Posted by admin on June 17th, 2010 — Posted in Gardening Hall
As a gardener you can be found considering buying that sunbed UK or alternatively checking out those Bulldog garden garden chairs — but it’s worth pointing out, it’s taken much of history to reach these heights. Settlements cultivated gardens long before the innovation of the hoe or the sunbed. The activity we think of as an old familiar recreation was already developing over sixteen thousand years ago.
The Egyptians cultivated gardens for spirituality, for spirituality, and of course spirituality. Typically surrounded by stone walls, fertile grounds were filled with flowers, flowers, vegetables, fruit and nut bearing trees, and occasionally pools of fish. While admittedly they consumed most of this some plants were nurtured to honor some of their gods. And other plants, important to the temples , grew on nearby land.
They were hardly the only tribe to create early gardens. These include the Persians, the Persians, to say nothing of the Persians, and they often incorporated buildings of some size into landscapes. The Romans also went in for attractive gardens, though the Greeks did not. Only food flourished in their plantations.
While we grant you they would not have used a rake or a garden seating, these tribes had designed quite the selection of simple implements and garden aids which were the prototypes of modern hoes and reclinerss. Gardeners wrought them from iroko, stone, karri wood, stone.
The pandemonium of the Middle Ages led later civilizations to set down the basic recliners and all the other garden chairs - except for the priests, who cultivated some herbs and flowers for religious and medicinal needs.
Over time, the public once more designed picturesque gardens of vegetables, herbs, and flowers to provide a pleasant space. This movement went on right through the sixteenth and seventeenth century, at which point gardens became much more formalized and precise . You’ve only got to look at the work invested in a hedge maze or knot garden for that to be obvious.
Such rules aren’t still compulsory, so there’s honestly nothing to fret about — enjoy yourself, and don’t be embarrassed when it comes to searching for information on how to remediate some bothersome garden seating deformity or parsing some good garden seating reviews. Where others abided by gardening guidelines which were carefully observed for centuries, Humphry Repton and others uniquely merged instinct and structure by combining artificial decorative pieces like statues with a realistic looking landscape.
Nowadays, their appearance may have changed but nonetheless we cultivate plants as our forefathers used to. There’s no way you’ll encounter a more comfortable realm than a garden paradise.
Make sure you go to this truly informative site for garden seats ideas!
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Posted by admin on April 24th, 2010 — Posted in Gardening Hall
I recommend you have two priorities when shopping for skunk seeds: value and dependability. Preferably, the vendor you choose promises swift delivery of the very best hybrids — but watch out for tricksters. Many such issues must definitely be investigated when choosing the vendor you intend to shop with, and if you’ve heard enough to be leery of the difficulties, we’ll tell you what you still need to consider. With medical marijuana seeds as with anything else, the upper hand is with the net sellers in questions of the capability to sell a broad assortment of breeds. No matter what your preference, you can order the best strain, secure in the knowledge that you’ll locate a seller carrying just what you want.
Naturally there’s the question of security. It can be hard, we find, to entirely trust the vendors locally. While the domestics will take care, they could nevertheless be being watched — or detained before you receive your order, neither of which is good news. Even worse, they can confirm who they sell to, which naturally leaves you vulnerable. A reputable online stockist will dispatch your marijuana seeds in unobtrusive, unlabeled packaging and make it easy for you to purchase sans paper trail. It’s often smarter not to use your card, so they’ve instituted transactions tracking cash in their stead. Even those prepared to take payment via bank transfer eliminate the transaction record immediately. You’ll appreciate now the need for a seedbank you can depend upon. Better yet, you can establish steady deliveries without having to worry about the risks. You’ll have to choose one by their renown. This prestige will appear as online comments and generous recommendations, easy to research these days.
So you know where to shop with, but have you given proper thought to what you’ll be buying as well? Give it some thought. Important questions for your choice include weeks flowering, individual plant heights, yield, THC levels, and even harvest months, so don’t neglect your research. Naturally it goes without saying that you should consider how to cultivate your plants. Hydroponics or soil — you might prefer a hybrid that thrives in both, but it’s just as probable that your choice will be limited in that case.
