Flowers/Plants/Trees

Home Garden Trap Crops

March 4, 2012 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

Trap crops aren’t often used in the home garden, even though they can be very effective at keeping pests away from the more desirable fruits and vegetables.

While there is quite a few trap crops, I’m only going to be talking about two, Sunflowers and Nasturtiums, which can both be grown for food themselves.

Home Garden Trap Crops

1. Sunflowers are best known for their beautiful flowers and the great tasting seeds.

Growing as little as 2 feet tall to 10 feet plus with a variety of colors, there’s a lot of diversity among these beautiful flowers.

The thing that makes them a good plant for the garden is the fondness that aphids and stink bugs have for them. This fondness for sunflowers provides these pests with a nice diversion, any aphids that are on a sunflower aren’t on your tomatoes.

2. Nasturtium, the flowers of genus Tropaeolum, not to be confused with the watercress with the genus name Nasturtium. Don’t worry about these scientific names, walk into a nursery or garden center and ask for Nasturtium, they’ll show you the right ones.

These plants are most often used as an ornamental flower, yet they are entirely edible with the flowers most commonly being used in salads, adding quite a bit of color and a slight peppery taste.

Nasturtiums can be used in the garden to draw aphids, whiteflies and cabbage worms away from your more desirable fruits and vegetables. They also repel quite a few pests and may even attract beneficial insects.

These two trap crops are both edible and beautiful, making them a nice addition to any home garden.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Crops, Garden, Home, Trap

Tips for Watering Home Gardens

November 14, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

As food prices climb higher and organic foods rise in popularity, many homeowners are starting their own home gardens. Of course, supplementing the food supply is not the only reason to maintain a garden. Some nurture a relaxing green getaway in their own backyard by growing fragrant flowers and privacy bushes. No matter what kinds of flora you keep in your garden, it is necessary to allow plants to get plenty of sunlight and water.

Even the savviest gardener cannot control the sun, but the true green thumb knows how to encourage growth through prudent pruning, proper fertilization, and customized watering. The best rate and amount of water to give certain plants often stumps those who are trying to garden for the first time. Finicky species of plants can be just as put off by too much water as they are by dry conditions.

If you find yourself in a dampening dilemma, take a look at these common watering tips:

Research your plants. Just like people, pets, and snowflakes, every plant is different. Depending on where they are found in nature, some may need monsoons while others can go weeks without moisture. Beginning gardeners should try to pick local plants for their first effort, because they are likely to thrive with only natural rainfall levels.

Books, landscapers and nursery owners are all good sources of information about how to care for certain plants. If you are still confused after seeking instruction, set up a simple experiment. Try watering different plants of the same type with the same amount of light at different intervals. Within a few weeks, it should be clear which method produces the desired results. Reliable information is certainly attainable with the proper amount of research, ask around or do your own searches to find the answers you are looking for.

Water in the late evening or early morning. It may seem as though the middle of the afternoon is the perfect time to spend time in the garden tending to the plants, but it is best to leave the patch alone during the day. Plants are working hard in the heat to produce food from the sunlight and store it.

Though it does not hurt or “boil” the plant to water when the sun is at its strongest, the heat and wind cause loss of water and evaporation. This means that less of the moisture actually makes it to the plant. Waiting until the evening or working early in the morning allows the water to soak into the soil. Actually, morning watering is even more preferable because the sun will dry the crust of the dirt and keep the soil around the roots damp for most of the day.

Use the right food. If you decide to add a fertilizer or any other additive to the water, make sure that the product is appropriate for the particular variety of plant. This is especially important for vegetable and herb gardens because certain chemicals can leave harmful substances on the food. The product should have plant recommendations and directions for use clearly listed on the packaging.

Plan irrigation systems carefully. A professional landscaper can create a pleasing green area and advise the homeowner on proper watering techniques, but often they also design irrigation systems. These systems do not always need to be professionally installed, but they do need to be properly planned in order to ensure that all of the plants receive the correct amount of moisture.

Many systems use sprinklers and drip hoses that dampen the soil around the flora on a regular basis. Some can even be set to deliver more liquid to certain areas or change watering frequency automatically at different times of year. These setups also tend to conserve more water than hand watering.

Be consistent. If you opt not to install an automatic irrigation system, make sure to stick to a regular watering schedule. Light, frequent showers encourage strong root systems that are less susceptible to drought. Giving the plant lots of water once a week may produce the same green, healthy appearance, but it will be less likely to bounce back after a dry spell or pruning.

