Plant Gardens 101

Whether you’re one person with a little garden or a large landscape company, a topsoil screen can make you more efficient. Topsoil screens come in a variety of configurations, from small, individual screens to huge motorized pieces of equipment. Some of the most common uses are the removal of rocks, sticks, and sod to leave usable soil behind. The usefulness of each topsoil screen is dependent on your goals.

A Topsoil Screen for the Home Gardener

If you are simply interested in using a topsoil screen to filter out the sticks, stones, and other junk in your yard dirt, then a small one is probably perfectly adequate for your needs. This type of device usually includes a single screen, and it may fit over a box or even your wheelbarrow. There are even some that have been designed to fit perfectly over any five gallon bucket. You simply shovel the dirt onto the screen and then either tamp it down or shake the screen. The small particles filter through the screen, while the larger debris remains on top so that you can remove it. A series of ever-finer screens can be used if you wish to separate your yard dirt into different categories. (more…)

Plants, like people, need to be fed regularly, and like people, too much or too little is not a good thing. So, giving advice on fertilizing plants can be challenging. Differences in soil types, existing nutrients, plant type and climate are but a few of the factors that affect proper fertilization. First, let’s understand a little bit about fertilizers in general. All plants require at least 17 different nutrients to survive. Some nutrients come from the air, some from water and others from the soil. When we fertilize a plant, we are adding some of the nutrients that come from the soil.

When we fertilize, three nutrients stand out as the ones that are needed in the greatest amount and that need to be supplemented most often. These are called the primary nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium . Every fertilizer will have three numbers on its label to indicate the percentage of each of these three nutrients that it contains. For example, our Bud-N-Bloom Booster is a 15-30-15 formulation. It contains 15% nitrogen, 30% phosphorus, and 15% potassium. Knowing the formulation is important, but there are other factors such as solubility, molecular form, etc. that directly affect nutrient availability. We will leave those details to the plant scientists and others who have a more technical interest, but it is essential to purchase fertilizers from a trusted source so you can have confidence that you are getting what you pay for and what your plants need. (more…)

How your roses thrive depends on many factors, the most important of all is having the right kind of soil. For those who are new to growing and taking care of roses you are probably unsure of what kind of soil to use and how often you need to maintain it. Even those who have been growing roses for while find it hard to find just the right soil mixture for their rose garden.

There are four elements that need to be used in rose soil. The first element is inorganic material, inorganic material consist of clay, sand and silt. Inorganic material should make up about 45% of the soil mixture. Next is organic material which is also known as humus. Organic is made up of mostly decomposed material. You also need plenty of air and water. In a good mix of soil there are pores and about half those pores are for water and half the pores are for air.

In order for them to thrive roses need a lot of nutrients. You should use a good combination of compost or manure with your soil mixture. You can substitute store bought manure and peat moss if you need to. The pH balance of your soil should be between 6.5 and 6.8. The soil should feel light and crumble when squeezed. If you find that the soil is too sticky or that it feels too sandy you will need to change the mixture of it. (more…)

pH is a gardening term used to reflect the acidity or alkalinity of a soil. The pH scale ranges from 1 to 14, with 1 being very acid and 14 being very alkaline. A pH reading of 7 is considered neutral. Most soils, due to climatic conditions, tend to be a little on the acidic side and these soils may need to have their alkalinity levels raised (meaning they may need to be “limed”). In dry arid climates soils are often on the alkaline side and for good gardening, they will need to have pH their levels lowered. Usually a phone call to your local county Extension office can give you a general idea of soil pH in your area. For site or garden specific information, the Extension Service offers soil collection kits and for a nominal fee, will provide the lab service needed for measuring your soil’s pH. They will also make specific liming or acidifying recommendation for your garden.

Different plants prefer different pH levels, however, as a general rule, most plants thrive in a pH range between 6.0 to 6.8. Some favorite Cottage Farms garden plants like azaleas, blueberries, and rhododendrons actually do better in more acid soils (pH 5.0-6.0). Hydrangeas do well anywhere from 5.0-6.8, but the flower color may be affected (blue flowers in acid soils and pink in more neutral soils). Having the optimum pH range insures proper nutrient availability and allows fertilizers to more readily absorbed by the roots, so checking your garden’s pH is important to insure gardening success. (more…)

