Where to Put Your Greenhouse Before you decide where to put your greenhouse, consider what exactly you plan to grow in the greenhouse and what type of greenhouse do you plan to erect. If you are a home grower that plans to grow for your own amusement and use, the greenhouse will generally be on a smaller scale, but if you wish to start a business, it will have to be much larger....
Bitter Melon Information Bitter melons are the fruit from an herbaceous vine, which as its name indicates is extremely bitter — too bitter to eat if allowed to ripen. Hence, the fruit of the bitter melons — and sometimes the tender leafy shoots — is harvested while young and then stuffed, pickled or sliced into a variety of menu items. Also known as bitter gourd or balsam pear, bitter melons are harvested prior to seed hardening and are of a uniform pale green with a warty appearance....
Black Alder Tree Info There are many interesting black alder facts that landscapers and gardeners should know. Black alders grow up to 50 feet (15 m.) tall. Plant them with about 10 feet (3 m.) of space around them. They can thrive in waterlogged soils, but also have the ability to tolerate fairly dry conditions. They prefer loamy or sandy soil but are also salt tolerant. Black alder leaves are ridged, smooth, and glossy with jagged edges....
When to Propagate a Bleeding Heart With its lacy, fern-like foliage and pillowy, heart-shaped flowers, bleeding heart is one of the champions of the low light landscape. The plants will bloom for years but often flowers slow down as the plant gets older. This is when to propagate a bleeding heart by division. Such activity will rejuvenate the plant while also allowing you to grow more. Division can occur either in fall or in early spring....
How to Grow an African Blood Lily Growing African blood lilies outdoors is possible only in the warm climates of USDA plant hardiness zones 9 through 12. Plant blood lily bulbs with the necks even with, or slightly above, the surface of the soil. If your soil is poor, dig in a few inches (8 cm.) of compost or manure, as blood lily bulbs need rich, well-drained soil. The plant thrives in either partial shade or full sunlight....
About Spinach with Blue Mold Managing downy mildew, or blue mold, on spinach can be difficult, as wind-blown spores develop at 48 degrees F. (9 C.). Once downy mildew of spinach appears, it quickly infects the entire crop, with leaves showing damage in as little as four to five days. New strains of the disease have severely infected spinach crops the last few years. For instance, Arizona and California, which are top spinach producers in the U....
Why are My Blueberries not Ripening? The most likely reason for blueberries that won’t ripen is the type of berry. Some varieties require longer periods of cold winter temps to fruit properly. If you live in a warmer region, the plants may not have had a long enough chill period. Blueberries bud in summer and flower the following spring, yielding berries from early summer to early fall. Shorter fall days combined with cooler night temperatures signal to the plant that it is time to become dormant....
The plant will produce the large, deep throated flowers for which hibiscus are noted. Braided plants can be costly and take years to mature in a greenhouse. When you know how to form a hibiscus braided tree, you can save money and have the satisfaction of creating a beautiful plant work of art. What is a Braided Hibiscus? Tropical Chinese hibiscus is suitable for USDA plant hardiness zones 9 and 10 but makes excellent patio plants in summer where temperatures are cooler....
Many garden projects such as edging, retaining walls, garden paths, and more can be accomplished using leftover bricks around the garden. And if you are fresh out of bricks, rather than purchase new, it is easy to acquire reclaimed bricks. Bricks last a long time, have that old world charm, and are easy on the pocketbook if purchasing new. Here are several brick garden ideas you can use in your own yard....
Brugmansia Diseases The most common Brugmansia diseases include: Fungal wilts Fungal issues affecting brugmansia include fusarium and verticillium wilt. Both diseases, which enter the plant through the roots and travel up the stem, block transmission of water and cause stunted growth and wilted foliage. Fusarium wilt is usually seen in warm weather, while verticillium is more common when the weather is cool. There are no practical chemical controls for fusarium and verticillium wilt, and the fungi can live in the soil for long periods....
