Luckily ‘Integrated Pest Management’ (IPM) offers just that – except in this case, the helping hands come from a perhaps somewhat unlikely place. I’m sure I’m not the only one that has wished that I had a few extra pairs of helping hands in the garden from time to time. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....
Growing fruit trees has its own set of unique challenges. Leafrollers are a family of insects that attack the leaves of fruit trees like apples, pears, and peaches. They also target some ornamental trees like ash, poplar, and oak as well as some ornamental plants like canna lilies. Unlike leaves that curl because of disease or environmental stress, leaves that curl because of leaf rollers are healthy leaves that physically wrap around an insect and are secured with silk or webs....
1. DIY Mini Succulent Planter These cute little planters are made from large, colorful plastic Easter eggs to grow the assortment of succulents. Line them up on a shelf as decor pieces or use them as the centerpiece. Visit A Kailo Chic Life for the tutorial! 2. Vintage Planters Have you grown succulents in almost everything? But, did you try growing them in vintage planters? A classy setup! Check out the idea at Blue Bird Kisses....
Here’s what we’ll cover: Broccoli, Brassica oleracea var. italica, is a cruciferous vegetable in the Brassicaceae, or cabbage family. It is a cool-weather crop that can be quite challenging to grow. In this article, we discuss why plants may produce heads that button, or form multiple tiny heads, as opposed to one large, compact one. Then we offer steps to take to avoid this outcome. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products....
Others misidentify the wood-burrowing types with ground-tunneling ones, but these pose no threat to hearth and home either. Hymenoptera Are you confused about the many types of bees that visit your lawn and garden, or maybe even concerned that some might be nesting in your home? Sure, they all buzz around and collect pollen. But many species look alike and are easy to get mixed up. Some, like the carpenters, can become pests, drilling holes in wooden building materials to make nests....
ASTILBE X ARENDSII It took me far too long to discover the beauty and special quality of the shade garden. Since I’ve always been into those tough, hard-scrabble plants that eke out a living in any condition, the idea of a garden full of particular and at times sensitive plants was not of interest to me. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve discovered a keen appreciation for these gardens and the plants that call them home....
USDA Zones–9b-12 Difficulty— Moderate to Hard Family— Myrtaceae Other Names— Syzygium aromaticum (Scientific name), Bourgeon Floral de Clou de Girofle, Bouton Floral de Clou de Girofle, Caryophylli Flos, Caryophyllum, Caryophyllus aromaticus, Clavo de Olor, Clous de Girolfe, Clove Flower, Clove Flowerbud, Clove Leaf, Clove Oil, Clove Stem, Cloves, Cloves Bud, Ding Xiang, Eugenia aromatica, Eugenia caryophyllata, Eugenia caryophyllus, Feuille de Clou de Girofle, Fleur de Clou de Girofle, Flores Caryophylli, Flores Caryophyllum, Gewurznelken Nagelein, Girofle, Giroflier, Huile de Clou de Girofle, Kreteks, Laung, Lavang, Lavanga, Oil of Clove, Syzygium aromaticum, Tige de Clou de Girofle....
Native to southwestern Asia, this non-aggressive, non-invasive perennial grows in bushy clumps one to three feet tall and one and a half to two feet wide. Tanacetum Coccineum Pyrethrum daisy is but one of the many plants that bear the name “daisy,” but it’s certainly an alluring one. Also known as painted daisy, Tanacetum coccineum produces showy, three-inch-wide flowers in a variety of brilliant hues, including red, yellow, white, violet, and pink....
Table of Contents LED grow lights are a tough thing to understand – there are hundreds of companies selling through different brand names, making outlandish claims, and so on… What’s a grower to do? Today, I’m reviewing one of the most accessible options in the industry. I’m talking about MarsHydro, a Chinese company whose very affordable LED grow lights have slowly gained acceptance among growers. As a Chinese manufacturer of lights, you still have to bridge the America-China gap in communication with the company sometimes, but they are coming a long way....
One landscaping assignment I had to tackle recently was to plant a perennial flower garden in an area that was shaded. To further complicate the matter, this area was out by the road so the plants needed to also be salt tolerant in addition to being able to grow in the shade. I had to research what salt tolerant shade perennials I could work with. Salt Tolerant Shade Perennials that Grow Well by the Roadside 1....
It’s very common for the new vermicomposter to ask “What kind of worms can I use in my worm bin? They’re kind of all the same, right?” Table of Contents No. Not at all. There are between 7000-9000 species of earthworms, but only about 7 of them are any good as composting worms types. And of those, only 4 are readily available in the US. We’ll cover those below. But before we identify which species are suitable, it’s helpful to understand how earthworms can differ from one another....
It might have you scratching your head, but it’s not strange (at least not to the aloe), and it’s a great indication that you’ve been taking good care of your plant. Have you noticed a strange bud forming in the center of your aloe plant? It’s not a new leaf – you’ve seen those develop and know what the sprouts look like. It’s also not an offshoot or pup, since they form below the leaves....
While these plants are notoriously low maintenance, when trimming up is necessary, it’s important to do it right. We’ll talk about the how and the when in this guide. Junipers aren’t as forgiving as some plants when it comes to pruning. Do the job the wrong way and you’ll end up with an ugly skeleton of a shrub with bald spots and bare branches. On the bright side, junipers don’t generally need much in the way of pruning, with a few exceptions....
How do you plant potatoes in a way that maximizes their production? Potatoes are a garden favorite that are easy to grow but require a little advance planning. But when you grow potatoes, spacing is key. Let’s talk about the best spacing for a bountiful harvest! Potato Plant Growth Despite growing underground, potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) aren’t root vegetables, they’re tubers – starchy, thick, underground stems. And unlike roots that burrow further into the soil, potato tubers grow up and out of the soil....
If you’ve sampled a salsa or jam containing these green wonders – or even a tomatillo mojito – you may have considered adding tomatillo (toh-mah-tee-yo) plants to your garden. Physalis philadelphica A tart gift from Mexico, tomatillos (Physalis philadelphica) are commonly used by chefs and home cooks throughout the United States and around the world to add a piquant va-va-voom to sauces and chutneys. Beneath an intriguing, yet inedible, papery husk lies a fruit that, while mimicking the appearance of a green tomato, tastes nothing like a tomato....
We won’t even talk about the mealybugs I accidentally introduced into the greenhouse at home… The crimson anthurium I bought for my mom was the only plant I took home from the university greenhouse that didn’t harbor a pest ready to take advantage of her houseplant collection. We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....
It thrives in a full sun location with organically-rich, well-draining soil that is slightly acidic – with an ideal pH of 6.5. In other zones, it is grown as an annual. The Canna genus is the only genus belonging to the Cannaceae family of plants. It contains over 30 species. Often called canna lilies, they are neither lilies nor lily relatives, but share the same monocot structure – petals in multiples of three are one characteristic of this form....
Today I’ll show you how to go about separating onions and maximizing the value of your store-bought seedlings! Table of Contents When you go to purchase onions, leeks, garlic, or other alliums at a nursery or garden center, they often come in a six-pack container that’s just crowded. Even if you started your seed at home, this can become an issue. It’s essential to separate them to promote development. Large onions simply won’t form if you have a clump of plants jammed into one space!...
Hardneck types, also known as stiffneck garlic or ophios, are fall-planted for a necessary period of cold vernalization over winter, before regrowing in spring once the days begin to lengthen. Allium sativum var. ophioscorodon ‘German White’ Tasty, nutritious, and easy to grow, ‘German White’ garlic is a hardneck variety also known as ‘German Extra-Hardy,’ ‘German Stiffneck,’ and ‘Northern White.’ We link to vendors to help you find relevant products. If you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission....
While they are similar to other types of pansies and violas, the winter variety, Viola hiemalis, are popular for their hardiness in cold weather and eagerness to bloom throughout a mild winter. Viola hiemalis Even though I’m devoted to late-summer bloomers, nothing perks me up quite as much as early-spring flowers. It’s the unexpected surprise and joy upon spotting those splashes of intense and wild color that feeds this affection....
