Flower gardens come in different styles and varieties, their appeal can be very addicting to any flower gardener. As a gardener, knowing how to improve your flower garden can make a big difference in the aesthetics and over-all health of your garden.
Here are simple ways to make your flower garden bloom more for your gardening heart’s content:
1. The essentials must always be given major consideration.
Just like with any gardening endeavor, a flower garden must have its adequate supply of water, light, and fertile soil. To lack one of these gardening necessities is almost preparing the death bed of your flower garden. Water the flower garden more frequently during dry spells. Also, make sure that you plant the flower bulbs deep enough to provide sufficient room for the rooting.
2. Mix and match perennials with annuals.
Perennial flower bulbs need not to be replanted since they grow and bloom for several years while annuals grow and bloom for only one season. Mixing a few perennials with annuals ensures that the show goes on with your flower garden and gives you a better look as well.
3. Deadhead to encourage more blossoms.
Deadheading is simply snipping off the flower head after it wilts. This will make the plant grow more and produce more flowers. Just make sure that you don’t discard the deadhead on the garden or mildew and other plant disease will attack your plants.
4. Know the good from the bad bugs.
Do you know that most garden insects do more good than harm? Butterflies, flies, beetles and bees are known as pollinators. They fertilize plants through unintentional transfer of pollen from one plant to another. And 80% of flowering plants rely on them for survival. Why do you think flowers are that colorful and pretty? I’ll be you thought it was to make humans more fond of them? It’s actually to lure more insects.
Sow bugs and dung beetles together with fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms make the soil friendlier to plants. This is because they subsist on dead materials, breaking them into simpler molecules that fertilize the soil. These bugs are known as the ever trusty decomposers.
Now you don’t just shoo away bugs whenever you see any. Choose your enemies.
With those loads of information in mind and practiced, your flower garden will surely thank you with a breath taking view when it’s time for them to bloom again.
Posted on Mar 18, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
Using Herbs from a Home Herb Garden
You have planted the herbs and watched them grow and flourish. They are extremely useful in so many ways. But, using herbs from a home herb garden requires a little bit of work first.
In order to use the herbs you will need to harvest them first. Timing is a factor that cannot be ignored. The heat and the wind could break up the necessary oils of the herbs. You need to pick a dry and calm morning to harvest your herbs during midsummer. Lesser oils are yielded by the herb on days that are highly wet. The herbs need to be harvested after the dew dries form the leaves prior to the flowers opening. Removing the entire plant is not necessary when harvesting the herb. Upon reaching this point, you are just removing some amount of growth to be used. The herbs that you are harvesting aren’t necessary for use at the time that you pick them. You can preserve them for later use. Be careful to remove not more than a third of the plant’s foliage at a time. For the plant to re-grow well, it will need a good amount of foliage. Before you harvest it, you need to make certain to inspect the plant for insects and impaired leaves.
In preserving herbs, typically there are three ways for use later; drying, freezing or preserving them in salt or vinegar, which you have in your kitchen. To succeed in properly drying herbs, you will need twelve stems to bundle together and spruce away any foliage close to the base of the stems. You can use a string to securely bundle them with. In a cool location away from sunlight, there you can hang the bundle. You can use a screen or a rack if you are looking to dry leaves individually there, you can place them on. Do not forget to flip them constantly in order for them to properly dry. Few people have resorted to utilizing appliances like microwaves, dehydrators or ovens to dry herbs as well although these are ways that offer results that is less satisfactory. Freezing herbs is a quite simple way to evenly preserve herbs. Using wax paper to line with cut the herbs into ¼ inch pieces and place on a baking sheet. Once the herbs are frozen, you can put them all together in a bag and place them inside the freezer until use. Through a medium is another (third) way you can use to preserve herbs. For example, you could cover herbs like basil, chopped mint or tarragon with vinegar and for several months it will be preserved. Or by making flavored salt, you can preserve herbs by alternating layers of fresh herbs between salt. When dry completely divide the brown herb from the flavored salt and set it aside in a container that is airtight.