Fertilizers are chemical compounds or substance that contain elements which are necessary for the growth of plant and flowers. There are mainly two types of fertilizers organic and inorganic. Organic fertilizers are those which are made through natural process like decomposed plants such as manure, worm castings, peat moss, seaweed, sewage and guano, whereas inorganic fertilizers are manufactured through chemical process. They are in the form of simple compounds mainly of nitrogen, phosphate and potash. Organic fertilizers contain essential nutrients that encourage plant growth. Inorganic fertilizers consist of various combination of salts and supply plants with necessary nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). These fertilizers are also called NPK fertilizers. Ammonia is also used in making fertilizers such as ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulphate. Inorganic or chemical fertilizers are available in powdered form and when mixed with water they can be used by plants immediately. Whereas organic fertilizers cannot be used immediately and requires some sort of action by the micro life (bacteria, earthworm, fungi) which breaks down the matter (bone, algae, seeds, leaves) and convert them to the form, which can be used by the plants. It is believed that organic fertilizers are more environment-friendly and better maintain soil organic matter levels than inorganic fertilizers as inorganic fertilizers can have long term adverse effects on the organisms living in the soil and can also affect the productivity of the soil. Organic fertilizers provide increased physical and biological storage mechanisms to soils, thus lessens the risk of over-fertilization. They are just a by product of some other other already existing product like bone, seed, cotton or kelp and they don’t get washed away like chemical fertilizers. (more…)

What does it mean to cultivate your garden? You are simply making the soil better. If you walked into your backyard right now, I’m sure you wouldn’t just throw some tomato seeds on the grass and expect plump tomatoes in a couple months by doing nothing else.

When you cultivate the soil, you prepare it for the plants you are going to grow. To begin, let’s assume you are just starting a garden and only have your grassy yard. Ideally, you will use a motorized tiller. A tiller takes all the hard work out of cultivating your garden. You just turn it on and push it across your garden. It will break up all the grass and ground for you.

A tiller is ideal because it is so easy, but they can be expensive. If you are lucky, you can borrow one from someone. If you are serious about gardening and know that you might use it a least every couple of years and have a large garden, it would be worth buying one. (more…)

Mildew is every gardener’s worst nightmare, especially those who have rose bushes. The most known and most common mildew that effects rose bushes is one known as sphaerotheca pannosa. This type of mildew is powdery. The mildew is usually a white or grey powder that is usually found on rose bush leaves, shoots, buds, and the petals. Once the mildew attacks the plant, it spreads very easily and a gardener will soon notice white patches on the rose bush. The fungus eventually sucks all of the nutrients and water from the leaves, which in turn kills the leaves. The leaves eventually shrivel up and fall off of the bush completely.

The common powdery mildew is not caused by free water on the rose bush’s leaves and other parts; instead the mildew lives and thrives on hot, arid weather. In fact, watering your rose bush in the afternoon will help rid of some of the powdery mildew because it will break up the spores that are released by the mildew during the daytime. If you can afford to purchase fungicides, they are also helpful in getting rid of mildew. However, the fungicide will only be effective if you apply it at the right time. (more…)

Here is an important aspect of organic gardening and I’m sure that you will relate to it very well. Just imagine this, you are famished, you are waiting to be fed, you also have not bathed. The thing is you have spent so much time taking care of others and working, so much so you have not had time to look after yourself.

Just think how you would feel? For a certain amount of time, you might be able to accept this. You may still carry on for a while and ask for nothing in return. But as the days pass by, you will feel the negative effect this is having on you. So much so, the effect on you would be that you will not have the energy you once had. You would grow weaker and weaker, until you could no longer carry on the way you used to

Now ask yourself, how is this related to the organic method of gardening? Well that is easy, you should compare this to the state of the soil. Soil is very important in this type and for all other types of gardening. The soil is the base for everything. It is the bed, or the home of your plants (more…)

Soil is one of the most important parts of a successful, fruitful garden. If your soil is rocky, full of clay, or depleted of enough nutrients, you will not have healthy plants. Think about it, if a newborn baby was fed no nutrients from birth, would you expect it to be healthy? The same goes for plants. A seed will sprout with just water, but it won’t get much bigger as time goes on if there are no nutrients.

When you first plant your seeds in planter trays, the soil doesn’t need to be extra special. You can use plain potting soil if you want, just make sure it is light with no clumps. Also, you want to make sure it’s packed around the seeds enough so that they have something to hold onto. (more…)

Healthy cell growth and the process of photosynthesis in your home vegetable garden’s plants are two of the many reasons why nitrogen is needed. Without adequate supplies of nitrogen you will be inhibiting both processes and that is not good to produce healthy fruits and veggies.

