garden gnomes

The Earth Box garden system has been around since 2001. It is a container gardening system, primarily targeting vegetable container gardens. Let’s take a look at its features.

Size: It holds about 2 cubic feet of soil. This is plenty of room for a decent number of vegetable plants. For example, with that much room you could grow two tomato plants, or 8 medium size plants like pepper plants, broccoli, or cabbage. For smaller plants like peas or beans you could grow 16 plants in one container. Other commonly planted vegetables include artichokes, strawberries, and squash. It works great as an herb garden, and obviously could be used as a flower container as well. The size is perfect for a patio or balcony.

Self Watering: The system has a built in reservoir for holding the water for the garden. With this system it is supposed to be self watering, as long as you keep the watering reservoir of the Earth Box topped off.

Mobile: There is an optional caster set for this garden container. That is a good idea, because with 2 cubic feet of soil, and the water in the reservoir the planter can get quite heavy, and if you need to move it the weight would be a problem without some sort of wheels. This allows you to easily put it in a place where it can get the required six to eight hours of sunlight every day.

Staking System: Since the Earth Box is marketed as a vegetable growing system, some of the most popular types of garden plants like tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers and other vines will need some type of staking system. There is an optional staking system that you can buy that maintains the stability of the system, since staking directly into the container itself would make it prone to tipping over.

Weed control: The Earth Box system includes a soil cover that is intended to help maintain moisture while keeping weeds down and soil born pests at bay.

There are a few more things about watering and fertilization you need to know to make the Earth Box as productive as possible…

Learn more about the best way to utilize the Earth Box Garden System at http://howtogardenguide.com

You can see more articles with Container Gardening Tips there as well.

Orchids, Tropicals

Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

The reasons why you should learn organic gardening principles are many. It might be because you want to start a new garden, but you do not want to damage the environment. Maybe you want to transform your current garden. You may want to serve some delicious, organic fruits and vegetables to friends and family. Whatever your motivation maybe, you should always consider certain things when planning a garden.

Your goal as an organic gardener should be to produce high quality products while using no outside resources. Following organic principles, means you should not use any nutrients, fertilizers, or pesticides. Better yet you should avoid using water tap, instead you should use rain water. You should try using natural materials, it’s a challenge, but it will worth your while.

You should start a compost heap instead of throwing away vegetables and other waste food. This is one of the best way to manufacture your own nutrients for your garden. You will discover that there is not really shortage of materials for you compost heap. When the lawn is mown, all of the grass should be put into the heap. All of your waste food should be added to the pile, and once it is ready you can spread it on your garden and watch the plants grow.

Some people use chickens as part of their organic gardening. The allow the chickens to roam their garden. Chickens are easy to sustain. The will spread there manure in your garden, and you probably will never have to buy them food. The use of maggots is popular. Everything that cannot go into the compost heap such as leaf over meat products and dead animals, could be place in the maggot bin, and in a couple of weeks it will be full of maggots that you can feed your chickens.

With these systems in place, almost none of your leftovers are put to waste. You simply have to start thinking along the lines of saving all of the nutrients you can, and converting them into energy that your garden can use to grow healthy, delicious fruits. It’s a cheaper way to maintain a garden, it’s healthier for the environment, and it creates better, more natural products.

With this system in place, none of your leftover go to waste. You should now be thinking along the lines of saving all the nutrients you can, and converting then into energy for use in your garden, so as to enable you to have a healthy garden. It’s a cheaper way to maintain a garden, and it is healthier for the environment. It also produces a better product which is of course natural.

Juni Daniel is a freelance writer and the moderator of the website Organic Gardening Tips And Benefits

Hyacinth Bulbs
Storage Sheds

Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

This is done in layers of activity. It depends on when you read this but ideally the best time to begin your flower garden is in the fall. That way you can use nature as your assistant. If it is fall, you dig your bed, toss in compost, cover the bed with grass cutting, fallen leaves, or whatever you like. My neighbor empties her potato and apple peelings and pumpkin rinds into her bed.