Sure, people use herbs often fresh right out of the garden. Use caution cleaning and preparing the herbs prior to being placed fresh in recipes. Using a bowl filled with cool water, clean the fresh herbs. You can use the sink if there is a large quantity of herbs. In the water, put around two tablespoons of salt. The salt in the water will repel away insects without causing damaging to the herb plant. Take the herbs away from the water and dry them in a salad spinner.
Various kinds of herbs are used for much variety of uses. Each different kinds of herb have their own list of instructions on how to use, harvest and chop. Make certain to research the particular type of herb you are using for correct use.
Posted on Mar 16, 2010 under dried flowers | Comments are off
The very attractive garden is the wild flower garden. But someone say they have a bad luck with the gardening. You should know that it is not the good luck or bad luck, but it is the understanding and the attention. Each wild flower has the individual personality and characteristic. The plants always desire the environment that they have been accustomed to in the nature. If you take the plants out of their condition, they will sick and die. This is the reason why we should set up the suitable condition for them. You should notice the soil, the place, the condition, the surrounding, the neighbors and the other environments before you choose the wild flower from the nature.These are the examples:
- If you find the A flower and the B flower are living together, you should put them together in your garden.
- If you find the A flower is living in the open situation, you should growing them in the same place. So if your flowers feel like they are living in their home, they will show the beautiful flower for you.
After the blossoming time is over is the best time for transplant the flowers. Just go to the forest and seek the favorite flowers. You should get the flower plants with the root and soil. They will be package in the closed bag or basket.
You will prepare the bed before you get the plants. It is not the good idea if your plants wait have wait to planting for a long time. The mixture of the soil in the bed is the wood’s soil and the leaf mold. The drainage system should be set up carefully. The plants do not like the closed water system. Some of the wood plants like the soil with the saturated water but not at all. You should put the stone in the bottom of your garden for the good water system. On the top soil of your garden, you should put some leaf mold and wood’s soil for the moisture system.
The early spring to late fall is the good time for you to create your wild flower garden. About March to April is the good time.
The spring beauty, saxifrage and hepatica should be start off in March. Everyone loves the hepatica. Before the spring, this plant will start to show the flower. The ray of warm sunshine is the best thing which the flowers are waiting for. The fuzzy covering protects the flower’s embryo. The hepatica plants will getting the leaf in the spring. It like the open place, rich and loose soil.
The spring beauty is the competition of the hepatica. The characteristic of the spring beauty is white flower with the little pink, thin and wiry stem, narrow and grass-like leaf. It grows in the great patches. You should plant the roots of them in the place where the sun light is not too much. Remember that the spring beauty loves the sun.
The saxifrage is growing in the dry and rocky places. We can find it in the chinks of rock. It is the rock garden plant. It loves the sandy place especially the big rock’s border. It has the white flower and the hairy stem.
Posted on Mar 13, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
A home herb garden is a great source of fresh herbs any time of the year and has many benefits. The herbs you grow can be enjoyed fresh or preserved by drying or freezing for later use.
Herbs are tremendously useful in so many ways. Your home herb garden has been planted, watered, taken care of, and you’ve watched the plants grow and thrive. Now it’s time to learn how to use those wonderful herbs and it requires a little bit of work.
The first step in using your herb garden results is to harvest them. Harvesting the herb does not mean removing the entire plant and timing is a very important element. The herbs’ essential oils can be dispersed by the wind and the heat, and on extremely wet days, fewer oils are produced by the herbs. The best time to harvest your herbs is during midsummer, on a calm and dry morning. Harvest the herbs right before the flowers open in the morning and just after the dew has dried from the leaves. Take only a certain amount of growth and be careful not to take more than a third of the herb’s foliage at one time, since the plant will need the remaining foliage to continue to grow well. Also inspect the herb for any damaged leaves or insects before harvesting it.
