The Meanings of Flower

Archive for August, 2009

Gardening is perhaps one of the greatest hobbies that an active outdoors enthusiast can take an interest in. Without doubt there is a fair amount of physical activity to hobby and is not for the outdoors enthusiast who simply wants to sit and watch. Rather, it is an ideal hobby for those who want to get down and get dirty with the outdoors.

To succeed in gardening as a hobby it would be an advantage to possess the following:

a.) In addition to having a love of gardening, determination and patience are necessary in order to persue this passion. This is because you have to wait for plants to grow – they do not come like a mechano set.

b.) An already reasonable fitness, agility and active lifestyle, will save a lot of tears later on. Indifference and gardening do not go well together.

c.) The ability to exchange ideas and information with other gardeners, this will increase your knowledge ten-fold.

d.) A desire to read everything you can find about gardening, books, magazines or newspaper articles, anything that can increase your general knowledge of gardening. Plants do not come with their own individual instructions.

e.) A small amount of money, in order to buy the “essential” gardening tools, plants, seeds.

For those who find themselves with the enthusiasm, or passion for gardening, a whole new world is open to them. This is because there are so many avenues to gardening, from indoor gardening, outdoor gardening, landscaping, growing exotic plants, miniature plants, carnivorous plants, flowering plants, foliage plants, or vegetable gardening – the list is endless. Having said that, however, it is important to first consider your own limitations of: available space, free time, physical constraints, and suchlike.

Also, it is necessary to study or research the different aspects of gardening, first, to find out which aspect is most suited to your situation and lifestyle. Indeed, you may “want” to have acres of flowers, but if you are living in an apartment – possibly, you might be happier with indoor plants.

Although plants are fairly forgiving, you cannot just plonk any old plant in the ground and expect it to flourish, the plants you choose to develop is also an important aspect of gardening. If you really, really, like pine trees, all well and good, However, should you fill your yard with pine trees, if you like looking at tree trunks, go right ahead, certainly as the years progress, you will have very little actual gardening to do as nothing else is going to grow under them. So be careful on your placement of plants in their respective to your overall design. Organize the distribution of plants in your garden, according to their heights, overall size and general requirements, textures and colors so that they complement each other rather than compete.

If you allocate one day a week, for the general maintenance of the garden, this will allow you to be able to easily manage and enjoy it, rather than monthly, or 6 monthly forays into the yard – this is when an over-abundance of unkemp growth will see the loss of things, like: the mower, small children, the deck chairs, etc. Consistancy in the garden helps it to remain an enjoyable experience.

Remenber to put away your garden tools at the end of a gardening day, too. There is nothing worse than a rake in the grass.

1. You can plan strawberry plants in the spring, as long as the ground is not frozen. Till the ground and mix up the soil to prepare it for planting. Usually late April to early May is the best time to plant strawberries. If the soil is wet, wait a few days until it dries out. Plant the strawberry plants in an area where they will have room to grow. The strawberry plant will grow and expand year after year, so they need extra space.
2. Step 2

   Strawberry plants will last for a long time, years. They will expand, but you may also want to plant a few new plants each year, just so if any do die, there will be new ones to replenish the old. When planting your strawberry plant be sure to give the roots enough room to spread. A quick trick, dig a small hole where you plan to plant. Make a small tennis ball sized clump of dirt and squeeze it enough so it will take shape and stay together at the bottom of the hole. Put the plant on top of this ball of dirt and very gently twist the plant. Doing this with the roots will help them grow more horizontal, not vertical. Place then about 3-4 feet apart. This is enough space for them to spread.

3. Step 3

   As with any of plants and flowers, be sure to keep the weeds out of your garden. Weeds suffocate your strawberries and take over the area the roots will need to grow. Pull weeds out of your garden, keep it clean. Stay away from plant killers and other sprays as these may kill your strawberries and may be harmful if you ingest them. Also, keep any pets and animals out of the garden. You can get wire fencing, that is about knee high. It is easy to put in the ground, and can be bought in green, which makes it blend in. It blends in and looks nice, and also keeps animals out.

garden fountain

Within this article we are going to take a look at just some of the ways you can enhance your garden by adding a water feature. The water fountains come in a variety of styles, shapes and sizes and each one of them can offer a different appeal to your garden depending on where you place it.

Patio and Decking Areas

The first place to discuss is adding one of the Garden Water Fountains is to your patio or decking area. This is one of the primary areas for the fountains and they offer something really extra for your garden that you will not get from any other garden product. The fountains are standalone and fully self contained and the pump is inside the base of the fountain which keeps this well out of sight. The gentle flow of the water over the fountain adds a really excellent and subtle ambience to the area and when you are sitting out and enjoying the summer it will create the perfect background noise. There are various sizes and it will really depend on how large your patio or decking area is to which would best suite the space.