But this is about planting a garden, not preparing it so let’s focus on planting. Your bed is ready. You’ve hoed it and raked it and fed it. Now is the time to begin. Speaking of time, plant in the late afternoon or evening so the plants have time to settle into the ground before the hot sun hits them.

Check to make sure that you can reach the center of your garden from the side. You don’t want to be stepping into your garden to tend to it. If you have created a big garden and cannot reach the center without stepping into it, then incorporate the need to step on the garden bed into the garden bed. Get a flat stone or two and place them as decorative elements right into your garden.

There. That is taken care of. Now it is time to plant. Lay out your tools. Use those little garden tools and have a little spade ready. Get your bucket of water and a can or something to dip out the water. Line up your plants. Begin in the middle of the garden with the plants that will be the biggest. Dig a hole deep enough to accommodate the roots, pour in water, and place the plant in the hole. Use your hands. Steady the plant with one hand and pack the soil around the roots with the other. Mound the soil up a little bit because it will settle down once the plant begins to spread out its roots.

Space out the rest of the plants, working from the middle out to the sides. Leave room for expansion. It is a classic mistake to put the plants close together because they look good but the fact is what you are planting is just the beginning of the gardening. The little plant you just placed in the garden might be a foot wide in a few weeks time. When you get the plants, make sure you follow the instructions on how far apart to plant them. If it says plant 6 inches apart, then plant them 6 inches apart (on all sides).

There. That’s all there is to it. Your flower garden is planted.

Esmee McCornall is a ‘Gardoholic’ writer. She recently published one of the most popular free garden reports on the internet, called “Tips and Tricks to Create the Garden You Always Wanted”. You can download a free copy at http://www.gardensandflowers.net/Free_Report.html

Garden Statuary Fountains
Columbine

Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

The Rewards of Vegetable Gardening

If you love to have fresh produces in the spring and summer, you should consider creating a home vegetable garden. Growing a vegetable garden is a fun and healthy hobby that anyone can excel at.

While gardening, you may find that your troubles and stresses of the day simply float away. Home vegetable gardening relieves stress and allows you to be out in the sun. Vegetable gardening is proven to lower blood pressure and clear the mind. Also, the act of nurturing plants and watching them grow is rather soothing. And it can look good too!

The Pros of Organic Gardening

One great aspect of home vegetable gardening is that it does not require a bunch of chemicals. Therefore, home vegetable gardening allows you to have more natural, juicy, and healthier vegetables that are also better for the environment. Using a lot of chemicals on vegetables is not only unhealthy for your body, but also takes a large toll on the environment. Growing your own vegetable garden and using less chemicals yields natural food.

Organic vegetables are always the best-tasting because they will not be picked until they are completely ripe and you are ready to pick them. One more pro of growing your own organic vegetable garden is that it will save you money. Instead of buying all your organic vegetables at the store, you will have your own selection of vegetables at your disposal whenever you want them.

Anyone can create a home vegetable garden. As long as you have dirt somewhere, you can create an outdoor vegetable garden in the solid ground. Even if you don’t have a plot of dirt, you can buy a few pots and create a container garden.

Vegetable Gardening on Solid Ground

Before starting your vegetable garden, should keep in mind these simple thoughts: size, location, and soil.

First of all, we’ll discuss the location. You must plot your garden in an area with plenty of shade and sufficient drainage. You must nurture your plants by putting them in a place that receives about 6 hours of sunlight each day. Every plant is different and requires a different amount of light, but the average is six hours a day.

Therefore, do not plot your garden in a shady place! Also, make sure that your garden has adequate draining. If you place your garden at the bottom of a hill, water will flood your plants during the wet season; this is a common mistake that many beginning planters make. By locating your gardens away from bottoms of hills and other spots where water is likely to collect, you will prevent your vegetables from drowning!

Second of all, let’s talk about size. You should decide how big you want your garden to be initially. Remember that you should start out small and expand later; otherwise the size of the garden may overwhelm you. I recommend starting out with a garden space of 25 square feet or less. After you get the hang of it, you can expand your vegetable garden as much as you would like.

