Fall Garden Chores for Spring Flowering Bulbs
August 19, 2008
As the school busses begin to rumble down the road again we are reminded that the gardening season is drawing to a close. For the gardener with an eye toward next spring, however, the season still promises plenty to be done in preparation of a showy spring to come. Early fall is the time when we should be planting our bulbs.
Good soil drainage is paramount for spring-blooming bulb success. If you have a mostly clay soil be sure to mix in organic material such as compost to lighten the soil. The soil pH should be between 6 and 7. If you need assistance in determining your soil pH or in discovering how to manage its level refer to your local agricultural extension service for help.
Spring flowering bulbs are great for beds, in borders, and in rock gardens. These early risers prefer to be planted in areas which will not receive direct sunlight during the midday, especially once the hot summer months roll back around.
Wait until soil temperatures are below 60 F (16 C) before planting. If you purchase your bulbs before the cold season sets in you may keep them in your refrigerator until the soil has cooled sufficiently. The fall planting ensures the bulbs will have adequate opportunity to develop a strong root system before they come up in the spring and early summer to greet you.
When you are ready to plant your bulbs, follow the directions carefully for the depth and spacing requirements and be certain to loosen the soil beneath the depth of planting. The easiest fertilization method for your spring bulbs is a single application of a sulfur-coated, slow-release fertilizer incorporated into the bottom of your bulb hole at planting time. After having placed the bulbs in their new home, begin to cover them with the soil you removed to dig the hole. When you have covered the bulbs halfway give them a thorough soaking before covering them with the remaining soil.
With such wonderful options as corn lily, grape hyacinth and tulips your work will be rewarded in the spring with the finest of gardening pleasures. The joy can possibly only be compared to the sound of the school busses rumbling down the road.
Ed Rooney is the creator of http://www.garden-helper.com - an online gardening resource for gardeners to learn, share, plan and shop.
Here is Why You Should Use Gypsum in Gardening
August 16, 2008
Do you have clay or layer of hard subsoil problems in your garden? Then gypsum may be the answer to help loosen the soil structure. It is not considered a miracle substance and you will find that it doesn’t work right away, but a 3 year program of applications should help improve the poor soil conditions. It is not expensive and is easy to spread where needed.
Gypsum also has a job of repairing the soil that has been damaged through compaction from heavy stock, machinery, in the recovery of sub-soils exposed by earth movement and in soils affected by salinity.
A gardener faces one of the biggest problems in a new or established garden if they have a clay or layer of hard subsoil type of soil. This type of soil creates poor drainage, soggy soil and soil compaction.
When you have a new garden you can work organic humus, which should be done anyway, to loosen the poor soil. Manure, compost, peat moss and soil mulches and conditioners are normally used for this purpose.
You might ask, what do you do in an established garden? A lot of work and time to recondition soil would be required. Gypsum may be just the answer for reconditioning the soil, because it can be spread on the surface of the soil like in the vegetable garden, flowerbeds or on the lawn. What this means is it does not have to be worked into the soil, it can just simply be spread on the surface.
What does Gypsum do? It’s main purpose is to penetrate the many clay particles in heavy or the layer of hard subsoil type soils and loosen the soil structure. Then this creates air and moisture slots that will loosen and break-up the soil structure.
Be aware that gypsum does not contain any major plant nutrients, so continue a regular fertilizing program even though it contains calcium and sulfur which is needed for plant growth. In addition, continue to put out organic humus as you plant.
Gypsum is easy to apply!
Just spread it on the lawn, using the granular type, with a lawn spreader at the rate of 40 pounds per thousand square feet. Gypsum fertilizer can be spread any time of the year and only one application per year is needed. To get it started working, water immediately after applying. If applied properly it does not affect the pH of the soil, not harmful to humans and your animals and will not burn. And because Gypsum is neutral and will not change the soil pH, you can use it in places where plants like Azaleas, Camellias, Rhododendrons and other acid loving plants grow, they need a little calcium too. Of course, gypsum should be applied per directions.
What is gypsum?
Hydrous calcium sulfate
Calcium Sulfate - CaSO4
Another Name: Gypsite
James is long time organic gardening enthusiast and writes most of articles based on intensive research, lectures from professionals, gardening books and just plain common sense. Feel free to get more information about gardening by visiting: http://www.basic-info-4-organic-fertilizers.com
The Basics Of Pruning
August 14, 2008
The technique of pruning varies with the type of rose and the landscape purpose for which it was planted, whether it’s growing in the ground or in a container. Pruning can range from removing unwanted buds to severely excising canes. Proper pruning stimulates growth at the buds closest to the cut, which produces new flowering stems.
The first step in pruning any type of rose is to remove any dead, damaged, diseased, or weak and thin canes, cutting them off flush with the bud union or, in the case of own-root plants, flush with the crown. Look for any canes that are broken or wounded, or that have cankers (dark, sunken lesions caused by a fungus), and prune below the injury, at the highest point where the pith (the central portion of the cane) is healthy and white. Make the cut exactly 1/4 inch above a growth bud. If the injury extends below that point, cut to a lower growth bud.