Additions to Ponds

The smaller fountains are an ideal addition for a pond area and they will blend perfectly in with the existing arrangement you have. A good example of one that would look great in this location is the Bubbling Rock, this is a small rock that has the water flowing over the top and this creates a wonderful effect. There are of course many other styles as well such as the sphere and it is well worth taking a look at the different styles and considering which would be best suited to your pond area. It is even possible to integrate one of the garden water fountains in with any existing water feature and they will compliment perfectly.

Flower and Shrub Areas

The traditional style Garden Water Fountains look superb when they are integrated into the existing shrub areas. With the bird bath styles and the traditional stone shape fountains the choice is huge. There are many varieties and styles that would be perfectly suited to add into your borders and they would equally be at home within a lawn area. The bird bath styles are perfect for attracting the wildlife and the birds and they can really enhance and expand on the beauty of your garden. Whether you are looking for a traditional fountain or a modern and contemporary design there will be one that will be perfect for you.

The type of fountain that is often recognized as the more traditional is the free-standing water garden fountain.  Free standing fountains usually have two or three tiers that vary in sizes and the bottom tier serves as the biggest basin.   These type of fountains are often sculpted from stone which is a traditional practice since ancient times.  Nowadays, new methods in crafting traditional free-standing fountains include materials like concrete, metal and cement and other materials like plastic and porcelain have also been introduced.

One garden fountain more modest than free-standing is the garden wall fountain.   These type of fountains are fairly much cheaper than free-standing ones and are often the choice for people who has money to spend for fountain, but not as much for a free-standing.  People add garden fountains to not only add elegance to their garden, but also to be able to water their plants.  Of course adding a network of pipes is necessary in order to let the water flow along the path where the plants are.

Having outdoor garden fountains, for some, are unnecessary and even redundant.   A lot of them don’t realize the therapeutic value and benefit fountains potentially contribute.  Therapeutic not in a physically applicable and topical way, but the sound of the continuous streaming of water relaxes and calms people’s minds as its therapy. Another benefit garden fountains provide is the assistance it gives to the surroundings.  Birds also benefit from fountains.  It’s convenient for birds to have easy access to clean water. Considering all these benefits that garden fountains provide, it’s as if they simulate nature itself.   Since water is such an integral part for every living thing’s survival, garden fountains become artificial bodies of water in our own backyard.

Grow a beautiful garden the water wise way

Saving water and enjoying the beauty and environmental benefits of plants are not only possible, but easy says the American Association of Nurserymen (AAN). “Water Wise” gardening is built on some basic, commonsense principles:

Planning

Planning a water wise garden or landscape is as easy and fun-as planning any type of garden. Talk to the professionals at your local center/landscape firm to see which plants will do well in your area. You may be surprised to find that some very beautiful, colorful plants are low on water consumption-and they may fit into your landscape perfectly.

Group together plants that require the same amount of water. Plant trees and shrubs to provide shade to cool buildings, air conditioning units, patios, decks, and other landscape features.  Shelter container plants by moving them to shady areas. Spike or aerate lawns to insure maximum water penetration. Control weeds which compete with useful plants for water.

Soil Improvement

Soil improvement is another easy and beneficial step in building a water wise garden. Soil that is well prepared at the time of planting influences the plant’s initial development and yields the best results. And plants placed in the proper soil will be healthier, often needing less water.

Soil characteristics include texture, structure, depth, and nutrients. To find out more about your soil content, test your soil with the following garden products: Accugrow Soil Test Kit or the Sunleaves Three-Way Meter.

Wise Irrigation

Efficient irrigation is a critical part of water wise gardening. Your irrigation system can be simple, such as a hand-held hose, or elaborate, such as an in-ground sprinkler system. Consider a drip water conservation system, which can save up to 60% of water used by sprinkler irrigation. Whatever you choose, make sure you plan your watering to get best results.

Deep, infrequent watering, promotes root growth and is the wisest use of water and encourages strong rooting. This provides greater tolerance to dry spells.  Water early in the day, and on less windy days, to reduce evaporation loss. The ideal time is from dawn to 9:00 a.m.   Turn off sprinklers before water is wasted as runoff into gutters and streets.

Mulching

Mulching is always a benefit to your garden and can help prevent soil erosion and evaporation, conserving the water that is available and keeping your plants healthy and strong.

Maintenance

Maintaining your water wise garden means learning how to water all over again. You may find that watering less means having more time to sit back and enjoy your garden. Generally, plants should be watered less often and for a long period of time. Drip, soaker, or deep root watering promotes healthy plants and less water use.

If you are looking for ways for you or your children to provide cheap presents for the extended family, or just like to give gifts that have a personal element to them, then here is a suggestion or two for you.