Though watering is essential to the success of your garden, there are a number of other tasks at hand for the home gardener. Nurturing vegetables and flowers from seeds often takes months of hard work, but even planting mature plants can be a challenge. Proper preparation of soil, weeding, pruning, and fertilization are mandatory for a lush, lovely garden.
However, by observing these watering tips, you can get one step closer to growing your dream garden. After all, your plants depend on water to grow into herbs, vegetable, and flowers. Only you can provide them with this live-giving substance.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Gardens, Home, Tips, Watering

Help Your Garden Grow

October 21, 2011 By WALDAN 1 Comment

Not everyone has a natural green thumb and knows instinctively how to create a beautiful garden. With today’s sources of information about gardening, the knowledge you need is at your fingertips. There is lots of information out there about planting vegetables, herbs, flowering plants, annuals and perennials. Your local garden centre will provide you with great sources of information and help for your garden. Ask the experienced gardeners in your family or amongst your friends for help and advice. To get inspiration for the design and layout of your garden consider reading gardening books and magazines. Gardening shows will give you great ideas, tips and information about how to grow a green, healthy garden. See what works for your neighbours (and what doesn’t) and then make decisions about the types of plants to grow that you know can be successful in the soil and climate you have.

Spend some time planning out the design of your garden once you have some ideas down on paper. The design you choose will depend on your goals for the garden and what you plan to use it for. Think about what will grown in your climate easily when you determine your design. Don’t forget to consider the soil and drainage on your property. A good design plan is realistic, cost effective and flexible. Consider whether you will be redesigning your entire property or just a section. Do you need to use aggregates and stone? Do you need rocks, flagstones, sod or grass seed? Is mulch or soil necessary? Will your design require you to add a water feature like a pond or waterfall? Having a clear plan will allow you to cost out all aspects of the design and have a clear goal before you begin..

Budget is always an important consideration when undergoing any project. Before you decide the type of gardening job you want to tackle you need to set a realistic budget. Not only do you want to make a budget you also want to stick to it. Staying within budget may mean that you need to find materials on sale. Check weekly flyers for your local garden centres and purchase items that are on sale. You need to balance cost with purchasing healthy plants though because if you buy unhealthy plants it will be expensive to replace them. Unhealthy plants can spread diseases to the other plants in your garden which can cause you a lot of pain and headache. Balance your needs by keeping budget in check while also purchasing quality products..

Once you start looking for garden tips you will start to find them everywhere. Choosing plants that weeds hate is always a great idea that will help you cut down on the labour and maintenance needed to keep your garden weed free. Ground hugging plants naturally suppress weeds. Sometimes colourful plants are hard to maintain and grow so a great alternative is to use colour in other ways in your garden, such as through colourful planting boxes and pots. To keep your garden looking neat you can use border edging which will also keep invasive plants under control. You can keep your plants healthy by preparing them for dry spells by mixing water-strong granules into the top 10cm of soil. To make your lawn easier to maintain consider replacing part of it with hardwood decking, gravel or paving and then planting plants along the edges. There are numerous tips and advice out there to help you keep your garden healthy..

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Garden, Grow, Help

Winter Gardening – Now Comes the Fun Part

October 18, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

Unlike many gardeners, I actually love the beginning of winter. Yes, there are some jobs that need to be done in the garden – we can get to those later. But it’s also an opportunity to curl up in front of a warm fire with a perfect excuse to stay indoors (if you happen to live in a part of the world where it’s cold, dark and raining!), consider what worked and what didn’t over the past gardening year, and begin to plan what you’ll try next year.

At the end of autumn my husband usually finds me surrounded by gardening books, seed catalogues and sheets of paper, sketching out my vege garden for the coming year and looking for new varieties to plant which will survive in our very humid summer. This is also when I canvas the kids to see what they’d like to try growing – I find they tend to help out in the garden more when they have some input!

This is the part of the gardening year when you can take your time to work out what to plant, when, and where. You can take your time to work through what companion plants go together, what size your plants will grow to, and how to ensure they have enough, or not too much shade, depending on their requirements. You have the luxury of choosing what you actually want to plant, rather than grabbing whatever is left at the garden centre along with every other spring gardener! Whenever I tend to jump straight into planting my garden without this planning stage I end up with crowded areas and gaps, and am invariably late getting my seeds into the ground as I get caught up in all the other jobs that need doing.

