Prehistoric Plants

This summer has been a good time to visit various botanical gardens and zoos and to notice that many plants that are used in these public displays today, are actually prehistoric plants.

Interestingly enough, one of the more popular themes within a zoo or botanical garden is the one that grows prehistoric plants.

Well, you can grow some of these exciting specimens in your own yard.

Some prehistoric plants which date back from 150 to 270 million years include:

Dawn Redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides)

Maidenhair Tree (Ginkgo biloba)

Katsura Tree (Cercidiphyllum japonicum)

Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)

Bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica)

Boxwood (Buxus)

Larch (Larix)

Ferns

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

Have great week!

How To Start Cool Fall Crops During Warm Summer Days

The best time to start fall crops is in late summer for a late fall harvest. The problem however, is that the soil and the daytime temperatures can sometimes still be so warm that it can be hard to get cool-weather crops to germinate and grow.

Here is a way to get around that problem!

1. Dig a shallow trench that is about 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) deep.

2. Line the trench with come good garden soil or compost.

3. Put your seeds in the trench, and then cover them shallowly with more compost or garden soil. Don’t worry that the seeds aren’t planted as deep as may be mentioned on the seed packet. Just cover them shallowly.

4. Water the trench and seeds in carefully, but thoroughly.

5. Cover the trench with boards or very thick cardboard. The trick here is to keep the heat out and keep the seeds in the trench cool and in the dark. So the thicker the material you use the cover the trench, the better.

6. Check under the boards regularly, and as soon as you see small pale seedlings growing, remove the boards.

7. Grow your seedlings as usual now that they are started.

This trick works great with several fall crops like broccoli, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, and cauliflower.

For more Gardening Tips and Gardening Advice visit our main gardening website at Weekend Gardener Monthly Web Magazine

Have great week!