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Growing Shade Trees in Zone 7 Zone 7 may have nippy winters, but summers can be sunny and hot. Homeowners looking for a little backyard shade might think about planting zone 7 shade trees. When you want a shade tree, you want it yesterday. That’s why it’s wise to consider relatively fast-growing trees when you are selecting trees for zone 7 shade. Nothing is quite as impressive or solid as an oak tree, and those with wide canopies create beautiful summer shade....

Interested in growing strawberries in shade? Read on to learn about shade tolerant strawberry varieties. Can Strawberries Grow in Shade? It is true that strawberries need at least eight hours of sunlight to produce, so what a shaded yard needs aren’t the cultivated strawberry we’ve become accustomed to. Instead, you are looking for a shade tolerant strawberry which will be a variety of wild strawberry. Cultivated strawberries (Fragaria x ananassa) are hybrid species of the genus Fragaria created by the fusion of Chilean Fragaria chiloensis and the North American Fragaria virginiana....

What is a Snowball Cactus? The snowball cactus is botanically named Mammillaria candida. It is covered with dense spines and a white substance sometimes called wool. The wool makes it look like a snowball, but be careful of the dense spines. This is an easy to grow plant and the more sun it gets, the more wool and spines it will produce. Careful with this, though, as too much direct sun can burn this cactus....

The Importance of Spacing for Herb Gardens All plants need to be spaced correctly. The biggest problem in spacing is putting plants too close together. If the spacing between herb plants is too tight, they suffer in several ways: They compete with each other for nutrients. Any disease the develops can pass quickly from one plant to the next. Less airflow promotes fungal diseases and rot. It’s more difficult to remove weeds, which compete with the herbs for nutrients....

How to Divide Shooting Star Plants Native plants are wonderful additions to the landscape due to their adaptability and ease of care. In the case of perennials, you can have two for the price of one after just a couple of years by the process of division. This propagation method is easy provided you do it at the right time of the year, so you don’t harm the plant or sacrifice flowers....

Starfish Flower Cactus These plants aren’t exactly cactus, but are members of the succulent group of plants. They are soft stemmed plants without spines spreading out from a central point. They are thickly skinned and resemble carrion flesh. Starfish flower cactus may produce amazing five-petaled flowers that exude a rather unpleasant odor. The scent attracts flies and other insects, which pollinate the blooms. Flowers are red to brown and may be mottled with a couple of colors....

One thing is certain: the benefits of growing gardens are many and varied. Regardless of your primary motive for starting a garden, the process is sure to bring you many rewards. Why Start a Garden? The act of nurturing plants in your backyard is good for the mind and also good for the body. Don’t take our word for it. Scientific studies have established how gardening helps reduce or prevent both anxiety and depression, offering a therapeutic and calming experience....

Note: While all of these methods are easy enough, it’s important that everyone be aware that these plants are poisonous and not just when ingested. Contact with its foliage and other plant parts, especially during propagation or pruning, can result in skin irritation and inflammation (such as redness, burning, and itching) in overly sensitive individuals. How to Propagate Trumpet Vine from Seed Trumpet vine will readily self-seed, but you can also collect and plant the seeds in the garden yourself....

Does Freezing Kill Seeds? Seed banks store rare, exotic and heirloom seeds in refrigeration units or cryogenic chambers to ensure the survival and future of specific plant varieties. As a home gardener, you probably don’t have a cryogenic chamber in your garden shed, and you also probably don’t need to store thousands of seeds for decades. That said, the kitchen refrigerator or freezer are sufficient for storing leftover seeds, as long as they are stored properly....

Organizing Tools for Growing Succulents Keep a bin of premixed soil ready to use when you need to add a new plant to an arrangement or fill a new container. Have a special spot where you can store this out of sight. Leave a spade or small scoop in the bin so you don’t have to go searching for them each time. Keep other tools that you use regularly together in a handy spot....