Finding great pot seeds hinges on making contact with a reputable seed bank guaranteeing shipments with remarkable value. So relax and enjoy the fruits of your labors — after all, the lion’s share of the time has been covered for at the beginning.
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Posted by admin on February 25th, 2010 — Posted in Gardening Hall, House Of Tools, The Shoppers Way
Gardening must be one of the biggest summer interests, in the industrialised World. Along side gardening, comes a good amount of garden tools and equipment, particularly for the seasoned veteran. Then, for all, the summer and fall seasons sadly come to an conclusion, and it is time to get the shed organized and everything tucked away for the winter. Don’t some of us just detest that job!
Garden tools just have to be one of the most unmanageable collections of household items to store. Tiny hand tools such as the pruners are quite easy to store away in the shed. Their trouble is their smallness, making them prone to be mislaid and be missing by spring. The bigger issue comes with putting away the unmanageable sized heavier tools.
Lawn rakes are one of the most troublesome bulky tools to store, finding somewhere intelligent to put it for a long period of time can be very challenging. Add in the border fork with its deathly spikes, stainless spade, border spade, springbok rake, forged hoe and you have a formula for cataclysm lying in wait for you. These problems multiply 100 fold if you have tiddlers.
Apart from anything else, though, it is a better idea all round to have your garden spades housecleaned and stashed away safely, exactly where you can recover them when you need them. That is why garden equipment stands, particularly fashioned for the purpose of stashing away garden accessories, are such an powerful feature of any garden storage, or garage if that is where you have to stash away your gardening things.
A good accessory rack will help you to keep your accessories in good condition, as well as convenient to find. The problem is, which type do you opt for? There are a number of options, and some of them are very well designed for the role intended. While separate racks, if secure and reinforced, might be smashing, it is surely nicer to have a wall stand that is all of the time fixed to the shed or garage wall. That way, it is less likely to come crashing down in a mound on the ground. If you have youngsters, a wall holder that can be raised out of the scope of the children is essential, as is selecting one that will carry the fork and other serious gardening tools unwaveringly in place.
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Posted by admin on September 14th, 2009 — Posted in Assistance, Gardening Hall, Lifestyle Hall
I was thinking of a few things that have happend in the last little while. You should find something of value here today. They played an important role in my decision making in the past.
The Back Country
We went on a family camp trip a few days ago. The family was supposed to drive to a cabin and hike a mile or two for some real camping. Shopping before a camping trip is fun - especially online. We found a good camping tent. It was a relief to open the door the afternoon we were driving in - and saw the tent. Lucky for me, I found this good site dedicated to camping tents and found the right one for me. Expedited shipping is totally the way to go. This was one of my most favorite camping trip we have ever had. Lot’s of memories. We’re planning another one right now!
Home Security Systems
Installed a home security alarm before we left on our trip. It was awesome! You get to a point where what’s in your house really matters - it’s time to secure it. Theft does crazy things to your head I think. You feel so violated. There were a lot of free alternatives that we considered but we ultimately felt safest with monitoring. Installing the security system was a breeze. Turns out we didn’t have to worry but we felt safer while traveling.
Good Drinks for Camping
Camping is a lot of fun, but it takes a lot of energy. Do you have any idea how grateful I am for packing efusjon energy drinks? Everything we did while camping was so draining. I know I need to hit the gym when I get back but these drinks helped a lot. Efusjon is great for the drink and for the income opportunity. It’s a young opportunity - jump in now. Get in on the opportunity now!
I’m climbing the hill to success. Hope these sites are useful for you!
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Posted by admin on May 2nd, 2008 — Posted in Gardening Hall
Flowering Dogwood trees can be easily grown from seed, however 99.9999% of the seedlings that sprout will be Cornus Florida, which is White Flowering Dogwood. It doesn’t matter if you collect the seeds from a White Dogwood or a Pink Dogwood, the seedlings are likely to be white.
The only predictable way to grow a Pink Dogwood, Red Dogwood, or one of the beautiful Dogwoods with variegated leaves, is to bud or graft the desired variety onto a White Dogwood seedling.