Due to the volatility of nitrogen, you can easily run short of this important element in no time. Nitrogen can escape in the air and more commonly get washed away when you water your plants too much or receive excessive rain falls.

For these reasons stated above nitrogen needs to be added more often. If you do not have a tester that will give you a reading of nitrogen in the soil, you will easily tell with your eyes when the leaves of the plants start turning yellow and/or brown. Many novice gardeners think, when the leaves are turning color like this, it is due to not enough water. So they water some more and that washes even more nitrogen away making the soil conditions worse. (more…)

Why Organic?

It has been said that the externalized cost of chemical agriculture is being paid in the form of resource deletions, contaminated water, co2 emissions and greenhouse gases, soil depletion, and loss of species. The human cost is equally large. Loss of family-run farms and agriculture, the extermination of small towns and local economies, the sickness and cost caused by unregulated chemical and pesticide use, the loss of nutritional value in our food, and the hunger, and death of poor countries who produce for export instead of feeding it’s own people.

With this knowledge, it’s no wonder people are looking for alternate forms of farming. Organic is the next logical step. From the soil to the table there are organic options for every level of gardener. This article will discuss the virtues and options in organic fertilizers. (more…)

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Any soil type-clay, sand or loam-will benefit from the addition of organic matter. In a clay soil, the addition of organic matter opens up the tightly packed particles, allowing for water and air to penetrate easier. In a sandy soil, organic mater adds nutrients and body to the soil, improving its capacity to hold water. Loam is what is considered the ideal soil. The addition of organic matter will keep it in the best shape, attracting worms into your soil and keeping it rich and healthy. So what sort of organic matter is best? Any and lots of it. Manure, straw, hay and compost. When it comes to manure, unlike vegetables, fresh is not best. Fresh manure might not do much harm to your soil but it can burn or kill your plants. Be especially careful of fresh chicken manure, let it age for at least 12 months to let out some of the ammonia and uric acid. Also be careful of applying large amounts of chicken manure to sandy soil, as it can possibly cause potassium toxicity. (more…)

Soil primarily had its beginning from rock together with animal and vegetable decay, if you can imagine long stretches or periods of time when great rock masses were crumbling and breaking up. Heat, water action, and friction were largely responsible for this. By friction here is meant the rubbing and grinding of rock mass against rock mass. Think of the huge rocks, a perfect chaos of them, bumping, scraping, settling against one another. What would be the result? Well, I am sure you all could work that out. This is what happened: bits of rock were worn off, a great deal of heat was produced, pieces of rock were pressed together to form new rock masses, some portions becoming dissolved in water. Why, I myself, almost feel the stress and strain of it all. Can you?

Then, too, there were great changes in temperature. First everything was heated to a high temperature, then gradually became cool. Just think of the cracking, the crumbling, the upheavals, that such changes must have caused! You know some of the effects in winter of sudden freezes and thaws. But the little examples of bursting water pipes and broken pitchers are as nothing to what was happening in the world during those days. The water and the gases in the atmosphere helped along this crumbling work. (more…)

Phosphorus is very important in the early stages of vegetable plant development. Plants need this element in order to sustain good root development. If phosphorus is in short supply in your soil, your vegetable plant’s growth will slow very quickly or even worse, not grow at all.

A common appearance of lack of phosphorous in your soil is streaks of purple up and down stems or on the leaves and low yield of fruits and vegetables.

Phosphorus makes up one of the five elements needed in plant DNA for the process of photosynthesis, with the other four being carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. All of the pieces to this puzzle must be in place, otherwise during seed development the plant’s DNA will not form properly. (more…)

Gardening soil is an indispensable component for a fruitful garden, and therefore knowing how to choose the right one and how to apply it is more important than what we might usually think. In order to know when soil is good, you will need to check on its texture and fertility.

A good soil texture should be cohesive but at the same time allow water to filter in. For example, soil which has too much clay will tend to pack to tightly in such a way that it is hard to work with it as well as water wont be able to move as freely as necessary. On the other hand, soils that are too sandy will not have enough cohesiveness and water will not be absorbed properly.

If you wish to be able to find out how good your soil is easily, you can test it by making a ball and observing if it packs to tightly or breaks too easily. If the soil ball is so cohesive that you can mold it, then it has too much clay, and if it breaks apart and you are not able to make a ball with it, then it has too much sand.