If you are looking to make a present for the gardener in the family or someone who has recently moved into their own home, someone in a flat or unit, or a person who can’t manage a full sized yard, or a family member who loves to cook with fresh ingredients, etc. Then why not consider giving them something from your own garden? Here I am talking about plants that you have divided off from your own garden plants.

There are many plants growing in the average garden that can be divided, or that have naturally self layered themselves. Where you could go along and take a rooted section, pot them up and with a bit of dressing up of the planting container, you could produce a really nice gift for someone you care about.

These plants include many herbs as well as perennials or shrubs and even some trees which manage to send out self-layering branches or suckers from the root system. Some perennials or bulbs will increase their size or number of bulbs over time. Chance seedlings coming up in the wrong place for you, can easily also be used. All of these provide you with an opportunity to cheaply create a wonderful present for someone else.

First things first you will need to obtain a number of pots either plastic ones left over from additions to the garden population, or from someone you know, or you can go out and purchase a pot plastic/ceramic/terracotta etc., to suit your needs. If the person you are giving the plant to is not a real gardener, then you might consider getting a pot with a waterwell in the base to increase the plants’ chances of surviving.

Next, you need to begin looking for your plant material, so take a careful look around your garden at the soil level. Check out which plants are showing multiple stalks growing out of the ground. Or those sprawling plants where a branch has leaned over on to the ground and taken root along the branch, maybe one where a branch has become buried under the mulch.

Or one where there is a sucker growing from the soil a short distance from the parent plant. Another possibility is seedlings growing in the garden a distance from the parent plant material. Maybe there is a clump of plants or a big patch of bulbs where you can do some dividing.

Many of these plants benefit from being divided up or being allowed some more growing room in the particular area where you have taken away some material.

Different parts of Australia will have a differing range of plant species, which lend themselves to this form of self-propagation. If you can’t find any plants that are doing this in your own garden, why not look at a friends or neighbours garden. Or you could maybe join forces and give a joint present using plants from another family member’s garden. Or another possibility is to buy a plant in a pot that has several plants already established in it.

Divide that up before you use half in your own garden, and still have half to repot and give away. Even if you are not confident about your gardening skills you can still pick up cheap plants at the local market, school/church fair, garage sale etc. Repot them into a bigger or nicer pot for a fairly cheap present.

Another possibility is to multiplant a few different plants into a long or large round tub. This will create an instant garden on the move. Some themes you might consider here is herbs, indoor foliage, bulbs, annuals, alpine/rock, cacti/succulent or even patio gardens mixing annuals and perennials.

It is best to moisten the ground around the plant that you are going to work on well before you do the dividing, as this allows you to remove the maximum amount of root mass during the dividing process.

The first step is to divide the clump or cut away the joining branch to make the separate plant available. Then using a spade, fork or gardening trowel, dig as far out from the potential plant as practicable, because this will give you the biggest root mass possible.

Go down as far you believe you need to, (this will depend on such circumstances as size of new plant, species of original plant material, type of soil, other plant or landscaping material around the area, etc.). As gently as you can dig out the new plant. Shake off any excess soil and refill the resulting hole in the ground if necessary.

Prune back the foliage of the new plant to roughly equal size of the root mass, trying to protect some of the new foliage growth. Repot as soon as practicable, so that the roots do not dry out and die.

Another thing to consider is what sort of pot you are gong to plant into; if it is only a plastic pot then you do not need to prepare it beforehand. However if you are looking at painting it, then do this before you get digging.

When painting up pots, you will need to do some preparation work for the paint to stick properly. Plastic pots should have their surface roughened up with a bit of sandpaper. While some terracotta pots should have a primer applied to the outer surface before you paint them. Try not to get primer or paint onto the inside of the planter, because while most wont, there are still some paints which contain chemicals that may affect or contaminate the soil and plant over time.

Other possibilities for decorating up pots include simply gluing on bits and pieces including stones, tiles, buttons, sticks, shells, ornaments, ribbon, stickers and decals, etc. Other ways of decorating up a pot for the initial presentation is to wrap up just the pot (not the actual plant), using either wrapping paper, cellophane, material, a cheap teatowel or even hessian. Hold these wrappers in place with string, ribbon, bandana, scarf, etc.

Other possibilities for adding value to the potplant is to provide some growing information and name tags for the plant/s included. Other little quirks you might add include a personalised name tag, (Hi, my name is David the Diffenbachia . . . ), or a little watering indicator, miniature hand tools, small amounts of fertiliser, pot ornaments, watering can etc.

So as you can see, creating a very personal gift for just about anyone can easily be within the grasp of anyone. Why not go out into your garden and start thinking about what presents you can be preparing for Christmas this weekend.