See this page on my website for details on “budding”.
http://www.freeplants.com/budding_fruit_trees_and_ornamental_plants.htm
Dogwood trees begin producing seeds right after the petals drop from the flowers. It’s a slow process that takes all summer. By late summer the seeds begin to turn red, which means they are just about mature. Don’t pick them too early or the embryo will not be fully developed and they will not be viable. When the seeds are fully developed they will begin to fall from the tree, and at that time you can begin to pick them.
Ripe seeds can be removed easily. If they don’t pop right off when you grab them, they are not quite ready, give them another week or two. Don’t let them fall to the ground, the chipmunks, birds and other critters love them, and usually eat them as fast as they fall.
Once picked, let them sit for a week or so, until the pulp begins to soften. At that time soak them in a pail of water to further soften the pulp. While still in the pail of water squeeze the seeds between your fingers to separate the seeds from the pulp. Once they are separated slowly add water to the pail until it overflows, allowing the water to flow over the edge of the pail slowly.
The viable seeds should sink to the bottom of the pail, while the pulp should float to the top. Allow the pulp to float out of the pail until you have nothing but clean seeds lying on the bottom of the pail. Drain the water and spread the seeds out on a table to dry. Once dry the seeds can be stored in a cool dry place. They will keep this way for some time.
Because Dogwood seeds have a very hard outer coating on the seed, they need to be pretreated or stratified before they will germinate. This process softens the outer coating so that water and oxygen can enter, initiating the germination process. There are several ways to stratify Dogwood seeds, from treating them with acid to storing them in the refrigerator. I will share a couple of techniques that I think will work the best for someone with little experience.
One technique requires that you decide what day next spring you would like to plant the seeds and then counting backwards on your calendar for 210 days to start the stratification process. Here in the north May 15 is a good target date for planting because by then we should be safe from frost. You don’t want Mother Nature to do them in before they even have a chance.
210 days from May 15 would put you around Oct. 15 to start the stratification process. To stratify the seeds using this technique simply place them in a plastic bag with some moist (not wet!) peat moss, or a mixture of moist peat and sand. Poke some holes in the bag, you don’t want it air tight. Store them in this mixture at room temperature for a period of 105 days.
After 105 days move them to your refrigerator for another 105 days. Don’t put them way in the back where they might freeze. You want them cool, but not frozen. After 105 days of storage in the refrigerator they should be ready to plant outside. Just time it so that you get them outside just after the danger of frost has past.
While the seeds are being stored check them weekly, if you have fungus growing in the bag sprinkle a little fungicide in. Near the end of the storage period you should be checking for germination, as soon as 10% of the seeds have germinated they should be planted out. If it’s too early, plant them in a flat indoors, just make sure they get plenty of sunlight.
To plant them simply sprinkle the entire contents of the bag on top of the soil and spread it out. Sprinkle some light soil over top. Do not plant the seeds too deep. 1/4″ of soil over top is all you want. Water them thoroughly after planting, then allow the soil to dry out before watering again. Make sure you plant them in an area that drains well, you don’t want them in soggy soil or they will rot.
That’s one technique. Another technique is to nick each seed in a couple of different places with a knife right after the seeds are cleaned, and plant them out immediately in the fall. Cover the seed bed with a piece of screen so the critters don’t dig them up and eat them.
Which technique works better?
I don’t know. There are so many variables that can change the outcome that I have not seen where one works better than the other. I suggest you do some each way and see what works best for you. I like getting them planted right away in the fall and putting Mother Nature in charge, but it’s disappointing if something happens and you have a poor stand, that’s why it’s always nice to try some both ways.
You can also grow Chinese Dogwood (Cornus Kousa) from seed. Chinese Dogwood is very popular because it flowers much later than most other ornamentals. Late June is usually when they are in bloom, and the flowers are cream colored against dark green foliage. It makes the flowers look mint green in color. Just use the same techniques as above.
Michael J. McGroarty is the author of this article. Visit his most interesting website, www.freeplants.com and sign up for his excellent gardening newsletter. Article provided by gardening-articles.com
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Posted by admin on April 14th, 2008 — Posted in Gardening Hall
Orchids are a thing of beauty, one of the most impressive flowers you can have at home is an orchid. Because Orchids come from a very large family there is a huge variation in the different types of Orchids available on the market. Orchids are not the most difficult flowers to take care of, but they do need some attention, you can have a significant effect on the orchids you grow.