A good soil also must have three main nutrients: phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. Phosphorus is indispensable for a good root growth. When growing flowers, this nutrient is extremely important, since their bulbs will need it for growing strong and healthy.

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There are many products on the market that can serve as a soil conditioner to help correct deficiencies in the soil to help it better support plant life. One of the most impactful organic soil conditioners out there has got to be humic acid.

Humic Acid is still a relatively new concept to most and is not widely available at most lawn and garden stores, but serious organic gardeners and organic farmers are very familiar with what it can do and how it helps all types of soil.

Humus materials are complex aggregate of brown to dark colored amorphous substances, which have originated during the decomposition of plant and animal residues by microorganisms, under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, in soils, composts, peat bogs, and water basins. “Humic acid” is the commercial term often used to refer to the combined humic and fulvic acid content found in these naturally occurring deposits. Humic acid is known to be among the most bio-chemically active materials found in soil. The best humic acids come from Leonardite coal which is made of of humified substances dating back thousands of years. (more…)

THE GENESIS OF SOIL.
Soil primarily had its beginning from rock together with animal and vegetable decay, if you can imagine long stretches or periods of time when great rock masses were crumbling and breaking up. Heat, water action, and friction were largely responsible for this. By friction here is meant the rubbing and grinding of rock mass against rock mass. Think of the huge rocks, a perfect chaos of them, bumping, scraping, settling against one another. What would be the result? Well, I am sure you all could work that out. This is what happened: bits of rock were worn off, a great deal of heat was produced, pieces of rock were pressed together to form new rock masses, some portions becoming dissolved in water. Why, I myself, almost feel the stress and strain of it all. Can you?

Then, too, there were great changes in temperature. First everything was heated to a high temperature, then gradually became cool. Just think of the cracking, the crumbling, the upheavals, that such changes must have caused! You know some of the effects in winter of sudden freezes and thaws. But the little examples of bursting water pipes and broken pitchers are as nothing to what was happening in the world during those days. The water and the gases in the atmosphere helped along this crumbling work.

(more…)

Soil primarily had its beginning from rock together with animal and vegetable decay, if you can imagine long stretches or periods of time when great rock masses were crumbling and breaking up. Heat, water action, and friction were largely responsible for this. By friction here is meant the rubbing and grinding of rock mass against rock mass. Think of the huge rocks, a perfect chaos of them, bumping, scraping, settling against one another. What would be the result? Well, I am sure you all could work that out. This is what happened: bits of rock were worn off, a great deal of heat was produced, pieces of rock were pressed together to form new rock masses, some portions becoming dissolved in water. Why, I myself, almost feel the stress and strain of it all. Can you?

Then, too, there were great changes in temperature. First everything was heated to a high temperature, then gradually became cool. Just think of the cracking, the crumbling, the upheavals, that such changes must have caused! You know some of the effects in winter of sudden freezes and thaws. But the little examples of bursting water pipes and broken pitchers are as nothing to what was happening in the world during those days. The water and the gases in the atmosphere helped along this crumbling work. (more…)

Even though there are a wide variety of plants to choose from when creating your garden or enhancing your landscape, you should know which type of soil you have before buying plants because many can only survive in certain soil conditions.

TYPES OF SOIL

Most soil falls under three categories: clay, loam, and sand. If you have loamy soil, then you can choose practically any plant you want and it will thrive because this is the best type of soil to have. Because most people do not have loamy soil, they must understand how to work with the soil they have. This includes buying fertilizer, lime for clay based soil, and not watering the soil as often so nutrients will always be present for plants to grow. (more…)

Most home vegetable gardeners have seen somewhere or heard from someone the importance of the N, P, K levels in your soil. These letters represent specific elements and stand for Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K). If you look on any bag of fertilizer available at your local home or garden center you will see these letters and usually a ratio values right on the bag, bucket or box.

Although, N, P, and K, are considered the big three, they are only a few compared to the many elements and nutrients your plants need in order to grow or thrive. Just like you need all of your vitamins and minerals from A through zinc, a plant requires many nutrients as well.

One specific nutrient it needs, just like humans, is calcium. Calcium in plants is required for proper cell division during plant formation and growth. If your soil lacks calcium the leaves of your plants will look yellow or pale and blossom end rot will occur more frequently. Other signs of calcium deficiency include bad root formation, browning of plants and small vegetable and fruit formations. (more…)