This is also a good time to have a look at your soil. If you’ve grown a couple of crops over summer then it’s likely your soil will be depleted and need a bit of a nutrient top-up. Whip out the remains of your summer plants, which are probably looking fairly yellow and sorry for themselves at this stage. It’s also worth testing your soil’s acidity – this is easily done with a soil testing kit from your garden centre – so see if your soil needs some particular attention. There are some great ways to add organic matter back into your soil without resorting to chemicals. Sowing a green manure crop is one option, but to be honest I tend to find this a bit too much work. You can also dig in well-rotted animal manure – just make sure you leave your soil for 2-3 months before planting. I tend to dig in a good pile of compost from my compost heap and worm farm to feed the soil, making sure you dig deep to integrate the compost and aerate the soil as you go. I then only have to wait 2-3 weeks before I can begin planting my winter crops.

Finally, spend a weekend having a look at your supplies. I tend to give my tools a good clean, empty out and wash my pots and spray bottles, and see what needs replacing. I find winter is a good time to visit the garden centre to replace any of those tools that are past their best – there can be some good sales on and you can find the odd bargain.

And once that’s all done, it’s back in front of the fire with the gardening books, enjoying a well-earned glass of wine.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Comes, Gardening, Part, Winter

Organic Home Garden Success

October 15, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

An organic garden can provide a lot of benefits. If you are interested in this kind of gardening then you must always make sure that you learn the right tips to maintain the plants. You can either grow fruits, vegetables or even flowers in your organic home garden.

Lots of people these days are taking up this type of gardening because they have understood that it is not only economical but it is even good for health. The foods are much healthier than what you get in the market.

The best thing about this kind of gardening is that it does not use any kind of artificial elements or fertilizers. Now you might want to know how to grow an organic garden. There are certain tips which can help you make a perfect garden in your house.

There are certain things that you need to check before you start planting the tress. The first thing that you need to check is the soil. The soil is one of the most essential things that are required by the plants.

The soil not only provides proper support to the plant but also provides certain other nutrients which are very much essential for the plants. You must always make sure that you use organic fertilizer or compost which will help the soil get back the nutrients if it has lost it due to some reason.

So you must always pay proper attention to the soil of the garden. The next step which you need to take is to think about proper protection of the plants. There are certain things which can cause harm to the plants.

This is the reason why you need to arrange for protection. You need to protect the plant from the weeds. Other than this, you must also be careful about certain kinds of diseases as well as pests.

When you use the pesticide you must always use the organic pesticides. They work just like the chemical pesticides but they just do not have the bad effects like the chemical ones. The other important task that you need to do is select the right kind of plants.

You must also be careful about the organic gardening tools that you will require during gardening. You can choose any plant for your organic home garden. But you need to make sure that you plan it nicely.

If you read a guide of organic home gardening you will find a list of the seeds that are available for planting. You just need to make sure that your plants get proper sunlight and enough water so that they can grow. Other than this, space management is also very much necessary in the garden.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Garden, Home, Organic, Success

A Point To Organic Home Gardening

September 24, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

Everyone should be aware of organic home gardening. Even if you take an organic gardening class, there are a few pieces of information that you should be especially educated on when it comes to organic home gardening, and so you will find the following very useful.

How to Get Started

If you want to get started with organic home gardening, there are a few things that you need to be aware of first. The first thing that you will need to do is pick a site for your garden. Make sure that you pick a location is going to receive lots of natural sunlight, during the winter as well, and this can be a bit difficult as there is very little sunlight usually during winter.

Also make sure that the location you choose for your organic home gardening is going to be easy to water. Whether you are going to have an irrigation system installed or be watering the plants yourself on a regular basis, you are going to need to make sure that this is doable.

As you can see, if you want to get involved in this type of gardening, you cannot just choose any random site, and this is in fact one of the most important steps of all. The location that you choose will have the greatest impact on how your garden is going to turn out.

You want to test the soil in that area before planting there, and then build it with organic matters. Make sure you then add compost or other nutrients to the soil if you want to have the most success with your organic home gardening.

Another important tip that you will need to be aware of is to start your own compost pile. There are so many different things that you can throw in your compost pile, and the greatest thing is that not only will this compost be able to generate more success for your organic garden but as well you will be doing a great thing for the environment because you will be recycling.

There are so many other tips and ideas that you can use to help with your organic gardening and to make sure that you come out of this whole thing with the best possible results. Even if you have never had an organic garden before, you can have great success with it, just have patience and stick to it.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Gardening, Home, Organic, Point

Explore Singapore’s Garden Wonders at the Famed Chinese and Japanese Gardens

September 3, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

Tucked away within the breathtaking landscapes of Jurong Lake lies Singapore’s most prized horticultural possessions. Simply dubbed the Chinese and Japanese Gardens, this touristic haven next to Jurong Bird Park near Yuan Ching Road is a popular attraction frequented by locals and foreign nature lovers who continue to be captivated by the beauty of these lush gardens. Constructed in 1975, the Chinese Garden is undoubtedly the more stunning of the two with its imperial style architecture and Chinese art inspired garden design.