Wild orchid is simply a wonderful flower that everyone should own, a wild orchid has a unique look and style of growth. Wild orchids have an amazing verity of species, each with its own beautiful shape and coloring. Orchids in general and wild orchids in particular require that you decide where you think you will place the orchids before you actually buy them, the care needed for orchids demands that you provide them with enough humidity and air flow, and there is a huge difference between placing an orchid at home or have a wild orchid in your garden.
As a person who knows the importance of flowers for stress relief and house decoration I can absolutely say with confidence that orchids provide an abundance of pleasure just from watching them, even a person that is completely indifferent to flowers will enjoy looking at a blooming orchid, the vast variety of the orchid family makes it almost impossible for the regular person to get familiar with a kind of orchid.
Orchid have about 35,000 different species, originally this flower grow on trees and used them as hosts, this doesn’t mean that orchids can not bloom and grow without a tree host. The orchid family, because of its diversity is a extremely adaptable flower, contrast to popular belief, the orchids are a very well adjusted family of flowers.
Orchids are “planned” to lure insects for reproduction means, by getting the insect to land on the flower, it sticks some of the orchid “signature” on the insect and when this insect than leaves the orchid it bares with it the markings of that particular orchid.
Orchids have a well documented history, because of the orchids popularity in almost all parts of the world, many written books and articles had mentioned the orchid flower and the variety of the orchid family in flowers. The earliest written evidence of their presence if in the form of Chinese and Japanese drawing and literature of the circa 700 B.C. in past times the orchid was believed to have healing powers and was used, by many cultures, as a sort of a herbal or natural remedy.
today it is very easy and simple to purchase an orchid at the floweriest, most florist even have orchid flowers which they use in their flower arrangements. The orchids bought at a florist will not last long, but a rooted orchid could be a lot of fun to take care of at home, you just need to find the right spot for the orchid, with plenty of humidity and air flow, not exposed to wind and cold, there is a usual trial and error phase in which you discover what your orchid likes and dislikes, it is a very interesting sort of communication between a flower and a human.
Daniel Roshard is an interior designer fascinated by garden architecture & orchids, orchid garden design public parks. Daniel is writing orchid articles for ZupaTips.com.
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Posted by admin on April 4th, 2008 — Posted in Gardening Hall
If you have had trouble planting a tree the River Birch is a
choice that is easy to transplant. They are adaptable and grow
fast. These trees do not seem to be bothered by the Bronzed
Birch Borer which has killed off many White Birches used in
urban landscape near Allentown Pa.
When I was in the 8th grade I would go fishing along the
Delaware River at night. I would camp along the river bank and
fish into the wee hours of the night. I am always drifting back
to those childhood memories when I pass a river birch tree that
is highlighted by lights at night. The nightime interest that
this tree expresses can help capture moments for you. The main
feature of this medium sized spreading tree is its colorful
peeling bark. This builds up on the stem and main branches in
soft curling layers of orange, pink, grey and brown. Another
great advantage of this species is its tolerance of wet soil and
seasonal flooding making it an ideal pond or riverbank tree.
Specimens often develop multiple stems which increases the
attractiveness its shaggy bark. As an ornamental tree it also
has bright green, toothed leaves and long yellow clusters of
catkins in early spring. It will have a spreading root system
that will check erosion. It is hardy and will seldom blow down.
The plant is native to the eastern states from Massachusetts to
Florida. The range continues along the Gulf of Mexico and into
Texas.
At most nurseries you could expect the following prices on
birches (Not all sizes and types shown) Betula Nigra Dura Heat
River Birch 6-8′ clump $125.00 8-10′ clump $150.00 Betula Nigra
Heritage River Birch Clump 6-8′ clump $150.00 8-10′ clump
$175.00 12-18″ seedlings @ $2.00 ea. and 1250 18-24″ seedlings @
$3.00 ea. If you need more help on selecting plants go to the
following web Sites: http://www.zone5trees.com
http://www.seedlingsrus.com and http://www.highlandhillfarm.com
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Posted by admin on March 28th, 2008 — Posted in Gardening Hall
Miniature roses are exactly what they sound like. They have all of the fragrance and beauty of a regular rose, but they have smaller blooms. These particular roses are great for indoor planting.