Third, let’s talk about soil. Soil is one of the most important aspects of gardening, so it is very important to have good soil to produce a good garden. The best type of soil is slightly loose and easy to till. Therefore, stay away from soil that is hard-packed. If your yard does not have a lot of good soil in it, you can fix this problem by using mulch or compost in your garden. Alternatively you can buy good soil from your local nursery.

Mulch is usually an organic covering, such as straw, leaves, compost, or peat that you can cover your garden with to enrich the soil, prevent weed growth, and prevent excessive evaporation of water. Compost consists of any organic particle, such as dead leaves, manure, or (most commonly) kitchen scraps. People put compost in their yards to improve the soil and provide nutrients for plants. Composting kills two birds with one stone; it is great for your garden and cuts down on your trash.

If you address the location, size, and soil of your garden, you will have a booming vegetable garden in no time. Also, some of these tips will also help those of you who choose to have a container vegetable garden.

Vegetable Gardening in Containers

Container gardening is the best type of gardening for many people. If you do not have a good plot of land to garden on, container gardening is your best bet. It is the most practical way to garden for those of us not lucky enough to have large plots of soiled land to garden on.

There are many pros to container gardening. You can place your plants wherever you want: in your living room, on your patio, etc., so that you can add color and radiance wherever you would like. With container gardening, you can easily place plants wherever they receive the best growing conditions. Another pro is that you will have fewer pests eating your plants if they are in containers rather than in the ground.

Although almost any plant will grow just fine in a container, there are some that grow exceptionally well in containers. These are: salad greens, spinach, tomatoes, eggplant, Swiss chard, radish, beets, peppers, and bush beans.

The con of container gardening is that they require more upkeep and maintenance. You must check up on and water many container plants everyday.

Most vegetable crops grow well in 5-gallon containers. No matter what size container you use, make sure it has adequate drainage to ensure a bountiful garden. You should add about 1 inch of coarse gravel in the bottom of the container to monitor drainage. Learn how to prepare the containers of each type of plant for a nice and low-cost indoor garden.

Gardening Problems You Can Tackle

There are two notorious enemies of gardening: weeds and pests. Here is some basic information and helpful hints on how to tackle each of these problems:

One problem a person may have in plant gardening is staying on top of all of the weeds. In order to prevent weeds from taking over your garden, you should go out daily and pick the weeds. Picking weeds may seem like a dull task, but if you have the right attitude, it can actually be quite relaxing and stress relieving.

Where there’s a garden, there are bugs. Unless you want to use a bunch of chemicals, you must go outside and kill any damaging bugs on your plants. But make sure not to kill the good bugs, such as ladybugs or praying mantis, because they kill the bad bugs that eat your plants. In fact, you can buy good bugs at your local plant store and put them in your garden to help kill pests. Because no bugs kill big pests such as grasshoppers, you must pick off these big pests by hand.

The Love of Vegetable Gardening

Vegetable gardening is very rewarding because it makes you feel better, less stressed, and produces delicious vegetables for you to eat. If you like the fresh vegetables at farmer’s market, you’ll love to have a garden vegetable of your own to tend to and eat from.

Mary Amos loves to garden and is blessed with green fingers. Take a look at Organic Garden | Organic Vegetables to make the most of your garden. Also visit Home Improvement | Home DIY for home improvement ideas.

Groundcovers, Vines
Grow Lights

Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

When you’re looking for a quality western saddle, a used saddle can be a smart choice. The best saddles will last a lifetime with proper care. So, like luxury cars, a quality used saddle can be more aptly described as previously-owned. You can buy a lot more saddle for your money in the used category.

But buying used requires close inspection of the saddle prior to buying. A used saddle is bound to have some wear and some scuffs and scrapes. That’s to be expected. What you’re really looking for are structural problems. The following are the top 7 used saddle inspection tips.

