gardening tips

Make Your Garden A Healthy Outlet For Stress

November 15, 2018 by derick

“People who start doing organic gardening do so because they don’t like toxic effects of pesticides and fertilizers. Also, organic gardening can save you a lot of money. Read on for some advice about how to work in your organic garden.”

Cover fences and walls with lots of climbers. Climbing foliage is a great way to disguise unsightly features on your property, sometimes in the span of just one season. They may also grow through tress and shrubs that are already grown, or you can train them to cover your arbor. Some varieties will climb and attach using their tendrils or branches, but some will need to be trained or supported with ties. Some of these plants include, wisteria, jasmine, climbing roses, clematis, honeysuckle!

When winter comes, you can save a few plants by transferring them inside the house. You should probably save the most resistant or expensive plants. When you dig up the plant, carefully avoid the roots then place it in a container.

If your soil has high alkaline amounts, mix some coffee grounds into it. This is a great and cheap way to increase the acid levels in your dirt. When you use them, you will start to notice that your vegetables are tastier and more vibrant in color.

Instead of leaving clumps of irises intact, divide them so that your flowers can grow in a more healthy manner. Take clumps that have become overgrown and divvy them up into separate plants. If you notice a dead foliage, lift the bulb. The bulbs split in your hand, then you replant them, and they will most likely flower next year. Use a knife to divide the rhizomes. From the outside cut the new pieces and then get rid of the old center. Each new piece you cut should possess at least one healthy offshoot. Plant immediately.

To keep pests away, you can use plants in the garden or other natural materials. Onions and marigolds can get rid of pests in the garden. Wood ash, when used like mulch, can keep away pests after it is spread around a tree base and shrub seedlings. Natural remedies, like the ones listed, will help reduce the need and usage of harsh chemical pesticides.

Applying the knowledge you learned here to your garden will help ensure you have a thriving, toxin-free garden of your very own. A flourishing organic garden will also be an open invitation to some very interesting creatures of the wild that you can look forward to seeing.

Build Your Own Successful Outdoor Garden

November 13, 2018 by derick

“Landscaping can appear to be very difficult. The truth, however, is that it really isn’t as difficult as it looks. By spending some time learning more about landscaping, you may be surprised at how easy it can be. Take a look through this article and get an idea of what landscaping is all about with the following tips.”

Ask an expert to test your soil before you plant. When your soil has been properly tested, you can determine what nutrients are present and which, if any, need to be amended before adding plants into the mix. You will have much better plants and a very successful garden.

Talk to a licensed landscaper before you do any work to your own yard. A short discussion about your ideas and approach with a pro can widen your perspective and uncover any issues in your design that need rethinking. This is a crucial part of your plan, especially if you are not an experienced landscaper.

Shop online to save money and get a larger selection. The web has many sites which provide great products at unbeatable prices. Check the reviews on the product and retailer before you make your purchase. Look at various websites and compare prices.

Don’t underestimate the importance of quality plants and products. While you can locate inexpensive supplies, the quality can be below what you want or need. Choosing a specialty store can give you the expertise of the staff, a guarantee that the product will work as advertised and the ability to support your local economy.

Make use of curvy borders along the perimeter of your plants. Rounded edges have a better visual appeal than cornered edges. Completely plan out your landscape borders before you begin planting to make sure everything flows well.

Consult with garden and landscape professionals prior to beginning. Even if you will do the work yourself, talk to a professional about your ideas before you begin. They can give you some good advice on what to do or avoid if you are new to working on your landscaping. If you know the things you’re doing, an opinion from a professional is very helpful.

Consider using plants that have unique leaf textures as you embark on your landscaping project. The contrast between shape and texture when mixed together can add beauty and interest to your design. Make sure they are dispersed evenly for maximum appeal.

If the reason that you want to plant trees on your lawn is for privacy, you should purchase fast-growing trees. These trees grow much, much faster than regular trees. A good quick-growing tree that is very popular today is called weeping cherry tree.

Landscaping may take some time to plan and maintain, but the results will be well worth it. It may take some work, but if you put in the time and effort, you can become an expert landscaper. Knowing the right way to go about landscaping is the key to success. In order to properly landscape your lawn, use this article’s tips.

How Good is Rubber Mulch?

April 30, 2015 by derick

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/f9/87/a3/f987a304c0b5b20ebaa739325edf72ee.jpg — (c) www.pinterest.com

Rubber mulch is a reprocessed product created by used tires. As a result, it is really an eco-friendly product which is great for ecosystem and playground safety. It is a latest rubber item that can easily be placed on hard surfaces like playgrounds, landscapes as well as on gardens in an attempt to reduce the number of accidents happening. Rubber mulch comes in enticing colors and other designs and therefore, you happen to be given with some terrific options to select from.

Nowadays, rubber mulch is getting more and more recognition because of the positive aspects it could possibly give not just to your outdoor play area but also for gardening. Not just that, it also adds visual appeal to an area which is a wonderful means of decorating your outdoors. When you have used rubbers, you might already think of transforming it to rubber mulch but before you get excited, here are just a few of the advantages of rubber mulch.

