Friday, May 14, 2010

Winter Gardening Design

Just because the garden is asleep doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty to do for winter gardeners. Winter gardening takes advantage of little or no plant growth at this time of year to force us to concentrate on admittedly less attractive, but equally important tasks. There are many things you can do this time of year to make sure that your winter garden turns into the spring garden of your dreams.

*If the cold permits, use the winter in the garden to work on structure and hardscaping. This is a great time to plan or build arbors, built in seating, edging and paths. Winter allows you to see the bones of the garden to help you visualize where it needs some hardscaping. Perhaps your paths need to be redirected, or you see a spot that could use a trellis and some height. Take advantage of the bare winter garden to provide your plants with a background and structure.

*Use this time to redesign your flower beds. If you haven’t already created a garden notebook, now is a good time to start. Draw a diagram of each part of your garden, and mark the spot of the flowers, shrubs and bulbs. You may have to add items as spring approaches, and up pops that plant you had forgotten about! Get a basic layout of your garden, and consider what worked last year, and what didn’t. Note blank spots in the garden, and use paper templates to try new combinations of flowers within your beds. Color your paper templates to help you visualize the effect on the garden. Make a separate page for each plant you have in your garden, and note as much information as you can about it.

Vegetable Gardening Design

The Rewards of Vegetable Gardening

If you love to have fresh produces in the spring and summer, you should consider creating a home vegetable garden. Growing a vegetable garden is a fun and healthy hobby that anyone can excel at.

While gardening, you may find that your troubles and stresses of the day simply float away. Home vegetable gardening relieves stress and allows you to be out in the sun. Vegetable gardening is proven to lower blood pressure and clear the mind. Also, the act of nurturing plants and watching them grow is rather soothing. And it can look good too!

The Pros of Organic Gardening

One great aspect of home vegetable gardening is that it does not require a bunch of chemicals. Therefore, home vegetable gardening allows you to have more natural, juicy, and healthier vegetables that are also better for the environment. Using a lot of chemicals on vegetables is not only unhealthy for your body, but also takes a large toll on the environment. Growing your own vegetable garden and using less chemicals yields natural food.

Organic vegetables are always the best-tasting because they will not be picked until they are completely ripe and you are ready to pick them. One more pro of growing your own organic vegetable garden is that it will save you money. Instead of buying all your organic vegetables at the store, you will have your own selection of vegetables at your disposal whenever you want them.

Small Home Garden

the small garden design begins and ends with thoughtful, precise planning. However, small does not mean limited. A small garden design can still deliver a huge “wow” factor.

Small Garden Design: The Problems

A small garden design comes with big challenges. Perhaps your property abuts the two-story blank wall of a neighbor’s townhouse. Maybe the space is all straight lines and right angles. Or you’ve remodeled your home, changed the elevation, added a new room and reduced the size of your backyard, all of which affect the relationship to the existing landscape.

Turning Liabilities into Assets

With small garden design, as with all landscape design, the goal is to create spaces in which the home and architectural elements have a relationship with the yard and surrounding area. First, consider the big picture—your assets and liabilities. Begin by looking at the large, possibly immoveable factors, such as trees, a long fence-line or pool equipment, and decide if they are liabilities or assets. In this way, you test the viability and capacity of the site, a determination that will help clarify your landscape design options. Landscape designers or landscape architects can bring expertise and experience to this process.

Small Garden Design: Features to Consider

• Hardscapes. Decks, patios, pergolas, arbors and gates can be used to help define a small space, break it up or create interest. These choices, in effect, create other rooms. Your material selection adds further texture, thus making the space livelier.

Home Garden Pictures

Not all garden pests are harmful for your garden. Some garden pests, in fact, provide excellent pest control to protect your plants from other quite harmful insects. Isn’t nature wonderful? Here are 5 well-known garden pests which you wouldn't object to having in your garden. Some very useful techniques are also offered on how you can attract these insects that are in your area over to your garden.

1. Praying mantis. Praying mantises are regarded as the consummate small-sized predator. They are something to behold in their natural environment. The manner in which they hunt down their prey is methodical and meticulous. This makes them efficiently dangerous for other garden insects, but they are never dangerous for your garden. They harm it not at all.

Praying mantises can immediately put a stop to any pest infestation that may have started in your area. As a matter of fact, most gardening shops sell praying mantises for this purpose alone. That’s how useful they are.

2. Ladybugs. If you're living in North America, then chances are very good that your garden will host this kind of bug. They are extremely widespread and so are very common.

Ladybugs feed on soft-bodied insects. These soft-bodies are harmful for your garden. Ladybugs will even feed on the eggs and larvae of these harmful garden pests. This is what makes ladybugs an excellent feature of natural pest control.