Stately marble stone lions welcome visitors to the garden at its entrance. Found in the famed Peking Summer Palace is the Bridge of Pai Hung Ch’iao’ with its 16 arches boasting an architectural style. Aptly named the Garden Courtyard, its gardens contain a pond named “Fishes Paradise”, located at the heart of the structure. It is also known as the Early Spring Courtyard. Described by many as a work of stunning art, the Stone Boat is an ideal example of the stylistic elements known to Peking style structures and Yao-Yueh Fang, although the Tea House remains equally spectacular with its winding gallery, reminiscent of the prestigious Summer Palace. A grand venue, the Main Arch building is ideal for shutterbugs as the locale contains two scenic courtyards. The seven storey pagoda at the garden is another highlight which is located on a slightly elevated hill within the locale. Built in the manner of the Ling Ku Temple Pagoda in China’s Nanjing, it is also one of the most recognizable structures in the garden which is visible from across the Bridge of Double Beauty due to its towering stature. Deemed the inner spirit of the gardening art form in China, the Chinese Tower, Pavilion and Plateau adheres to the traditional arrangement and landscaping dictums of Chinese garden architecture. The pavilions at the Chinese are a collection of four, where they follow the Northern Chinese Pavilion style with quaint footpaths, rocks, plants and streams connecting the buildings.

The garden’s Bonsai Garden is another focal point at the premises with 2000 bonsai trees brought over from China and other parts of the world. Spread out across 5,800m2, this beautiful landscape of Suzhou-style structures is the biggest Suzhou-style Bonsai garden outside the Chinese republic. Containing sculptures of the 12 Zodiac animals deeply rooted in Chinese culture, the Garden of Abundance has a stone bridge and a sundial with pomegranate trees over a 100-years-old, imported all the way from Shantung in China. The Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum is also worth a visit while the adjoining Japanese Garden is laden with marble paths that resonate with the sound of your own footsteps. Simplistic in design and ideal for meditation and escaping with your thoughts, the Japanese Garden encompasses beautiful summer houses and several Zen rock gardens. Other highlights include ponds filled with koi, stone lanterns and elaborately gilded arch overpasses.

Travellers in search of the best Singapore hotel offers should look no further than the Studio M Hotel Singapore down Robertson Quay. Ideally located within minutes of the city’s CBD, this luxurious hotel in Singapore is also just 20 minutes away from Changi Airport.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Chinese, Explore, Famed, Garden, Gardens, Japanese, Singapore's, Wonders

Planting Flowers for Your Home and Garden

June 28, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

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Consider your Lawn and Garden Design Plan

Before buying Flowers on impulse, only to find there is no suitable area in your Home Garden to plant them,
it will help to create a Lawn and Garden Plan. This Garden Design should account for the existing flowers,
plants, and trees, but also for any permanent structures including the house, walk-ways, and patios.
Of course, It is always very important to factor-in the mini-environment of your yard and garden,
as well the growing seasons in your area.

Make a plan, your home’s Landscape Design, then work your plan, allowing enough flexibility for your changing
tastes, or unavailability of certain items. Budgeting, time constraints, and your ability to perform the labor are also
considerations. Sketch a simple Site Plan, with approximate or exact measurements. Decide if any of the existing
plants can, or need to, be moved or removed. I also think it is important that you observe how your yard is really
being used.

Know your Yard and Garden

Is an area of lawn a social place in the evening, or for family BBQ s? Perhaps some space has been taken as
the kid’s playground. Although there might be walkways, are they the natural path you follow while walking in your
yard, or to get from Points A to B? You don’t want to plant where your flowers might be in your way or get trampled.

Make a visual inspection to observe which areas get sunshine for part or most of the day. What areas are shaded-
all day or partially? Do certain areas catch a breeze, or is air very still, perhaps blocked by surrounding buildings?
Also be sure you are not going to plant in waterways- those places of water run-off during rain storms.

Now comes the time to get down in the dirt. After creating your basic plan and making visual observations test the
soil for pH and Nutrient levels. Test in multiple areas, not just one place. Pay special attention not only to
your planned planting areas, but also to those places that are especially weedy, or where grass, or anything else,
doesn’t want to grow. Dig around a little- 6-12-18 inches deep; is the ground black, rich, and moist, with an ‘earthy’
odor, or do you have packed brown soil, or sticky clay, or sand and gravel, underfoot? With this information you
can gather the planting material, tools, and flowers you need.

