Monday, March 23, 2015
Sunday, March 8, 2015
Container Gardening - How to Brighten Up the Paved Courtyard
By
Lee-Ann Clark
Submitted On May 03, 2014
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lee-Ann_Clark
Never let it be said that container gardens are second best to
those gardens on the soil. They may be labor intensive but being as rich
and extravagant as your pocket will allow is their reward. Containers
solve many problems for would-be gardeners. They are the answer to a
paved courtyard or a roof terrace or a balcony. They are an excellent
solution for people who cannot bend easily to dig. A collection of
window boxes can be used as a finishing touch to a house. Whatever the
purpose the choice of containers is enormous.
Ground rules for container gardens that need to be considered are the potting and re-potting of the plants, the work involved in occasionally changing the soil and most importantly you need to consider the watering of the pots. Is there adequate drainage? All containers have to have holes drilled at the bottom for correct drainage. Is there a water supply nearby? Will you be able to use liquid feeds? Watering is by far the greatest chore and it needs to be done regularly and generously. Rain is never enough on its own and a downpour will fool you into thinking the containers are wetter than they really are. It is important to decide whether to plant all year round or whether to let your pots stand empty in winter. Remember that plants that are hardy in the soil might succumb to the cold when their roots are raised in a container that is open to frosts. Frozen water logged soil can also burst containers as it expands. The same can be said for the summer months when the containers get very hot. It is all too easy to bake the roots of the plant.
With all this in mind, choosing your containers and designing your garden is the fun part. There are so many styles of containers. Formal courtyards can be graced with potted bay trees, bamboos or camellias. Some pots are especially beautiful and may look best not potted at all. Stone troughs can be planted as miniature gardens or as screens, but they can also be filled with a carpeting plant as a piece of a living sculpture. Whatever your heart desires, can be brought forth in pots, from a tranquil green to the splashes of vibrant color. The reward for all the hard work is being able to sit and relax in a beautiful garden.
Ground rules for container gardens that need to be considered are the potting and re-potting of the plants, the work involved in occasionally changing the soil and most importantly you need to consider the watering of the pots. Is there adequate drainage? All containers have to have holes drilled at the bottom for correct drainage. Is there a water supply nearby? Will you be able to use liquid feeds? Watering is by far the greatest chore and it needs to be done regularly and generously. Rain is never enough on its own and a downpour will fool you into thinking the containers are wetter than they really are. It is important to decide whether to plant all year round or whether to let your pots stand empty in winter. Remember that plants that are hardy in the soil might succumb to the cold when their roots are raised in a container that is open to frosts. Frozen water logged soil can also burst containers as it expands. The same can be said for the summer months when the containers get very hot. It is all too easy to bake the roots of the plant.
With all this in mind, choosing your containers and designing your garden is the fun part. There are so many styles of containers. Formal courtyards can be graced with potted bay trees, bamboos or camellias. Some pots are especially beautiful and may look best not potted at all. Stone troughs can be planted as miniature gardens or as screens, but they can also be filled with a carpeting plant as a piece of a living sculpture. Whatever your heart desires, can be brought forth in pots, from a tranquil green to the splashes of vibrant color. The reward for all the hard work is being able to sit and relax in a beautiful garden.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lee-Ann_Clark
Black Thumb? 6 Hard To Kill Plants For Your Garden
By
Lawrence L. Hoyle
Submitted On March 05, 2015
Lawrence L. Hoyle, author, 54 years in the Landscape Profession. Check out his main website at: http://www.web-landscape-design-ideas.com. This website has free Landscape help for Do-It-Yourselves and a online Landscape Design Services for Homeowners, Landscape Contractors and Home Builders. Designs online since 2003 with designs in 40 states. Get your today.!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lawrence__L._Hoyle
If you are one of the many who were not born with a Green Thumb,
there are ways to get your garden off to a glowing start even though you
were not voted 'gardener of the year' in your town. Many people are
trying their hand at gardening for the first time, whether young new
homeowners or those who are leaving the city to move to the suburbs,
many are giving a garden a try, and there are several ways to make sure
that it's successful. First of all, there are some plants that are just
more finicky than others. If your plants for your garden are simply
based on the fact that you like the look of that plant it is probably
not going to turn out to be a very successful gardening venture for you.
If you choose plants that are hardier than the average plant, your
chances for success are much higher.
All plants have preferred growing conditions; however, there are some plants that are more sensitive to having their preferences met than others. There are plenty of plants and flowers that are hardy enough that their preferential growing conditions only have to be approximated, not met exactly. This is good news for the less skilled gardeners out there, not to mention that nobody can actually change the climate anyway. Of course, one can put flowers inside a greenhouse and then control the conditions inside of it to some extent, but if you want plants growing outside, there's really little that one can do aside from choosing a plant that should do well in your climate region and choosing the side of the house whose exposure most closely fits the desired light pattern for a particular plant.
The good news is that there are some plants that are just harder to kill than others. The six below are all excellent options for the new gardener.
1. English Ivy: This plant's beauty is unquestionable, and the plant is really quite hardy. It's difficult to kill and it does a fantastic job of really accenting your whole house instead of just being a single bush or tree in front of your house.
2. Yarrow: This beautiful wildflower spreads easily and looks lovely on open spaces like fields. You can get a lot of bang for your buck by planting Yarrow since it will cover a whole field and make the thing gorgeous.
3. Baby's Breath: This beautiful flower is hardy and it even can survive in dry soils that are more like sand than soil. Baby's Breath is not only an easy plant to grow for the beginning gardener, it's also a great flower to cut and decorate with whether freshly cut or dried.
4. Wood Fern: This basic plant doesn't add color, but the texture of this greenery is very special, a great addition to any garden and easy to grow.
