Spring Flowers For Your Garden

For all those with a green thumb and spring enthusiasm, here is list that grows as the frost melts:

1.       Pansy

Scientific Name:Violaxwittrockiana

With small cheerful flowers, pansies have always been the choice of a springtime gardener. With a preference for cool weather and partly shaded areas, it can be planted in hanging pots or even in small window boxes

2.       Fawn Lilies

Scientific Name:Erythronium

Fawn lilies are ephemeral flowers, meaning that they are short-lived but reappear annually. Varieties such as the creamy White Beauty and yellow Pagoda are enough to awe-struck a plant lover while the leaves are mottled akin to a fawn.

3.       Bloodroot

Scientific Name:Sanguinariacanadensis

Dubbed as the Beauty with the beast Bloodroot is a spring flower that makes its first appearance in March and lasts through the spring. The best place to plant it would be either a woodland garden or shaded area beyond the reach of the sun.

4.       Snowdrop Anemone

Scientific Name:Anemone nemorosa

Beautiful and small, the clusters of fragrant snowdrop anemone are bright and full of life whether in the sun or in the shade and even pulls up an appearance again in autumn with the same gusto.

5.       Lilac

Scientific Name:Syringa vulgaris

Gardeners’ all-time favorites with a fragrance that takes the wits away. With numerous varieties Lilacs grace, the spring with a playful lilt with its different shapes be it shrubs or trees. Usually blooms on old wood, it last long enough for one to become used to them.

6.       Yellow Trillium

Scientific Name:Trillium luteum

Another flower that disappears without a word just to appear in the next spring, Trilliums have always been a group lover. Neither does it fiercely compete for soil resources as its peers do and fits nicely with the shade-lover cluster in a garden while staying around 16 inches tall.

7.       Grape Hyacinth

Scientific Name:Muscariarmeniacum

Grape hyacinths look like inverted bunches of grapes. One of the early bloomers, they cluster and hang about from the stalks while looking beautiful at it. They are about 8 inches in height.

8.       Daffodil

Scientific Name:Narcissus

Daffodils love a spring show. Pretty looking flowers could prance about if plants could walk. With a number of varieties it comes in different shapes and sizes with bright colors, it likes the sun and disappears as the spring recedes and grow back up the next spring.

9.       Tulip

Scientific Name:Tulipa

Cheerfulness and classy, tulips are the choice of a springtime gardener.With a large selection to choose from, tulips can be found in all type of shapes and sizes. Pick out a sunny spot and grow these petal-full blooms the upcoming spring.

10.   Oakleaf Hydrangea

Scientific Name:Hydrangea quercifolia

Hydrangea blooms late in spring and grows vigorously with dense foliage and large flowers. Prefers partly shady grounds, OakleafHydrangea is perfect for a big effect in small gardens.

Beautiful garden is made up of beautiful plants, and these plants will only add to the beauty

How to cut on Gardening Cost

In the present tough economy, everyone is looking for ways to cut expenditures. Planting a garden has the quality to reduce the amount of cash spent on groceries. But this quality depends on the expenses involved in growing the crops, amounts, and types of vegetables grown, harvests that are derived from the garden, and other such factors. So, the solution to the above question is yes, if done correctly.

Some tips on how to save while gardening:

·     Buy small quantities - You need only 3 Brandywine tomato plants, not half an ounce of seed.

· Settle on little good mail-order sources - The variety offered by mail-order catalogs is encouraging but do not pay extra for shipping because you order from 6 companies every spring.

·   Use local sources for the heavy stuff - The price of shipping heavy items can exceed the cost price. An organic fertilizer like bone meal, composted animal manure, and green sand, are costly to ship. Make the calculation before you order.

·   Search out alternative retail sources - Your house and garden center may not offer the best value for your money. A bale of straw at a farm store is priced as livestock bedding while a bale of straw at a nursery is called mulch and priced accordingly.

· Be on the search for free garden materials - Limbs cleaned away from power lines are shaved, and you often get the mulch free from the utility company. Some community sanitation departments also provide compost made from organic waste and leaves.

