Container Gardening

Start of by selecting a planting area that gets good sunlight in the morning but by mid day is in semi-shade. Roses prefer to avoid the hot afternoon sun. If the area is in the full sun make sure it has good air circulation.

Prepare the planting hole in advance and make it much larger than the pot the rose bush is in. Mix in a generous 40-50% planter mix or composted material, some garden soil,  bone meal or super phosphate and about 15% sand should also be mixed in.

Plant the rose as soon as the soil is workable. If the plant is grafted on the root stock, be sure the graft is placed 2-3 inches below the surface. If you are planting roses on their own roots be sure the root area is well covered.

Wait for about two weeks and then apply fertilizer. I suggest about 2/3 cup of 12-16-12, be applied and raked into the top 2 inches of the soil. Other forms of plant food such as 15-30-15 is also very effective. The pH level of the soil should be about 6.2 to 6.5. Levels within this range will normally produce excellent rose blossoms around the middle of June. An inexpensive pH probe tester can be very useful in determining when to add more plant food. The right amount of plant food is what should be applied. More is not better.

Good luck in getting many blossoms.

Lori

Tags: Roses

You have spent the long winter months planning your gardening projects and dreaming over seed catalogs. And now it’s time to work the soil. Studies show that mowing the lawn and planting trees takes the same amount of energy as a round of golf.

It is important, therefore, to begin with light and easy activities because, as with other activity, overly enthusiastic gardening will make you susceptible to injury.
Another tip that will prevent gardening injuries is to make sure to use tools that work for you.

Everybody is different and making sure the tool is the right type for the gardening
activity and length for your body will reduce strain.

If you have heavy tasks to accomplish intersperse them with lighter activities. When performing tasks that require bending or kneeling make sure to vary your position for comfort and give your knees a break by kneeling on a soft pad.

Raised beds are a great way to reduce the amount of bending, but make sure the centre of the bed can be easily reached
without stretching.

I like my raised beds. The soil warms faster and they make weeding easier. If you make a ledge around your raised beds you can sit while you are weeding or harvesting.A definite plus!

Lori

Snow drops are out on the West coast but the rest of the country is still covered in snow. Soon it will warm up for the rest of us though and we can get out our pruning shears.

Fruit trees first and then tackle the grape vines. Most people do not reduce the size of the vines sufficiently so make sure you prune a lot. All grapes produce fruit on the new growth and that is the main reason for the heavy pruning.

While we’re on the subject of grapes, the grape plant does not like to dry out and needs fairly even watering. Ground mulching around the base of the plants helps conserve moisture and will help to prevent the drying out of the plant. A good feeding of 10-52-10 plant food is also a good idea. The high phosphate strengthens the plant to produce flower buds.

Lori

Tags: Grapes, Pruning, pruning grape vines

Your amaryllis bulb will grow for many years just like your tulip bulbs. The plant just needs time to store energy in the bulb for next season. For the bulb to gather this energy take the following steps:

1. When the flowers fade, cut the flower stalk back to just above the bulb.

2. Keep watering and fertilizing until the plant goes dormant

3. You can place the plant outdoors for the summer in partial shade making sure to keep the soil moist but not wet.

4. Stop feeding in August.

When it is time to bring the plant indoors move your Amaryllis to a cool (10-15 celsius) and stop watering. Remove the dry foliage. The lack of foliage and water will induce the amaryllis to send out another flower stalk. Resume watering and move the plant to a warm and sunny spot.

After a year or two the bulb will get bigger and you will have to repot it into a bigger pot. The best part is the flowers will also get bigger.

Lori

Tags: Bulbs

The poinsettias are on display for the Christmas season but it is the Amaryllis that I am waiting for — the true Christmas flower.

Poinsettias are used for a short time at Christmas and discarded shortly thereafter. They can be grown indoors and bloom again but I’ve never been that lucky.

Now, Amaryllis, by favourite Christmas flower, are in stores now as bulbs. When buying make sure that at least half of the bulb is above the soil. Do not try to bury the bulb. Place the potted bulb in a warm place with direct light. The heat is necessary for the development of the stems. Water sparingly until the bud and leaves appear.

It takes about 40 days from potting the bulb till the plant blooms appear.

I have been very lucky with Amaryllis. I have one bulb already for many years and it blooms every year with more and more flowers.

In my next article I will reveal my tips and tricks on how to keep the amaryllis bulbs blooming year after year.

Lori

Tags: amaryllis, Bulbs

The gardening season has ended in my yard. It was frosty this morning and now it is time to clean up and put the bulbs and dahlias away till next spring.

Begonias will also keep for next spring if stored properly. Some gardeners throw away their begonia bulbs and buy new ones each year but you don’t have to.

