Plant Gardens 101

As spring arrives us gardeners start to get ready for the coming season and a major part of this preparation is seed sowing. Sowing seeds and nurturing them through germination into strong healthy plants is without a doubt one of the most rewarding tasks in gardening. Watching nature work its magic is something that I never tire of seeing. Wherever you sow your seed, be it on a kitchen windowsill, in a greenhouse or garden shed, following a few basic rules will aid your chance of success. Foremost is hygiene, have a good spring clean before sowing. All pots and trays should be scrubbed clean with biodegradable detergent. Staging, worktops and the interior of the greenhouse can also be done at the same time.

Now a decision has to be made as to which growing medium is to be used. There is a variety of seed composts available on the market but in general any medium that is not overly heavy, water retentive or high in nutritional value will suffice, personally I use coir and vermiculite. Coir is a by-product from coconuts, making it a renewable organic resource. The only downside to coir is the air miles involved in bringing it to this country although storage and transportation are easier now as it comes in dehydrated blocks slightly larger than a brick. When you are ready to use it place your coir brick in a tub, pour on the required amount of water and within ten minutes you have 10 litres of hydrated coir. Into this I mix vermiculite to help with moisture retention. (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…)

While selecting flowers seeds for gardens or for landscaping purposes, an increasing number of people are selecting wildflower varieties. Botanists and flower enthusiasts advocate against the usage of the term “wildflower”. Expressions such as “native”, “exotic” or “introduced species” are recommended to refer to flowers not logically occurring in an area. Other frequently used terms are invasive species and imported or naturalized varieties. These terms are used to refer to plants launched in an area much earlier and now considered as native to the location.

A wildflower is a type of flower that grows in uncultivated places, indicating that it was not seeded or planted by humans with a purpose. Taking this into consideration, it may seem strange that wildflower seeds of a few mixed species are being sold in seed packets. (more…)

The importance of having good seeds has already been declared. They must not only grow, but grow into what we have bought them for–be true to name. Without the latter quality we cannot be sure of good gardens, and without the former they will not be full ones. A meagre “stand” from seeds properly sown is a rather exasperating and discouraging experience to encounter. The cost for fertilizing and preparing the land is just as much, and the cost of cultivating very nearly as much, when the rows are full of thrifty plants or strung out with poor ones. Whether you use ten cents’ worth or ten dollars’ worth, the best seed to be had will be the most economical to buy–to say nothing of the satisfaction that full rows give. Inexperienced gardeners seem universally to have the conviction that the only thing required in seed sowing is to cover the seed with soil. What sort of soil it is, or in what condition, or at what depth or temperature the seed is planted, are questions about which they do not trouble themselves to think. (more…)

The Amazon jungles, mangroves, virgin forests, tropical forests and even plants in a kitchen garden have all originated from seeds. Many plants have survived over the ages through wind dispersals and alternative forms of reproduction. However, the predominance of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants in all landscapes confirms the importance of a seed.

A ripened ovule of a gymnosperm or angiosperm is called a seed. An angiosperm or a flowering plant has a seed enclosed in the ovary that later forms a fruit. Gymnosperm, conifer and related plants seeds lie open to the elements. A seed contains an embryo, which facilitates growth of a new plant under favorable circumstances. It also has a supply of accumulated food and is wrapped in a seed coat. This stored food is initially a tissue called endosperm derived from the parent plant. Over time, the endosperm becomes rich in oil starch and protein. In some species, the embryo is embedded in the endosperm, which will be used later by the sapling, upon germination. In some other species, the embryo absorbs it as it grows within the developing seed. (more…)

Flowers have been grown and nurtured over years for personal and business purposes. A flower provides visual bliss in addition to a soothing aroma and an array of delightful colors. One can give cut flowers as gifts to celebrate events, express feelings or just grow them in a backyard.

It may sound strange when a botanist refers to singular divisions of a flower while referring to male and female reproductive organs. However, this is true. Flowers are used as a reproductive organ only in certain angiosperms plants. A pistil is located in the center of a flower and it contains female organs. It has a rounded lower base, which is the ovary. These contain reproductive cells called ovule. (more…)

Starting Seeds for Hydroponics Use
This is a quick and simple tutorial for germinating seeds. Most people growing with hydroponics will start from either seeds or clones. But at one point or another you will always start with seeds as they are easier to obtain in most cases for clones. Starting seeds with the intent of moving them into a hydroponics system is a bit different than starting them in soil. this guide will cover starting seedlings and moving them into a hydroponics grow box.

