Garden Supplies News » Garden Plants

The Irish Sky Garden And Rooftop Growing

hughe — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 10:48:27 +0000

Last week I wrote about the preparations for the Chelsea Flower Show and included some links to pictures of some of the more unusual show gardwns. One of these was the Irish Sky Garden designed by Diarmuid Gavin which won a Gold medal and The RHS People’s Choice Award. I found this video tour of the garden:

While a sky garden hoisted by a crane is just a novelty for the show, rooftop gardens are a practical way to grow crops when other space is not available. This article by Sean O’Driscoll examines the different ways that people are using their rooftops and how to overcome the weight problem. Lightweight containers and ultralight soil mixes using coconut core and perlite is how one group solves the problem. Others adopt a structural approach to strengthen the roof so that it can stand the extra weight. Read more..

A few weeks ago I planted a Japanese maple in my garden so I was naturally attracted to this article on “Tips and Hints for Pruning Japanese Maples”. “Caring for Japanese maples requires regular, light pruning. The trees have an attractive shape naturally but may require careful removal of the branches for the desired look, to prevent branches from rubbing together, and to maintain size.” Read more..

Chelsea Flower Show And Peonies

hughe — Mon, 23 May 2011 12:50:31 +0000

In my last post I mentioned the preparations for the Chelsea Flower Show and this is the week that the show opens its doors to the public. Each year sees more and more ambitious designs to the extent that there is some adverse press comment that the structures are taking over from the flowers. For example here is Louise Gray writing in the Telegraph “Chelsea extravagance reaches new heights” .

Her article has a picture of the Irish Sky Garden taken from above, but to get a real idea of what it looks like you need to see the picture in the Daily Mail which also shows the 30 foot high B&Q tower garden.

Some of the more conservative exhibitors were wearing “quiet smiles of satisfaction” as the weather stepped in and high winds meant that the sky garden had to stay on the ground and the tower garden took on a slight list as reported in The Independent.

After the earthquake and tsunami which devastated his country in March the Japanese designer decided that he would have to abandon his plans, but changed his mind last month and resolved to create a new garden to send a message to the world that Japan was fighting back. This story also comes from The Telegraph.

And I could’nt leave this topic without mentioning the South Korean garden which has as its main feature the smallest room.

A few days ago I visited a local garden and found this magnificent peony in full bloom. There were several specimens in the garden, but this one called Mischief was being featured as the Plant of the Week. My excuse for including this picture is this article by Jennifer Jewell in anewscafe.com which has information on both the history of the peony and tips on cultivation. And as I have discovered peonies require patience. It will be many years before those in my garden reach the size of Mischief. Read more..

Vines, Thugs And Potting Soil Tip

hughe — Mon, 02 May 2011 10:27:00 +0000

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I found this article by Brian Minter about using vines to solve garden problems. “Looking for a simple but fast cover-up to screen an old fence or wall, an unsightly building or a nosy neighbour? Why not try some interesting and attractive vines?” His review covers most of the common vines including Virginia Creeper, Hummingbird Vine, Silver Lace Vine, Wisteria and Honeysuckle.

In my previous garden there was large wisteria which provided a great show provided I remembered to prune it at the right time. It was planted next to a long beech hedge and keeping the two seperate was quite a job. When trimming the hedge I would find wisteria shoots up to twenty feet from the main bush.

So wanting to cover a rather unsightly shed in my present garden I planted a wisteria a few years ago, but so far it seems reluctant to extend its shoots where I want them to go. Instead it is producing a bunch of small branches at one end and, to make matters worse, only a few flowers.

I am having better luck with honeysuckles which along with clematis and jasmin are my favorite climbing plants. As Brian Minter says “Vines are great, easy to grow, colourful and effective in solving so many landscape problems”. Read more..

While vines can be very useful in the right place, you need to make sure that you do not choose one that is too aggressive and so becomes the problem rather than the solution. Joe Lampl writing in The Seattle Times talks about “Invasion of the garden thugs”.

“Aggressive thugs try to take over your landscape. Invasive thugs have larger goals. They escape from the garden into the natural environment and quickly squeeze out a lot of other plants in their path”.

He describes half a dozen common “thugs” including creeping buttercup which is the one that is causing me problems in my lawn and elsewhere. Read more..

And finally a quick tip on how to save on potting soil. I have tried this myself and it certainly makes sense. Read more..

