Tips for Flower Gardening

Posted by mritunjay.k | Eco-Friendly | Friday 19 March 2010 8:02 pm

In order to make sure that your flower garden continues to bloom, you need to know about the basics of flower gardening. It is a sheer joy to watch blooming flowers from spring until fall. Once the sun starts to melt snow, vivacious flowers come to their full beauty and manage to enchant us. Flowers like daffodil, narcissi and tulip etc are the prized possessions of any garden. To find them blooming with the shades of scarlet and pinks, yellow and orange is a sheer delight.

 

There is no dearth of lovely flowers that you can use in your garden. Think of a variety of flowers like painted daisies, day lilies, Shasta daisies, lavender, pansies, hollyhock, phlox, dragon’s teeth, globe thistle, sunflowers and moonflower etc and you will be tempted to have all of them. The mere sight of blooming flowers is mesmerizing. Some plants are annual whereas some others are perennial or better call them seasonal. It is imperative to keep flowers healthy with proper care and maintenance.

 

To ensure the health of your garden, you need to provide plants with adequate water, sunlight and fertilizer if needed. Plants need to have their roots deep enough in soil so that there is plenty of room for their growth. You should also be aware of the concept of dead-heading which refers to simply snipping the dying bloom of the plant. This way, plant will be able to focus its attention on seeds creation. One of the best flowers for entire summer is daisy. It grows easily and if given proper attention, will keep you delighted all summer long. Roses are eternal favorites of flower lovers. It is important to indulge in deadheading and cutting flowers back for consistent growth of the plant.

Tips for Bonsai Shaping

Posted by pankti | Decorating, Eco-Friendly | Friday 19 March 2010 7:49 am

137102-main_fullBonsai plants are essentially eye-catching. They look beautiful and add grace to your décor. But like everything else, they also need caring. If you think that just watering them will be enough then you are definitely mistaken. Bonsai are no less than ‘mini trees’. A well shaped bonsai is surely a delight to the eyes. To take proper care of your plants, you need to formulate a plan first. Straightaway pruning and snipping them away will not help the cause.

There is this “Rule of Thirds” that refers to a certain method for shaping the bonsai plant. It says that, ‘one should calculate total space of the plant and its container and thereafter, divide it into thirds both horizontally and vertically’. The resultant is proper ‘division of space’ that should be kept in mind while you prune your plants. This will also help you in achieving the desired results. A perfect bonsai plant should like a properly shaped miniature tree. The shape of its sides, front and back should be balanced.

Some of the basic requirements for bonsai plants are, watering them 2-3 times a week, moderate light and fertilizer every 2-3 weeks during the growing season. Before watering, make sure to check the moss, whether it is dry. To maintain optimum moisture, a humidity tray comes very handy. To properly shape your bonsai, you need to keep in mind three important factors pruning, nipping and wiring. You must have a good pair of sharp pruning shears, scissors, copper wire and a pair of wire cutters at your disposal.

The function of pruning is to control the growth of the plant by getting rid of foliage and limbs whereas nipping helps in maintaining the shape of the bonsai. Pruning is an initial stage and when the plant acquires the desired shape, one needs to use nipping technique. Finally, wiring is used to bend and twist the branches so that bonsai gets its perfect shape. Implementing all these methods will help you in keeping your bonsai plants in perfect shape and size.

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