Germinating seeds:

1. Place a moist paper towel on a ceramic dish.

2. Fold the paper towel up and around the seeds.

3. Place another ceramic dish upside down on top of the bottom dish. (more…)

Growing your own vegetables from seed is very easy. It is great fun to watch the tiny seedlings emerge from the soil mix and of course is a great deal cheaper than buying ready grown plants. It is not as quick though. The reason why it is cheaper is that you are doing all the work yourself.

So what do you grow them in? Well it all depends on what type of plant you are growing. Before we discuss what type of container you need, you also need to think about what type of soil mix you are going to grow them in.

My father used to just take some garden soil, put it in an old dirty plant pot and grow his seeds. It used to work but it was only his experience which allowed him to be able to identify which was the seedling he was after and which was a weed seedling. Why, well the soil he used was full of weed seeds. He also did not clean his pots which is never a good thing. (more…)

Seed saving can be a rewarding and cost saving activity particularly if plants are selected for their good seed saving characteristics. This article will offer the beginning seed saver helpful advice on which plants to start with and how best to harvest, prepare and save the seeds. Bean/pea, lettuce, pepper, and tomato offer the beginning seed saver the best chance for successful seed saving. They produce seed the same season as planted and are mostly self-pollinating, minimizing the need to be mindful of preventing cross-pollination.

Always harvest seeds from the best plants available. Choose healthy disease-free plants with desirable qualities. Look for the most flavorful vegetables or beautiful flowers. Because seed set reduces the vigor of the plant and discourages further fruit production, wait until near the end of the season to save fruit for seed. Seeds are mature when flowers are faded and dry or have puffy tops.

Beans/Peas Toward the end of the season and while healthy pods are still being formed allow the pods on some plants to dry brown before harvesting. This is about six weeks after eating stage for beans and four for peas. If frost threatens, pull the entire plant, and hang in cool, dry location until pods are brown. (more…)

With proper planning there are several advantages that greenhouse enthusiasts have for seed germinating and getting their plants off to agreat start.

Jump Start the Growing Season – Just as greenhouse gardeners are able to extend the growing season they can get a head start as well. Many desirable plant varieties cannot be sowed until after the last freeze of the season and in some cases it takes even longer for the ground to warm to an appropriate temperature for optimum seed germination. In the greenhouse, seed germination can start three to four weeks before the estimated last freeze of the season giving greenhouse gardeners a head start on their open air counterparts. This is particularly important for success with long season vegetables (those that require 70 or more days to produce) e.g., melons, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, corn, carrots and parsnips among others. (more…)

Any reliable seed house can be depended upon for good seeds; but even so, there is a great risk in seeds. A seed may to all appearances be all right and yet not have within it vitality enough, or power, to produce a hardy plant.

If you save seed from your own plants you are able to choose carefully. Suppose you are saving seed of aster plants. What blossoms shall you decide upon? Now it is not the blossom only which you must consider, but the entire plant. Why? Because a weak, straggly plant may produce one fine blossom. Looking at that one blossom so really beautiful you think of the numberless equally lovely plants you are going to have from the seeds. But just as likely as not the seeds will produce plants like the parent plant. (more…)

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For many gardeners, the garden actually begins in January when the first seed catalog arrives in the mailbox. While the cold wind howls outside, we retire to a cozy chair and leaf through the catalog, carefully notating which varieties of lettuce and tomatoes to try and wishing we had the space to plant each and every flower so artfully displayed on its pages.

But have you ever wondered where your great-grandparents acquired the seeds for their gardens, before there were seed catalogs and fancy garden centers? (more…)

You are welcome to use this article on your website or in your newsletter as long as you reprint it as is, including the contact information at the end. Website URLs must be active links. You are welcome to use this article with an affiliate link, http://www.freeplants.com/resellers.htm

Long before the first daffodils of the year come into bloom, seed catalogs are delivered to our mailboxes to herald the arrival of Spring. A good seed catalog contains so much information, it can sometimes be overwhelming for a novice gardener to decide which seeds to buy for their garden. Today I’ll explain how to interpret catalog descriptions for vegetable, herb and flower seeds.

Let’s start with vegetable and herb seed descriptions, since they’re fairly straightforward. A typical catalog listing for these seeds will look something like this description for lettuce seeds: (more…)