What is Bunch Disease in Pecan Trees? Pecan tree bunch disease is a mycoplasma organism that attacks the tree’s foliage and buds. The characteristic symptoms include bunches of willowy shoots growing in bushy patches on the tree. These are the result of an abnormal forcing of lateral buds. The bushy areas of willowy shoots may occur on one branch or a multitude of limbs. The disease develops during the winter and symptoms manifest in late spring to early summer....
Can I Move My Caladium Indoors? Tender tubers and bulbs need to be lifted in fall before any chance of frost can terminate them. Caladium tubers are frost tender and will die if exposed to cold. As such, they need to be brought indoors in northern climates and will usually die back in winter even in warmer regions. This is all well and good, as the tubers from which the foliage is born, require some rejuvenating rest....
How to Grow a Coleus Houseplant Growing coleus plants indoors isn’t at all difficult but does require a few basic needs when it comes to light and temperature. Coleus likes bright light, but be careful of intense sunlight. Look for a spot where the plant gets bright, morning sunlight but indirect light during the afternoon. You may need to supplement available light with artificial lights during the winter. Watch the plant closely....
How Can I Propagate Lemongrass? Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus), sometimes spelled lemon grass, is indeed a member of the grass family that includes corn and wheat. It is winter hardy to only USDA zone 10 but can be container grown and brought indoors to shelter it from winter temperatures. There are only two of the 55 species of Cymbopogon used as lemongrass. They are usually labeled as East or West Indian lemongrass and are used in cooking or to make tea or tisanes....
Rhododendron Container Care Growing rhododendrons in containers is relatively easy because they have such shallow root systems. In fact, the major concern with rhododendron container care is not the size of the container, but its drainage capabilities. Rhododendrons like moist soil, but their roots will rot easily if they get too soggy, so make sure your container has plenty of drainage holes. If you’ve just bought a small rhododendron, you can either transplant it or keep it in its nursery container for the first year....
Growing Your Own Bridal Bouquet There are a few reasons to grow your own wedding flowers. Weddings are expensive, and floral arrangements are a surprisingly costly part of the price tag. Also, imported flowers can sometimes be treated with harmful pesticides that get released into the local environment. By growing your own flowers, you can save a lot of money and help the environment, but it’s not always easy. When you’re growing your own bridal bouquet and floral arrangements, the number one concern is timing....
About Caraway Herb Plants Caraway (Carum carvi) is a hardy, biennial herb native to Europe and western Asia. It is primarily grown for its fruit, or seeds, but both the roots and leaves are edible. Caraway is a member of the umbelliferous, aromatic plants along with anise, cumin, dill, and fennel. Like these spices, caraway is naturally sweet with a licorice flavor. The first season of growth, caraway plants form a rosette of leaves that look rather like carrots with a long taproot....
Watsonia Bugle Lily Plants These lovely flowers rise on spikes from thick sword-like leaves about 18 inches (46 cm.) long. Flowers soar almost a foot (31 cm.) above the foliage and may be orange, red, pink, coral, white, or yellow. Blooms are 3 inches (8 cm.) long and last several weeks, making them an attractive cut flower. Watsonia bulbs are actually corms. These are modified roots that act as storage organs, much like bulbs or rhizomes....
When it comes to landscaping a natural pond (any natural body of water within your landscape), be careful. Cattails for the pond can be both a headache and a delight, but learning how to control cattails can tip the scales dramatically in your favor. The Good Side of Cattail Plants From a naturalist’s point of view, cattail plants are a wonder of nature where every part of the plant can be used to benefit a variety of species, including humans....
How to Grow a Potato in Water Although potatoes grow underground, they are actually modified stems designed to store starch. This starch can be used as an energy source for reproduction. While potato plants can form seeds, they are usually propagated by vegetative means. In other words, new potato plants grow from the buds or eyes which form on the potato tuber. Follow these easy steps to grow potatoes in water: Step one: Choose a potato which has sprouted a few eyes....
