Often people that want a garden have to make the decision if they want to do organic gardening or gardening using chemicals. The difference is clear and while organic gardening may seem like much more work it actually is not. Chemicals are in many things and while they are approved for use on foods grown in the garden may people would rather chemical free gardens.
The organic garden is not a new thought, it has been done all through history by gardeners and one thing that is as true today as it was at anytime in the past is to start the organic garden the soil is mixed with organic matter that has been broken down. In the past people had pits that certain house refuse was put in, along with leaves and mixed with a pitchfork daily. Today there are special containers that are made with a crank to turn the mixture of household refuse. This is the key ingredient in a good organic garden. This soil is rich and will grow fine vegetables and plants, if desired manure can be added to the soil to make it even richer.
The next key thing in the organic garden is the lack of chemical pest control, it would make little sense to spend time preparing organic matter for the soil to then use chemicals directly on the vegetables or their plants. One of the most interesting ways of dealing with pests in the garden is by purchasing what are known as beneficial bugs. There are certain bugs that naturally keep garden pests at bay. There are other means to control pests in the garden naturally, one of these is the use of lemon grass, and it is a natural mosquito repellent. There is also the use of orange oil that helps to naturally repel some pests.
Information is plentiful for the organic gardener and while some people would think that this would be a time consuming venture, once a gardener understands organic gardening it does not take the amount of time that it does to use chemicals. Using chemicals means that the plants must be treated on a continuous basis in order to keep them pest free. Organic gardening the use of plants and bugs as an aid takes no time once introduced into the garden. The use of natural herbicides takes no more time than it does to use chemicals. There are also the health benefits of the organic garden; no chemicals are much desired when it involves consuming foods, as proof of that more and more organic foods are appearing in grocery stores on a daily basis.
The benefits of organic gardening can be seen on the table and sitting around the table, on the table the vegetables are brightly colored have the taste of fresh grown and are filled with healthy nutrients. Around the table are those family members and friends who will consume the vegetables that are not filled with chemicals.
How to Make a Small Garden Look Big Like the Experts
A small garden benefits from foliage plants in the same way that large gardens do from grasses. Foliage plants will help to calm down the liveliness of the border and produce somewhere for the eye to rest.
This is important in a small garden packed with plants, as the overall appearance can become overly busy. Another use of foliage in any garden, but particularly in a small garden, is to surround a single flowering plant with green or silver leaves so that it makes the flowers stand out, accenting them with a posy effect.
Every bit of space in a small garden is at a premium to a plant lover, so it is important to remember that a garden is three dimensional. Climbing plants can be used against walls or fences. It may also be possible to use one or two posts or tripods, if there is space, to add to this vertical accent. As well as climbers, annuals can be used in hanging baskets and window boxes to add color at or above eye level.
It is possible to use a few optical tricks to make the garden look bigger. Cover the fences with plants so that the margins of the garden cannot be seen. This tricks works particularly well if there is a neighboring garden with shrubs and other plants peering over the fence as it will look as if your garden continues.
Use a winding path that disappears around a corner at the bottom of the garden so that it seems as if your garden continues out of sight. Paler colored plants set towards the end of a short garden will deceive the eye and appear farther away than they are.
Large mirrors covering a wall can give the impression that the wall does not exist and the garden carries on, though the mirrors must be angled so that anyone approaching cannot see their own reflection.
Another idea is to erect an arch, which can be covered with climbing plants, just in front of a wall, and then back the arch with a mirror to give the impression that the garden continues under the arch.
Similarly, using a trompeloeil painting in a wall perhaps a picture of a gate opening into another garden will deceive viewers into believing that more lies beyond.
To learn more about the different types of plant nursery supplies for your garden whether indoor or outdoor, make sure to visit http://www.plantnurserysupplies.com Make sure to get your free catalog on gardening while you are there.
This is important in a small garden packed with plants, as the overall appearance can become overly busy. Another use of foliage in any garden, but particularly in a small garden, is to surround a single flowering plant with green or silver leaves so that it makes the flowers stand out, accenting them with a posy effect.
Every bit of space in a small garden is at a premium to a plant lover, so it is important to remember that a garden is three dimensional. Climbing plants can be used against walls or fences. It may also be possible to use one or two posts or tripods, if there is space, to add to this vertical accent. As well as climbers, annuals can be used in hanging baskets and window boxes to add color at or above eye level.
It is possible to use a few optical tricks to make the garden look bigger. Cover the fences with plants so that the margins of the garden cannot be seen. This tricks works particularly well if there is a neighboring garden with shrubs and other plants peering over the fence as it will look as if your garden continues.
Use a winding path that disappears around a corner at the bottom of the garden so that it seems as if your garden continues out of sight. Paler colored plants set towards the end of a short garden will deceive the eye and appear farther away than they are.
Large mirrors covering a wall can give the impression that the wall does not exist and the garden carries on, though the mirrors must be angled so that anyone approaching cannot see their own reflection.
Another idea is to erect an arch, which can be covered with climbing plants, just in front of a wall, and then back the arch with a mirror to give the impression that the garden continues under the arch.
Similarly, using a trompeloeil painting in a wall perhaps a picture of a gate opening into another garden will deceive viewers into believing that more lies beyond.
To learn more about the different types of plant nursery supplies for your garden whether indoor or outdoor, make sure to visit http://www.plantnurserysupplies.com Make sure to get your free catalog on gardening while you are there.
Using Container Pots and Plants to Make a Great Container Garden
Labels:
Container Garden
Flowers, vegetables, herbs, trees and some fruits can be grown in containers and pots. Containers can be hung from porch railings and some can be used as window boxes.
Keep in mind that containers and pots generally dry out much faster than a garden, especially on hot days or long stretches of dry weather. Water regularly and remember that it is also important when watering the plants to get some advice from your local garden center about the watering preferences of the plants. It is very important to ensure that you understand how much wetting each plant needs.
Watering rates are so important that it might be a good idea to divide the containers and pots into groups with similar sizes and similar watering needs. It is also advisable to separate groups of containers and pots into groups that are split between those that need full sun and those that need more shaded areas. The key to success, as in any kind of gardening, is to put things in the sun that like sun and things in the shade that like shade.
Mixing water-retaining granules with the compost will reduce watering chores but you'll still have to water the baskets once a day in hot, dry weather.
Planting flowers in your garden containers adds immediate color and liveliness to your yard. However, you may find that some of your plants are so special, they deserve special treatment and pride of place at certain times. I move my containers around a lot as the season progresses so that, the best are always in the most visible positions, but be assured that every one of them are beautiful when blooming. Limited visible exhibiting space in some back yards can also make this option appealing to the gardener.
I am always grateful that weeding is not the problem for containers and pot grown plants as it is in garden beds. It is a wonderful to enjoy plants you've successfully started from seed, but again in flower beds the weeds can easily overpower young seeds and weeding can become a chore. Not so with container gardening!
Pot plants are great for adding color to a spot in a garden that 'needs something,' and they can also be moved around for when you are entertaining in a certain area.
Terra Cotta has been the classic material for a garden pot since ancient times. This porous material breathes and provides drainage for optimum growing conditions. You can put plants closer than you would in a garden, but with pot plants much more so than with plants in the ground - you'll have to be vigilant about food and water.
Many may the mistake of thinking that container pots would be a minor accessory in a garden. You need to realize that they can be a major focal point. Not to say that a pot plant will always remain so. As plants get larger and larger, giving them more root room becomes impossible and the act of planting them in the garden may be the only solution.
A large variety of containers are available for all gardens, but be aware of limitations in very dry and hot gardens. For example in the dry, Colorado climate, moss baskets don't do well.
Here is a plant we like. It is sometimes referred to as "Garden Orchids" (Spathoglottis). This plant offers year-round color and can be used in landscaped ground beds in warm climates as well as an interesting summertime flowering patio plant for cooler climates.
In container gardening you need to prune and re-pot late in the afternoon out of the sun, or on cool days. We have a lot of hanging baskets with mostly south/southeastern exposure. We find that attractive, well-planted containers are an essential component of today's garden. In his new book, Pots in the Garden, award-winning horticulturist Ray Rogers offers a fresh approach to container planting and explains the basic design principles of container gardening.
Another tip is to make an arrangement of plants in your basket at the garden center before you buy. You'll easily find many plants suitable for pot and container gardening at garden centers. Remember, if you cannot make up your mind on what pot would suit the plant, experiment, and don't be afraid to try something original. If you decide you do not like the result you can always re-pot the bonsai the following year into a more preferred style. Equally, a low ground-hugging container can be planted with an annual to match or complement its neighbors, seemingly seamlessly. Or a wide-based and tall container can be placed as a contrast, with larger plants to be a focus rather than a background.
Keep in mind that containers and pots generally dry out much faster than a garden, especially on hot days or long stretches of dry weather. Water regularly and remember that it is also important when watering the plants to get some advice from your local garden center about the watering preferences of the plants. It is very important to ensure that you understand how much wetting each plant needs.
Watering rates are so important that it might be a good idea to divide the containers and pots into groups with similar sizes and similar watering needs. It is also advisable to separate groups of containers and pots into groups that are split between those that need full sun and those that need more shaded areas. The key to success, as in any kind of gardening, is to put things in the sun that like sun and things in the shade that like shade.
Mixing water-retaining granules with the compost will reduce watering chores but you'll still have to water the baskets once a day in hot, dry weather.
Planting flowers in your garden containers adds immediate color and liveliness to your yard. However, you may find that some of your plants are so special, they deserve special treatment and pride of place at certain times. I move my containers around a lot as the season progresses so that, the best are always in the most visible positions, but be assured that every one of them are beautiful when blooming. Limited visible exhibiting space in some back yards can also make this option appealing to the gardener.
I am always grateful that weeding is not the problem for containers and pot grown plants as it is in garden beds. It is a wonderful to enjoy plants you've successfully started from seed, but again in flower beds the weeds can easily overpower young seeds and weeding can become a chore. Not so with container gardening!
Pot plants are great for adding color to a spot in a garden that 'needs something,' and they can also be moved around for when you are entertaining in a certain area.
Terra Cotta has been the classic material for a garden pot since ancient times. This porous material breathes and provides drainage for optimum growing conditions. You can put plants closer than you would in a garden, but with pot plants much more so than with plants in the ground - you'll have to be vigilant about food and water.
Many may the mistake of thinking that container pots would be a minor accessory in a garden. You need to realize that they can be a major focal point. Not to say that a pot plant will always remain so. As plants get larger and larger, giving them more root room becomes impossible and the act of planting them in the garden may be the only solution.
A large variety of containers are available for all gardens, but be aware of limitations in very dry and hot gardens. For example in the dry, Colorado climate, moss baskets don't do well.
Here is a plant we like. It is sometimes referred to as "Garden Orchids" (Spathoglottis). This plant offers year-round color and can be used in landscaped ground beds in warm climates as well as an interesting summertime flowering patio plant for cooler climates.
In container gardening you need to prune and re-pot late in the afternoon out of the sun, or on cool days. We have a lot of hanging baskets with mostly south/southeastern exposure. We find that attractive, well-planted containers are an essential component of today's garden. In his new book, Pots in the Garden, award-winning horticulturist Ray Rogers offers a fresh approach to container planting and explains the basic design principles of container gardening.
Another tip is to make an arrangement of plants in your basket at the garden center before you buy. You'll easily find many plants suitable for pot and container gardening at garden centers. Remember, if you cannot make up your mind on what pot would suit the plant, experiment, and don't be afraid to try something original. If you decide you do not like the result you can always re-pot the bonsai the following year into a more preferred style. Equally, a low ground-hugging container can be planted with an annual to match or complement its neighbors, seemingly seamlessly. Or a wide-based and tall container can be placed as a contrast, with larger plants to be a focus rather than a background.
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