The most important aspect of planning is to provide enough space in the garden or pot for herbs, as they tend to flourish in organized environments. Since they can grow well under harsh conditions as well their growth increases under good conditions. For instance, Yarrow can spread over large areas, Chives get bushy and condensed and Lavender will spread all over. If they are given about a foot of space between each section, most will grow well. For instance, if you want your Chives to grow well, since they grow in a bunch, their roots will compete with neighboring plants for water and nutrients, if too close to them.
Since herbs require a lot of sunshine, sufficient space in and around them needs to be provided so that all parts get sufficient sunlight. Planting too many in clusters will prevent this from happening. You may even need to thin them if more growth than anticipated takes place.
Herbs do not require much preparation of the soil prior to planting. This however does not mean no preparation. A good assortment of herbs can be grown in compost or a mix of sandy loam and clay. Adequate drainage is to be provided for to prevent water logging, not advised for herbs. Since many herbs originate from the Mediterranean, they flourish in rocky and dry conditions with good drainage. All herbs do need to be watered to keep them moist but not soaking wet.
While for instance, Peppermint will require somewhat more water which can be provided by an automatic drip system, Lavender and Sage, just two to illustrate, can do with no watering at all. They do well with just the regular rainfall!
It will be a good idea to use some landscape fabric to keep weeds at bay. This will minimize the need to either root them out later or use herbicides. Herbicides incidentally may kill the weeds as well as the herbs as many are biologically similar. Spraying such chemicals may not be such a good idea, if you are planning on using some of these herbs in your food!
Insects rarely bother herbs. It would however be a good idea to be smart and use a diversion. Dill is an herb that attracts insects as a "trap crop". Such diversion will protect other plants such as tomatoes in the vicinity from the pests. If however, you wish to grow dill for itself, some use of insecticide will solve the problem.
Another area for proper planning is the timing of planting. Some herbs need to be planted immediately after the snow has melted, some at intervals of four weeks and some can be planted any time at all. Carefully planning this will make for a good garden.
Planned well, your herb garden will flourish with minimum care and effort.
Learn more about how to grow herbs successfully by visiting http://howtogrowherbs.net
There are a multitude of things that you can add to your outdoor living space to make it comfortable and inviting and still provide you with few hours of work on maintenance.
Here are 7 ways to add Decor to your Garden.
Tip 1: Unadulterated Is Best. When adding products outdoors, from belongings to statuary, you should always look towards the most nature-based of products. When you do this, you'll allow for something that fits within the landscape, not something that sticks out in it.
Tip 2: Flow Is Essential. If you have a large garden or landscape, you can create a flow throughout it to make it a much more homely and unadulterated environment. For example, a pathway leading through the garden is essential as it provides for a way to move through the area enjoying all of the principle sights along the way.
Tip 3: Overboard Is not Good
Over crowding a space with too much decor or even too a large number of plants is bad business. Instead, look for a more untouched by mankind landscape element. Smothering plants can cause them to eventually die or take over the entire garden. To much decor can make it look cluttered instead of lavish.
Tip 4: Use Lines Lines from your home or your edging can help to create a lavish look within the garden. The roof line of the house can be a line that leads the eye to something fantastic at the end. Use the lines that you have to create a flow to the eye.
Tip 5: Charm Means Theme.
While you don't need a specific theme throughout your garden decor, you should look towards the same or related resources. For example, if you place a white metal table under your trees to make a restful place, make sure that the chairs that go with it match it. Add a white picket fence or other matching pieces to tie certain areas of the garden together as well.
Tip 6: Uphold It.
A multitude of of the aspects within a garden are going to need some maintaining. If you pull your weeds, don't let this be overshadowed by the fact that you haven't washed that white items in a year. Keep up on broken or misplaced items as well. For the duration of harsh winter months, make sure to put anything and everything in storage that can be broken.
Tip 7: Garden decor is not complete without the look for lovely patio valuables. Allow it to mesh with the surroundings that you have created too. For example, in a woodsy area, look towards an untouched by mankind, beautiful product such as teak to keep it looking as if it belongs there.
These things and more can help to contribute to a gorgeous and fashionable garden decor that is timeless, easy to manage and a welcoming place to call your own.
