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Tips & Guides, Seasonal jobs fall, garden, gardening, seasonal jobs

Fall Garden Clean Up List

by ksenija September 15, 2012 No Comments

Summer is winding down and the kids go back to school, homeowners should now focus on preparing for the cold months ahead. Begin preparing for next spring by following these simple tips to clean up and prepare for a lawn winter. To make fall cleanup work as fast and easy as possible, it can be helpful to break the work down into the different areas of your garden. The areas that most commonly need attention are trees and shrubs, the lawn, and vegetable or flower gardens.

Lawns will need several kinds of care during the fall months. First, you’ll want to rake up all the fallen leaves and any other debris from shrub and tree trimming. There are many types of leaf bagging devices on the market today that can make this job easier, such as leaf bag holders or special tarps designed to collect leaves and other debris while you are raking. Once all the leaves are removed, it’s important to do one final mowing of the grass at the end of the year.

Plants, Trees & shrubs garden, outdoor, plants, shrubs

Camellias

by ksenija September 13, 2012 No Comments

Camellia is a genus originating mainly from China but with a range covering a large area of South East Asia. The exact number of species is not clear but it is somewhere around 100. Camellia is an important commercial genus because of one species, Camellia sinensis, the plant from which tea is made. Most gardeners recognize two main groups of camellias, the fall flowering and the spring flowering. However, it is not quite that simple.

Camellias are evergreen and small trees up to 20 meters tall. Their leaves are alternately arranged, simple, thick, serrated, and usually glossy. There are four main camellia groups: Japonica, Reticulata, Sasanqua and Hybrid, with a number of smaller groups based around less common species, such as Camellia hiemalis, and inter-specific hybrids, such as Camellia × williamsii (Camellia japonica × Camellia saluensis).

Plants, Outdoor garden, outdoor, plants

Chrysanthemums: Planting & Care

by ksenija September 9, 2012 1 Comment

The name Chrysanthemum comes from two Greek words, ‘chrysos’ meaning ‘gold’ and ‘anthos’ meaning ‘flower’. Literally, it means golden flower. The genus Chrysanthemum is a large one, having both ornamental and also economic value. These flowers vary greatly in form, size, color and can be grown easily in many climates. When you cut the flowers they last a very long time. The flowers come into bloom in the fall and have a very long season after most blooming flowers are over. The origin of the chrysanthemum is actually Asiatic, and the native habitat of the plants if northern China, Mongolia nad Korea and later Japan.

Chrysanthemums are mainly associated to meanings of compassion, friendship, and secret love. The modern times dictate that the mums are more of friendship flowers. Thus, they are ideally given to dear persons without any romantic shades exhibited.

Seasonal jobs fall garden, garden, seasonal jobs

Creating A Fall Garden

by ksenija September 6, 2012 1 Comment

The key to a lively, richly colored fall garden is to make sure that it has a first-rate selection of bulbs, perennials, grasses, conifers, and, best of all, shrubs and trees that come into their own during this period. Those with an end of season ‘ flare up’ offer a rich array of purple and scarlet, with lashings of yellow and orange.

Gumballs, maples and burnt sugar

The best way to find the most colorful fall plants is to visit private and public gardens which have a superb fall show. Identify the best plants, working in layers down from the trees to the ground. A liquidambar tree, like a flaming brand at 6 m high, might be far too big for most gardens, but there is usually alively alternative.

Tips & Guides, Gardening basics gardening, trees

Removing Unwanted Trees And Saplings

by ksenija September 3, 2012 No Comments

Trees provide shade, create a breeze on a summer day, provide housing for birds and squirrels, and add nothing but happiness to our neighborhoods and homes. That is unless that lovely old swamp oak is beginning to grow roots that are threatening your home’s water system. That big shade tree with the swaying branches is dropping sap and twigs onto your brand new automobile, and termites are eating up that lovely chestnut tree. What to do?

Different towns and villages have different ordinances for the removal of dead or dying trees. For example, imagine the situation when the town where you live will remove a tree that is dead, obstructing the view of traffic, or lifting the sidewalk due to overgrown roots. After the tree is removed, the burden of fixing the sidewalk is passed to the homeowner. This can cause strife between neighbors, none of which will ever claim ownership of the tree.

Plants, Outdoor garden, outdoor, plants

The Most Beautiful Ferns

by ksenija September 1, 2012 1 Comment

Most ferns are not really difficult to grow in the modern home, but they will not tolerate neglect. The compost must never be allowed to dry out, and the surrounding air needs to be kept moist.

There is a bewildering choice of varieties. Nearly two thousand are suitable for growing indoors, but comparatively few are available commercially. The classical picture of a fern is a rosette of much divided, arching leaves but there are also ferns with spear-shaped leaves, holly-like leaflets and button-like leaflets. There is also a wide choice of ways to display your collection. Many of them are ideal for a hanging basket and some, such as Boston Fern and Bird’s Nest Fern, are large enough and bold enough to be displayed as specimen plants on their own.