Climbing Plants – Clematis Early And Late

Growing Vegetables On A Balcony Or In A Jar

hughe — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 13:41:23 +0000

“No Excuses, Just Vegetables” is the title of an article by Mike Lieberman in which he shows how, with a little ingenuity, even apartment dwellers can grow their own veggies. “It’s worth the time and effort if you grow even one herb or vegetable. It will make a difference” he says. Of course he really means that you should cram your balcony with as many containers as you can and plant vertically as well. What I found particularly interesting in his piece was his use of self-watering containers. As he says you can buy these or make them yourself. There is a link in the article to another page where he gives full instructions on how to make these containers. Read more..

If you don’t fancy the idea of having lots of containers on your balcony, then sprouts or micro-greens might be the answer for you. All you need is a jar or a small seed tray and a windowsill. This article taken from the Nashua Telegraph claims that “Leafy greens picked at the “sprout” stage, or let go to the “microgreen” stage hold more nutrition than their adult counterparts, and they need no cooking–an energy and time saver!” If you think this sounds all too good to be true, then take a look at the comment at the bottom of the original article in the Nashua Telegraph. Read more..

For a complete no grow solution you could follow Sam Thayer and try “Foraging The Weeds For Wild, Healthy Greens”. Delicacies such as shepherd’s purse, sow thistle and wild carrot can be found for free. But you need to know what you are doing since some wild plants such as poison hemlock are dangerous and can kill. Read more..

A Tale of Two Plum Trees

hughe — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 22:21:50 +0000

Shortly after I moved to my present home some seven years ago, I planted two plum trees. One was a greengage and the other a victoria plum. At the garden center there were several fine specimens of the victoria plum, but with the greengage it was a different story. As far as I can remember there were only two and both looked in pretty poor shape. But I was determined to have a greengage so I chose the better of the two and crossed my fingers that it would not die on me as soon as I had planted it in my garden. The two pictures show the current state of play. They are of course dwarf stock and so will never grow tall, but as you can see one is growing far more strongly than the other. The sickly greengage is the one in the top hand picture and the victoria plum below goes from bad to worse. Every year branches die off which accounts for its ungainly shape. Having said that the victoria has so far produced a larger crop, but I can’t see that happening this year.

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New Plants, DIY Gadgets And Queen Anne’s Lace

hughe — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 13:51:13 +0000

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I know it’s rather late but I have just noticed an article on new plants for 2011 and this has prompted me to check a few sites to see what new varieties are on offer this year.

Black and white seem to be common themes with the Black Velvet petunia and the Coconut Ice sunflower with its creamy white petals. Personally I’m not too keen on black flowers in the same way that blue roses do not seem to be quite right in my eyes. Here is a selection from Birds & Blooms.

High Country Gardens are featuring “the exclusive new Agastache “Blue Blazes” and a remarkable new ornamental grass called “Blonde Ambition” Blue Grama that has been chosen a Plant Select Winner for 2011″. Another of their newcomers that caught my eye was the Pink Cotton Lambs Ear (Stachys lavandulifolia).

Monrovia have come up with a number of exclusives with eye-catching names such as Blue Balloon Bluebeard, but the plant that I noticed was the Cathedral Gem Sausage Vine. Not that it is particularly impressive, but apparently it was found growing on the wall of Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire, U.K.

Tipnut is a website that I haven’t come across before. As its name suggests it’s full of tips on everything from household, health and beauty, DIY projects, crafts and gardening. The page I found was “Crafty Gadgets & Gear For The Garden” with a dozen crafty projects for the garden. These include DIY seedtape and a planter’s yardstick as well as various tool organisers. The Garden & Plants page has sections on Homemade Weedkiller Recipes, Raised Bed Plans and Do You Grow Dishcloths?

Queen Anne’s Lace is a wildflower which is common in North Georgia. Apart from its attractive white flowers it has many useful features. The plant is a wild carrot which can be eaten like a carrot when young, but that is the least of its virtues. The seeds can be used to make a tea which apparently “was used for centuries as a morning-after contraceptive”. A tea made from the leaves has many other uses as does the oil made by steam distillation of dried seed. The juice from the roots can treat skin conditions including wrinkles. When mixed with honey and oatmeal you have a homemade facial. Read more..

And finally some practical advice. When you see a title like “Should You Take the Burlap Off the Root Ball Before Planting?” you would expect to be given either a yes or a no, but it seems that you have to make up your own mind. Read more..

