Gardening Tips and Ideas

How to Rotate Your Crops For Healthy Plants and Soil

2008-05-04T14:30:00.000-07:00

Last week we talked about how much easier it is to plan your vegetable garden, and figure out how you'll rotate your crops, when using sticky note pads.

This week we'll finish up with why it is important to rotate your crops, and give you a sample four-year plan to help.

Crop rotation is when you plant your annual crops in different areas of your garden every year to avoid the buildup of soil-borne diseases and pests like potato scab, or nematodes.

When you grow different plants on the same site every year, pests and diseases won't have the host plant that they prefer, so their populations tend not to build up to critical and damaging levels.

The most important thing about crop rotation is to have a plan on paper, so you can remember what you planted, and where you are going to move plants the following year.

One easy way is to separate your crops into 3 types: root, leafy, and fruit crops. Even better, is to group your crops by botanical family (like in the Solanaceae family you have tomatoes and peppers, in the Leguminosae family you have peas and beans etc.).

Following is a sample rotation with 4 growing seasons. Each year includes tomatoes, and a soil improving crop (buckwheat, clovers, oats, rye, vetches, and wheat). You can add other crops as space permits in your garden.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Talk to you next week!

Planning A Vegetable Garden

2008-04-22T12:09:00.000-07:00

It's time to start planning your vegetable garden and here's a tip to help make it easy for you.

Use "Post-its" - those small note pads that are sticky. They make it easy and fast.

Here's How:

1. Work on a hard surface - a board or tabletop

2. Decide the scale of your garden - example: 1 inch (2.5 cm) equals 1 foot (.3 m)

3. Each Post-it equals a plot in your garden

4. Write each crop name on a Post-it

5. Simply lift and restick each crop as many times as you want until you're happy with the arrangement

This works very well with succession planting as well because you can simply layer Post-its on top of each other.

For example if you plan to follow an early crop of lettuce with a crop of beans, you can use two Post-its on that plot to show the succession.

Post-its also work really well when figuring out how you want to rotate your crops to keep the soil and plants as healthy as possible.

We'll be getting into that next week and we'll also be giving a four-year plan to show you how to successfully rotate your crops.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Talk to you next week!

How Does Companion Planting Work?

2008-04-02T22:18:00.000-07:00

Part 2 of 2

Last week we discussed what companion planting is, how it works, and gave a few examples. This week we will finish off by giving a few more examples for you to try out in your yard or garden this year.

If you have never tried doing this, do, it really does work!

Here are a few more companion planting examples:

Potatoes and sweet alyssum: Sweet alyssum has tiny flowers that attract delicate beneficial insects, such as lady bugs, and predatory wasps. Plant sweet alyssum alongside bushy crops like potatoes, or let it spread to form a ground cover under plants like broccoli. What is also nice, is that sweet alyssum is so fragrant that it gives a nice scent to your garden all summer long.

Radishes and spinach: Radishes lure leafminers away from spinach, and since the damage the leafminers do to radish leaves doesn't prevent the radishes from growing nicely underground, it is a nice compromise.

Lettuce and tall flowers: Tall flowers such as Nicotiana (flowering tobacco) and Cleome (spider flower) give lettuce light shade, giving it a cooler environment, which is what lettuce grows best in.

Corn and beans: Beans attract beneficial insects that prey on corn pests such as leafhoppers, fall armyworms and leaf beetles. Plus, bean vines climb up the corn stalks, which means you don't have to stake them, the corn provides a natural trellis for them.

Cauliflower and dwarf zinnias: The nectar from dwarf zinnia flowers attracts ladybugs and other predators that help protect cauliflower; and since cauliflower is already a tough crop to grow, any help is beneficial!

Collards and catnip: Studies have found that planting catnip with collards reduces flea-beetle damage on the collards.

Marigolds: Plant these all through your garden. They discourage Mexican bean beetles, nematodes, and other insects. Called the "workhorse" of companion plants for all the benefits they bring to the garden.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Talk to you next week!

How does companion planting work?

2008-03-27T14:35:00.000-07:00

Part 1 of 2

Gardeners have known for centuries that a good mix of plants gives you a healthier garden, but even better, in recent times, several scientific studies about companion planting have proven that it actually works, but how?