Just before the frost arrives move the begonias in an area away from frost. Discontinue watering and let the leaves dry down. Cut the stems off about an inch above the bulb and find a cool, dry spot. It is important not to allow them to freeze and storing just above freezing is ideal.

Spring 2009, about mid-March, bring them out to warm air and start watering them. You will be surprised at how quickly they put out new growth. The begonias will be ready to bloom by June.

Begonias, in the growing season, should be fed with a low nitrogen plant food. A 15-30-15 water soluble will give you good growth and plenty of begonia blossoms.

Lori

Tags: Bulbs

Now is the time to plan how many bulbs you want to plant in your garden and when you would like the bulbs to reveal themselves.  September 15th to the 30th is the ideal time to plant most bulbs for blossom in 2009.

Remember, some bulbs bloom early while others take longer. Even within a species, such as tulips, there are early blooming bulbs and late blooming bulbs so be sure to check.  Hyacinths, crocus and the old reliable King Alfred daffodils can all be nice spring blossoms.

Lori

Tags: Bulbs

Are your grass clippings and yard trimmings still ending up in the landfill?

Why not compost and improve your garden soil. The decomposition of plant remains, and other once living materials, makes a dark crumbly substance that is excellent for enriching your container garden soil. It is also a way to recycle your yard and kitchen waste.

Composting is not new, in the natural world composting happens as leaves pile up in the forest and begin to decay. The rotting leaves are returned to the soil where living plants can finish the recycling process by reclaiming the nutrients from the decomposed leaves.

There are a lot of options for containing your compost. You can use bins, boxes or a less formal binless method of composting by using the compost heap if you have access to a large yard.

The benefits of compost is that it enriches soil, has the ability to help regenerate poor soil, and can reduce the need for water and fertilizer.

A compost pile makes desirable compost only if conditions are proper. The temperature of the pile should be between 35 and 70 degrees celcius, larger piles usually work better, it needs to be damp, and it needs air. Turn the compost pile regularly to add air. Don’t add weeds from your garden if they have gone to seed, nor diseased plants because this will cause future garden problems.

What to compost: coffee grounds, manure, wood chips, eggshells, yard trimmings, leaves, grass clippings, tea bags, fruit and vegetable peelings.

What not to compost: dairy products, diseased plants, weeds that have gone to seed, fat, meat, and pet waste.

Let me know what products work for you.

Lori

Tags: composting

Summer is here and now is the time to relax and enjoy your garden. This is my front garden. As you can see it is in full Summer bloom.

There are still some gardening maintenance tasks but they can be done at a leisurely pace. Water your container plants in the evening during hot dry weather so the plants have the cool of the night to absorb the moisture.

Deadhead your flowers (picking of the spent flowers) to keep your flowers looking great all summer. It will not only spruce up the look of the container, it will often encourage the plant to produce more flowers.

If certain plants get too large, don’t be afraid to cut them back by half or more. Other than lilies or peonies, most perennials will respond well to pruning during the summer. Tall growing plants might need to be staked. This is easiest to do when the plants are first planted because they can be be firmly fastened to the support as they grow taller.

Enjoy the fruits of your Spring labour.

Lori

Tags: gardening

I am so looking forward to spring! A week ago, I was in Vancouver and the snowdrops were out. Here in the Okanagan, the snow is still on the ground and it will be awhile before the first signs of spring. In the mean time we can make some Tufa containers.

Tufa is formed when water evaporates from lime rich waters. It is a relatively soft rock that is porous and creates the ideal growing condition for plants that like an all or nothing water supply.

Tufa is available in the Rocky Mountains, but not easily accessible. So, instead, I will be using hypertufa which is a man made tufa. It is lightweight and retains moisture but drains well. You can use any mould but make sure you apply oil (I used a baking spray) or smear the surface with grease so your finished project will release when it sets. When making my first container I failed to grease the mould well enough and the hypertufa was stuck in the mould. Also, make sure the top of the mould container is larger than the bottom, otherwise the finished product will not pop out.

The recipe is not an exact science. The following recipe is creative and experimental but this one works the best for me.

One part portland cement. Make sure it is portland cement. This is a type of cement that is made of limestone, clay and gypsum. I also tried to make the container using premixed which had portland in it but it never hardened and the container fell apart.

One part peat moss with one part vermiculite or perlite and then add water slowly and mix well. It should hold together but not be too wet. If it is too wet you will not be able to put it in a form because the mixture will all run to the bottom of your mould. Therefore, add water until the mixture resembles a crumbly cookie dough. Press the mix firmly into the mould and let it cure slowly. Have fun and let me know how your container turns out.