Invasive Plant Control And The Crabapple Branch

hughe — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 18:09:00 +0000

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As someone who tries to stick to organic principles and avoids the use of pesticides wherever possible, I am always interested to hear of ways to encourage natural predators. We all know that ladybugs eat aphids and so I always try to give them a helping hand to find their prey. And there are now several biological control products that you can purchase from the garden center to deal with different pests.

Fortunately most native plants have their own natural predators to keep them under control, but problems arise when plants are imported from abroad. In this case there is no natural predator and the plant can run wild and crowd out native plants.

I found an interesting article by Michael Behar which highlights the problems caused by invasive plants such as spotted knapweed which originates in Europe. He describes how Noah Poritz a 52-year-old entomologist earns his living selling beneficial bugs. In the case of the spotted knapweed the predator is the knapweed root weevil. Read more..

If you were asked to define your personality type I imagine you would describe yourself as extrovert or introvert or maybe somewhere in between. But have you heard of “The Crabapple Branch Gardener’s Personality Test”? Click the link and give it a try.

Fence Top Gardening And The Gas Plant

Vertical Gardening, Garden Designers And Giant Veggies

hughe — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 11:51:00 +0000

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Vertical gardening is not a new idea. Garden writers have for many years suggested that people with small courtyard gardens should make the most of the space by growing climbing plants up the walls and fences bounding their property. But new forms of vertical gardening are emerging. Some like the “green wall” covered with ferns are dramatic, but not really practical for the average home garden. Others can be both creative and highly practical serving both as a feature and useful to cover items that you wish to hide like unsightly sheds, air-conditioning units, utility poles, and fences. In her piece in the Philadephia Enquirer, Virginia A. Smith describes how “Vertical plants and props also earn their keep as architectural statements and problem-solvers. They offer what designers call “exclamation points” in otherwise flat landscapes”. Read more..

If you have suffered from the brown marmorated stink bug, help may be at hand. Research at at a laboratory in Newark is developing a possible biological control. A tiny parasitic wasp may be able to nip the stink bug explosion in the bud by preying on stink bug eggs. Read more..

I always enjoy reading about garden designers and I found these two articles about two very different characters. Lancelot Capability Brown the sixteenth century landscape designer revolutionised the landscapes of the great English estates. He removed flowerbeds surrounded by box hedging and what he considered fussy objects that restricted the view. He invented the ha-ha as a replacement for the wall so that you could have an uninterrupted view of the landscape. Read more..

Diarmuid Gavin, a 46 year old from Dublin hates neatly clipped lawns, clusters of pretty roses and a few bumpy rockeries thrown in for good measure. He has built a reputation on his experimental gardening style – and the forceful personality that’s seen him clash with colleagues in the gardening world. “To be honest, a lot of people in the business tend to get along better with their plants and flowers than they do with other people” he says. Read more..

And finally two giant veg stories. First 9-year-old Austin Davis from Charleston, W Virginia and his twenty-one pound cabbage and Panhandle man Sam Pittman with his 8-pound turnip. No picture for this one and it was too tough to eat!

Organic Loses Out On Vitamins And Antioxidants

hughe — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:21:16 +0000

I’ve just come across a recent study that claims that vegetables grown using chemical fertilizers contain more vitamins and so may be better for you than organic produce. This is a report by the British consumer magazine Which? and has caused some consternation among organic gardeners. The claims follow a two year study growing potatoes, broccoli and tomatoes. The three vegetables were grown side by side, one using chemical based fertilizer and pesticides, the other organic feed. It seems that the non-organic potatoes contained more vitamin C than their organic counterparts. Similarly the non-organic broccoli contained more antioxidants and, probably most controversially, the non-organic tomatoes were rated higher by a panel of tasters. Read more..

I’m sure that from time to time most of us have tried planting unusual seeds just to see if they would germinate and produce an interesting plant. Writing in the New York Times Michael Tortorello has taken this to the extreme. Emptying out his kitchen cupboards and his fridge he has assembled a huge array of seeds large and small to carry out his botanical experiment. Needless to say most had little chance from the start, but it makes a good story. Read more..

Aquaponics, Ground Cover And Crape Myrtle Murder

hughe — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 14:18:10 +0000

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Maybe you think it’s still too cold, but “There are actually many tasks that need to be done in February to kick off a great growing season” according to Susan Owens a Celina resident and a Collin County Master Gardener. She recommends you should start with a soil test and then complete your pruning before plants start to come out of dormancy. But avoid Crape Myrtle murder if you want a profusion of blooms. Read more..