Here are a couple of explanations:

1. Companions can help each other grow. For example, tall plants can provide shade for smaller, shorter plants that can't take as much full sun.

2. Companions can attract beneficial insects; so some plants that have a tendency to get eaten alive, will now have the protection of beneficials which are the natural predators of certain pests.

3. Companion plants can prevent pest problems. Certain plants can actually repel some pests, like onions and marigolds, while other plants can lure pests away from your garden and keep your plants from getting attacked.

4. Companions plants can use garden space efficiently. For example, you can plant vining plants to cover the ground and help with moisture, while planting upright plants to grow vertically. This way more ground is being used more efficiently.

Here are a few companion planting examples:

Roses and chives: Garlic is said to repel rose pests, and garlic chives are just as repellent, so this is a good way to protect your roses.

Tomatoes and cabbage: Tomatoes are repellent to diamondback moth larvae, so they can keep your cabbages safe because diamondback larvae are caterpillars that chew large holes in cabbage leaves.

Cabbage and dill: Dill protects cabbage family plants, like broccoli and Brussels sprouts because dill attracts beneficial wasps that control cabbageworms and other cabbage pests.

Peppers and pigweed or ragweed: Leafminers like weeds better than pepper plants. One note of caution however, make sure you remove the weeds' flower head before they set seed or you'll have created more problems for yourself!

Cucumbers and nasturtiums: Nasturtiums are known to repel cucumber beetles, and they provide a great habitat for predatory insects like spiders and ground beetles so nasturtiums give you 2 for the price of 1.

For more companion planting suggestions, come back next week for part 2!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Talk to you next week!

Tough Fast Growing Trees

2008-03-19T16:16:00.000-07:00

Everyone needs a tree that can take extreme cold, heat, wind, and is fast growing, so today we're going to list three trees that can do just that.

These trees have also been used for years in the Great Plains as windbreaks.

1. Green Ash
(Fraxinus pennsylvanica)

A large tree that grows up to 60 feet (18 m) tall
It has green leaves that can turn a nice yellow in the fall, but don't count on the color
Zones 2 - 9

2. Box Elder
(Acer negundo)

Fast growing to 30 to 50 feet (9 - 15 m)
Has a rounded top
Zones 2 - 9

3. Silver Buffalo Berry
(Shepherdia argentea)

Can be grown as a tree or shrub
Has silvery leaves and red or yellow fruit
Grows to 18 feet (5 m)
Zones 2 - 6

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Talk to you next week!

How To Fix Poor Draining Soil

2008-03-12T10:20:00.000-07:00

As the ground starts to warm up, many of us are getting ready to plant out new vegetables, trees, and flowers, but some soil isn't as ideal as it could be, and drainage if often a problem.

If you have poor draining soil, this can hinder good aeration for plant roots, and plants can actually drown, so you'll want to take care of the problem as soon as possible.

I recommended using a product called Penmax to eliminate the standing water fast. It is very easy to use, and it has a gypsite base. You can almost watch the water drain away. Penmax will open up the pores of the soil up to 8 feet (2.4 m) deep in about 1 hour.

You can find it at: http://www.westernnutrientscorp.com/penmax.html

Once the water is gone, allow the area to dry out a bit, and then do a quick soil test. You can get a soil test kit at your nursery which will tell you what amendments the soil needs.

Till the amendments in, with lots of good composted organic matter, to create a nice loamy soil, and you'll have a perfect area to plant any trees, shrubs, or flowers that you want!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

Home Made Plant Labels

2008-02-19T12:46:00.000-08:00

During the winter and spring months, many people are planting seeds, seedlings, plants, trees, etc. and need plant labels to remind them later of what they planted and when.

One of the best ways to make your own home made plant labels is to use plastic knives. Why?

They are inexpensive and can be bought in bulk
They are reusable and last for years
They are waterproof
They come in many colors and sizes

Simply use a permanent marker, or a paint pen, and stick them in the ground, serrated edge first, which also makes them go into the soil very easily, and you're done!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Snails and Slugs - The Definitive Guide

2008-02-12T16:13:00.000-08:00

Never let Snails and Slugs destroy your plants again; The Definitive Guide on How To Kill Snails and Slugs is now available!