Next, remove canes that are growing into the center of the plant or those that cross each other. Canes that grow inward keep light and air from the center of the plant and will eventually cross, chafing one another. These abrasions can become entry points for insects and diseases. Using shears cut these canes down to their origin, whether that is another cane, the bud union, or the crown. It is important to keep the center of the plant open to let in sunshine and allow air to circulate freely.
Always prune to an outward-facing bud so that canes do not grow into the center of the plant. Prune at a distance close enough to the bud that no stub remains to die off and harbor insects or diseases but far enough away that the bud will not die. A good distance is about 1/4 inch above the growth bud. Equally important, cut at the proper angle so that water runoff won’t drip on the bud or collect in the cut and retard healing. The ideal angle is 45 degrees, slanted parallel to the direction of bud growth.
Pruning in Warm and Cold Climates
In warm climates where rose plants grow quite large, pruning to the recommended height is not desirable because it will remove too much of the plant. Instead, prune away about one half to two thirds of the plant each winter or early spring by removing the older canes and shortening the remaining canes. In cold climates where there is a great deal of winter damage, pruning heights may be determined for you by the amount of winterkill. Prune canes down to where there is no more winter damage, even if it is almost to the ground.
The higher a plant is pruned, the earlier it will flower. But don’t jeopardize the health and vigor of the plant by pruning too high just to have blooms a few clays earlier. There is little advantage to pruning your roses lower than the heights prescribed above; unlike disbudding (which we’ll discuss later); it will probably not make the plants produce larger flowers.
Preventing Disease
Although black spot and other fungal diseases manifest themselves on leaves, their spores can over-winter on rose canes. If these diseases plagued your roses during the previous summer, you should prune them lower than recommended, cutting away and discarding much of the source of the problem. Although you won’t be able to see the spores on the canes, you can be assured that cutting off a few extra inches during spring pruning will reduce the number of spores to some degree. Never leave rose cuttings on the ground. They look unsightly and harbor diseases and pests that may potentially re-infect the plant or spread to others.
When to Seal Cuts
Pruning cuts more than inch in diameter can be sealed with pruning compound, orange shellac, or grafting wax (available at garden centers or hardware stores) if boring insects are a problem in your area. Pruning compound and orange shellac are the easiest to use because they can be painted on. Otherwise, sealing is not necessary. Some types of white glue, which is sometimes used as a sealant, are water soluble and will wash away with the first rain or watering; they should therefore not be used.
Inspect After Pruning
Several weeks after you have pruned, take a second trip through the garden with your paining shears. If you pruned early in the year, a late frost may have caused minor dieback on some of the canes. This dieback should be removed. Cankers that were not apparent at pruning time may be visible and should also be pruned away.
Don’t be too harsh when pruning young plants. Until plants are well established and have been growing robustly for two to three years, remove only weak, damaged, or dead wood. Shape and shorten the plants as recommended above without cutting away any of the older canes. In the following years, old canes can be removed as new ones develop.
Bambi Coker © All Rights Reserved
http://www.RosesSecretsRevealed.com
http://www.aaaroses.blogspot.com
How to Plant Tulips
August 12, 2008
Quality Dutch tulip bulbs are easy to come by and fairly inexpensive to purchase. You can get them through a mail order catalogue or a reputable green house. It is becoming increasingly popular to buy flower bulbs from online nurseries. The downfall to buying bulbs online is that you cannot inspect the bulbs prior to purchase. The highest quality of bulbs, especially tulips, comes from Holland.
Tulip bulbs are best when purchased early in the planting season. Only buy firm, light colored bulbs where the skin peels off easily. This will insure that the bulbs are disease free. Buy by species, not by color. If the bin is simply labeled “yellow bulbs”, you do not know what exactly you are getting. If you are not sure when the best time to plant is, ask the greenhouse keeper about the conditions of your zone.
Spring bulbs such as tulips, need to be planted when it is cool enough to keep them from sprouting, but still warm enough for the roots to establish themselves before winter sets in. Plant tulips six inches deep and cover. If you have problems with moles and other little creatures digging up your tulips, you may plant them as deep as eight inches. If your bulbs are still being whisked away in the dead of night, there are bulbs planting cases you can get at the greenhouse. A little known fact about planting tulips, after the initial watering in after planting, do not water your tulips again until their leaves appear.
For more information, visit these sites:
http://www.TulipsInfo.com
http://www.BulbsInfo.com
Pruning Roses Secrets
August 9, 2008
Pruning your roses is one of the most needed and the most annoyingly difficult tasks that goes with proper rose care. It takes a steady hand the proper procedure to ensure the best possible roses that you can get.
Pruning your roses is basically the act of getting rid of dead and damaged pieces, and teaching the new growth to grow in the correct outward facing direction. That just means that you are training them to grow facing the outside of the shrub or bush. This gives your roses the correct amount of circulating air to thrive in.
Here is a list of the proper techniques to guide through the pruning process.
* Soak your pruning shears in equal parts of water and bleach. This will help to protect your roses from diseases and insects.