Miniature roses are one of many types of roses available widely. These roses, as their name implies, are smaller versions of the more common roses. They offer the same beauty and fragrances as their larger cousins. The consumer can find a large selection in a variety of colors and shape available to them. Caring for these miniature roses is no more difficult then caring for the larger variety. But, taking the time to learn about the miniature rose is key in maintaining them over a long period of time
Miniature roses come in many colors and varieties. There truly is something to please everyone. These roses are great additions to a flower bed, window box or even inside the home or office as a potted variety. With so many choices available, the demand for these roses has risen. Once hard to find, they are now available in most garden centers and even in discount department stores as well. Now, this is not to say that the consumer can’t find better, more hardy options other places.
If a consumer is dead set on a color, shape, or texture in their miniature rose, they should use the internet to help them find the right miniature rose for them. This is as simple as going a search in a search engine and finding wholesale sellers. There is a constant demand for miniature roses and in that they are always developing more varieties to please the public. So, many of these wholesalers can offer more then the local garden center can.
Anyone in the market for miniature roses needs to know their facts. The miniature rose is no different from other plants in that it needs certain elements to help maintain it. The soil type, sun exposure, and nutrients it needs all depend on the variety. Asking the retailer for this information is a must. Grab a book on caring for miniature roses if needed to give the most information possible. Doing all these things will lead to owning a beautiful miniature rose or several. It will also be the foundation of a love of miniature roses as well.
About the Author
Ken Austin
Roses and Rose Gardening
Online Discount Shopping Guide
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Posted by admin on March 25th, 2008 — Posted in Gardening Hall
ACQ Pressure-Treated Lumber
Answers to common questions about pressure-treated lumber.
ACQ Pressure-Treated Lumber; A Wood Preservation Lumber’s
greatest enemy is biological attack ,destruction by termites,
fungi, marine borers and bacteria. After more than a half
century of scientific tests and practical experience with
various treating chemicals, there is a variety of weapons that
have been formulated to protect wood against insects, rot and
decay.
What preservatives are used and how long are
they effective? What ingredients make up
ACQ? Is special handling required? How safe is treated wood?
Can preserved wood be used indoors? Why can
treated wood be used for a picnic table and not a
countertop? Can treated wood be used in
gardening? Can all tree species be
treated? What does PCF Treatment
mean? Any suggestions when building with
treated lumber? After my project is built,
is any special maintenance necessary? What
else should I know about treated wood? I
cut the end off of my ACQ treated wood and it looks like it
isn’t treated in the middle. Do I have a bad piece of treated
wood?
What preservatives are used and
how long are they effective?
For a long time, CCA (Chromated Copper Arsenate) has been used
as a reliable wood preservative. CCA treated wood protects
against all major forms of destructive attack and is effective
for up to 50 years. More recently, preservative manufacturers
have made a transition to a newer preservative: ACQ (Alkaline
Copper Quaternary.) ACQ is also effective for up to 50 years,
reducing demands on forest resources.
What ingredients make up
ACQ?
ACQ is a waterborne system that is copper-based. The copper and
quaternary compounds together provide protection from a broad
spectrum of fungi and termites, preventing rot and decay.
Is special handling
required?
Although termites, fungus and destructive micro-organisms detest
treating chemicals, in pressure-treated wood it’s clean, emits
NO fumes and is non-irritating.
The single most important precaution is DO NOT BURN TREATED
WOOD. Burning treated wood releases the chemical bond with wood
cells, so dispose of scraps and sawdust with your landfill
trash. Wear gloves when handling treated lumber. And always wear
safety glasses and a dust mask when sawing or cutting treated
lumber just as you would with untreated lumber.
Top of Page
How safe is treated wood?