If you're looking for ways to control snails and slugs, read this! We have exhaustively listed over 12 ways to get rid of these slimy creatures, so you can keep your garden free of these pests forever.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Don't Compact Soil When Planting

2008-02-05T09:40:00.000-08:00

This winter and spring, many people will be planting trees, shrubs, and perennials.

When backfilling the soil, DO NOT use your foot with all your weight, or a shovel handle to settle the soil.

You will compact the soil too tightly around the roots, especially if you have clay soil that has not been amended properly.

You want to keep the soil somewhat airy, and friable, so instead, work the soil in close to the roots by hand, and if the roots are fine, use your fingers or a stick to gently push the soil into the air pockets before watering in.

Then water, fill in with more soil if depressions or air holes have formed, and then water again.

Let the water settle the soil, and if you end up with a slight depression, that's ok, just add a bit more soil to level it out.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

Never Have Stuck Garden Hose Attachments Again!

2008-01-23T10:51:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, for various reasons, you can leave a garden hose attachment, like a watering wand, a spray gun, sprinkler, or spray nozzle, on too long and then it is a bear to remove.

They can get stuck on from calcification from the water, or sometimes they can rust on. Many people may end up cutting them off. The problem can be avoided all together by simply doing this:

Before you ever attach anything to your garden hose, first wipe the threads with petroleum jelly, so that the attachment's threads don't get stuck to the hose threads. Pretty simple - huh?

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

How To Clean Suede Gardening Gloves

2008-01-17T11:26:00.000-08:00

Clean Suede Garden Gloves Easily

Softer leather gloves such as suede or goatskin become very stiff as the dirt grinds in, which makes them uncomfortable to wear.

Plus, if you're bad about getting dirt inside your gloves and grinding it into your finger tips, eventually you'll have to wash your gloves.

The problem: Washing suede or soft leather can make it stiff and unwearable, so here is what you do:

1. Put them into the washer with your jeans and other dirty clothes. They will come out fairly clean.

2. Hang them to dry.

3. Then, every very few hours, knead and squeeze them gently so they wouldn't get stiff.

Your gloves will last longer by doing this because the dirt doesn't wear away the leather and the finger tips as quickly!

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

New Introductions for 2008

2008-01-11T12:17:00.000-08:00

New Plants For 2008!

Some exciting new plant material is available for 2008. To the right is Maze 'Garden Leader Rainbow'.

It's an ornamental corn with tricolor foliage and small ears of multicolor corn. Great for landscape or containers.

This is just 1 of over 25 new flower and vegetables we have listed.

To see them all go to: New Plant Introductions 2008

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

What is a Gesneriad?

2008-01-04T11:45:00.000-08:00

Do you know what a Gesneriad is?

First of all, gesneriad is pronounced either "guess-NARE-ee-ad" or "jez-NARE-ee-ad".

Secondly, gesneriads, are plants that are in the family "Gesneriaceae", which contains over 2,500 species of plants, the best-known being the African Violet.

Most gesneriads are from tropical and subtropical regions and come in a wide variety of plant sizes, shapes, flowers and colors.

In addition to the African Violet, some of the more common gesneriads grown by hobbyists are:

Florist Gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa)\

Lipstick Plant (Aeschynanthus)

Goldfish Plant (Nematanthus)

Cape Primrose (Streptocarpus)

Flame Violet (Episcia)

Cupid's Bower (Achimenes)

There is an acutal Gesneriad Society which you can read more about at: http://www.gesneriadsociety.org

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

Trees Not To Plant In Lawn Areas

2007-12-24T12:18:00.000-08:00

Some Trees Are Not Good In Lawn Areas

During the winter months is the time to be planting bare-root trees.

There are a couple of trees however, that are nearly impossible to grow grass under because they have so many surface roots that compete for space, water, and nutrients.

Here is a list of a few trees that you'll want to avoid planting in a prime lawn area.

Acer platanoides (Norway maple)
Acer saccharinum (silver maple)
Betula spp. (birches)
Fagus spp. (beeches)
Ulmus spp. (elms)

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

Frozen and Frost Damaged Plants

2007-12-12T11:28:00.000-08:00

How To Handle Frozen or Frost Damaged Plants

During the cold winter months our plants can take a beating!

