In The Garden Planning Before Planting Is Key
By admin | November 9, 2008
How many times have you gone to the garden store and bought some plants that you absolutely loved only to get home and not be able to find a suitable place in the garden?
Getting the right look in you garden takes a lot of planning. You simply can’t go to the garden store and randomly choose plants as there are many things to consider such as light conditions, soil conditions and surrounding plants. A well planned garden will have plants that thrive and compliment each other but a randomly chosen garden will look haphazard and may even be bad for the health of your plants.
Before you purchase your plants evaluate your garden for how much sun and shade it gets and in what areas. Consider whether the soil is well drained or has standing water and whether it is sheltered or windy. Then when you go to the garden store, buy only plants that will thrive in your garden; shade-loving plants for the shady areas, sun-lovers for those sunny spots, swamp plants for areas with poor drainage and drought-resistant plants for those areas that don’t stay wet enough.
Another thing that many gardeners fail to consider is the PH of the soil. Is your soil acidic or alkaline? Most plants prefer soil that is a bit on the acidic side, but there are some that need alkaline soil to grow. You ca change the PH level of your soil, but it’s just easier to buy plants that like the PH of the soil you already have.
Another thing to consider is how and where to plant your plants. Do you want a lot of greenery or a splashy show of colors? Narrow down your choices of plants to just a few and buy many of each kind. If you plant ‘one of everything’ your garden may seem rather spotty. Planting in groups is much more aesthetically pleasing as well as harmonious.
One thing you might try is to draw out your garden on a piece of paper. This doesn’t have to be a masterpiece painting just a simple sketch. Get some colored pencils or even crayons and add the colors of the flowers you want to plant. Are the colors pleasing together? If so you have a plan, if not it’s back to the drawing board.
Before planting, you can put the plants around the garden bed in their pots to see how they will look. This will allow you to move them around and rearrange until you get the look just right. Grouping of plants in odd numbers look best so try putting groups of 3 or 5 of the same plant together. Combine colors and textures to add interest and always put the taller plants in the back and shorter ones in the front. If your garden can be viewed from all sides as opposed to being up against a fence or house then put the taller plants in the center.
One final consideration is the blooming season. Many plants only bloom for a short period of time so if you want continual color all season you will have to grow plants that flower during the different periods of the season. Plant flowers with different bloom times next to each other and you will always have a flower blooming in that spot in the garden. Also, don’t forget the foliage. Many flower plants have silver, grey or purplish foliage that is just as attractive as the flower. This means that they are still attractive well past the blooming season!
Lee Dobbins writes for Backyard Garden And Patio where you can get more great gardening and landscaping tips.
Tags: flowers, Garden, gardening, planting, plantsExtend Your Gardening Into Fall and Winter
By admin | June 22, 2008
It’s hard to imagine but mid to late summertime is the time to start your cool weather fall crops in your garden. But on the other hand, you will have more success than when you tried starting seeds in the spring! No way, you say. Yes indeed. Not only is the soil now warm and toasty, but the insects that ravaged your broccoli and lettuce have either morphed into something and flown away or have moved on.
You can now direct sow into soil so save time and expense by not having to start indoors with the costs of potting soil, trays, pots etc. and same time by not having to transplant in four to six weeks. Of course I am not talking about melons, corn, squashes, or outdoor tomatoes here. I am talking about root crops and cool weather crops like broccoli, lettuce, spinach, etc.
As in the spring, prepare your seeding beds before sowing. If you are following a summer crop that is done, be sure to add lots of organic matter to the soil as you work it, to put back nutrients for your new crop.
Sow the seeds as per directions on the packet and water in. It is important to keep the seedling bed moist until the the plants have germinated and are well established. I believe that a row cover such as Remay is a good idea. Keeps the soil and plants a little cooler during the day as well as keeps the insects out. May remove the row cover for pollination purposes or to add mulch around your established plants. Speaking of mulch, this is a great way to keep the plant roots cool and retain moisture for the growing plants. Some gardeners provide some shade from the sun by propping up some boards or even a canopy cover to keep the hot summer sun from directly hitting the soil and “cooking” it. Remember, seeds don’t need direct sunshine until after they germinate. The warned soil and moisture will do the job.
