some of the most intense illumination to the naked eye. Take for example a 35 watt HID lamp, and compare it to the standard incandescent bulb. The HID fixture can produce up to 6 times the amount of light as its forerunner. Many commercial HID devices are similar to that produced by natural sunlight. Although not natural in its purest form, the white light produced from these fixtures can improve overall peripheral vision, as well as, enhance visibility. In aviation, a commercial HID lighting fixture plays a critical role in bad weather situations. The combination of a more natural light and the snow white coloring of this illumination results in greater lumens output, which allows planes to land safely.

How does a commercial HID lighting device work you ask? In simple terms, funneling a current through a metal vapor can disperse illumination. These devices basically take a standard light bulb and replace the existing filament with a gas capsule. Illumination is then dispelled from an arc with surrounding electrons all of which are encased in a tiny quartz glass piece that is shaped like a tube. In order for these lighting fixtures to operate efficiently, ballasts are required. These ballasts supply the right amount of voltage to the light fixture, while controlling the current at the same time. Most of these lighting devices have a delay time of about 15-20 seconds before its illumination is at full power. If you lose power by some chance or turn the power off, then you have to give the arc tube enough time to cool off before reusing it. A good example of this is the halcyon light bulb. These light bulbs usually require 15-30 seconds before full power is established. Although this may appear to be a deterrent from using commercial HID lighting, this form of illumination has plenty of advantages.

Some of the advantages that this commercial fixture has to offer are greater illumination output, whiter light, and a much higher service life (normally around 3-5 times as long) than standard incandescent bulbs. These bulbs are also extremely energy efficient. Like any light bulb though, you have to be cautious around commercial HID fixtures. Regular safety procedures should be followed, in order to ascertain the highest quality from your lamp. Some special precautions should be taken with these lights, since they produce mercury, which can be an environmental hazard, if used improperly. Be sure to keep the quartz glass clean, in order to allow for proper illumination to be dispersed. Moreover, these lighting devices produce UV rays so prolonged exposure to this light source should be avoided. Do not stare at your lamp for any length of time since ultra-violet radiation can be harmful to the eyes. Furthermore, never handle the bulb, if it is operating, and always allow the bulb to cool off before removing it. In addition, commercial owners should be sure to check to see, if the bulb is maintaining its luminous properties. Signs of a failing bulb include reduced illumination output, random starting times, and dark spots at the tip of the arc tube. Following these simple procedures will not only keep you safe, but also ensure the life of your wonderful commercial HID lighting fixture.

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About Kimberly Quang

To learn more visit our commercial HID lighting fixtures section or read more about commercial HID lighting fixtures.

The botanical name for Norfolk Island pine.

Easy to understand tips for growing organic. Topics covered include toss and grow annuals, blooming biennials, easy to grow perennials, garden herbs, different types of gardens, and how to identify beneficial garden pests.
Enter The Garden Some people have natural green thumbs and seem to know just what to do to keep their plants healthy, how to transform their outdoor space into a canvas of colorful flowers and beautiful roses, or how to grow incredible vegetable and herb gardens.

This guide is designed for the beginning gardener who is not sure how to sprout a seedling or when to harvest the veggies. It includes basic information on which flowers are easy to grow and maintain, how to choose basil that thrives in your region, and tips for growing perfect tomatoes.

Primarily defined as the art of growing plants for flowers or foliage, and vegetables meant for human consumption, gardening is cousin to horticulture, the art and science of the cultivation of plants.

Gardening offers an array of benefits. Organic vegetables grown without sprays and pesticides, or tomatoes and peppers that carry no threat of salmonella poisoning are some primary health benefits.

There are therapeutic benefits that can be gained from gardening. Ranging from moderate to strenuous exercise, you will work up a nice sweat doing lifting, stretching and repetitive motions that burn calories and qualifies as your daily workout.

Gardening is productive, mentally relaxing, and relieves stress, but my personal favorite is having a legitimate reason to play in mud and water. The smell of damp, freshly cultivated soil alive with flowers, herbs and vegetables must be experienced to be appreciated.

The combination of sun, soil, and water provides an escape from conflicts or problems to the peace and tranquility of your garden. Gardening is the best way to become one with nature.

Working in your garden allows you to spend time outside every day and make your outdoor space come alive with vibrant colors. The act of spreading mulch, weeding, or planting and digging with your hands provides a spiritual kinship with life and nature.

Harvesting the flowers, herbs and vegetables that you have grown in your garden will bring a sense of satisfaction, pride and accomplishment for your dedicated efforts, and friends and neighbors will be impressed by the improvements you have made to your outdoor space.

Next: Types of Gardens
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Perennials are one of my favorite types of plants to have in the garden.

Perennials are flowering plants that go dormant in the winter and return each spring. There are literally hundreds and hundreds of different types of perennials. Perennials have as many different blooming seasons, colors, textures and sizes as there are types. This is what makes perennials so fabulous. Complete gardens can be created from using strictly perennials.

By planting different types of perennials in your gardens you can have color from the first of spring until a hard frost in the fall. If you are lucky enough to live in Planting Zones 8-10 you get to have color all year long!

Some perennials are grown for their striking and beautiful foliage, others for their flower. Some perennials will only bloom once per season, but the show is spectacular! Many perennials will bloom repeatedly throughout the growing season. Dead-heading the spent flowers will encourage more to bloom. Use a good, sharp pair of pruning shears or garden scissors to remove the spent foliage. Read the rest of this entry →

As a species name, means “densely covered with woolly hairs.” For example, the peppermint-scented geranium, Pelargonium tomentosum, has leaves that feel like velvet.

Daisy family
Compositae
Kal-lis’tee-fuss. A single, very variable Asiatic herb, known as the China, or Garden, Aster. Not closely related to the true genus Aster. Good for cutting.

Description
Leaves broadly oval, deeply and irregularly toothed. Flowerheads solitary, at the ends of relatively long stalks.

How to Grow   Read the rest of this entry →