Garden And Home

This plant, in some of its varieties, is probably the most popular ornament of the parlor. The ease of culture, its beautiful foliage, its rapid growth, and evergreen character all combine to make it a favorite.

The soil should be a rich loam; the richer the soil the more rapid will be the growth. Yet avoid stimulating manures. Slips root readily, taken off at any leaf joint, and placed either in earth or water; in the latter they will soon throw out roots, and may then be transferred to pots.

The only precaution to be taken in growing ivy is to keep it from frost while in growth and if frozen, to keep the sun away from it, thawing it out with cold water from whatever garden water feature (http://www.garden-fountains.com/Detail.bok?no=2922) you possess. In summer the plants may be set out of doors, and will make vigorous growth.

There are many species, of which the most common is Hedera Helix, the common twining ivy, a native of Europe, of which there are many varieties. The leaves of these varieties vary quite a bit and many distinctions have been founded on these variations.

There are two very beautiful kinds, the silver and golden, the foliage being beautifully variegated with white and gold. The Tree or Aborescent Ivy is merely a form of the common variety, which is shown by its returning to the primal Aborescent form not infrequently. The leaves are entire, and the plant often, retains its form for years.

Garden For Home

The garden should be near the house and away from trees. If it's some distance away from the house, it will not be as well looked after, nor will most use be made of vegetables grown. Vegetables near trees cannot get full sunshine; even more important, tree roots will rob them of water and fertilizer they need to do their best.

If you can, move the garden spot every 10 years or so to help keep down diseases. Proper rotation and use of disease-resistant varieties will help, but sooner or later the old garden spot becomes so full of various disease spores and nematodes that you cannot grow a good crop of many vegetables without use of special soil fumigants.

Soil should, of course, be well drained. Few vegetables can stand "wet feet." A sandy loam with a clay subsoil is best. Heavy clay soils may be made quite suitable by adding heavy quantities of stable manure or compost, or by turning under cover crops, preferably legumes such as vetch, clover soybeans.

Since the best quality quantity of vegetables cannot be duced on anything but a fertile soil, do whatever is needed to make it fertile.

Requirements for growth.

1. Proper degree of heat.
2. Moisture.
3. Oxygen in the air is essential for seed germination and good growth.

English peas, for example, will sprout when soil termperature is only a few degrees above freezing, while seed such as tomatoes will not germinate at all.

Home And Garden Party

The Home and Garden Party company was originally founded in 1996 and was completely based on Christian principles. The company’s headquarters is located in East Texas. Each day, nearly 7000 orders are filled by over 300 employees. Steve Carlisle is the current CEO and Chairman of the company, while his wife Penny Carlisle holds the title of president. The company sells a variety of different products all from the comfort of your own home.

Their products range from home decorations and framed artwork, to dinnerware and bake ware, to candles, pottery and much more. Home and Garden Party currently has more than 28,000 Independent Designers, located all throughout the United States. As well, the company is a member of the Direct Selling Association.

The company gives the Independent Designers the opportunity to be their own boss. As an employee of the company, you have the ability to decide when and how much you want to work. An employee can keep their current job and work for Home and Garden Party for additional money. Or, if they choose, they can work for the company full time.

If the Independent Designers have families, they can easily work the parties around their family’s home life, sport schedules, etc. With the companies flexible work schedule, the number of hours worked is simply up to the employee. There is no experience required to become an employee. The company provides all of the training you will need to get started. Another advantage with this company is there are not quotas that must be met.

Home And Gardening

For a lot of people, home gardening means the ability to grow your own fresh fruits and vegetables, the ability to control what pesticides enter your domain, and most of all just how fresh your food will be when you take it to the table. Home gardening can encompass a variety of different gardening styles, ranging from simple indoor gardening, to hydroponics gardening, to anything else that you can think of.

Bugs are an ever growing problem, sorry for the pun, and need to be watched for vigilantly. And especially in a vegetable or fruit garden, you will have to be extra careful of such cute, and cuddly creatures as rabbits, and other burrowing animals. Rodents are always a problem, and need to dealt with immediately so as not pass on any disease.

But is this really all that home gardening can accomplish? Shouldn’t there be more to it than the growing of vegetables and fruits? Those were my thoughts at one time when I came upon the concept of home gardening. There is a lot more to home gardening than initially meets the eye however.

Fruits and vegetables aside, you have your flowering plants, your leafy plants, and even your shade giving trees. All of these need to be placed within the design of you garden in such a way that you get the most of them. Next, if you liked you could always design an irrigation system worthy of a bigger garden, or you could keep it simple and just spray the hose when you need to.