“Season extending” is the subject of Margaret Lauterbach’s piece in the Idaho Statesman. There’s no point in planting seeds in cold soil so she describes the various ways you can speed up the warming process in the spring and also how to protect your young plants from late frosts. One product she mentions is Walls o’ Water (WOWs) and I found this post at Gardenweb describing how to make your own from 2 liter bottles. Read more..

“Ground cover is a low-maintenance alternative to lawns” is the title of this article by Dan Gill. In fact this is far more than just suggesting you dig up your lawn and replant with low growing groundcover plants. He talks about those shady areas under trees and bushes where the addition of groundcover plants can make all the difference. Instructions on preparation and planting are followed by a comprehensive list suitable plants for these conditions. Read more..

Another way to beat the cold is to grow indoors. Recently I wrote about Windowfarms which are a variation on the hydroponic method. Now there is Aquaponics which combines fish with hydroponics. Where before farmers needed to grow vegetables and fish separately, an aquaponics system allows you to do both at the same time and in the same location. The concept is premised on the interdependence of fish and plants; plants create the perfect environment for fish to grow by cleaning the water and the fish produce the bio-nutrients that plants need for their growth. If you are curious as to how you can benefit from an aquaponics system, Read more..

Raised Beds, Seed Catalogues And Waiting Out Winter

Holiday Plants, Mistletoe And Egypt

hughe — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 11:32:51 +0000

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As usual as the holiday season approaches there is no shortage of advice on suitable gifts for gardeners. Plants are popular presents, but some common varieties are a little tricky to care for indoors in the middle of winter. Poinsettias are a particular problem. In past years I have found articles advising you how to look after your poinsettia so that it will flower again next Christmas, but Bob Polomski who is an Extension Horticulturist at Clemson University has different ideas. In “What to do with holiday plants?” he tells how he deals with plant gifts once the holidays are over. Read more..

Writing in the Seattle Times, Ciscoe Morris has more advice on those holiday houseplants. Basically – do not eat them. While I can’t imagine anyone wanting to eat a poinsettia or an amaryllis bulb, it’s useful to be aware that they are poisonous and can cause serious harm both to humans and pets. And don’t hold your drink under the mistletoe in case one of its poisonous berries should fall into your glass. Read more..

Talking of mistletoe, if you plan to harvest some in the wild here’s some advice from one seasoned harvester, Bill Anderson from east Tennessee. Read more..

On a completely different note, if there are any reluctant gardeners among your friends and acquaintances, this story might encourage them to take another look at their backyard. A gardener from Derby in England was digging his garden when he discovered a stone bust shaped like a pharaoh. It turned out to be 4000 years old and worth an estimated $15,000. Mind you the chances of anyone else making a similar discovery are about as good as winning the lottery. Read more..

Stomping Snails And Non-Toxic Dandelion Killers

hughe — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 11:28:31 +0000

A few weeks ago I wrote about an English gardener who was investigating the homing instinct of snails. By marking their shells with a little spot of nail varnish she was able to check whether snails she had moved a certain distance were able to find their way back. It turned out that thirty yards was the critical distance. If you remove the snails further than this you will not see them again.

Heather Hacking from Chico CA has a different approach. For her the most satisfying form of organic pest control is snail stomping. Having decimated the snail population in her own yard she now scours the sidewalks in her neighborhood after rain in search for more of these pests. Read more..

“Non-Toxic Dandelion Killer” sounds great – just what I need I thought. Dandelions in the spring are hard to get rid of, particularly in the lawn. Read on and you discover that “Your kitchen and bathroom are the first places you should look for non-toxic options for killing dandelions in your yard. You might be surprised to learn about what you already have in your home that can be used as a non-toxic weed killer”.

Several homemade recipes are suggested, but it is not too clear as to how effective they are. But then you can always use your shovel to dig them out making sure that you don’t leave any of the root behind. Finally the counsel of perfection – don’t allow any to go to seed! Read more..

Finally a suggestion for a homemade activity which is both creative and could solve your Christmas present headaches. These eco planters are made from cement and vermiculite using common household containers for the moulds.

“I started making these eco planters for gifts a year ago and haven’t stopped. They are simple, stylish and downright lovable. Each pot is unique and has an organic, handmade feel. It is not an instant gratification project and you will have to commit, but the results are well worth it. I like to make about six at a time.”