Very safe when used as directed. The preservative injected into
lumber reacts with the wood substance to form an insoluble
complex. It won’t evaporate or vaporize. Treated wood is clean,
odorless, non-staining, and safe to work with and handle. Its
locked-in protection is non-irritating to children, adults,
animals and plants. The minute amounts of preservative released
over time due to wear off of the product or water contact have
been carefully studied. The conclusion is clear: it is safe for
the environment and safe for people and pets.
Can preserved wood be used
indoors?
Treated wood may be used indoors for any application except
cutting boards and countertops.
Why can treated wood be used for
a picnic table and not a countertop?
Simply because picnic tables are primarily used for serving
prepared food while a kitchen countertop is used primarily as a
cutting surface for raw food.
Top of Page
Can treated wood be used in
gardening?
Yes. Treated wood can be used to construct raised vegetable
gardens and flowerbeds. Previously, CCA (Chromated Copper
Arsenate) had been used as a reliable wood preservative. More
recently, treated wood manufacturers have made a transition to a
newer preservative: ACQ (Alkaline Copper Quaternary.) Several
studies have shown that plants grown in CCA raised beds do not
contain higher than normal levels of the preservative chemicals.
It is believed also that the same holds true for ACQ raised
beds. In addition, the components of ACQ are known to be
non-carcinogenic.
Can all tree species be
treated?
Three species of pine: southern yellow, ponderosa and red are
most open to treating. Some softwoods such as spruces, hem/fir,
larches and Douglas fir benefit from incising (cutting small
slits across the grain) to aid chemical penetration and
treatment retention. Most hardwoods are too dense and complex to
be treatable.
Top of Page
What does PCF Treatment
mean?
Treatment levels are measured in pounds of chemical injected per
cubic foot (pcf) of wood. Additionally, lumber tags will always
state above ground only (.25 retention) or ground contact (.40
retention) so you can be sure you are using the right material
for the job. Higher levels of retention are available for
special purposes such as extensive moisture/earthen contact -
e.g. in foundations, pole barns, fresh & saltwater docks,
culverts, etc.
Any suggestions when building
with treated lumber?
One quite important one: Use hot-dip galvanized (meeting
ASTM-A153/A653) or (304 or 316) stainless steel nails or screws,
otherwise, your treated wood will last longer than the
unprotected fasteners you’ve used to put it together. Do not use
preserved wood in direct contact with aluminum. A poly barrier
is recommended for any applications where treated lumber will
meet aluminum flashing. Aside from that precaution, you can saw
it, sand it, or glue it just like any ordinary wood.
After my project is built, is
any special maintenance necessary?
Left unfinished, treated wood ages gracefully, eventually
softening to an attractive driftwood gray. On flat surfaces such
as decks, however, leaves and other debris may collect and
create unsightly stains. Even if your lumber has the locked-in
protection of factory applied water repellent, you’ll want to
follow an annual program that includes a semi-transparent stain
of a sealant which contains an ultraviolet stabilizer. If you
stain your project, a quality penetrating latex or oil base
stain is recommended.
Top of Page
What else should I know about
treated wood?
Decades of research and testing have gone into its development,
and we certainly haven’t answered every question about it.
However, a full line of free literature is available to you
through your building materials dealer. Finally, you should be
aware of this: lengthening a wood structure’;s life through
pressure treatment lowers the pressure on our planet’s
exhaustible mineral and energy resources. 226,000,000 trees are
saved every year by pressure treatment. Treated lumber makes one
tree last as long as many untreated trees. Use pressure-treated
wood with confidence in its everlasting quality and safety.
You’ll be protecting our environment’s major renewable building
material.
I cut the end off of my ACQ
treated wood, and it looks like it isn’t treated in the middle.
Do I have a bad piece of treated wood?
No. Products treated in strict conformance with AWPA standards
will have some wood which appears untreated if the wood is
end-cut after treatment. Most commonly, this is heartwood which
is naturally decay resistant. This is not an indication that the
wood was not properly treated, and you do not need to be
concerned. With the exception of some Western species, these
end-cuts do not require any special treatment.