Garden plaques and supplementary significant garden decor data are on hand at http://www.gardendecorstyle.com. You're welcome to visit day or night!
Not all insects are pests. In fact, the majority of bugs living in your garden are helping your plants to grow in numerous, unseen ways. If you are having a problem with pests in your garden, you probably have an imbalance of fauna or an imbalance of soil nutrients. The more insects and other fauna in your garden, the less likelihood the “pesky” ones have of surviving. You will find that most insects eat those moths and maggots that are eating your plants.
How biodiversity keeps your garden growing
Biodiversity is the key to a healthy organic garden. Biodiversity means the presence of a diverse collection of plants and animals. Commercial mono-crops require obscene amounts of chemicals because they have an un-healthy level of diversity.
In un-touched nature, pests and plant diseases do exist, but rarely get out of hand. This is because there is a natural system of checks and balances, which keep these things under control. Of course, your garden is not “untouched nature”- it is quite touched. You have planted plants here, which are not naturally occurring, you weed and dig and manipulate the earth and you will likewise have to encourage a balance in natural diversity.
How to control your aphids
If you have a problem with aphids in your vegetable or flower garden, you may want to introduce an insect, which feeds on Aphids. The most common of these is the Ladybug. The Ladybug and her larvae feed on Aphids, mites and small caterpillars. The larvae are especially active between May and July. Ladybugs are available at your local nursery as well as through mail order. Gardens Alive, an environmentally responsible gardening company is the preferred place to purchase them.
Encourage beneficial insects to visit your garden
If you are having a problem with fruit tree spider mites, green flies or small caterpillars, you can encourage Hover flies in your garden. Hover flies resemble dark bees or wasps. They tend to hover over plants and dart around quickly. Bring Hoverflies into your garden by planting marigolds, phacelia or “poached egg” plants throughout.
Dragonflies are good for your garden too. Dragonflies eat mosquitoes. If there has been spraying in your area for mosquitoes, chances are the spray has killed the dragonflies too. If you are afraid that your dragonfly population has been taken out, re-introduce them either by purchasing through mail-order, or by planting reedy plants in or around your garden.
A frog is a prince in the organic garden
Building a pond near your garden will encourage amphibians. Amphibians, especially frogs, are great friends of your garden as they eat many flies, moths and flying insects. A pond will also encourage dragonflies, which eat mosquitoes.
Plant and encourage the growth of as many different types of aquatic plants in your pond as you can. With an increased density of aquatic plants an increased diversity of pond associated insects (including dragonflies) will inhabit your pond and feed on an wider range of insect pests.
Why most insects should be protected
An organic farmer should not and cannot eliminate every insect in his garden. Most insects are so tiny and mobile that most people never even realize that they exist. Spraying pesticides indiscriminately is the worst thing you can do for your garden. Take some time one afternoon to sit quietly in your garden and watch your plants, you will be amazed at the amount of life that exists there! Appreciating all of the life in your garden is part of being an organic farmer and a friend of the earth.
Bees are great insects for your garden. Fruit trees that require pollination cannot live without bees! Encouraging bees in your garden is easy; they love flowers. Plant lavender, rosemary, daisies, cosmos, heather and/or marigolds around the outside and amongst the other plants of your garden and the bees will come.
Organic gardens are for the birds... seriously!
Birds are another great form of natural pest control. Birds and bats live off of bugs. It is unfortunate and ironic that pesticides often end up killing or harming local birds. Plant your garden near tall trees. Birds will establish nests in the trees and visit your garden to eat pesky beetles, moths and flies.
Imitate Mother Nature through Diversity
The very best way to encourage a diverse collection of life in your garden is by planting a variety of plants. While some of the pests will be attracted to some of your plants, the other plants will attract the friendly insects. The more plant diversity in your garden, the more insect diversity. Talk to your local nursery about native plants in your area and stick with those.
The importance of buying local
Be aware when buying potted plants that they have been grown locally and carefully. Imported plants may contain imported insects. If your pests are local, chances are they have local enemies. If your pests are imported, they may not have any local predators in your garden.
Organic gardening is about maintaining balance
Be aware when introducing insects into your garden intentionally, even beneficial ones. Do not introduce insects if their prey does not exist in your garden. If you introduce a population of insects but not feeding them, then you are harming the diversity of your garden rather than encouraging it by throwing off the balance.