Slugs And Snails And How To Save Your Plants

hughe — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:41:15 +0000

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One of a gardener’s pet hates is the common slug and of course the second is the snail. It is infuriating to find that your plants have been damaged by these pests. There are many products designed to eradicate these pests ranging from the notorious slug pellets that you scatter beside yor plants to various kinds of traps. While many of these products work to a greater or lesser extent, it is clear that there is no perfect remedy, otherwise there would not be such a huge range of products designed to solve the problem.

I was give a book for my last birthday called “50 ways to kill a slug”. This listed all the popular remedies together with a few fatuous suggestions designed more to satisfy the blood lust of the annoyed gardener than to be effective in removing the slugs. But one thing I have noticed as the years roll on and each new season unfolds is that slugs prefer certain plants. I suppose this is not really so surprising since we humans have our likes and sdislikes, but perhaps we should observe and learn from the behaviour of our local slugs and snails. For instance I like to grow lupins, but they ar e they one flower that is always decimated by slugs in my garden.

This year I created a new herbaceous border with about a dozen new plants. Out of these two were attacked mercilously and the remainder were ignored. Pyrethrum and liatris were the victims. I was able to rescue the liatris by attaching a collar around its stem, but the buds on my pyrethrum were all damaged before the flowers could open. Another plant that I no longer grow is the hosta because its large and attractive leaves attract slugs by the dozen. And a hosta with shredded leaves is not a pretty sight.

The conventional wisdom is that you should grow plants that are native to your area and so perhaps this should be extended to taking notice of the habits of your local slugs.

How To Turn Your Weeds Into Salad

hughe — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 11:30:49 +0000

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I found this article by Margaret Lauterbach with the intriguing title “When life gives you weeds, make a salad” and it reminded me of a book I bought many years ago called “How to enjoy your weeds”. For most gardeners weeds are a nuisance that require constant attention if we are to keep our beds and borders free of them. Of course you can keep most weeds at bay with a generous layer of mulch, but even this will not suppress bindweed which is my pet hate. But this is straying from the theme of her article which is in effect “if you can’t beat them, learn to make use of them”.

The article lists five common weeds that you can include in a salad. Dandelion is top of her list, a plant that is rich in vitamins and minerals, but is too bitter for my taste.

Purslane is one that I have not eaten myself, but is apparently nutritionally rich, containing more omega-3 fatty acids than some fish oils. Purslane is also a very good source of Vitamins A, C, some B complex vitamins, and dietary minerals such as iron, calcium, potassium, and others. It’s usually added to salads.

The article describes how Sonchus (sowthistle) is eaten in New Zealand, but history records that it was used as a salad herb by the Romans. More recently the herbalist Culpeper suggested its use as a cosmetic that “is wonderful good for women to wash their faces with, to clear the skin and give it lustre”.

One common weed that is not included in the article is the stinging-nettle. As a source of iron it beats spinach and also contains vitamin C. While nettle eating contests prove that you can eat it raw, most recipes involve cooking in some way. The book I mentioned earlier on “How to enjoy your weeds” has recipes for nettle soup, creamed nettles and nettle porridge and also instructions for making nettle wine and nettle beer. Read more..

Climbing Plants – Clematis Early And Late

hughe — Tue, 18 May 2010 09:50:31 +0000

Clematis Montana

Clematis Alpina Constance

Clematis Sunset

Clematis Montana is known as a vigorous climber and this one in my garden has lived up to its name. This is now the third season since this was planted and it has now completely covered the tree stump. While montana can be a nuisance in the wrong place, where there is room for it to sprawl it makes a fine show.

The montana was the second clematis to bloom in my garden this year. It was preceded by clematis Alpina Constance which put on its display in April and is now over. Next I am looking forward to Ice Blue and Sunset which are growing together in a container. The Large white flowers of rather oddly named Ice Blue are complemented by the reddish purple of Sunset.

The oldest clematis I have was planted soon after I moved to this house some six years ago. Clematis Jackmanii Superba has puple flowers and blooms profusely on a north facing fence. Each year I prune it back to eighteen inches from the ground, but last autumn I decided to leave the main branches in place. Unfortunately when I checked earlier this spring I found that the main stem had been broken almost at ground level and it is only now slowly beginning to grow back. Slugs are a problem and nibble the emerging shoots, but clematis are tough and always recover after a slow start.

Slugs And Snails And How To Save Your Plants