By Helen Kibbles
Getting you hands dirty is part and parcel of gardening. All gardeners have their own techiques for cleaning their hands and nails after a day in the garden. I thought I would share with you some environmentally friendly tips on cleaning your hands after a long day in the garden.
Few places house more junk science than in the advertisements of herbal medicines. Near miraculous claims are made that haven’t been tested or substantiated. Nevertheless, some herbs have, in fact, been used for thousands of years to help treat a number of conditions. Here are a few herbs that have been examined by leading research firms, along with possible benefits and side effects.
Herbs are often used for seasoning in dishes or for medicinal purposes. But they are just as delightful creating wonderful aromas in the garden or a potpourri bowl. Many of those useful for cooking are so because of the oils contained in the leaves. That same oil gives them a scent that can be a pleasure just to smell. But even when you wouldn’t think of eating them, aromatic herbs are a treat for the nose.
By: Charles Bankston
Monroe, Louisiana
www.PerennialAndRoseGardening.net
Do you prefer big, stately blooms or do you prefer the smaller blooms in one large “spray”? What’s a “spray” you might ask? This is simply those plant stems that shoot up and produce multiple blooms (i.e. one stem with multiple blooms on top). For those that enjoy, rather, the stem with the single, large flower at the top can help with such productions by “side pruning” or often referred to as “finger pruning”.
Now that you finally have a rose garden that you can be proud of, it’s time to take the next step and let others judge the beauty of your roses. Rose shows and exhibits are exciting events where you get a chance to see how your roses stack up against those from other rosarians. It doesn’t matter if you win, just the experience will teach you a lot.
“You can’t control the weather” is a common enough gardening phrase. But you can control, to a degree, the amount of shade or sun your plants receive. Even though you can’t move the clouds or redesign your house, you can still select which plants you’ll put in a certain area.
By Charles Bankston
Monroe, Louisiana
www.perennialandrosegardening.net
I’m sure you are well aware of the watering requirements for roses, especially of the Hybrid Tea variety. Rose bushes grown in raised beds need around 1 to 2 full inches of water weekly, especially during long dry spells. As you can imagine, 2 inches of rain a week makes for very moist and sometimes wet flower beds. You might not know it, but research shows that moist soil, which is certainly better for plant roots than “wet” soil is more prone to soil compaction than the latter.
I am off to the Glastonbury Festival today and shall be with out Internet access (or clean toilets, showers or a comfy bed) until Monday. Back soon!