Therefore planting your own vegetables can be rewarding, regardless of the potential savings you make.

Cost Effective Gardening Style

Vegetable garden at home will cut your grocery cost a bit and makes you eat fresh. You can save and contribute to overall savings of energy by reducing fuel consumption and transport cost of market products.

Some factors for vegetable gardening to save money:

 Vegetable that can be stored – Plant veggies that can be frozen or preserved for later use. By this, you can have extra yield later in the year.

 Use vegetables that are costly – Vegetables that will provide a huge return on your investments of time and space of gardening. Save money by buying costly items or your daily purchase like- beans, melons, spinach, cucumber, beats, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce etc.

 Research and do planning – Saving money by growing vegetable means to make your cost low while yielding high and productive. So research and learn about techniques to reduce your input maintaining high growth.

 Start small – To start with different vegetables can be astounding but ultimately leads to failure due to lack of  maintenance, so keep your quantity less initially.

Some vegetables that save money:

 Tomatoes – In winter’s tomatoes cost more, so a good amount of harvest of tomatoes (Big beef, cherry, and meaty paste) is essential for your kitchen.

 Lettuce – The varieties of lettuce (Magenta and Green) if bought for $2 package of seeds, you will redeem it within two weeks, a rich harvest of fresh Lettuce.

 Winter squash – A favorite winter item and easy to grow, do not require weeding. It is a valued vegetable for winter and spring as it keeps through winter.

 Special peppers – Jalapeno, Serrano, Poblano, chilli peppers, red peppers and orange peppers account for high dollars in store but it is easy to grow now.

How to create hanging gardens ?

Well, you can build a hanging garden with a heap of pots. Although there is scorching heat outside, you can now put up your garden under the shed of your deck.During summer the prices of the plant nurseries drops, so grab the opportunity to make your own space friendly hanging gardens that can be enjoyed at any place.

Having more plants within a small area keeps the surrounding air fresh and clean, so start with this idea of vertical gardening; that will help you make use of your urban space.

Follow some steps to put up your hanging garden:

·       Assemble your materials –It must include the following; middle-sized pots, potting soil, thin chain (galvanized), a bolt, nut and a washer, a hook or a nail and plants (according to the light requirement of the area).

·       Arrange the chain to hang;

a.  Slide the bolt to the bottom hole in the chain.

b.  Screw the bolt.

c.   Slide the washer on.

·       Fill the pots and hang them up –This is the toughest stage. Be careful not to drop one pot over the other as it might break after filling up with soil. Try to give a cascading look; heavy one in the bottom, light one at the top and in middle the medium sized ones.

     The final step is to plant your tree in the pots –Once pots are hanged, plant the nursery in the direction of hanging so that watering becomes easy.

Take advantage of the shady areas and vertical spaces of your mansion and construct your hanging garden using the above simple and swift methods.

Indoor Gardening: More than Just an Eye Candy

In this modern era with an increase in pollution and global warming, it should be our responsibility to make a bit to the society. The best option is to plant trees and make earth a greener and better place. Gardening is a good option but it requires space. But with advancement Indoor Gardening comes into the picture. Here is how indoor gardening can be very useful to you and the society-

1. Air Quality- Indoor gardening filters all the toxic gases that get trapped indoors. This improves air quality reduces the risk of many disorders.

2. Kitchen Ingredients- There are many small plants which can be grown indoors which are major ingredients in our kitchen foods. Home grown food is safer from chemical ingestion than that found in the grocery store.

3. Non-Spacious- You can easily set up an indoor garden without any extra dedicated space required in your house.

4. Controlling Temperature- Gardens have their own bit in maintaining the comfort. Even the indoor gardens at a rather smaller scale play an effective role in maintaining a temperature in their surroundings.

5. No Parasite Worries - By gardening indoors you have nothing to worry about Insects and Parasites. In comparison, outdoor gardening needs a proper care for parasites and insects.

6. Better Plants- Indoor gardening which works on the hydroponic system which gives you complete control on properties like moisture and nutrients.