When you look at your garden is it a mess of beautiful color? Are birds, bees and flies hovering overhead? Does your garden fit naturally into the landscape with a variety of native plants and animals? With a healthy diversity of insects and other fauna, your garden will be healthy, have very little insect herbivory and local populations of animals will maintain healthy populations.
Beneficial Insects Will Control the Bad Insects
Some insects like the Ladybug and the Green Lacewing are called beneficial because they are the good guys who are on the hunt for the bad guys that are feeding on your plants. Here is a list of beneficial insects, with links to where they are offered by an Earth friendly distributor.
Green Lacewings Chrysoperla carnea Green Lacewings are an all purpose beneficial insect that feed on insects such as aphids and other insects that will come and feed on your plants. Green Lacewings are perfect for a backyard garden, larger garden, or a greenhouse.
LadyBugs The most popular beneficial insect, these cute little beetles eat Aphids and Spider-mites and can be purchased readily in most nurseries. Don’t discount their black, alligator like larvae which eat up to a hundred aphids a day!
Minute Pirate Bug These little guys eat Thrips, Corn Earworms, Aphids and Spider-mites. Though be careful not to pick these guys up as they have a nasty bite.
Predatory Mites These mites feed on Thrips and Pest mites.
Praying Mantis These big guys also eat a lot of beneficial insects, so they are not recommended for your garden.
Rove Beetles These beetles feed on soil-dwelling insects like Root maggot eggs, larvae and pupae, especially those of Cabbage maggots and Onion Maggots. They also eat slug and snail eggs.
Soldier Beetles These beetles eat Aphids, Caterpillars, Corn Rootworms, Cucumber Beetles and Grasshopper eggs.
Spiders All spiders are beneficial predators. You should encourage them into your garden by using a straw mulch.
Spined Soldier Bugs These bugs eat the Larvae of Colorado Potato Beetles, Sawflies, Cabbage Loopers and Tent Caterpillars.
Tachinid Flies These flies eat Caterpillars, Armyworms, Cornborers, Cutworms and Stinkbugs.
Tiger Beetles These beetles eat various soil-dwelling larvae.
Trichogramma Wasps These weird and tiny wasps lay their eggs inside the eggs of moths, killing the mother moth in the process.
Yellow Jackets These bees feed the larvae of flies, Caterpillars and Grasshoppers to their young.
Most of these beneficial insects can be purchased in a nursery or through mail order. Those that cannot be purchased may be naturally attracted to your garden if you plant specific plants.
Do not release these beneficial insects into your garden if their prey does not exist there. If you do so, you may disrupt your garden’s natural ecosystem and possibly worsen your pest problems.
Growing a diversity of plants in your garden will attract a range of insects, and most insects are beneficial. Beneficial insects are only one of many reasons to maintain a diverse collection of plants in your garden.
Beneficial creatures are not all insects. Birds and bats feed on insects as well and may be helpful to have in the neighbourhood. Pesticides, ironically, can kill birds, which may themselves be your best ‘pesticide’.
Reptiles and amphibians are also beneficial creatures. Building a pond on your land will encourage frogs and toads to reproduce, and these amphibians will then eat flies and other insects.
Many gardeners are bird watchers too, and they can design a garden with features that birds like. Birds look for food, shelter, nesting sites, and water—having just some of these will encourage birds to visit.
Providing food for birds
Do a little research on the birds that are common in your area and the types of food that they prefer if you want to make the most of feeders.
There are two ways to provide food : through bird feeders and by growing plants around your yard that offer fruits, seeds and a habitat that birds love. Black oil sunflower seed is the best seed to attract a diverse group of birds to your feeder, including chickadees, nuthatches, finches, cardinals, grosbeaks, sparrows, blackbirds and jays.
To attract insect-eating birds such as woodpeckers, chickadees and nuthatches, offer suet in the wintertime. Ground feeding birds like juncos, sparrows, towhees and mourning doves prefer cracked corn scattered on the ground or placed in an elevated tray.