Making a Kokedama Succulent Ball The kokedama is basically a ball of soil containing plants with peat moss combined and most often covered with sheet moss. The translation of Japanese kokedama to English means moss ball. Any number and type of plants may be incorporated into the ball. Here, we’ll be focusing on a kokedama with succulents. You will need: Small succulent plants or cuttings Potting soil for succulents Peat moss Sheet moss Water Twine, yarn, or both Rooting hormone or cinnamon (optional)...

Choosing New Outdoor Furniture Give your outdoor space the feeling you wish to impart to your family and guests such as making them feel relaxed and welcome. Your design may be sophisticated, country, or contemporary but it should be inviting. Many make their outdoor rooms an extension of the home, with a smooth and easy transition. Customize your outdoor space to fit your lifestyle. Decorate with the appropriate outdoor furniture for garden areas....

How to Make a Moss Pole Plant Support Cheese plants are epiphytes, which means they are vertically growing plants that use the support of other plants in their environment. This means that training cheese plant on a moss pole perfectly mimics their natural state. Using moss poles for cheese plants creates the environment Monstera needs to raise the heavy stem upright and provides a pleasing appearance. You will need a stout stake a little bit taller than the plant....

Swamp Leather Flower Info The swamp leather flower (Clematis crispa) is a type of clematis that goes by many names, including blue jasmine, curly clematis, curly flower, and southern leather flower. It is a climbing vine, usually growing between 6 and 10 feet (2-3 m.) in length. Native to the southeastern United States, it grows as a perennial in USDA zones 6 to 9. The plant dies down to the ground in the winter and comes back with new growth in the spring....

What are Swan River Daisies? Swan river daisy flowers are an annual flower native to certain parts of Australia. Reaching heights of just over 1.5 feet (46 cm.), Swan River daisy flowers range in color from white to blue-violet. In addition to its beauty, this fast-growing flower is beloved by many for its sweet scent and its ability to attract pollinators, such as hummingbirds and butterflies, into the landscape. Though Swan River daisy blooms are relatively small, usually growing no larger than 1 inch (2....

Propagating Sweet Olive Trees If you want to learn how to root a sweet olive tree, you’ll be glad to know that sweet olive propagation is not difficult. The most effective propagation method for this small tree is rooting sweet olive cuttings. Sweet olive tree propagation works best with semi-hardwood cuttings. This means you need to take cuttings from the tree in late autumn. Before you take the cuttings, prepare the pots to plant them in....

Taking Geranium Plant Cuttings Starting geraniums from cuttings is very easy. One major bonus is the fact that geraniums have no dormant period. They grow continuously throughout the year, which means they can be propagated at any time with no need to wait for a particular time of year, like with most plants. It is better, however, to wait for a lull in the plant’s blooming cycle. When taking cuttings from geranium plants, cut with a pair of sharp shears just above a node, or a swollen part of the stem....

What is a Hedgehog Gourd? Hedgehog or teasel gourd (Cucumis dipsaceus) has many other names including (in English) hedgehog cucumber, tiger’s egg, and wild spiny cucumber. Native to eastern Africa, hedgehog gourd plants are widely grown in the coastal regions of India where they are called Kantola in Hindi and are available during the monsoon season– late spring through summer. In fact, teasel gourd is so popular in the Konkani region on the western coast of India that it is used in many of the ritual dishes of the local monsoon festivals....

Do you ever see half moon-shaped notches that appear to have been cut out of the leaves on your rosebushes or shrubs? Well, if you do, your gardens may have been visited by what is known as the leaf cutter bee (Megachile spp). Information About Leaf Cutter Bees The leaf cutter bees are seen as pests by some gardeners, as they can make a mess of the foliage on a favorite rosebush or shrub by making their half moon shaped precision cuts out of the leaves....

Thurber’s Needlegrass Information Whatever you need grass to do, the odds are good that Thurber’s needlegrass plants will do it for you. Drought tolerant and cold hardy, the grass serves as forage for cattle, horses, and other livestock as well as elk, deer, and antelope. Before you consider growing Thurber’s needlegrass, you might want to know what the plants look like. Thurber’s needlegrass plants are native, cool-season bunchgrass perennials with narrow rolled leaves up to 10 inches (25....