Home Vegetable Gardening

Gardening becomes more interesting when it happens to be one of your hobbies, and for many, it is. Spending most of your free time in gardening of any type such as vegetable gardening etc. not only makes your garden beautiful but it also increases your knowledge on various plants. Growing vegetables can save you a lot of money and at the same time you can eat healthy with fresh vegetables straight from the garden.

You can get a lot of valuable tips from the Internet. It saves you money and also makes you and your family members healthier. The popularity of organic gardening has grown over the years because of its eco-friendly style.

How To Start Making Your Own Vegetable Garden?

If you wish to start your own vegetable garden then here are a few tips to help you out. The first and foremost part is to check if the soil is fertile or not to cultivate on. After getting the soil ready for growing the plants, the next step is to choose the right seeds of vegetables that need to be grown. You can divide the soils in beds and grow multiple crops at one time.


What you can do is to mark out a section in the garden and put some boards down in a box shape, lay some weed guard down and then fill with soil and then sow your seeds in there, it does stop the weeds from coming through.

There are many questions that arise in one’s mind such as how to choose the right crops. This is also simple, every crop has different time period of maturing, some take long and some take less time. So, accordingly the vegetable seeds can be bought for gardening. However, it is advisable to grow vegetables that will be consumed by you and your family.

Home Gardening Tips

Its certainly no suprsie that the popularity of gardening both as a life-style and as a hobby, continues to grow. Indeed, you only have to go out into any neihbourhood on a sunny, summer evening to see that home gardening is at an unprecedented high in America right now. In the United States 8 out of 10 households participate in some type of home gardening activity. Obviously from the number of people that are doing it, home gardening is one of the most popular recreational activities in nation.

The popularity of the pastime is manifold. We know that the message today is "keep fit"; "maintain a healthy life-style" and "eat wholesome food". What better way to achieve all this and ome than with gardening. The majority of home gardeners look to planting a variety of plant types including flowers; at least they usually begin by planting flowers anyway. Roses will almost certainly be the first consideration for most wannabe gardeners, but roses will take added time and effort, and should in all probability be left to those who have gardened previously. When planting flora many choices are exist, such as bulbs, perennials, and annuals.

Homegrown kitchen produce is another big thing in home gardening. Maybe the best thing about food plants is the reward of eating them. The catalogue of edible plants that gardeners can grow is endless. Some of the most widespread edible plants in the vegetable arena are, potatoes, peas, corn, carrots, squash, and cucumber. A lot of gardeners decide on for fruits, such as, watermelons, tomatoes, peaches, plums, apples, pears, and apricots. Small fruits, such as strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries usually necessitate less work and less space, making them much more practicable for home gardening. Herbs, most often used as spices in cooking, are becoming ever more popular every day; some of the most grown include basil, thyme, oregano, parsley, and cilantro. One of the most important things to watch for when planting edibles is insects and disease, after all, you don’t want to miss out on the banquet you will get to enjoy from hale and hearty plants.

Home Garden Decorations

While you're enjoying playing games in the garden, give a thought to decorating your outside space. There are lots of fun and interesting things you can do without spending tons of money...

1. Wind-Chimes - There are some beautiful wind chimes on the market, and you should be able to find some that suit your style and budget. However, you could go one step further and make your own. Study how they are made, and get the kids to join in! Wind chimes are soothing and very compatible with gardening, so position your chimes well.

They must be in at least a slight draught, which you should be able to find outside with ease. Also, they can scare the birds away from your fruit bushes. Hang them on the patio and in the vegetable garden.

2. Lights and Lanterns - For those smooth hot summer nights. Choose candles for calm nights and opt for lanterns if there's a breeze about. Solar powered lights are a good choice as there aren't any cables, batteries or plugs to worry about. They must be in sunlight during the day to re-charge though. Large garden candles will burn for many hours and are available in all sorts of aroma-therapeutic scents.

3. Garden Furniture - Invest in some comfy chairs for the garden. We don't spend half as much time as we should outside, simply because we don't feel comfortable. Look at unique ways of furnishing your garden. Do you have a couple of trees a hammock could be strung between? Or how about a park-type bench with comfy cushions set under the shade of the apple tree? Whatever the style or size of your garden, look for relaxing furniture so you can fully enjoy your outside space.