* Pruning in the early spring, just after the snow melts is best. However you want to do it before any new growth appears. The best time would be when the buds are swelled, or red.
* Hand shears are the best tool for pruning the smaller branches. (about 4 1/2 inches thick) Loppers are best for the branches that are thicker or the thickness of a pencil. This will make it easier. You should use a heavy pair of rose gloves to avoid the thorns.
* You want to get rid of the winter protection that you set up like cones, burlap, and mounded soil.
* You want to get rid of the dead wood first. (That would be the black wood that is black inside as well as out).
* Next, you wan to get rid of the thinner wood, which is the stems that are thinner than a pencil.
* Cut all of the branches that cross or overlap one another because these are often diseased or will become so.
* Keep the remaining five healthy branches. These are often dark green. You will want to make your roses fluted or vases shaped, with an open center, and keep them from touching or overlapping each other.
* Cut your healthy canes to be about one to four feet long, or whatever size that you prefer.
* Cut you roses properly so that they stay healthy. Cut so that the bud is facing outside of the bush and at a 45 degree angle that slopes inward so that you can keep promoting the outward growth.
* You should use bypass pruners that work like scissors and not the anvil types because the anvils crush the stems and make the roses more available to diseases.
Gordon Goh is author of the free, informative website Flower Garden offering quality useful tips for Rose Gardening Tips. He is offering FREE Wealth Building Software for average person in creating Unlimited Streams Of Escalating Income
Build a Rain Garden
August 7, 2008
There’s a new garden in town. It is (mostly) easy to install, looks good year-round, requires almost no maintenance and has a terrifically upbeat impact on the environment. No wonder rain gardens are such a great new gardening trend!
Storm water runoff can be a big problem in summer during heavy thunderstorms. As the water rushes across roofs and driveways, it picks up oil and other pollutants. Municipal storm water treatment plants often can’t handle the deluge of water, and in many locations the untreated water ends up in natural waterways. The EPA estimates as much as 70 percent of the pollution in our streams, rivers, and lakes is carried there by storm water! By taking responsibility for the rainwater that falls on your own roof and driveway, you’ll be helping to protect our rivers, streams and lakes from stormwater pollution.
To reduce the excess water runoff, many towns are encouraging businesses and homeowners to install rain gardens in their yards. Rain gardens are specially constructed gardens located in low areas of a yard where storm water can collect. The idea is to have the water naturally funnel to this garden. The rain garden collects water runoff and stores and filters it until it can be slowly absorbed by the soil. Rather than rushing off into a storm sewer or a local waterway, the rainwater can collect in a garden where it will be naturally filtered by plants and soil.
Installing a rain garden is easy.
You simply dig a shallow depression in your yard and plant it with native grasses and wildflowers; things that are easy to grow and maintain in your area.
What makes a garden a rain garden?
First, the garden will be designed with a low spot in the middle to collect and absorb rain water and snow melt. This depression can range from a few inches in a small garden, to an excavated trough that’s several feet deep. Second, rain gardens are usually located where they’ll catch the runoff from impermeable surfaces like sidewalks and driveways, or from gutters and roof valleys. Third, rain gardens are usually planted with native wildflowers and grasses that will thrive in tough growing conditions. Finally, rain gardens are designed to channel heavy rains to another rain garden or to another part of the garden.
Your rain garden should be located at least 10 feet from the house. The garden’s size and location depends on the yard. The ideal situation would be to locate the garden in a natural depression. You also can funnel water from downspouts on gutters into the garden. The soil should be well drained so the water doesn’t sit in the garden for more than two days. A special "rain garden" soil mix of 50 to 60 percent sand, 20 to 30 percent topsoil, and 20 to 30 percent compost is recommended. You can dig this mixture into the soil to depth of 2 feet before planting.
Once you’ve identified the new garden’s location, remove the sod and dig a shallow depression approximately 6-inches deep. Slope the sides gradually from the outside edge to the deepest area. Use the soil that you remove to build up a slightly raised area on the lowest side of the garden. This berm will help contain the stormwater and allow it to percolate slowly through the rain garden.
If your rain garden is no more than about 6-inches deep, stormwater will usually be absorbed within a one- to seven-day period. Because mosquitoes require seven to 10 days to lay and hatch their eggs, this will help you avoid mosquito problems.
Your downspout or sump pump outlet should be directed toward your rain garden depression. This can be accomplished by a natural slope, by digging a shallow swale, or by piping the runoff directly to the garden through a buried 4″ diameter plastic drain tile.
Plant Selection… The final touch.
The most difficult part of building a rain garden (if it can even be called that) can be plant selection. Plants need to be tough enough to withstand periodic flooding, yet attractive enough to look good in the garden. Deep-rooted, low-care native plants, such as asters, and tough non-natives, such as daylilies, are best. If properly designed, the rain garden can consist of a blend of attractive shrubs, perennials, trees, and ground covers. Planting strips of grass around the garden and using mulch also can help filter the water.
New plants should be watered every other day for the first two weeks or so. Once they are well established, your garden should thrive without additional watering. Fertilizers will not be necessary, and only minimal weeding will be needed after the first summer of growth.
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