So when do you sow your seeds for fall crops? Easy! Take the maturity date from the seed packet and backtrack the required number of days. For example, leaf lettuce takes 45-60 days on average, so if your first frost date is Oct 31, then count back 60 days. Now you know you should be planting lettuce mid to late August. Successive plantings is the key here. Keep planting a new row each week up until Labor Day! Because lettuce can take a light frost if protected, you will probably get another week or two into November!
Here is a list of appropriate vegetable crops for fall harvesting:
Plant long-term, frost-tolerant vegetables together.
Frost- tolerant vegetables include beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, chard, collards, garlic, kale, lettuce, mustard, onions, parsley, spinach and turnips.
Keep in mind the relative maturity rate, average height (in feet) and frost sensitivity of the crop of various garden vegetables with FS meaning frost-susceptible crops which will be killed or injured by temperatures below 32 degrees F. and FT meaning frost-tolerant crops which can withstand temperatures below 32 degrees F.
The quick (30-60 days) maturing vegetables are: beets (1 1/2 feet) FT; bush beans (1 1/2 feet) FS; leaf lettuce (1 foot) FT; mustard (1 1/2 feet) FT; radishes (1 1/2 feet) FT; spinach (1 foot) FT; summer squash (3 feet) FS; turnips (1 1/2 feet) FT; and turnip greens (1 1/2 feet) FT.
The moderate (60-80 days) maturing vegetables are: broccoli (3 feet) FT; Chinese cabbage (1 1/2 feet) FT; carrots (1 foot) FT; cucumbers (1 foot) FS; corn (6 feet) FS; green onions (1 1/2 feet) FT; kohlrabi (1 1/2 feet) FT; lima bush beans (1 1/2 feet) FS; okra (6 feet) FS; parsley (1 1/2 feet) FT; peppers (3 feet) FS; and cherry tomatoes (4 feet) FS.
The slow (80 days or more) maturing vegetables are: Brussels sprouts (2 feet) FT; bulb onions (1 1/2 feet) FT; cabbage (1 1/2 feet) FT; cantaloupes (1 foot) FS; cauliflower (3 feet) FT; eggplant (3 feet) FS; garlic (1 foot) FT; Irish potatoes (2 feet) FS; pumpkins (2 feet) FS; sweet potatoes (2 feet) FS; tomatoes (4 feet) FS; watermelon (1 foot) FS; and winter squash (1 foot) FS.
OK, now you have your plants established and growing well. You need some protection from fall’s early frosty nights. Some people are able to keep a “greens” garden growing through mid winter depending on how they protect the plants, available sunshine and soil temperature. Here in the Pacific Northwest, it is not unusual for those who live in the mild maritime costal weather patterns, to be able to garden nearly year round!
When the weather man predicts a frosty evening then the quickest and easiest way to protect a plant overnight is a light cover, such as plastic sheeting, a bed sheet, newspaper, bubble wrap, or what is handy.
Please remove the cover in the morning so the plants get sunshine and air circulation.
Another inexpensive way to protect small plants is of course, the milk jug with the bottom cut off. Be sure to push the bottom edges into the dirt a little to prevent cold air from creeping in underneath.
Another freebie idea, using discarded window panes as a mini solar greenhouse! I would throw a sheet of plastic or bed sheet over the whole thing at night so as to keep cold drafts from stealing in and ruining your crop. Again, remove your overnight cover during the day to allow circulation. A good idea is to place a small thermometer inside where you can see it so you know what the daytime temperature is. That way, if the temp is getting too warm, you can remove your window pane structure so your plants don’t get cooked!
Another inexpensive but very worthy item to have for winter gardening is a cold frame!
Since you can’t work on your plant bed from one side where the window or cover is, I would plan mine to be three feet wide and six feet long. These work great on a raised bed too! For insulation, consider a layer of styrofoam around the inside walls.
