Archive for February, 2007

Stocks (Matthiola)

Stocks are both annual and biennial plants. They are good for the sunny garden and the flowers are marvelous in arrangements. Some of the annual types flower 10 to 12 weeks after seed planting. Flowers are white, pink, red, and navy blue.

Sow the seed in March in a porous mixture. Grow in a warm house. As soon as the seedlings can be handled well perhaps 2 weeks-pot up in 3-inch pots.

Any of the giant mixed strains produce handsome plants. There is also a dwarf 10-week stock on the market. This one, growing to 12 inches, has fragrant, large, double flowers. Mixtures listed as “column type” bear both single and double flowers on exceptionally long stems.

Strobilanthes

Suggest the use of a few strobilanthes (sometimes called conehead) plants to the gardener who has a yen for beautifully colored foliage. Although there are several species available, none is quite so handsome and easily grown as S. dyeri-anus. New growth is deep red-purple, older leaves are silvery orchid. Strobilanthes makes a pretty border plant and it adds much to terrace, patio, outdoor planters, or window boxes.

Propagate strobilanthes through cuttings. The purchase of one plant in a 4-inch pot in the fall will give you fifty or more plants in 3-inch pots for spring and summer sales. Grow it in a warm house and keep it nipped out for bushy growth. Stick the nipped out pieces in a propagating case and you’ll have still more plants for sale.

Keywords: Greenhouse Gardening, Landscaping, Plants, Pool, Gardener, Landscape, Trees

Landscaping tools are a great gift for people of all ages. Most of us cannot wait for the first signs of spring so we can break out our garden tools and get started on landscaping our yards for the new season. One way to make this task easier and more fun is to have all the right tools on hand to make the perfect landscape masterpiece.

The right shears

A great tool for any gardener is a pair of hand shears or clippers. These are used for trimming bushes and shrubs. You can buy the least expensive pair at the store and still get the same great results.

Shovels and spades

There are so many different shapes and sizes of shovels to choose from. You want to choose a shovel or spade that best fits you. Spades are best used for digging and a flat shovel is great for removing dirt or creating bigger spaces. The handles on shovels come in different lengths. Shorter handles are great for digging in smaller areas. Longer handles make moving dirt an easier job for any gardener.

Keywords: Greenhouse Gardening, Landscaping, Plants, Pool, Gardener, Landscape, Trees

River rock and flagstone are just two different kinds of stones that are great for retaining walls and stepping-stones for any landscape. Flagstone is available in many different colors to match any home d cor. River rock is smaller, but you will still find the same great quality and choice of colors.

River rock is a great choice for filling in areas that are left as empty space. It is also nice for flowerbeds in between the flowers to keep weeds away.

Any decision that you make in landscaping stones will defiantly add beauty and value to any landscape for home or office.

Keywords: Greenhouse Gardening, Landscaping, Plants, Pool, Gardener, Landscape, Trees

Retaining walls

You can use stones for more than just a walkway to your home. If a retaining wall is your project, then stones and rocks are the perfect way to go. They add beauty and security to any landscape.

Borders and gardens

Stones are a nice way to create a border around a flowerbed or garden. If you are looking to enhance a garden or pond, rocks and stones are an original way to just that. This will add not only color but also imagination to any landscaping design.

Keywords: Greenhouse Gardening, Landscaping, Plants, Pool, Gardener, Landscape, Trees

Nasturtium (Tropaeolum)

Nasturtiums, with their blaze of yellow, orange, and red flowers, are versatile. Plant seeds in early March directly into 2-inch pots of soil. Grow them in the cool greenhouse. The tall vining types are generally listed as “old fashioned fragrant,” or “fragrant giants.”

Scabiosa

This sturdy and popular annual has fragrant, pincushion-like heads of white, pale yellow, salmon, pink, scarlet, or blue flowers; in fact, pincushion flower is one of its common names. Start the seed early in March in the warm house in average greenhouse soil. Pot singly into 3- or 4-inch pots in April and plants will be well established for May sales.

Schizanthus

Often listed as butterfly flower, fringe flower, and, perhaps most commonly, as poor man’s orchid, schizanthus is lovely enough to use in situations calling for a specimen planting. The flowers of this annual, looking like tiny orchids in purple marked with white, red, or deep yellow, are borne in clusters.

Sow seeds in October for blooming or budded May sellers. Keep well moistened and grow in 60-degree temperature. In March, pot up two plants to a 3- or 4-inch pot, pinch out tips to make good branching, stake, and grow in good light.

Summer Cypress (Kochia)

The summer cypress can become a garden nuisance, but if restrained, it is a handsome shrubby annual, wonderful to use in the newly established garden or for special landscaping purposes. This plant with its neat conical growth resembles the small expensive pyramidal evergreens so popular in foundation plantings. Suggest summer cypress for use in temporary foundation planting, for fast growing hedges, or specimen plants for the garden. The foliage, green throughout the summer, turns red in fall. I like its other common name, Mexican burning bush.

Sow the seed in March and grow in a warm house. Pot up in 3- or 4-inch pots in late April. The variety most commonly grown is Kochia scoparia.

Keywords: Greenhouse Gardening, Landscaping, Plants, Pool, Gardener, Landscape, Trees