 Indoor gardening will possibly be the best option in the coming future to keep our surroundings green and clean. As it is the simplest way to make earth a better place. 

Gardening: What Beginners Should Know?

Gardening seems to attract a lot of people. Some try it for passion while others just want a beautiful backyard. Whatever the reason may be, doing it right from the very beginning makes it easier for you to move forward with it. Here are a few tips for the beginners:

Soil Check
Soil needs to be your topmost priority. It is ultimately the soil that is going to provide a large part of nourishment to your plants. You must check the soil for its nitrogen content and other aspect and choose your plants accordingly. You might also use some additional minerals.
Fertilizers: The Chemical Supplements
Fertilizers need to be used carefully. An inadequate amount may harm the plant as well as the soil. You should know how much fertilizer you need at a time and apply it to the soil accordingly.
Think of those Around You
Gardens are not just for you. They may be beneficial for those around you. Choosing the plants that produce more oxygen and are like by the birds especially the endangered ones might be your contribution towards the environment’s health.
Diseases that Plants catch
Plants too catch numerous types of viral, fungal or bacterial infections. Knowing about them beforehand will certainly help you to prevent your plant from carrying it or cure it if it already does have it.

Thus, gardening is not only just pleasant to eyes but to the environment as well, but only if you do it properly and carefully. Doing your homework beforehand is what will help you a healthy and beautiful garden.

Terrace Gardens: Just Beautiful or More?

With the rapid growth of buildings and increase of skyscrapers, we have drifted away from nature. In the daily schedule, everyone needs some time in peace to remove the stress. Gardens can solve this problem. But nowadays it is difficult to have a separate space for a garden in the home. To fix this issue a rooftop garden is the most optimal solution. Some major advantages of Terrace Gardening are-

1.Boosts your health-The increase in the quality of water decline in the roof pollution benefits our health

2.The increase in Biodiversity-Green roofs can act as a natural habitat for various bird species. The increase in biodiversity also increases Ecosystem, Economic, and Social realms.

3. Marketing- Green roofs attract buyers because they are an eye-catching spot. Having a terrace garden increase the price of the building automatically.

4. Noise Reduction -Green roofs provide reduces noise to a huge extent. An intensive green roof reduces sound up to 40 decibels while an intensive green roof reduces sound by 40-50 decibels while.

5. EMR (Electromagnetic Radiation)-Green roofs reduces the penetration of Electromagnetic Radiation emitting from electronic devices such as mobile phone, laptops etc. up to 90%.

6. Energy Efficient-The insulation provided by the green rooftop can help in maintaining the temperature of the building as roofs is responsible for the heating of house during summers and cold in winters.

7.The quality of Air- Green roofs can capture airborne pollutants and it also helps in filtering and saving us from harmful toxic gases.

Thus, terrace gardens can be beneficial for both us and our surroundings in multiple ways.

Gardening tools varied according to garden sizes

As the name suggests, garden tools are used for garden and gardening that often overlays with tools for horticulture and agriculture. Garden stores and bulletin contains gardening tools; some specialized, some very useful, some are fine but not needed and some are maneuvers. The gardening tools depend on the size of your garden and if you want the job done quickly or wish to take time.

The tools can be of two types; hand and power. The least or the basic requirement includes a shovel or spade, a hoe, a rake, and a trowel. According to price range and preference the styles among these tools is decided. And power tools include; lawn mower, cultivators, rotary tiller, string trimmer, irrigation sprinklers, trenchers and so on.

Always tally your garden size while buying your garden tools. You will buy it once so better keep in mind to go for the best quality ones, initially, it can cost you heavy but you will be stress-free for quite a long time.

When you plan for a flower bed garden, a shovel, rake and hoe are all that you require. If your garden is of an average size, the above tools with a rotary tiller are required. For a large garden, a tractor is needed.

Short handled or long handled tools depend on the size of the garden. Short ones are more compact to store than the long ones and easier to work in confined place or while kneeling. Moreover, short ones are also lightweight and less expensive than the long ones.