Using fresh herbs right out of your home herb garden is a delight. Make sure to clean the herbs before using them fresh in recipes. To clean fresh herbs, fill a bowl with cool water and place the herbs in the bowl. For a larger quantity of herbs, use the cleaned kitchen sink. Add about two tablespoons of salt to the water. Any insects present on the herbs will be driven away by the salt in the water, without damaging the plant. To dry the herbs, remove them from the water and place in a salad spinner for quick drying.
Of course, herbs don’t have to be used at the time they are picked. Herbs can be preserved for later use in three ways by: drying, freezing, or preserving them in salt or vinegar.
Drying herbs: remove any foliage near the base and bundle six to twelve stems together, securing the bundle with a string. Hang the bundle upside down in a cool place and away from sunlight. Some herbs lend themselves to drying in individual leaves. To dry individual leaves, place them on a rack or screen. To dry the leaves properly, it’s important to remember to turn them often. A few more automated ways of drying leaves, though also less satisfactory, are appliances like dehydrators, ovens or microwave ovens.
Another fairly simple way to preserve herbs for later use is freezing them. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with wax paper. Cut the herbs into ¼ inch pieces and place them on the baking sheet in the freezer. Once the herbs are frozen, remove them from the baking sheet and place them together in a bag. Store the bag in the freezer until needed.
Herbs can also be preserved herbs in a medium such as salt or vinegar. For example, to preserve chopped basil, mint, or tarragon, cover the herbs with vinegar and they be will be available to use for several months. Making a flavored salt is a great way to use herbs. Alternate layers of fresh herbs and salt on a flat surface. When the herbs are completely dry, separate them from the flavored salt and store them in an airtight container.
Each herb can have its own set of instructions on how to use, harvest, and preserve. To get the most out of your home herb garden, make sure to research each type of herb and the best ways to use it.
Posted on Mar 09, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
Although the majority of herb users purchase their herbs from markets, either fresh or dried, you can cultivate and preserve your own herbs. That’s right; throughout history herbs have been dried, preserved in salt or vinegar and, in more recent years frozen. Whether using garden herbs in culinary, medicinal or aromatic applications – fresh, frozen or preserved, what more satisfaction can be obtained than knowing that you grew the herbs you are serving to the people you love.
When harvesting herbs for preservation it is best to remember that herbs should be gathered early in the morning after the morning dew has dried but before the heat of the day peaks, causing the foliage to wilt. Usually mid-morning is an optimal time to harvest. The plant should be established with enough foliage to maintain and continue its growth after harvesting, allowing for a harvest of up to 75 percent of the foliage. If the foliage of the herb plant is being harvested, such as parsley or chives, the harvest should occur before the herb plant is allowed to flower. Once the plant has flowered the taste of the herb will decline. If the flower of the herb is to be harvested, such as chamomile or lavender, harvest well before the flower fully open. If using the flowers of the herbs for craft purposes the harvest can wait until the flowers are almost fully bloomed. Root herbs should be harvested in the fall after the foliage begins to fade but before the first frost. When harvesting the seeds of an herb plant for storage, the seeds should be brown colored and dry, but harvested before the seed pod opens. Each type of herb will have its own instructions on usage, harvesting and storing. Research the specific type of herb you are preserving to ensure correct preservation method that will produce the best results for those precious herbs you nurtured and cultivated all summer long – and enjoy your harvest on a cold winter day!
www.scribe816.com The 2009 Holiday Train Show at the New York Botanical Garden. All the buildings and structures are made from organic materials. (Branches, leaves, twigs, bark, seeds, nuts, dried flowers, etc) The people who created this are truly talented artisans.
