Posts Tagged ‘gardening’

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Basic Tips for Gardening in Containers

Thursday, July 29th, 2010

Here are several basic tips for gardening in containers.
Firstly, use a good quality potting mix for the soil in your container. Potting mix that includes perlite, peat, and a wetting agent, will be a light, nutrient-rich soil to get your plants off to a good start.

Garden soil from your back yard can compact and turn concrete-like after regular watering. If this happens, the plant roots will cease growing as they need a good open soil to allow for the roots to travel and for absorbing nutrients. Quite often, depending on your geographic location, there may well be a high percentage of clay in the soil from your yard.

Not only will a high clay content shrink as it dries, but indeed dry to a close representation of something kiln-fired. Just to add to the misery, clay will not absorb water. It will hold water, most certainly and you will be able to see it too – sitting on top.

Although you can find some plants that indeed handle high clay content, how many others do you wish to kill in order to find out? Also, it is a pretty safe bet, that any decorative plants you purchase, will not be able to endure such rigors.

Do not use pure compost, either. Compost will quickly shrink and may very well harbour insects, disease, or un-composted material that will rot the roots of your potted plants. Unless you are desperate, try not to re-use the spent potting mix from last year’s pots, or plants passed their prime. This is no better than using half-flat batteries in some device, namely, it is a waste of time.

Good potting mix is relatively cheap, so do your plants and yourself a favour, get fresh soil. If you insist on using old soil, you are going to have to feed your plants a lot more frequently. The soil from spent pot plants, is best incorporated into the compost heap, to ultimately be revitalized through that process, to be mixed with the following year’s soil mix.

Do not over-feed your container plants. This will only lead to an over-abundance of leaves, or long sappy growth that is easily damaged and susceptible to insect attack. Fish-emulsion, or seaweed-emulsion, will provide all the trace elements plants require and it comes highly recommended.

Liquid plant foods promote healthy growth for strong plants. The addition of a little slow-release fertiliser beads, will attend to the plant’s needs on those occasions that the liquid feed is forgotten.

When watering plants in containers, regardless of the size of the pot, be sure to soak it completely at each watering. This does not mean that you keep watering, until it runs out the bottom of the pot. A far better method of making sure the plant has enough water, is to either soak the entire pot in a bucket of water, or, if the container is too large to be moved – water it a number of times throughout the day.

To clarify watering of the larger containers, as you water it throughout the day, use a full watering-can with a rose spray head each time. If you merely place a hose slowly trickling into the container, the water will probably form channels via unseen air-pockets and cracks in the soil, to the bottom of the pot.

Apart from a shallow area below the top of the soil and, around those channels, little else gets the needed moisture. You see the water running out the bottom and think “good-o”, but little has actually been achieved for the water requirements of the plant.

These few basic tips for gardening in containers, should help you to get started with potted plants.

 

 

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Bonsai Do Grow Outside

Friday, April 23rd, 2010

Bonsai trees and plants are essentially specimen plants that are trimmed and cut to maintain their size to a pre-determined dwarfish state. For those people unfamiliar with the actual process of Bonsai, it is often presumed that this miniature form is achieved through depredations, such as starvation , radical root and branch hacking, and a general degradation of the plants overall living environment. Such as you would see a naturally occurring Bonsai, growing on the side of a wind-swept and inhospitable mountain-side.

However, the fact of the matter is that Bonsai are happy little plants indeed. They actually thrive on this process, considering the care and maintenance lavished upon them. You see, because the plant is being forced into an unnatural living state, if it were not given the extra care, more like as not the poor thing would just drop dead.

Think about it: jammed into a tiny pot; the roots are serially pruned to suit the size of that pot; the foliage is trimmed and primped so that it is proportional to the size of the pot; generally trained into contorted shapes to affect the look of incredible age like that poor thing growing on the mountain-side; AND, here’s the kicker, some Bonsai have been handed down through generations within a family and can reach incredible ages of 500 years and more.

There are in fact, very few plants, on the planet, that are able to achieve this state of grace in the wild. So, is “Bonsai” being cruel to plants? Er, no. Quite the opposite. I discuss “Naturally Occurring Bonsai, Wild Bonsai, Environmentally Dwarfed Plants”, in another article.

Bonsai specimens for indoors are available for purchase from essentially anyplace in the world and the popularity of the hobby, has to contributed to the growth of suppliers specializing in the sale, care and maintenance of Bonsai plants.

Bonsai do grow outside, and it is a relatively easy thing to do, if you have a little area of the patio or similar area to spare. You may very well be surprised at how much happier your Bonsai is, if you put it outside. It will pay to purchase your specimen from a local nursery, where the plants are already kept outside.