5. Sneezeweed: It doesn't sound very pretty, but its gorgeous colors will brighten up any piece of land. The plant does well in dryer, prairie-like environments, which can often be a difficult zone to find plants that will grow there.
6. California Poppy: Featuring beautiful colors and able to grow in dry climates, these poppies will make your home into a beautiful oasis. Poppies grow easily and are easy to keep up. They also do a lovely job of spreading themselves so that you end up with a beautiful full field of poppies if you let the plant take its natural course.
Try your hand at these plants and you'll probably be pleasantly surprised by how much of a gardener you seem to be. Once you've got the hang of this, going on to more finicky plants will seem much easier.
All plants have preferred growing conditions; however, there are some plants that are more sensitive to having their preferences met than others. There are plenty of plants and flowers that are hardy enough that their preferential growing conditions only have to be approximated, not met exactly. This is good news for the less skilled gardeners out there, not to mention that nobody can actually change the climate anyway. Of course, one can put flowers inside a greenhouse and then control the conditions inside of it to some extent, but if you want plants growing outside, there's really little that one can do aside from choosing a plant that should do well in your climate region and choosing the side of the house whose exposure most closely fits the desired light pattern for a particular plant.
The good news is that there are some plants that are just harder to kill than others. The six below are all excellent options for the new gardener.
1. English Ivy: This plant's beauty is unquestionable, and the plant is really quite hardy. It's difficult to kill and it does a fantastic job of really accenting your whole house instead of just being a single bush or tree in front of your house.
2. Yarrow: This beautiful wildflower spreads easily and looks lovely on open spaces like fields. You can get a lot of bang for your buck by planting Yarrow since it will cover a whole field and make the thing gorgeous.
3. Baby's Breath: This beautiful flower is hardy and it even can survive in dry soils that are more like sand than soil. Baby's Breath is not only an easy plant to grow for the beginning gardener, it's also a great flower to cut and decorate with whether freshly cut or dried.
4. Wood Fern: This basic plant doesn't add color, but the texture of this greenery is very special, a great addition to any garden and easy to grow.
5. Sneezeweed: It doesn't sound very pretty, but its gorgeous colors will brighten up any piece of land. The plant does well in dryer, prairie-like environments, which can often be a difficult zone to find plants that will grow there.
6. California Poppy: Featuring beautiful colors and able to grow in dry climates, these poppies will make your home into a beautiful oasis. Poppies grow easily and are easy to keep up. They also do a lovely job of spreading themselves so that you end up with a beautiful full field of poppies if you let the plant take its natural course.
Try your hand at these plants and you'll probably be pleasantly surprised by how much of a gardener you seem to be. Once you've got the hang of this, going on to more finicky plants will seem much easier.
Lawrence L. Hoyle, author, 54 years in the Landscape Profession. Check out his main website at: http://www.web-landscape-design-ideas.com. This website has free Landscape help for Do-It-Yourselves and a online Landscape Design Services for Homeowners, Landscape Contractors and Home Builders. Designs online since 2003 with designs in 40 states. Get your today.!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lawrence__L._Hoyle
Monday, March 2, 2015
5 Pieces of Equipment Gardeners Cant Live Without
Gardening is fun and rewarding and may be considered a hobby, talent or both and sometimes its just luck. Gardening is not as easy as it looks and involves dedication, time and consistency and many trials and errors. There are many aspects to maintaining a healthy garden, but some aspects are more important than others. An individual who likes to garden can have the knowledge to produce the best garden in the world, but without the right equipment and materials it just wouldn't be possible.
Below you will find a list of the top 5 pieces of equipment which gardeners simply cannot live without:
1. Trowel A trowel is a shovel-like piece of equipment which is used to dig up dirt and set small plants. There are many styles to choose from and type of handle on your trowel will determine how well it works. Easy grip, non-slide and non-slip grips are the best form of handle to choose. These will be easier to use and will require less work than any other form of trowel. A trowel with no grip will be difficult to use and could end up ruining your garden. Try one out in your hand first to ensure it feels comfortable. There's nothing like having your hand cramp or the trowel slip while using it to dig in a beautiful, new plant.
2. Pitchfork A pitchfork is a gardening tool which has 2-6 prongs and a long handle. The sizes of pitchforks vary, depending on what they are being used for. The space between each prong varies as well. Pitchforks are used to separate, lift and throw loose pieces of material such as dirt and leaves.
3. Spade A gardening spade has a long, thick handle and a heavy flat blade. This tool is used to dig up and move pieces of dirt from one place to another. It can also be used to pack down dirt once the flower has been planted.
4. Pruning Shears Pruning shears are tools which have a long handles and blades. This type of gardening equipment is used to allow gardeners to precisely prune rose bushes and other plants and unruly vines, etc. It can also be used to cut the grass at the edges of walkways and garden beds, in those hard to reach places. It is also used to trim the edges and remove dead leaves or wood on flowers. There is no other piece of gardening equipment which can do the same job as pruning shears. Without the use of this piece of equipment, your garden will end up looking messy and disorganized. Always, always, always invest in good quality pruning shears. Good ones have a lifetime guarantee and low-end ones will make shrapnel of your heritage rose.
5. Wheelbarrow A wheelbarrow is one of the larger pieces of garden equipment. It is a cart with a handle and at least one wheel which is designed for easy transportation of materials from one place to another. Purchasing a wheelbarrow will save you a lot of time and effort, especially if you are off to the compost heap, and will make for a pleasant gardening experience. Another option is the 4-wheeled gardening cart.
There are many pieces of gardening equipment which will make this hobby easier and more efficient, however the ones listed above are recognized as the most important. These pieces of equipment will likely last a very long time.
Colin Smith is a freelance write for http://www.gardenequipment101.com a site that features information about playground equipment, swing sets, riding lawn mowers and more.
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