Posted on Feb 28, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
For the natural gardener, pest control might seem like a daunting task. After all, you’re committed to not using harmful chemicals in your garden, yet these chemicals can get rid of pests quickly and easily. There are still many ways you can take control of your garden without resorting to chemical treatments. Natural pest control is actually quite easy. We certainly understand that many gardeners become anxious when they see pests on their plants and want to react decisively when they see their plants damaged. But we must remind you of the central principle of organic gardening: growing plants in harmony with Nature. And insects, even those that eat your plants, are a crucial part of that system. When you see insects in your garden, take some time to really watch what they’re doing. Are they actually destroying the plant or just nibbling it a bit? Many plants can outgrow minor damage. Also, in many cases, insects attack stressed out plants. Do you have enough healthy plants to spare the sickly ones? Can you restore sickly plants to robust health so they can resist insect attack? The best defenses against insect attack are preventative measures. Grow plants suited to the site and they’ll be less stressed out. Don’t let them be too wet, too dry or too shaded. Design a diverse garden, so that pests of a particular plant won’t decimate an entire section of the garden. Healthy soil will naturally produce plants that are resistant to insects and disease, but pests are a part of gardening. There are different ways you can control pests naturally. There are a number of natural botanical sprays and powders available in garden centers. These are derived from plants and not made in a lab. We’ll look at a few of the more common ones available to you. Insecticidal soap is sodium or potassium salts combined with fatty acids. If you use soap, it must come in direct contact with the insect and it must be wet. It is no longer effective once it has dried. The fatty acids in the soap penetrate the insect’s outer covering and cause the cells to collapse. This is one of the safest organic pesticides to use because there is no residue, it is non-toxic to animals, and you can use it on your vegetables all the way up to harvest. Be cautious, however, soap can burn or stress plants, so don’t use it in full sun or high temperatures. Bacteria spray is also commonly known as Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis). There are more than 80 types of Bt used as pesticides. It is a stomach poison that releases toxins in the stomachs of insects that causes them to stop eating and starve to death. It is generally available in powdered form that is sprinkled or dusted on a plant. It must be eaten by the targeted insect. Bt strains are very host specific and will not harm people, pets, birds or bees, but it can be very slow acting taking days for the insect to completely stop eating and die. It can also kill some of the beneficial insects in your garden. Neem is a spray that is derived from the seed kernels of the neem tree fruit. It is sprayed onto the plant’s leaves which will upset the insect’s hormonal system and prevents it from developing to its mature stage. Neem is most effective on immature insects and species that undergo complete metamorphosis. Use caution with Neem as it can be damaging to pets, so keep them away from freshly sprayed leaves until the liquid dries. Neem is non-toxic to humans. Horticultural Oil is highly refined petroleum oil that is mixed with water and sprayed onto foliage. It coats and suffocates insects or disrupts their feeding. There is a low toxicity to humans, pets, and birds and does not leave behind any toxic residue. Be careful you don’t burn the leaves of your plants when you use this oil. Rotenone and Pyrethrum are most readily available ones and are often used in combination. They are derived from the roots of tropical legumes. It generally comes in powder form that is dusted onto the plant. These will inhibit the cellular process thus depriving insects of oxygen in their tissue cells. This is a broad spectrum pesticide and can be used with many types of pests. If you are using a spray, dilute it in water and use only as needed. Of course, follow application directions on the label. The best time to apply sprays and powders is in the evening or in early morning. And always read the labels of anything you buy commercially. Just because a pesticide is organic doesn’t mean it isn’t toxic. You don’t HAVE to use anything on your plants if you depend on other animals to help you control pests.
Posted on Feb 27, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
You’ve spent quite a bit time and effort to make sure your garden is laid out in the most promising way and considering how best to grow that garden organically. Now you need to take care of your plot. Plants need light and water to grow. The light is already taken care of by Mother Nature; you have to take care of the water! Watering the garden every evening after dinner can be good therapy for the gardener, but it’s not good for the plants. When the soil is often sprinkled on top but never deeply soaked, plant roots tend to remain in the damp, upper few inches of soil where they are vulnerable to searing mid-summer heat and drought. Vegetable plants need an average of 2-inches of water a week. Be sure to water thoroughly so the soil is soaked to a depth of 4 to 6-inches. This will encourage roots to grow deep. Germinating seeds and seedlings need to be kept uniformly moist without being washed away, so water them with a gentle spray every day or two. Developing plants need to be watered deeply, but less often, to encourage deep root growth. Water to a depth of at least 6 inches and then let the surface inch or two completely dry out before watering again. As a general guideline, garden plants that have been watered properly, and therefore have developed deep roots, need a thorough watering every 5 to 7 days in hot weather. Hand watering delivers water directly to the plants, thus eliminating waste, but it takes time. Spot check to make sure you are delivering enough water, and be careful to give all areas of the garden adequate coverage. Sprinklers have the disadvantage of wasting water by watering paths and other open spots in the garden. They also lose water to evaporation and wind drift. Because they wet the foliage, sprinklers also can promote the development of leaf diseases. However, sprinklers are easier and eliminate the need to stand outside holding a hose for 20 minutes – especially if you have a large garden. If you use oscillating sprinklers, elevate them above the tallest plants so the water streams are not blocked. To make sure all of your plants are watered, place sprinklers so their patterns overlap. Runoff indicates you need to water at a slower rate. You can also consider taking a simple garden hose and making your own irrigation system by poking holes in the top of it at uniform angles. Simply place this hose between the rows of plants and move when the watering is done in that particular section. You should generally water your garden in the early evening when it is cooler. This will reduce the chance of evaporation from the hot sun and heat. Early morning watering is fine, but less effective. Be wary of over-watering your garden. This can cause your plants to be less successful and produce disappointing yields. Generally, the first few weeks after planting and transplanting and during the development of fruit or storage organs are times when plants may be adversely affected by shortages of water, so water plentifully during these times. Obviously, Mother Nature will provide you with some of her water as well. Monitor your rain levels and check to be sure that your garden has enough moisture if it has rained to see if you need to add to it. Healthy plants that produce a wealth of healthy food can get a well needed boost from some type of fertilizer. Composting can provide this, but there are other ways to fertilize. One of the best sources of organic fertilizer is animal manure. Cow, chicken, rabbit, horse and mink are among the most readily available in many parts of the world. It is best to use them after they have had a chance to rot for a few years. They provide some plant nutrients, favorable bacteria, humus, better aeration and they help retain more moisture when they are mixed with your garden soil. Manures are available from dairy farms, riding stables, and poultry farms. Usually you will have to pick them up from these sources, using your own truck. Sometimes firms that deliver soils or mulches will also stock and deliver one or two types of fresh or well-rotted animal manures. A check of the want-ad section of the newspaper will often reveal additional sources of supply. If you use fresh manures, they are best applied in the fall, as they are apt to burn or retard plants if they are applied during the spring, growing season. Well-rotted manures can be used in the spring. You should apply the fertilizer around the base of the plant. You can use either fresh or rotted manure to make a liquid-tea to feed plants. The tea is usually made of one part of manure and ten parts of water. Let it set for several days before you use it then spray directly on the plant. The process-dried manures are often available at garden shops and can be used for top-dressing or they may be mixed into the planting soil. Fish meal, blood meal, bone meal, animal manures, cottonseed meal and processed sewage sludge are organic sources for nitrogen fertilizer. Phosphate rock and bone meal are the two organic fertilizers used to supply phosphorus. Wood ashes and rock potash are the two main sources of organic potassium. Your local garden department will generally stock any of the above organic fertilizers. You can also make your own fertilizer. Look in our recipe section! When it comes to fertilizers, Seed meals and various kinds of lime are the most important ingredients. These alone will grow a great garden. Seed meals are byproducts of making vegetable oil. They are made from soybeans, flaxseed, sunflowers, cotton seeds, canola and other plants. Different regions of the country have different kinds more readily available. Seed meals are stable and will store for years if kept dry and protected from pests in a metal container with a tight lid. Lime is ground, natural rock containing large amounts of calcium, and there are three types. Agricultural lime is relatively pure calcium carbonate. Gypsum is calcium sulfate and is included because sulfur is a vital plant nutrient. Dolomite, or dolomitic lime, contains both calcium and magnesium carbonates, usually in more or less equal amounts. If you have to choose one kind, it probably should be dolomite, but you’ll get a better result using all three types. These substances are not expensive if bought in large sacks from agricultural suppliers. Organic fertilizers are much more conducive to the environment and the health value of our foods than the traditional chemical fertilizers. Why? Organic fertilizers, manures and composts release their nutrient content only as they decompose — as they are slowly broken down by the complex ecology of living creatures in the soil. Complete decomposition of most organic fertilizers takes around two months in warm soil. During that time, they steadily release nutrients. With non-organic fertilizers, overdosing can be a real problem. They are so strong that it’s easy for inexperienced gardeners to cross the line between just enough and too much. Yet, despite their strength, inexpensive blends are incomplete. They supply only nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Unless the manufacturer intentionally adds other essential minerals, the chemical mix won’t supply them. Chemical fertilizers rarely contain calcium or magnesium, which plants need in large amounts along with tiny traces of several other minerals. Inexpensive chemical fertilizers dissolve quickly in soil. This usually results in a rapid burst of plant growth, followed five or six weeks later by a big sag requiring yet another application. Should it rain hard, the chemicals dissolved in the soil water will be transported as deeply into the earth as the water penetrates (this is called “leaching”), so deep that the plant’s roots can’t reach them. With one heavy rain or one too-heavy watering, your fertile topsoil becomes infertile. The chemicals also can pollute groundwater. The risk of leaching is especially great in soils that contain little or no clay. Chemical fertilizers can be made to be “slow-release,” but these sorts cost several times as much as those that dissolve rapidly in water. The seed meals in an organic fertilizer mix are natural slow-release fertilizers, and they usually are less expensive than slow-release chemical products. You should fertilize your plants once every three to four weeks. You will want to pay attention to how your plants are doing and fertilize accordingly. Some plants need more fertilization attention than others. Beans, peas, and carrots are among the low demand vegetables for fertilizing. They need fewer requirements for additional nutrients than the medium demand plants. Most garden plants are medium demand plants. These would include tomatoes, corn, squash, zucchini, cabbage and peppers. Be careful not to over-fertilize these plants. A good rule of thumb is 4-6 quarts of fertilizer per 100 square feet with a 1/4 inch layer of compost. Some high demand vegetables are artichokes, cauliflower, turnips, and spinach. These will require the same 4-6 quarts of fertilizer per 100 square feet, but you need to increase the compost layer to 1/2″. High-demand vegetables are sensitive, delicate species and usually will not thrive unless grown in light, loose and always-moist soil that provides the highest level of nutrition. Of course, you need to stay on top of the weeding to insure your plants have enough room to grow and that those weeds don’t steal away their food! We suggest tending the garden at the same time every day. Morning would be best since it is cooler during the summer and you won’t have to bear the oppressive heat. Don’t let the weeds take control. This is why we recommend doing so every day so that you won’t have a huge job if you neglect it for a week or so. Taking care of a garden might require you to get on your hands and knees to pull weeds from the middle of your bean plants or cabbage rows, so do this. It’ll save stress on your back and, of course, bring you closer to the natural environment that is your organic garden! Then just sit back and wait for the benefits of your garden – fresh produce! Of course, the successful gardener knows that once cold weather arrives, their job isn’t quite done.
