Category: Tropical Style

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…

Because most bedding plant geraniums (Pelargonium spp.) Originated in Africa, they can live on minimum levels of water. For this reason, they may be stored dormant through winter, hanging in a garage or other frost-free place. Usually grown as annuals, these geraniums really are tender perennials at U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 11, depending on their own variety. Where they need protection to survive winter, attempt enforced dormancy on just the plants using stocky, woody stems. Cranesbill or hardy geraniums (Geranium spp.) , which are perennial in USDA zones 3 through 10, typically do not have to be kept indoors for winter and probably would not survive the bare-root experience. Choose a Location Throughout the age when basements were dim and moist, gardeners generally stored their dormant bedding plant geraniums there, by hanging them out of nails driven into exposed beams. Today, most people need to…

Irish potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) a term used to distinguish them from sweet potatoes, are indigenous to South America and never Ireland, in which they were a staple food. Potatoes are annuals that may be grown in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 2 through 11. Depending on the number, potato vines will start to wilt and turn brown between 90 and 120 days after you plant them. This is the time to crop them. The Way Potatoes Mature Potato blooming is just a sign that potatoes are growing. New potatoes that have low starch and high water content grow from the next month. Since the potatoes get larger from the fourth month, their water content decreases, their starch increases and their skins thicken. Their dying vines will tell you that it is time to dig them up. Complete harvesting before freezing weather arrives if you have frost in your…

A kind of summer squash, zucchini (Cucurbita pepa) grows as a yearly during spring and summer. Some varieties have a bushy form and also take up less dirt space, even while vining varieties that take up more space can be trained to grow on supports in case you have limited garden space. Plan on devoting enough space between the plants and the borders of the garden to enable the vines to spread without crowding out other plants or every other. Hill and Row Spacing You may grow zucchini in rows or in hills. When you plant a hill, plant four to five seeds spaced about 2 inches apart. Space rows 4 to 5 feet apart, along with slopes 3 to 4 feet apart. Using these distances, you’ll need a garden space measuring roughly 12 from 12 feet for four hills, which also allows for space between them and other plants….

With leathery or hairy leaves and trusses of all funnel-shaped blooms in white, purple and pink, azaleas (Rhododendron spp.) Add spring color to the garden. They grow in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 9. Baby plants can be produced by seeds, layering or cuttings, although plants from seed may not look the same as the parent plant. Beginning From Seeds You may harvest azalea seed pods once they begin to brown in autumn, storing them in paper envelopes to complete the drying process. Prepare a pot for those seeds in late autumn of the identical year, filling it up to within 1 inch of its top using a damp mix of 1 part peat moss and 1 part sand. After moistening milled sphagnum moss, squeeze out the excess water and distribute a 1/2-inch layer of the moss over the peat and sand mix. Scatter the azalea…

Orchids are perceived as hard and hard to grow. The truth is that orchids thrive on benign neglect. Basic orchid care incorporates humidity bright light, water, fertilizer and also a potting medium. While growers place orchids in a bark moderate, some buffs find that lava rock provides that the quick-draining and aeration environment that these epiphytes demand for growth. Remove the orchid. Cut the pot to prevent damaging the orchid’s roots. Lightly and shake brush the bark moderate away from the orchid’s roots. Cut off any dead or decaying roots. Pour a small amount of lava rock into the bottom of the pot that is new. Carefully insert more lava rock around the roots before the pot is full, while holding the orchid set up within the pot. Add a bet to support the flower stem of the orchid. Place the orchid pot on top of a tray filled with…

Going green with your home design project is a choice made by levels, with layers of chances to select materials and techniques that will yield improved energy efficiency, sustainability and functionality. It is a devotion with a possibly great outcome that involves diligence, research and often extra funds. But even basic green steps can really make a difference in how many resources your house consumes — at the building of it and at the long run. Here are five points to remember as you plan your job. Portal Design Inc 1. Just build as much distance as you will utilize. Limiting the distance you construct will probably go a long way toward saving money on the immediate and future costs of your job. Besides the cost savings of building a more compact space, you will realize the long-term savings in heating, cooling and cleaning. Think through whether you really need…

I fell in love with beach cottages again on a recent visit to the northwestern shore of Florida. What struck me most about these charming homes was the maintenance that each homeowner put to creating a welcoming entry. Just about any front porch had just one — or even several — container gardens. I was in paradise! Tropicals and succulents were plentiful in these containers, on account of the warmth and humidity in this field. Often they have been used in ways or with plants I hadn’t seen before. I usually find one or two container gardens to picture on vacation, but the photographs of plants within this trip might have actually resisted the photographs of my family. If you are interested in developing a lush tropical look for your outdoor surroundings, a tropical container backyard could give it to you with minimal investment. Here’s some inspiration to your own…

As a way to make us love what we needed, I suppose, my mother used to tell a girlhood story about trudging through the California foothills gathering red toyon berries to sell for holiday decorations. She was not the sole toyon bandit. In the 1920s collecting toyon berries has been so popular in Los Angeles, specifically, that the state of California passed a law against it. Thus we still can admire the toyon’s December series of bright red berries in our parks and wild spaces. Toyon is also an superb garden plant (see below). Its other name, California holly, suggests a California”lite” version of traditional English holly; it has larger, brighter berries and larger, glossier, greener leaves. I love to look at toyon for what it is: a distinctive reminder of California’s own international melting-pot traditions in our gardens as well as in our houses and parties. As a continuous…

The west side of a house presents challenges for homeowners and landscaping plants. Subjected to sun for the hottest day hours, this region is more difficult to cool in summer. Shrubs that shade the region help save energy, but they need to withstand half a day’s total sun, heat and drying conditions. In winter months, it is fantastic for sunshine to strike the west side to help heat the rooms. Deciduous, heat-tolerant, drought-tolerant shrubs work best on the side to aid with energy conservation. Tall Shrubs On west-side walls unbroken by windows or doorways, plant tall shrubs for maximum summer shading. Consider allowing western redbud (Cercis occidentalis), which grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 7 through 9, to grow as a large tree. Keep it to the desired height and conformation by routine pruning. Magenta spring flowers are followed by glossy, rounded leaves. This indigenous plant tolerates…