Building material can be most any wood planks with cedar and redwood being the least likely to have to be replaced in time.
This last garden cover is a little more involved but I found quite interesting. The full plans can be found in “Gardening Under Cover” from Sasquatch Books, Seattle, Wa. Basically it is framed with PVC pipe and then covered with plastic. I would use the greenhouse type of plastic that is resistant to UV rays as the cheap plastic found in your local hardware store gets brittle and cracks into a zillion peices within one year of use but can be used “on the cheap” for one growing season. The PVC frame is attached to a wooden frame by drilled screws, then the plastic is put on and at each corner, the excess plastic is pulled out to a point and folded back on the frame like a hospital sheet corner. The plastic is then stapled onto the frame and cover with duct tape for stability. The entire bottom is stapled one more time and you are done! Lightweight, portable and inexpensive. Great way to cover a larger bed. Can be easily lifted by hand for watering or weeding. We use this idea for individual “mini greenhouse” for our baby giant pumpkin plants in the spring.
Place some wooden stakes (three or more on each side) around the frame to keep it from being blown off by winds.
Well, there it is. I hope you enjoyed this article and got a few ideas.
Joyce Moore is an avid gardener and owner/operator of http://www.virtualseeds.com Stop by her site to view more gardening tutorials.
Tags: fall, Garden, gardener, growing, harvest, plants, winterConstructing a Rock Garden
By admin | June 20, 2008
A rock garden should be constructed in an open sunny and well-drained position in the garden. No matter what size or shape it takes a rock garden must embrace the principles of a moraine. It should not be a mound of soil with rocks placed indiscriminately on it, but a collection of free-draining debris mixed with a gritty soil that is distributed through and around a rocky structure. Such an arrangement provides the perfect conditions for growing a wide array of fascinating mountain-dwelling plants.
There are a number of different stones that are readily available for rock garden construction. Sandstone, limestone, and granite are amongst the favorites, although most gardeners concede that a stone that is natural to the locality generally fits into the garden best of all. It is also less expensive because the transport costs have not been so great in getting it to the garden center. While it is possible to gather rocks that occur naturally, make sure that any possible conservation issues have been checked first. There may appear to be plenty of rocks scattered around the countryside locally, but their removal may not always be prudent or legal.
The rocks that are to form the base of the rock garden should first be selected and placed in position to create what almost amounts to a “retaining wall”. This outlines the contours of the feature. As far as possible a rock garden should look as if it is growing out of the landscape rather than it is sitting on it. There are many gardens that are homes to heaps of soil with rocks awkwardly protruding from them. Such rock gardens are generally referred to by professionals as “currant buns”, and are both visually unappealing and poor homes for most rock garden plants.
In order to create a natural-looking rock garden select a rock to provide the focal point. This is generally one of the largest rocks and is known as the key stone. It exposes at least two faces, often more, and it is from this that the remainder of the rocky outcrop develops. When placing rocks make sure that the strata runs in the same direction. If there are slight color variations create sufficient space between the rocks to allow for liberal planting. Two rocks of slightly variable color, which are separated by plant foliage, are no longer noticeably different.
Once the basal stones of the rock garden have been laid the area between should be filled with a mixture of about two thirds of broken stone or brick and one-third gritty soil. Having laid the base, filled the cavities, and generally formed a solid plateau, further stones can be lifted into position and the process repeated until the formation is of the desired shape and height. When completed, pockets between rocks that are to provide homes for plants with specialized requirements can be excavated and suitable compost introduced.
Philip Swindells has over 40 years gardening experience. A former botanical garden curator and an international horticultural consultant, he has worked extensively overseas. The Author of more than 50 gardening books, he has been awarded a Quill and Trowel Award by the Garden Writers’ Association of America. He is also a former UK Garden Writer of the Year. He writes a popular daily gardening blog with gardening news, views and updates http://www.gardenmessenger.blogspot.com/
Tags: alpine compost, construction, Garden, gardening, granite, limestone, plants, Rock, sandstone