1. Saddle Tree. The saddle tree is the foundation of a saddle, so if it’s not solid nothing else matters. To test the tree, set the saddle on its fork, nose down. Press down hard on the cantle and twist, looking for bending which is an indication of a broken tree. A broken tree is a deal breaker. DO NOT purchase a saddle with a broken tree.

2. Leather Quality. High quality leather will be thick, soft, and supple. It has a much longer life, especially if well cared for. Low quality leather will be thin, often cracked, and will not keep its shape. Avoid buying used saddles with low quality leather. There’s no bargain there.

3. Leather Condition. Check whether the jockeys and skirts lie flat or curl up. Curling is a sign of either poor quality leather or leather that is used-up. It’s pretty much impossible to get curled leather to lie flat again. If the leather looks to be of good quality (thick, doesn’t curl), but looks dried out, a good cleaning and conditioning can do wonders and bring back a lot of its luster.

4. Underside Fleece. Expect to find a good amount of wear and dirt here, but excessive wear may require having the fleece replaced which isn’t cheap. Also, uneven wear can be a sign of a badly designed saddle that doesn’t fit well and should be avoided.

5. Stitching. Check the stitching to make sure it’s intact. Minor problems can be repaired, but a saddle with a lot of rotting and missing stitching should be avoided.

6. Surface. While a quality saddle can last a long time, the care it receives will impact its lifespan and its appearance. Saddles are made to be used and passing on a quality used saddle because of some scratches and scuff marks is a mistake. But, you’ll have to determine what you can live with.

7. Parts Inventory. Do a check to see which parts might be missing. Most parts (stirrups, stirrup hobbles, billets, cinches) can be easily replaced (and many will prefer their own choices anyway), but missing parts should factor into the price.

Buying a used saddle can be a very smart choice, IF you carefully inspect the saddle prior to purchase.

Beth Stefani is the publisher of http://www.western-saddle-guide.com, a comprehensive online resource for understanding, choosing, and caring for the western saddle and accessories that are right for you. Visit http://www.western-saddle-guide.com for more tips and information about western saddles and accessories.

Lilac
Garden Gargoyles and Dragons Statues
Carrot Seeds

Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

The inescapable boundaries of time can leave us in a quandary. The unpredictable pathway of life oft times leads us into situations during which the luxury of time is no longer our ally. One of these situations is gift-giving time to show our love, appreciation, and overall good fellowship towards someone who has made a difference in our lives.

What is a sure and certain path of least resistance that we can depend on to lead us in the right gift shopping direction? The answer is food gift baskets which can get the job done and with time to spare! How can this strategy work with the clock ticking away mercilessly before the celebration due date arrives?

Go to a respectable gift basket website online that offers a wide selection of merchandise. There you will find many themes to choose from that could hit the ol’ bulls-eye regarding your desire to send the precise message that you wish. What are some of the food gift basket themes that the lucky beneficiary can identify with?

These treasures in a basket can say congrats for a new baby, happy birthday, get-well soon as well as a tasty way to express your thanks. They can display the aura of gourmet food, romance, sports, a relaxing spa, and the joys of gardening. The options are these and more to positively stir the emotions of the ones that you want to send a message to.

Found just the right food gift basket that your friend would find highly appealing? Good! Now all that you have to do is take about 5 - 10 minutes to fill-out online the necessary information needed to get the gift sent to the person intended by the time that you wish it delivered. Safely give your credit card info and it’s bada-bing, bada-boom over and done with. No tortuous mall shopping is needed with the crowds competing for parking space. Is this not a good thing?

Who doesn’t love food? Who doesn’t love a gift? Who doesn’t love baskets full of treats that make their life a bit more enjoyable? These add up to make perfect sense that food gift baskets are excellent ways to send your emotions. The added extra is that they can also spare you the emotion of traditional shopping anxiety!

Brian Connors is the owner of Gift Basket Paradise and wishes to share his thoughts about the benefits of shopping for food gift baskets. He invites you to visit http://www.aGiftBasketParadise.com for some very delicious ideas.

Perennials
Garden Statuary
Columbine

Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »