Knowing how to care for your flower garden can make a big difference in the look and over-all health of your plants. Here are some simple hints to make your garden bloom with health.
1. The essentials must always be given major consideration.
Your flower garden must have an adequate supply of water, sunlight, and fertile soil. Any lack of these basic necessities will greatly affect the health of plants. Water the flower garden more frequently during dry spells.
When planting bulbs, make sure they go at the correct depth. When planting out shrubs and perennials, make sure that you don't heap soil or mulch up around the stem. If you do, water will drain off instead of sinking in, and the stem could develop rot through overheating.
2. Mix and match perennials with annuals.
Perennial flower bulbs need not to be replanted since they grow and bloom for several years while annuals grow and bloom for only one season. Mixing a few perennials with annuals ensures that you will always have blooms coming on.
3. Deadhead to encourage more blossoms.
Deadheading is simply snipping off the flower head after it wilts. This will make the plant produce more flowers. Just make sure that you don't discard the deadhead on the garden or mildew and other plant disease will attack your plants.
4. Know the good from the bad bugs.
Most garden insects do more good than harm. Butterflies, beetles and bees are known pollinators. They fertilize plants through unintentional transfer of pollen from one plant to another. 80% of flowering plants rely on insects for survival.
Sowbugs and dung beetles together with fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms are necessary to help in the decomposition of dead plant material, thus enriching the soil and making more nutrients available to growing plants.
Other insects like lacewings and dragonflies are natural predators of those insects that do the real damage, like aphis.
An occasional application of liquid fertilizer when plants are flowering will keep them blooming for longer.
Always prune any dead or damaged branches. Fuchsias are particularly prone to snapping when you brush against them. The broken branch can be potted up to give you a new plant, so it won't be wasted.
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Will acorn squash ripen after picked
By: shirley | 30-09-2008
will acorn squash ripen after picked
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By: Fromseed | 30-09-2008
hoya plants in west palm beach....does anyone know where I can buy Hoya plants at reasonable prices in Plam Beach County area?
Tulip in a flower pot
By: D Howard | 29-09-2008
I don't own my own house,and i can't dig in my landlord grass. I want to know can i plant some tulip in a large flower pot.
Developer/Home Builder is currently under contract ...
By: Help in SD | 29-09-2008
Developer/Home Builder is currently under contract to build a home on lot next to mine. They have brought in trucks and trucks of dirt building the dirt of that lot 3-4 feet higher than mine. Needless to say, the dirt falls onto my sod and sprinklers. We asked them to stop. We demanded they stop. We're screaming for them to stop since each time it rains, the rain water has brought the mud down hill to cover our property. To top it all off, this has formed a bowl(6'x10'x8"d, so far)into our property(sprinkler and sod) that not only is our property not drining as it was, water is finding new places to drain (toward our foundation and garden windows). Yes, I know I need a lawyer. But, why should I have to come out of pocket to build retaining wall..obviously needed, when we planned to have a wrought iron fence around property? Our property was the first ever built here and the Spec Home (still the most expensive) and they are trashing my property! Help from anyone knowing laws, having this happen to them, knowing the ins and outs of builders' dirty little secrets as to doing this. City is NO help what-so-ever! Engineering shovels you to a civil lawyer, Building Inspectors shovel you to engineering, all the while city codes go ignored and not enforced! In need of help in SD, please!
Where can I get a printable torque wrench ...
By: Carl | 29-09-2008
Where can I get a printable torque wrench conversion chart, inch pounds to foot pounds?
There's a lot that follows...sorry! I bought a ...
By: Grapevine care | 28-09-2008
There's a lot that follows...sorry! I bought a potted Thompson seedless grape vine. I am trying to figure out a few things that the tag doesn't provide, but first let me tell you about it. I have it on my balcony, which gets full sunlight the better part of the day. Some vines are growing (lengthwise) like gangbusters; others are filling out, but not growing lengthwise. As for climate, I live in Los Angeles. I would like to know what I need to do to get it to bear fruit, and when should expect fruit? If I want it to bear fruit, is it best to use an organic fertilizer? Should I expect the vines to die at some point during the year? If so, do I need to do something when it's time for regrowth or will it begin automatically? It has gotten much bigger since purchasing. Should I re-pot it in a larger pot now? I live in an apartment, so for now, I cannot plant it in the ground. The leaves near to the main vine are the ones starting to get brown spots, turn yellow, and pull off easily. Is this normal? Does it have to do with it's life cycle? Lastly, there are these moth-like insects (gray with red spots on wings, not very big) that seem to love my grapevine, but don't SEEM to be doing any damage. Are they damaging? I know I have a ton of questions, but this is my first attempt at cultivating any large fruit bearing plant. Thank you very much for your help. Amy
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