• Mulch helps soil retain water – It helps retain the current water content making irrigation easier. This retained water can also be used as groundwater by the residents. There are numerous approaches involved with conserving water and one of such techniques integrates drip irrigation.

• Helps prevent freak mishaps – Rubber flooring is impact-resistant and slip-resistant. The rubber is built to be flexible and springy. This lets it work as a cushion versus impacts and minimizing the likelihood of major injury whenever children slide from play structures. A lot of houses have playgrounds and yards for kids to relax and play on and thus the rubber mulch, when covered over grass, helps in avoiding children from getting wounded since the surface is smooth and soft. Parents also need to make certain children do not misuse the surface as the rubber part wears out over a period of time.

• Safe for plants – Concerns have already been raised about dangerous chemicals that are regularly found in rubber treatment and tire manufacture. However, research shows that this kind of mulch contains only small levels of some chemicals that are bad for humans and plants only in much higher levels. It’s better than organic mulch at insulating the soil, keeping it warm and rich. Rubber would not absorb water since it is non-porous and helps prevent dampening of the soil below. Therefore it prevents algae and other fungi from developing in the soil, commonly the rubber mulch are also called weed barrier.

In summary, rubber mulch definitely seems to be a fantastic option for an eco-friendly sound approach to landscaping. It has likewise gone through quality improvements over the last couple of years. Now rubber mulches, that happen to be suitable for home gardens and landscaping, are also available in plenty. It might take getting used to, but it seems like the tires will certainly keep rolling into our gardens, parks, and playgrounds.

Controlling Bothersome Weeds in the Garden

March 3, 2015 by derick

http://www.chicagobotanic.org/images/plantinfo/smartgardener/weeds_woodviolet_lg.jpg — Photo from http://www.chicagobotanic.org

A lawn or garden that begins to get overgrown with bothersome weeds is bound to experience a wide variety of issues. Weeds are acknowledged to contend with the beneficial plants for sunshine, water, and soil nutrients. A chemical-based herbicide is sure to assist with controlled weed population. But, if the nature friendly choices are desired, it’s possible to lay thick black matting or plastic sheeting on the ground surface to starve the weeds of sunshine and water.

A. Ground ivy
Ground ivy is actually a perennial weed that is very persistent and will still propagate across the lawn if left unattended. It actually reaches about 10 ” in height and yields blue-violet flowers with scalloped and glossy leaves. The foliage is quite aromatic and contains apparent veins round the stems.

B. Wild Onion
Wild onion is similar to a grass in a flash. Very close evaluation will disclose triangular leaf formation contrary to a lance or linear-shaped blade that one notices on a lawn grass. It can develop from its small hidden bulb to as much as 2 feet when it blooms in late summer. You’ll see a unique onion aroma when near this weed.

C. Dandelion
The dandelion is a perennial weed with spear like and glossy rosettes of leaves and yellowish colored flower heads in which quickly turn into fluffy seeds. Because the fluffy seed heads are quickly spread and regenerate, it’s important to totally get rid of the dandelion immediately after discovered. They generally grow to a height around 10 “.

D. Creeping thistle
The creeping thistle is for sure to result in damage to the lawn with bare areas or freshly seeded lawns. This particular weed has thistle-like leaves along with purple colored flower heads. The spiky nature of the leaves make them really irritating to walk or rest on. Creeping thistle is best extracted with the use of fork or daisy grubber.

E. Daisy weed
This weed can stand close mowing yet still flower. It really is spread by seed therefore can colonize the lawn immediately. They’re relatively easy to get rid of simply because they’re vulnerable to weed killers and one application is often sufficient to kill them. In cases where infestations are sparse then weed them out by using a hand fork referred to as the daisy grubber.

F. Crabgrass
When this grassy weed has started to take up a place in your garden it could be very difficult to eradicate it. This type is annual and it germinates by seeds spread during the previous year. Sunshine is the best friend of crabgrass where by it helps it to sprout. With this type of weed, it is easy for you to prevent it from growing rather than controlling it when it has sprung.

Vegetable Gardening for Beginners

July 9, 2014 by derick

Start growing some of your own food — right in your backyard.

GROWING your own vegetables is both fun and rewarding. All you really need to get started is some decent soil and a few plants. But to be a really successful vegetable gardener — and to do it organically — you’ll need to understand what it takes to keep your plants healthy and vigorous. Here are the basics.

“Feed the soil” is like a mantra for organic gardeners, and with good reason. In conventional chemical agriculture, crop plants are indeed “fed” directly using synthetic fertilizers.

When taken to extremes, this kind of chemical force-feeding can gradually impoverish the soil. And turn it from a rich entity teeming with microorganisms insects and other life forms, into an inert growing medium that exists mainly to anchor the plants’ roots, and that provides little or no nutrition in its own right.