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Prepare your Yard and Garden

With your physical and visual inspections complete you can then find the perfect flowers for your yard and garden.
Most plants prefer slightly-acidic soil, but there are some flowers that need alkaline soil to grow. You can also find
varieties of flowers that love sun, and others that do well in shade. Some flowers and plants are drought-resistant,
while others thrive in swampy, poorly-drained areas. You can plant for the soil you have or decide on Container
Gardening or Raised Bed Gardens. Containers and Raised Beds can eliminate most soil and drainage problems,
can allow for more flexibility in your Design, and are easier to maintain.

Finally you are ready to plant. How will you layout your garden plots? When possible, keep your Flowers away
from tree roots; they will compete for nutrients and moisture needed by your flowers. Do you plant in groups or
singly? Do you prefer a free-form or random appearance, or a more formal and structured look to your garden?
Before planting, place your chosen plants around the garden bed, still in their growing pots, to see how your
layout looks. Groups of 3-5 plants will usually look better than groupings of flowers in even numbers.

Now to plant your Flowers

Grouping flowers is good for a harmonious and organized appearance and colors and textures can be varied for
more visual interest. Re-arrange them until you are satisfied with the over-all look. Tall plants should be at the
back of the garden space, or in the middle, if the garden can be viewed from all sides. Re-arrange and re-group
until you are satisfied. Imagine the color of the flowers when they are in bloom. Colors may clash but can be
planted side-by-side if they have different blooming seasons. Foliage color is also important. Many plants have
leaves and foliage that are all shades of green, plus silver, grey, purple, red, yellow and variegated. This makes the
plants visually interesting long after the blooms have wilted and fallen. With some advanced planning, and proper
care and maintenance, you will have years of enjoyment from the Flowers you have planted in your Lawn and Garden.
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Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees, Home and Garden

Designing And Maintaining Your Edible Landscape Naturally

June 8, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

Designing And Maintaining Your Edible Landscape Naturally

First published in 1986, this classic is back in print by popular demand. It is the authoritative text on edible landscaping, featuring a step-by-step guide to designing a productive environment using vegetables, fruits, flowers, and herbs for a combination of ornamental and culinary purposes.
It includes descriptions of plants for all temperate habitats, methods for improving soil, tree pruning styles, and gourmet recipes using low-maintenance plants. There are sections on attracting beneficial insects with companion plants and using planting to shelter your home from erosion, heat, wind, and cold.

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Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Designing, Edible, Landscape, Maintaining, Naturally

Choosing The Right Shrubs For Your Garden

May 18, 2011 By WALDAN Leave a Comment

With the summer months fast approaching there has never been a better time to clear out your garden and get ready for those sunny afternoon barbeques and late night outdoor gatherings. When the weather is warm and the evenings are long it’s the perfect time to take advantage of your outdoor space so it’s important to get your garden looking its best so you and your friends can enjoy it to its fullest.

Big patches of earth never look good in a garden so planting some shrubs can really make a difference between a substandard garden and a beautiful leafy paradise. Depending on the type of garden you have you will need to pick out your new plants according to a few different variables. Start by assessing the soil quality in your garden so you can be sure your chosen plants will flourish, if in doubt head to your local garden centre and pick up some extra compost and fertiliser which should help get the soil up to a good standard for planting.

Depending on the size and style of your garden the shrubs you choose should complement your space, rather than smother it, so when picking out shrubbery it’s a good idea to consider how big your chosen plant will eventually grow. Check out its potential height and width and make sure you leave enough ground space between your plants so they will have plenty of room to flourish over the coming months. If you have a small garden it’s a good idea to pick vertical growing shrubs so you can add a little height to your space instead of cluttering up the ground. Choose tall shrubs such as skyrocket juniper, bottle brush or camellias which will help create the illusion of space in your garden.

Alternatively, if you’re looking for shrubs to cover vast areas of ground opt for ruby dome or dwarf rhododendron which will not only provide you with excellent ground coverage but lovely flowers and great colours too. Always be careful not to put too many delicate plants in shady areas, the lack of sun and rain will mean they struggle to grow and you may find they won’t last through the winter. For tricky spots like this try to plant more robust plants like grasses and bamboo which are hardy and strong and should be able to cope with these difficult conditions.

If you’re looking to create your own little sanctuary in your garden it’s a good idea to plant a variety of evergreen shrubs along any walls or fences. Apart from covering up unsightly barriers this will help give you feel like you are in a lush paradise rather than a city centre garden. Gardens should be all about fun and relaxation so, no matter what advice you’re given make sure you opt for your favourite colours, fragrances and styles so you can continue to really enjoy your space the whole year round.

Filed Under: Flowers/Plants/Trees Tagged With: Choosing, Garden, Right, Shrubs