Plants that are evergreen, or semi-evergreen can really get damaged, but the good news is that most of the time, the plants are able to be saved.

When you're dealing with frost-damaged plants here what's best to do:

1. Initially nothing

2. Leave the dead material there because it will help protect the plant if another freeze comes along and also from sunburn

3. Wait until the warm weather is here to stay and then see where any new growth is starting to emerge

4. When you can see new growth, and all chance of frost is gone, then you can prune off the dead material

5. Water only enough to keep the damaged plants alive, since they have lost so much foliage, their water requirements will be reduced

6. Wait to fertilize until the plant has put on nice, new growth and is well recovered

If you follow the above, your plants will come back just fine. Next year, if you get those really low temperatues again, you may want to try covering them, or if they are in containers, move them indoors during really cold nights.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

Christmas Cactus

2007-11-27T13:25:00.000-08:00

Quick Tips To Grow & Care For

At this time of the year, we are lucky to have several gorgeous house plants that provide holiday color and splendor.

One of them is the Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera species), an undemanding plant, that rewards you with its seasonal flowering year after year.

Here are some fast tips on how to grow and care for them.

Light:
Medium to bright indirect light

Water:
It is a succulent, so it can take dry air and infrequent watering; however, it will require more attention when it is in bloom. Prefers well-drained soil, and likes to be slightly potbound.

Fertilizer:
During blooming and growth, fertilize with an all purpose, soluble houseplant fertilizer every 10 days.

Temperature:
Average to slightly cooler room temperatures, and when not in flower, as low as 60° F (15.6° C). Evening temperatures of 50 to 55° F (10-13° C) can be used to initiate flower bud formation.

Bud Dropping:
Common causes are over watering, exposure to sudden changes in humidity or temperature, which can happen if you grew the plant outdoors and then brought it in. Try to locate the plant in a cool area and use good watering practices.

Flowering:
Christmas Cactus needs 12 hours of uninterrupted darkness at night for 5 to 6 weeks or until buds form. They also need cool nights, under 65° F (18° C).

Keep plants slightly dry until flower buds begin to form, then water thoroughly when the surface of the soil is dry.

Year-Round Schedule At A Glance:

January - Usually Flowering

February to March - Resting (Maintain 55° F (13° C), and infrequent watering

April to May - Water thoroughly when soil begins to dry out

June to August - Place outdoors in a shady spot

September to October - Plant prepares to flower. Reduce number of daylight hours. Keep plant on the dry side with cool temperatures of 55 to 60° F (13 to 16° C) until flower buds form. Then increase water and temperature

November to December - Flowering. Water normally. Temperature no less than 55° F (13° C)

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine - www.weekendgardener.net

Have a great day!

Grow a Parsley Present!

2007-11-16T10:02:00.000-08:00

Make a beautiful and fun gift for someone special!

The holidays are just around the corner, and kids will be home from school for vacations. This is a fun time, and perfect to start to grow a Parsely Present, or, even if you don't have kids, just grow some parsely for yourself!

Parsley is a particularly beautiful herb plant, and besides being decorative, parsley also has all kinds of uses in the kitchen. Parsley grown in a pot, makes a terrific present, expecially for someone who likes to cook, and it's easy and inexpensive to do.

For step-by-step instructions: How To Grow A Parsely Present

For more gardening tips and gardening ideas go to: Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

Bug Facts!

2007-11-08T11:38:00.000-08:00

As much as plants are important to our gardens, so are the insects, as the current worldwide bee problem is showing us. So I thought it would be interesting to list a few fun bug facts!

. There are five times as many insects as all other types of animals combined

. Scientists discover between 7,000 and 10,000 new kinds of insects each year. They estimate that nearly 10 million more are yet to be discovered

. One of every five living species is a beetle

. Most insects live less than a year. A mayfly lives just a few hours

. A dictionary-style listing of all known insects would be 6,000 pages long

. If a 175 pound man had the comparative strength of an ant, he could lift 4 tons

For more gardening tips and gardening ideas go to: Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

New Pumpkin Variety for 2008

2007-11-01T10:57:00.000-07:00

I know we just finished the growing season, but I am always on the lookout for new things to grow next year.

