Category: Tropical Style

The easy-care spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) is valuable for its ability to thrive in low-light states while cleaning the atmosphere, adding decorative flair and also proliferating in abundance. In U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 8 to 11 the South African indigenous does nicely outdoors in a timeless hanging basket or as a welcome addition to borders, edging or ground cover. Feeding the undemanding plant with a water-soluble fertilizer every couple of months will keep it in tip-top state. All-Purpose Plant Food Use a water-soluble, general-purpose houseplant fertilizer for plants. You can find inexpensive houseplant fertilizers at the garden part of discount or hardware stores, while nurseries typically carry the widest selection. Liquid fertilizers work well for all container plants because they’re easier to apply evenly to prevent burning. Don’t apply fertilizer directly on the plant, since this can damage leaves. Mix the plant food with water with the…

Asian pear trees (Pyrus pyrifolia) are deciduous fruit trees which grow in well-draining, somewhat acidic soil. They’re more tolerant of moist conditions than a number of other trees, but they still need very good drainage. Asian pears reach about 20 feet tall. They’re spring blooming and summer fruiting, and grow in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 6 through 9. Young trees need pruning to give them a good structure. Older trees are pruned for upkeep and to remove old non-bearing spurs. Pruning is done during the winter dormant period. Cut the tree back to one major whip two to three feet from the ground in the time of planting. Loppers or pruners will work for limb removal until the divisions are bigger than an inch in diameter. After that, a pruning saw is necessary. Prune the tree again during the winter dormant period after it has gone through…

Growing strawberries in your garden can be fun and rewarding. However, the crops are generally sensitive to cold and produce fruit only through a short and comparatively warm season. If you’ve got a greenhouse, you can protect your plants from chilly days and expand the strawberry harvest. Picking the best varieties for greenhouse growing is the first step in ensuring a permanent and successful harvest. Tristar Traditional, antique strawberry varieties flower and set fruit in the spring or early summer, generally stopping production when days become more in late summer. But some varieties such as “Tristar” are day-neutral, setting fruit regardless of the period of daylight. Should you plant “Tristar” strawberries in trays or pots in the greenhouse in early spring, then they could produce fruit throughout the summer and under controlled greenhouse temperatures, continue to set fruit well into autumn after chilly weather arrives. “Tristar” creates particularly high yields…

Possessing a greenhouse is the best way to garden year by tilting the seasons, especially in cooler climates. Enjoying homegrown tomatoes in winter and beginning bedding plants early permit you to garden outside inland limits. The controlled environment of a greenhouse does bring disadvantages through upkeep costs and pest management. Considering these and other challenges helps you determine if it’s the greenhouse is the perfect fit for your gardening needs. Location Careful consideration of a proper site for your greenhouse often reveals this primary downside of constructing one. A greenhouse should be put where it catches full sunlight, especially in winter. The Clemson Cooperative Extension notes that places on the east side of the property receive maximum sunlight from November to February. Deciduous trees shade greenhouse plants out of intense sunlight during hot seasons, and they also allow more sunlight to reach plants in cool seasons after they shed their…

Grass doesn’t always grow well underneath trees. The leafy canopy of the tree blocks the sun from reaching the grass, so it’s unable to make food for itself via photosynthesis and it shouted. The rest patchy grass is aesthetically unpleasing. Even in cases where grass does grow correctly beneath a tree, its removal may be crucial for a variety of reasons. There are a couple of unique procedures for safely removing the grass from the ground around trees. Reasons to Remove Grass Around Trees While a properly maintained yard and tree can co-exist, there are several arguments favoring a grass-free zone about trees. Grass and trees also have distinct water and fertilization requires, so keeping one well-fed can harm another. Grass removes nutrients from the soil the tree requires for development. Some grasses, such as red fescue and bermudagrass, release chemicals which slow the development of tree roots. Tools such…

Late summer is the time when most flowers are completing their season. Arranging a long-season booming garden involves planting flowering plants with different seasonal blooms. Late summer flowers fill in the gap between fall and summer flowering plants. Many plants start flowering in late summer and continue through fall. Annual Flowers Summer-blooming annuals grow, blossom and perish in a single growing season. 1 example is the blue shrimp plant (Cerinthe major “Purpurascens”) with green leaves and powdery purple bracts above hanging purple blooms. This cottage garden plant falls seeds after flowering. Tickseed sunflowers (Bidens aristosa) grow to 5 feet tall creating tens of thousands of 2-inch-wide daisy-like flowers with yellow petals surrounding a dark eye. The green leaves are covered with the flowers from late summer through the fall. Remove fading blooms before seeds form to prevent self-seeding. Flowering Bulbs Most bulbs are thought to blossom in the spring, however,…

Planting incompatible companion bushes and perennials around a tree often ends in disappointment and frustration. To avert this irritation, choose shrubs and perennials with soil requirements similar to the tree. Adjusting the soil to suit the companion plants often turns into a struggle that ends without needing to replace them and may have a harmful influence on the tree. The companions should also be short enough to get to their mature height without growing into the tree canopy. Companion Bush and Perennial Requirements Trees, shrubs and shrubs perennials have soil pH requirements. The soil pH should be tested prior to purchasing companion plants to determine whether it’s acidic with a pH of 6.9 or lower, neutral with a pH of 7 or even alkaline with a pH of 7.1 or above. If the tree is booming, the soil pH shouldn’t be adjusted to adapt accent plants. Soil texture also has…

Raising the soil level around a tree’s back is not recommended. Although large piles of mulch often are found around tree roots and trunks, that practice is harmful to tree health. Rather than placing a raised bed around a willow tree, then it’s ideal to create the illusion of a raised bed using one of many practices. Willow Root and Trunk Systems It is a common misconception that tree roots grow deep as opposed to long. A willow tree’s active origins, such as those of most trees, are within the top 3 feet of soil. The largest and most productive origins are in the top 1 foot of soil. This is since roots seek both moisture and oxygen, which can be found together only in the top layers of soil. When soil or mulch is stacked around a tree’s trunk, it cuts off the oxygen supply to your tree roots….

Capsicum plants, better known as pepper crops, are among the simplest vegetables to grow in the home. Pepper plants grow upright naturally, and come in an assortment of sizes and colours. They often benefit from the support of a tomato cage or other reinforcement to maintain their feeble branches from breaking under the weight of growing fruit. Although pepper plants need minimal care, they can sometimes gain from ancient- or late-season pruning. Early-season pruning helps to increase the grade of the fruit and is best done before thriving when the plant reaches a foot tall. Late-season pruning is done after the fruit has set and helps to speed the maturing of the fruit to the plant. Eliminate any dead branches or dying leaves with pruning shears by cutting the branch flush with the rear of the pepper plant. Cut back smaller branches in place of the notch where two other…

Buttercups are prettier than most other weeds, but they are able to make a nuisance of themselves at a flower bed. Normal weeding and herbicides offer control. Typical buttercup varieties include common or tall buttercup (Ranunculus acris), that grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 8, and also California buttercup (Ranunculus californicus), that grows in USDA zones 6 through 9. Small flowered or early woodbuttercup (Ranunculus abortivus) is another common type, and it grows in USDA zones 3 through 8. Buttercup seeds can infest a flower bed and, since perennial plants, buttercups live for many years. Hand Weeding and Hoeing Normal hand weeding and hoeing can efficiently control buttercups in flower beds. Digging weeds up isn’t possible when it disturbs your flowers, but also you can hand weed with a trowel from the spaces between plants. Hoe open places between flowers with a scuffle hoe to…