If you buy the plant from an outlet where all the plants are under flouro. lights, then take it home and bung it outside, you are already on the back foot. These plants will be “soft” and completely unprepared to contend with the conditions you are about to force it to put up with.

Similarly, if you already have a Bonsai indoors and think you can just chuck it out on the patio, please disabuse yourself of the notion. Any plant, whether store bought, or currently residing indoors, that is “soft” – needs to be gradually introduced to the outside environment, if it is to remain there for any length of time. You must acclimatise it: to direct sunlight, temperature fluctuations, and general environmental factors such as wind, etc.

At the same time, if you live in the extreme hot areas of your country and are thinking about purchasing from the Internet, make sure the plant does not come from a cool climate, as this is just a recipe for disaster, if not tears.

Purely because you have decided to grow your Bonsai out in the garden, doesn’t mean you can just walk away and ignore them, expecting them to preserve their miniature height, or even survive for that matter. A Bonsai that isn’t trimmed and properly maintained will discontinue being a Bonsai, and simply become a sapling, and an ugly one at that. Maintenance, means precisely what it says. You must maintain the plant, with the lifestyle it was previously accustomed to.

When you have an out of doors Bonsai, do try and resist the temptation to bring it inside, for more than a day or two at a time – and then, only for display, or bragging purposes. Should your prized specimen appears to be sick, it will without doubt, not enjoy the rapid alteration to it’s growing environment. It’s really crucial to remember this, do not bring an out of doors Bonsai indoors for a longer period than one evening each season.

Dragging your Bonsai indoors throughout the winter months, where no doubt there is a  raging heater for the comfort of humans, will dry the plant out, likely scorch the leaves, and also dehydrate the roots. The opposite can also happen, where an outside Bonsai in the high temperatures of summer, is brought indoors where there is air Conditioning. The shock to the plant is the same as frost in summer and can also destroy your Bonsai.

Do Bonsai grow outside? Sure, just remember that this is a plant that requires a little more specialised treatment than a pot of geraniums. Supplying your outdoor Bonsai with the care a maintenance the plant needs, will see it flourish.

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You Can Grow Organic Vegetables At Home

Saturday, July 11th, 2009

Anybody can do organic vegetable gardening at home because the principle behind this is not that different from what they do in the farm. The only difference is that you work in a smaller area and you get to choose what you like plant.

The first thing you have to do is find an ideal location. A lot of people do organic vegetable gardening in their backyard. To make it work, whatever you are planting should get at least 6 hours of sunlight everyday and access to water.

Just like the ancient civilizations that relied on an efficient irrigation system, you too should do the same by making sure there is adequate drainage because if you don’t, you will have to do organic vegetable gardening using a raise bed.

When your ideal location has been found, it is time to cultivate the land. For that, you will need your gardening tools and a pair of gloves to pluck out the weeds on the ground. This might take a few days to make sure the area is ready for planting.

You will only know if the ground you are going to plant your vegetable is a good spot by testing it with some compost and mixing this with the soil. Should it be able to integrate and stabilize itself with the soil, this means that you can start planting your crops and see it grow in the succeeding weeks.

If you don’t like to buy compost from the gardening store, you can make your own using coffee grounds, dead leaves, grass clippings, food waste or even manure. They also serve as excellent fertilizers.

As for your vegetables, take note that some of these may not be suitable in the land you are planting these on. This is because of several factors that are beyond your control such as the weather, pests and other plant borne diseases. You can avoid making this mistake by doing some research on what vegetables are ideal to plant in your area and asking fellow organic gardeners.

One way to protect the organic vegetables you are planting is by planting a variety of them at a time since some of these protect each other from pests. Such practice is better known as crop rotation especially when you want to adapt with the weather in your area. Another defense system that works is getting the help of Mother Nature as birds, certain insects and even toads have proven to be useful.

If you live in an area where wild animals may eat your vegetables, you should put up fences so they are not able to get through. Other tools you can use are animal hair, baby powder and deodorant soaps.

Part of preparing the land is removing the weeds. But remember that new weeds grow after some time so you have to inspect the area from time to time.

Planting your own organic vegetable garden at home will surely save you money as these are quite expensive in the supermarket. If you have some excess stocks when it is time to harvest them, maybe you can give some to your neighbors or make some money by selling it at the local market which isn’t that bad given that you don’t shell out that much cash for this investment.

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Why Is Organic Vegetable Gardening So Important These Days

Saturday, July 11th, 2009

Organic vegetable gardening seems to be the trend these days as more people have become conscious of what they are eating. This is because conventional methods which involve the use of harmful chemicals may enter our systems.