Take a look at this new pumpkin variety that is new for 2008! It's called Pumpkin 'Jarrahdale' (Cucurbita maxima).

It has a unique bluish-gray fruit, which grows up to 6 to 12 pounds (7 to 5.5 kgs), that is excellent for fall décor and Halloween.

Also making it different, is its golden to orange-colored flesh, that is sweet, nutty, and stringless, making it great for baking. This is nice, because many ornamental or decorative pumpkins are not so good tasting, but this one is.

Harvest in 100 days from seed. Seeds are available at: Botanical Interests

Overall this seems to be a very versatile pumpkin and I am going to try it out next year, I hope you do to!

For more gardening tips and gardening ideas go to: Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

Free Fall Wallpaper

2007-10-23T13:09:00.001-07:00

It's Fall For Your Computer!

To keep everyone inspired this fall and winter, I have devleoped free fall wallpaper for your computer desktop!

They work great for both PC or Mac, and in addition to fall, there are all different seasons, plants, and flowers; so liven up your computer desktop during the cooler weather!

To the right you can see just 3 examples, but to see all 52 wallpapers go to:

Free Fall Wallpaper

at Weekend Gardener Web Magazine - weekendgardener.net/wallpaper/main.htm

Have a great day!

Apple Varieties For Beginners

2007-10-16T13:50:00.000-07:00

If you're a beginning gardener and would like to start growing apples, this will help you immensely!

I have put together a list of apple varieties by zones that are easier to grow, and do well without as much care, than other known fruiting varieties.

So give these a try and go for it!

Zone 3: -40° to -30° F (-39.9° to -34.5° C)

Apples:
Astrachan
Connell
Dolgo Crab
Duchess
Peach Apple
Prairie Spy
Quinte
Weathly
Yellow Transparent

Zone 4: -30° to -40° F (-34.4° to -28.9° C)
Growers in this zone should be able to grow everything that is listed for Zone 3 plus the following:

Apples:
Cortland
Imperial
Lobo
Lodi
McIntosh
Northwest Greening
Regent

Zone 5: -20° to -10° F (-28.8° to -23.4° C)
Growers in this zone should be able to grow everything that is listed for Zones 3 and 4 plus the following:

Apples:
Delicious
Empire
Gravenstein
Northern Spy
Prima
Priscilla
Rhode Island Greening
Yellow Delicious

Zone 6: -10° to 0° F (-23.3° to -17.8° C)
Zone 7: 0° to 10° F (-17.7.8° to -12.3° C)
Zone 8: 10° to 20° F (-12.2° to -6.7° C)

Several of the varieties that do well in the colder climates, will do well in these zones as well, however, certain kinds of fruits that have been developed especially for colder climates may not do well. Those listed for Zone 3, including any in the McIntosh family are not recommended for these zones.

Apples:
Grimes
Golden
Rome
Stayman
Winesap

For more gardening tips, go to: http://www.weekendgardener.net

Grow Pumpkins Vertically Project Done

2007-09-26T11:40:00.000-07:00

My vertical pumpkin growing project has been a success! Even though I should NOT have used string for my support, it didn't slow the pumpkins down one bit, so I am glad I experimented using string.

I grew and harvested 30 pumpkins in area 2 feet (.61 m) wide by 4 feet (1.22 m) long.

If you ever want to grow cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, watermelon, etc., but don't feel you have the space, all will grow great on a trellis or stake system.

For more gardening tips and ideas, go to: http://www.weekendgardener.net

Try Something New! Grow A Medlar - Mespilus germanica

2007-09-18T09:47:00.001-07:00

Some people are always looking for something new to grow and eat. This week I have the perfect fruit for just those folks.

The common Medlar (Mespilus germanica) is a slow growing, large deciduous shrub or small tree growing up to 26 feet (8 m) tall. The leaves are dark green and 2 to 6 inches (6 to 15 cm) long and 1 to 1.5 inches (3 to 4 cm) wide.

The leaves turn a spectacular red in the fall, and the plant has beautiful white flowers in late spring. The fruit is a pome, and is about 1 inch (3 cm) in diameter, with wide-spreading persistent sepals giving a "hollow" appearance to the fruit.