Home Garden Decor

Today’s garden decor is more of an extension of your living space. Versatile outdoor spaces can be used for dining and lounging with family members, as well as entertaining guests. Decorating your garden for these functions gives you a fabulous alternative to the traditional dinner party! With the wonderful new garden decor trend of creating an outdoor kitchen and dining/living area you are expanding your square footage and increasing your home value. According to "Smart Money" magazine, consumers who spend 5 percent of the value of their home on landscaping can expect to add 15 percent or more to its value. Entertaining trends are following suit with the garden decor trends. Themed garden parties and of course the traditional American Barbeque is all the rage. It’s very easy and affordable to double your living space.

Add a few comfortable weatherproof chairs, an unused table, paint a lasting rug to your patio and you are on your way to doubling your living space or be inventive…Create a grass couch, table and loveseat, using a wood structure covered in sod. Be creative in your garden decor. Center your living/dinning space close to your “kitchen” area. In 2004 alone 14.5 million grills were sold, so that along with a small refrigerator, a prep/serving table and you have just achieved an inexpensive outdoor kitchen. You can always build a more defined structure encompassing built in appliances. Use your imagination and remember your garden decor is a refection of you and your family.

Adding a canopy or fire pit will make a wonderful addition to the completion of your garden decor. Create different rooms outside by separating the areas by plants, screens, and trellises. Place a fire pit in one corner away from all flammables, of course and place some place a few chairs around, to create a wonderful area to tell ghost stories and roast marshmallows. Use a canopy in another area and place an outdoor bed or picnic table under it and this will create a place to lounge in a shaded area and enjoy your garden. Trends are gearing towards mimicking your home outside. So duplicating your living spaces outside is an important aspect to your garden decor.

Home And Garden Decor

In most countries, home and garden décor are bought by people during December. Everyone wants to celebrate Christmas grand and to welcome the New Year in style. A lot of visitors do come during the holiday season in December. So every housewife dreams of a beautiful home to show the visitors.

Home and garden décor make the home as a whole look beautiful. Today, everyone wants to have some type of garden, even small, in a home. This is to give the eyes some relaxation. Day in and day out, for the people living in cities, what meets their eyes is concrete jungle. So, looking at something green is not only a relaxation for the eyes but also to the mind. To make the home garden look beautiful and appealing, we need Home and garden decor. The home décor also makes the sitting room, dining hall and even the stairway or the corridors look appealing.

Another type of home and garden décor is to have a pond in the garden if you have the space. It is always nice to use some theme for your garden with a pond. Wind spinners hung in the garden captivate the people who come to your home. Down by the pond, your friends and neighbours will find something to keep them fascinated for hours. You can hang a medium frog design wind spinner from a tree branch, or bracket, and enjoy the flash and fire that comes with the optical illusion. There are lily pad shaped “frames” consisting of multiple rings in softly shaded colours that surround the central cut out figure of a frog and dragonfly. Beautiful when still, it will enthral everyone when the entire unit spins in the wind.

Home Garden Decor

There are certain elements of style you can use to achieve the mood you are trying to create in your backyard. When you search for home garden shopping alternatives, remember that you can use a large variety of plants and accessories to create a formal, cottage, or even an Asian garden in any area of your yard to serve as a welcome greeting for you to see every time you arrive home.

Perhaps there is a contained area in your yard, that you set aside specifically to create a relaxing place to read, and cherish the quieter moments of life in utter tranquility. When thinking of home garden shopping design alternatives for this special area of the yard, think about how this private area could be transformed into a beautiful and tranquil and floral Asian garden with very little trouble at all.

Large stones could set the background to building this beautiful retreat, and a water source could be placed, to where the bubbling waters would make it almost complete. When thinking of home garden shopping design alternatives for an Asian garden, think about surrounding the jagged stones, with moss and some peat, and you could create a great rustic landscape, that had gnarled pines that gathered at your feet.

Home And Garden Decoration

One of the best things about the English home garden design is that no matter what else you are doing, you are trying to incorporate beauty into your garden area. Finding ways to have beauty in your garden is something that you might be considering as you attempt to have a garden, and a English home garden design has always been a design that is very heavy on beauty. You want to make sure that you are simply having the most beautiful area when you think of your English home garden design, because this is what it is design for.

What Is An English Garden?

The idea of an English home garden design is not simply having your fruits and veggies in neat rows like the farm gardens. The English home garden design is more of a sprawling area that you can get lost in – most of them are very large and they are quite windy and fun to walk through.

It might not seem like there is order, but indeed a English home garden design is very highly planned because it is usually a walled in enclosure, and in order to see the whole thing you usually have to walk through the garden on a path.

There are many different flowers and plants that are growing in the English home garden design and they are all growing in certain areas that might appear to be random, but are actually well planned out. The English home garden design is something that is supposed to appear as mysterious and wild, but in reality is very well tended.

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