Plants to add to your landscape include serviceberry, dogwood, fir, hawthorn, sweet gum, crabapple, pine, coralberry and fruit-bearing viburnums. Seed-producing flowers that will attract birds include aster, blanket flower, cone flower, sunflowers, black-eyed Susans, California poppies, goldenrod, marigolds, phlox, salvias and zinnias.
Providing shelter for birds
Birds like transition zones between dense forest and open space—a garden with tall grasses, shrubbery, and patches of open breezy trees will provide shelter and attract lots of birds. Ideally, there should be patches of growth in the open and open spaces among the trees. Trees take a long time to grow and many gardeners don’t have the space, but most gardens can be designed with patches of taller shrubbery at the edges or near other garden features. Keep in mind that shrubs can shelter predators as well, a factor to consider when locating feeders, bird baths, and dust baths for birds.
Providing nesting sites for birds
A garden with good bird shelter will also offer nesting possibilities. Leave old trees with cavities in them, if possible, as these will entice cavity-nesting birds. If you want to add nesting boxes, platforms, or shelves, you might want to wait till autumn—many birds start nesting very early in spring, and a new nest box hung in the fall will be weathered and feel more natural by spring.
To encourage birds with nest building, offer short bits of string, yarn, thread, and hair, fabric scraps, twigs and other nesting materials. Dead plants from last season offer nesting materials as well, so don’t be too tidy!
Providing water for birds
A bird bath is the most popular way to provide birds with water. Locate the bath away from garden features that provide hiding places for cats and other predators, but close enough to shrubbery to give birds a place to flee to. Make sure you refresh the water in the bird bath regularly. You can also add a water feature to your garden, like a pond or waterfall, or provide a regular spray with a sprinkler or soaker hose. Some gardeners also build a dust bath for birds to help them with preening.
Successful decorating is about being clever with what you have, so try to see your indoor garden in a different light.
1 – Although certain plants do really well indoors, they still have the tendency to reach towards a light source. For instance, if your light source is towards the right side, all your plants would be inclined towards the right side in order to get sunlight. Its better to rotate your plants occasionally for them to grow straight
2 – During the summer time keep the plants out in sunlight to boost them up. If your plants do not get their daily requirement of sunlight they might appear very thin and frail. Use artificial lights with a fluorescent lamp if your house has limited lights. If your home doesn’t get ample sunlight then buy plants that are appropriate for medium to low light environments. Rotate the plant after keeping it under light for a healthy growth.
3 – Make sure that the water is drained out of the bottom of the pot. The quantity and the intervals of watering vary. So before buying collect all the necessary information about its routine care. Make sure you use room temperature water. Although different plants have different watering needs but you can follow one thumb rule – Too much dryness and too much wetness are both bad for your plant. Make sure your containers and your soil have proper drainage.
4 – Bathe your plants occasionally. Often grime and dust tends to settle over the plant leaves and stem that is why it is important to bathe them. You can add a spray attachment to the nozzle of your hose pip and gently shower your plants.
5 – Like ample sunlight, plants require ample fresh air too. The plants tend to suffer a great deal if they are kept in smoky or stagnated air. Keep your doors and windows open and allow your plants to breathe fresh air.
6 – Keep a check on your home temperature. Plants tend to grow well at a certain temperature i.e. 65-75 degrees at daytime and about 10 degrees lower at night.
7 – Keep a record of each of your plants’ name, species, purchase date, fertilizer dates, repotting dates etc just as you would maintain your child’s medical reports. It will help you to maintain your plants systematically.
8 – Fertilize your plants regularly. Every time we water, some of the soil’s essential nutrients get flushed out of the soil. You can use a liquid fertilizer and add it in small amounts when you water your plants. Although you can avoid fertilizing in winter. Keeping a track of your fertilization dates would help you. If you fertilize your plants too much or too often, you will end up burning your plants.
9 – Soil is an integral for a healthy plant. If you are growing your plants in a container, avoid using soil from the garden. It wont yield good results. Besides, it may also risk insects, weeds and other diseases to your indoor plants. You can buy good container soil from a plant nursery.
10 – Make sure your pots have proper drainage holes on their surface below. Most pots tend to be sold without drainage holes, but you should make holes on your pots yourself. With out proper drainage holes, the water in the soil tends to collect in the pot and damage the roots and your plant will almost certainly die.