Brush-on Preservatives for Field Cuts
According to American Wood-Preservers’ Standard M4-02, lumber
and timber which are used in above ground applications and are
of sapwood species such as southern, red or ponderosa pine,
generally do not require treatment to provide a good service
life. Other heartwood species, typically found in the Western
US, should be field treated when cut or drilled. If you are
concerned about wood exposed due to cutting or drilling, you can
use a brush-applied preservative. Home centers and lumberyards
often carry brush-applied preservative systems based on two
different active chemicals: either copper naphthenate or IPBC
(3-iodo 2-propynyl butyl carbamate). These systems should be
applied, in accordance with their labels, to any surface exposed
by damage or field fabrication. Users should carefully read and
follow the instructions and precautions listed on the
preservative system label when using them.
Top of Page
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Posted by admin on March 21st, 2008 — Posted in Gardening Hall
You can get down and dirty in the garden alone, out in the front yard, and the neighbours don’t think you are a pervert.
You can talk openly about your ultimate fantasy garden with everyone from your neighbours next door to your grandma.
It’s not embarrassing to walk into a nursery or garden centre and purchase gardening implements.
It doesn’t kill the mood if you talk during gardening.
I could go on.
Gardening can be one of the most rewarding experiences of life. Creating a beautiful oasis where once there was nothing.
When people say they don’t like gardening, they aren’t talking about the joy of planning and planting out their patch or watching their plants flourish and flower, but more about the arduous tasks such as weeding and mowing.
I am here to offer all you non believers (that is gardening haters) a path to the gardening heaven.
Weeding
Even I hate weeding, and I have been a passionate gardener since I was in my teens. So how do you cut down the task of weeding? Here is how I do it.
All my perennial garden beds have weedmat laid on them. If you haven’t come across weedmat before, you are in for a sweet surprise. It cuts your weeding by 95%, and the weeds that do manage to root in the weed mat pull out so easy that a preschooler could do it.
Now don’t confuse weedmat with that horrible old black plastic that use to be laid on garden beds back in the 70’s. That black plastic did horrible and unspeakable things to the soil, making the ground pretty much unusable and rock like. Weed mat allows the soil to breath, water to penetrate and fertilisers that are applied over weedmat also permeate through it to the plant roots.
Weedmat will stop not only couch grass, but oxalis and nutgrass. True. I laid it directly over a rose bed that was badly infested with all bar the nut grass over three years ago, and apart from the odd part growing out the edge of the weed mat, my rose bed has been weed free.
There are a couple of different types of weedmat and all have their merits.
Jute weed mat is great if you can get hold of it. It allows a litte bit more weed penetration than the following two, but is great for the environment, and also acts as a mulch, retaining water.
Woven weedmat is probably the most heavy duty out of them all. It is fine strips of plastic that are woven into a cloth. This was the weedmat that defeated my oxalis and couch grass.
Enviro weedmat is also quite good. It sort of looks like that iron on interface that you get on clothes, but it is black. It breaks down after about 4 or 5 years. It’s only downfall is that sharp stick and rocks will tear it quite easily.
Mulch is also a good way to cut down weeds. I have it over every bed in my garden, even the ones that have weedmat on them, more for aesthetics on than weed suppression over the weedmat.
There are a multitude of mulches available, from organic straws, barkchips, composted materials to inorganic stones and gravels. All have their advantages and downfalls, which is an article in itself.
Another rule for eliminating weeds is to get them before they seed. One plant can send out thousands of seeds, which is potentially thousands of weeds if you don’t get rid of them before they flower and set seed.
Mowing
The only thing I can really offer here is get a low creeping grass such as Santa Ana couch. Pave where the lawn is or find someone else to do the mowing.
Alright, so maybe I have only taken you to gardening paradise, not gardening heaven. But hopefully I have helped you see the light.
Jody has been in the horticultural industry in Victoria for close to ten years.
She ran her first nursery at 25 while studying horticulture through the University of Melbourne. From there she moved on to work in three diverse nurseries in Melbourne and the country, two of which she managed.
Jody also wrote a weekly gardening column for The Weekly Advertiser for five years while running a small local nursery in Horsham.
Currently Jody is teaching horticulture at the University of Ballarat, Horsham campus and is the resident Horticulturalist on ABC Western Victoria’s Monday gardening program.
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