Posted on Feb 26, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
Birds, ladybugs and praying mantises are the gardener’s best friends when it comes to insect control. Birds can be encouraged into the garden by feeding, hanging a birdhouse providing a bird bath or by planting plants that provide berries for them to eat. Ladybugs are now for sale by the pint, quart or gallon. The average-sized garden can get by on a quart or less, as there will be about 25 to 30 thousand bugs per quart. The cost is generally less than five dollars a quart. The average adult ladybug consumes between 40 and 50 aphids a day. Praying mantis cases are also available and each one hatches up to 400 young. The cost is rather nominal for a case. A few gardeners have reported that this insect disappears rather rapidly from the garden, so you might want to experiment with just a few to begin with. They will eat any insect they can catch. Frogs and lizards can also control pests by eating them. You can make your garden hospitable for your natural allies by keeping a water source – just a dish full – nearby for them and by not wiping out the entire pest population with a pesticide, sending the beneficial elsewhere in search of food. Also, grow plants with small blossoms like sweet alyssum and dill, which attract predatory insects who feed on flowers’ nectar between attacks on pests. Organic pest control is a comprehensive approach instead of a chemical approach. Create a healthy biodiversity so that the insects and microbes will control themselves. Using natural products and building healthy soil is the best long-term treatment for pests. What are the pests you should be looking for? There are literally hundreds of common garden pests that can attack your plants and threaten the viability of your gardening efforts. We couldn’t possibly address all of them. There are, however, some that occur in more frequency than others. Aphids are probably the most common problem in gardens. Aphids are soft, pear-shaped, and very tiny (1/16 to 3/8 inch long). Two short tubes project backward from the tip of their abdomen. Aphids have long antennae. Some types of aphids have wings, which are transparent, longer than their body, and held like a roof over their back. Aphids may be green, pink, yellowish, black, or powdery gray. Nymphs resemble adults but are smaller and wingless. They feed in colonies, so where there’s one, there’s definitely more. Aphid feeding can cause leaves to curl and become deformed. Once this has happened, the aphids are protected from any treatment you give to the plant, so it’s important to attack the problem as soon as possible. Many species prefer the underside of leaves, so look there first. Ants are usually present where aphids are, so if there are ants in the garden, there are probably aphids as well. Aphids are the ant’s food source, so they will protect that food warding off predators that might threaten them. To naturally control aphids, first be sure to drench plants with strong sprays of water from a garden hose. Keep your plants as healthy as possible, and spray dormant oil to control over wintering eggs. You can also spray plants with insecticidal soap, summer oil, and homemade garlic sprays. At the end of the book, we’ll have some recipes like this for you to make yourself. If you will be growing cabbage, broccoli, or cauliflower, you could have cabbage loopers. These pests are light green in color with white stripes running down their back. The larvae can reach approximately 11/2 inches long and have three pairs of slender legs near the head and three pairs of larger legs at the rear end. The middle section is legless and is looped when the insect is moving. The larva is the damaging stage of the cabbage looper. The young larvae feed between the veins on the undersides of leaves. Large larvae make ragged holes in the foliage and move to the center of the plant where feeding generally occurs at the base of the cabbage head. Large loopers can also burrow through three to six layers of tightly wrapped head leaves. The best way to control cabbage loopers is to handpick the larvae a few times a week. Attract predatory and parasitic insects to the garden with pollen and nectar plants. If you find small holes in the leaves of your plants, you may have earwigs. Earwigs are generally dark brown, slender and elongated. They have a pair of “pincers” at the rear of their body and they run more than fly. They have a curved up abdomen and release foul odor when disturbed. In general, earwigs can be beneficial to your garden, but they can get out of control, so you should use the general spray we’ll give you later in the book. There are a number of ways to control earwigs, but trapping them is probably the best way to eliminate them from your garden. One way we like is to take a shallow dish and place beer in it. Any beer will do. The earwigs will be attracted to the beer, climb in, drink, and die. You can sift out the dead ones and reuse the beer for trapping again. They are also attracted to corn oil, fish oil, or water and vinegar. You can place these in dishes just like the beer. If the leaves of your plants are finely speckled with yellow spots or a silvery, metallic sheen, you could have thrips. Thrips are very small – about 1/16″ – and difficult to see. There are many varieties of thrips and they are of all different colors. Thrips are best controlled with sprays as we’ve described. You can also spray the plants with soapy water. Lady bugs will eat thrips as well, so attract those lady bugs to your garden! Tomato hornworms are the largest caterpillars found in this area and can measure up to 4 inches in length. The prominent “horn” on the rear of both gives them their name. Hornworms are often difficult to see because of their protective coloring which is green. Not much for the heat of direct sunlight, they tend to feed on the interior of the plant during the day and are more easily spotted when they move to the outside of the plant at dawn and dusk Hornworm damage usually begins to occur in midsummer and continues throughout the remainder of the growing season. The size of these garden pests allows them to quickly defoliate tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, and peppers. Occasionally, they may also feed on green fruit. Gardeners are likely to spot the large areas of damage at the top of a plant before they see the culprit. The best way to control hornworms is to handpick them off your plants. They are especially susceptible to the Bt bacterial spray we described above, so we strongly suggest using this to control your hornworms. Slugs are among the most troublesome pests in the garden. They feed on a variety of living plants and decaying plant matter. On plants they chew irregular holes with smooth edges in leaves and can clip succulent plant parts. They can also chew fruit and young plant bark. Because they prefer succulent foliage, they are primarily pests of seedlings, herbaceous plants, and ripening fruit such as strawberries, artichokes, and tomatoes that are close to the ground. However, they will also feed on fruit of some trees, citrus is especially susceptible to damage. Slugs are nocturnal and come out at night. They slither under rocks and leaves in the day. Holes chomped into leaves and fruits are telltale signs of slug feeding. A more certain sign of slug activity is the silvery trail of dried mucous that these pests leave in their wake. If that’s not sufficiently convincing, go out into the garden at night with a flashlight and surprise them. Slug control is actually quite easy. They are rather large, so they can be caught by hand and disposed of. This is another garden pest that be caught by setting out a dish of beer. While possibly cruel, the most effective way to kill a slug is to sprinkle it with salt. You can trap the slugs by placing a plastic bag in the garden containing two decaying lettuce leaves, 2 cups of bran cereal, and pouring beer over the whole mess. Put the bag out before sundown. In the morning, check to see if the slugs are in there and dispose of them. Prevent slug infestation by removing dead and decaying leaves. This will remove their primary food source. Coffee grounds and egg shells will also keep slugs away. Just place them around the plants you want to protect at ground level.
Posted on Feb 23, 2010 under dried foliage | Comments are off
Perennials are the shining stars in a full bloom garden. Every year I look forward to planning and planting perennial flowers. It’s probably my favorite garden experience. Because they blossom only three to six weeks you want to insure you always have plants in bloom. So just like annuals, you need to be aware of your plants specific growing needs. Be aware of their climate zones.
Perennials are a little fussier than annuals to temperature requirements. We generally buy our flowers from our garden center in order to take advantage of the short bloom seasons of these plants. The majority of perennials require well-drained soil conditions. If you have low lying areas in your garden it would be wise to not plant perennials there because standing water and soggy soil can damage the roots and very likely kill your plants.
If your garden annuals and other assorted plants require a richer soil than most perennials like you can find some perennials that also prefer those conditions. This goes back to knowing the plants requirements and if you can provide the optimum growing conditions for them. Talk to other gardeners that may be able to provide tips on your particle planting needs.
Perennials need less watering than your vegetables. My suggestion is to just keep an eye on them. If you notice they are beginning to wilt you know they are thirsty. Water the plants when they are young, or during unusually dry conditions. Make sure to water deeply or skip watering all together.
Keep in mind when your design your garden flowers to keep the shorter plants up front so as not to be hidden by the taller plants. When we plant our flowers we try to plant contrasting foliages next to each. This is our favorite method because the foliage contrast can be as appealing as your flowers. Water your perennials after you transplant them. After digging the hole fill it with water and let it drain before placing your plant in the hole. Water the plants deeply.
I hope you enjoy planning and planting your perennials as much as we do!