In order to control the problem, the US Department of Agriculture has issued a new directive. This encourages farmers to shift to organic farming.

With organic farming, farmers will no longer need to plant crops using genetic engineering, irradiation and sewage sludge. Instead, this will be replaced with crop rotation.

Crop rotation is the practice of planting a different crop in the same area where another crop once occupied. This keeps the soil’s nutrients fertile so it can be used again in the following season.

If you think about it, this approach is easier said than done as farmers are accustomed to the old ways of doing it. To help them change their minds, the government offers incentives and subsidies to farmers who decide to follow this plan.

But the main reason why organic vegetable gardening is so important is the fact that the crops harvested have 50% more nutrients and vitamins compared to that of conventional farming methods.

This means the food they consume will reduce the risk of people suffering from a number of diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and certain cancers.

Children who drink milk will be able to get more anti-oxidants, CLA, Omega 3 and vitamins when this is extracted from pastured grazed cows that will really strengthen their bones and muscles.

You can buy organically grown vegetables from the supermarket. The sad part is the almost everywhere you go, although the packaging comes from Department of Health, Quality Assurance International, California Certified Organic Farmers or the Oregon Tilth Farm Verified Organic, most of these are only 50% to 70% organic.

This is why homeowners who want to eat 100% organic vegetables are encouraged to grow these themselves.

There are two ways to make this happen. First, you buy the seedlings until they grow so you can harvest the. Second, you buy them fully grown and then just plant it into the ground.

Most people prefer the first because it makes them proud to know that what is served on the table was done from scratch.

In both cases, you have to prepare the soil, use compost and make sure that these are safe from threats such as insects, weeds and other animals that will eat what you have planted.

You can fight these with other animals, insects, organic fertilizers, deodorant soap and a few other items which you can find out after doing some research.

For those who don’t have a big garden, they can try growing these organically grown vegetables in containers. They require more water than those planted in the soil so give doses frequently.

There is no doubt that organic vegetables and other products are important these days. If you value your health and those of your family you can buy these from the store or plant it yourself.

For those who decide to buy organically grown vegetables, remember to wash before cooking them. This will remove any harmful substances or residue that may still be there which is invisible to the naked eye.

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What Is Organic Vegetable Gardening

Saturday, July 11th, 2009

Vegetables should be part of everyone’s diet. If you don’t want to spend a little bit more for those organically grown and sold in the supermarket, perhaps you should consider planting your own in the garden. It is very easy to do that even your kids can join in the fun.

Organic vegetable gardening is the “in thing” these days as people have realized that the use of fertilizers and pesticides do more harm than good. Yes it will make the vegetables bigger or enable the farmer to harvest them faster but the chemicals used in making this happen could be detrimental to the health of those who eat it.

But since the early farmers never did that and relied only on sunlight and irrigation, this concept is making a comeback. These will also enable you to this at home since you have access to the three most basic things namely soil, water and sunlight.

What kind of organic vegetables can you plant? Well, just about everything. Some examples of these include broccoli, cabbage, carrots, onions, potatoes and a lot more. You just have to know which of them can be planted during the different seasons of the year.

Proper drainage is important for your vegetables. If there isn’t, you can check if it is feasible to grow these using a raise bed.

When you have done your research, you can now buy the seeds from the store. These are usually sold in packets so don’t forget to read the instructions before using them.

Planting the seeds for your organic vegetable gardening is the second phase of this operation. The challenging part is making sure nothing happens to it until the time comes that this will be harvested.

Your vegetables may be under attack by pests, weeds and other animals. To prevent this from happening, you need to get a bird, a toad and even other insects to eat them. For weeds, the only thing you can do is pull these one by one from the ground. As for other animals, putting up fences and using animal hair, baby powder or deodorant soaps seems to be a good deterrent.

Mulch is another solution. This can be made from chipped barks, garden compost, leaf moulds and manure. It must be applied at 3 to 4 inches or 8 to 10 cm from the ground in order for it to be effective.

Some organically grown vegetables can also be done indoors. Take for example that tomato that can be grown using an organic container made out of clay, plastic or wood. Just don’t forget to give it some water daily and sunlight so it can grow.

You can place the containers outside during the day and if the weather is too cold, bring them indoors and put them somewhere else like in the western or southern windows of your home.

One more thing you have to remember about growing organic vegetables in such containers is not to use soil but rather a mixture of peat, perlite and vermiculite.

Organic vegetable gardening is challenging but it pays off when you are able to reap what you sow. This means additional savings and maybe even a small business if you want to sell whatever excess you have in the market.

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