Medlars are eaten very much the same way as persimmons. Initially the fruit are very hard and acidic, but they become edible after being softened ("bletted") by frost, or naturally in storage given sufficient time. Once softening begins, the skin rapidly takes a wrinkled texture and turns dark brown, and the inside reduces to a consistency and flavour reminiscent of apple sauce.

Medlars are hard to start froom seed, so most varieties are grafted onto pear root stock. They are self-fertile so they don't need another tree for pollination and they produce fruit by the second year.

They are slow growing, like full sun, but need a temperate climate, well-drained soil, and shelter from any strong winds. They don't like to dry out, but kept moist.

They are hardy to USDA Zone: 4-9 which means -30 to -20 degrees F and -34.2 to 28.9 degrees C.

So if you're looking for something new, try a Medlar!

For more gardening tips and ideas go to: www.weekendgardener.net

Grow A Carrot Top!

2007-09-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

Fall is here, but that doesn't mean an end to having fun with gardening! A good way to keep kids (or just yourself) interested in gardening is to have some fun indoor plant projects throughout the year.

One project that people of all ages enjoy is growing a "Carrot Top Plant."

There are 2 ways to go about doing this. One way is using a dish, another way is to create a hanging basket of sorts, and we'll go over both.

Now carrot tops will sprout and grow into bushy plants, but will not grow another carrot - but it's still fun to do, here's how:

Method 1 - In A Dish

1. Cut off the top about 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the crown. If there is any green on your carrot, cut it off

2. Fill a shallow bowl with sand, small pebbles or marbles

3. Push the carrot top into the sand, pebbles, or marbles so that the carrot end will be in the water, and fill the bowl with lukewarm water

4. Place the bowl near a sunny window and in a few days you will see the fern-like sprouts of the carrot

5. Keep the water topped off so that the carrot doesn't dry out

6. Your carrot plant will last until it out grows it's container. It also makes a fun table decoration

Method 2 - Make A Hanging Basket

1. Cut off the top about 2 inches (5.1 cm) from the crown. If there is any green on your carrot, cut it off

2. Carefully hollow out the cut end of the carrot about 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) creating a "bowl" and leaving the other 1/2 inch solid that is near the carrot top

3. Tie a string around base of the carrot so you can hang it near a sunny window, tie the string so that the "bowl you have created is facing upwards

4. Once hanging near a sunny window, fill the "bowl" you hollowed out with water

5. Always keep the bowl full of water

6. In a few days you will see the top growing again

7. It will continue to grow as long as you want to let it grow. Now you have a hanging carrot plant!

For other tips and fun gardening ideas - visit www.weekendgardener.net

Perennials That Don't Need Dividing!

2007-08-29T10:54:00.000-07:00

Many perennials need to be divided every 2 or 3 years. If over time they are not divided and cleaned up, they start to decline in health and flowering ability. At first this isn’t too big a problem, but sometimes after a while you can wish you had planted something that requires a little less maintenance.

Now you can divide plants for propagation or to control size, but our requirements for the purpose of this article, are plants that don’t need to be divided to stay healthy, that won’t grow too thickly or crowd themselves out, or develop woody-type stems or roots that don’t over winter well.

So here are a few perennials that require no division at all and will give you some extra choices when you think about planting something new in your yard or garden.

Aconitum – Monkshood – Hardy to zone 3
Adenophora uehatae – Lady Bells – Hardy to zone 5
Aruncus dioicus – Goatsbeard – Hardy to zone 4
Baptisia australis – Flase indigo – Hardy to zone 3
Crambe cordifolia – Colewort- Hardy to zone 6
Dictamnus albus – Gas plant – Hardy to zone 2
Eryngium amethystinum – Sea holly – Hardy to zone 6
Gaura lindheimeri – Gaura – Hardy to zone 5
Gypsophila paniculata – Baby’s breath – Hardy to zone 3
Helleborus niger – Christmas Rose – Hardy to zone 3
Hibiscus moscheutos – Rose Mallow – Hardy to zone 6
Hosta - Hardy to zone 3
Paeonia – Peony – Hardy to zone 5

For more plant ideas and gardening tips go to: Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine