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Many people have made water conservation a key part of their overall mission to conserve natural resources and cut energy costs. Gardeners are experimenting with using gray sewage water to provide irrigation for plants. While gray water can be a valuable resource for the home gardener, it is important to understand how gray water conservation works in order to take advantage of the benefits without endangering your health.
Weeding is essential if you want to raise a healthy, productive vegetable crop. Some consider your own two hands to be the best gardening tools you have, as they have the ability to remove nutrient-stealing plants located close to your vegetables. In addition to your own appendages, there are many garden tools that will help keep your vegetable patch weed-free.
Extreme heat makes growing most vegetables difficult. However, there are ways working around it. Signs of heat stress in vegetables include bolting, loss of flowers or fruit, and disease such as blossom end rot on tomatoes. Savvy gardeners beat the heat with techniques that conserve soil moisture and cool the area around the plants, allowing their vegetable garden to thrive regardless of the temperature.
Giving your home a makeover can be an invigorating and rewarding experience. Get ideas for home makeovers with help from an award-winning celebrity interior designer in this free video clip.
Jasminum is the botanical name for the jasmine family. These vining plants are a common addition to gardens primarily because they provide a heady, sweet scent that adds to any landscape. Pick them in full bloom to bring the scent indoors. Growing jasmine doesn't take a lot of work -- they'll rapidly sprawl over rock walls, up fences and over trellises where you initially plant. Because trellises add beauty to the garden, you can place them almost anywhere to enjoy the sight and fragrance of the flowers.
Untreated weeds in the garden crowd out young vegetable plants and deprive them of water and nutrients. Hand-pulling and hoeing is a slow, often painful means of removing weeds from the garden, and neither is very effective. Many useful techniques are used for keeping weeds from limiting or destroying your vegetable crop. Some of these methods, called "pre-emergents," stop weeds before they start to grow. These practices lessen gardeners' chores and encourage a more abundant harvest.
Sedges differ from grasses by the thickness of their leaves and roundness of the tips of the blades. It is important for gardeners to remove sedges from their vegetable gardeners to eliminate hospitable environments for insects and diseases. Furthermore, sedges such as purple and yellow nutsedge use up the soil's nutrients and moisture meant for vegetable plants. Because vegetable plants are sensitive to herbicides, gardeners must choose proper cultural and chemical methods for removing sedges.
Backyard gardeners have used marigolds as a natural pest repellent for years. There are several types of marigolds and their use depends on your space, pest problems and personal preference. Placement of marigolds depends largely on the size of the species. These plants can grow to between 6 inches and 3 feet. If you want the same flower next year, do not save seeds from any hybrid variety because they will not breed true.
When you're decorating, buying new furniture or remodeling, a number of ways to incorporate frugal ideas into your plans exist. Some have to do with the decorating styles you choose while others allow you to get maximum use from the items you purchase. Taken together, these frugal home ideas will help make your space a nicer place without emptying your wallet.
Steep inclines are not suitable for vegetable gardens because of erosion and runoff. A natural slope may be stable, but after cultivation, the loose soil erodes away and water runs down slope without soaking in. Often gardeners will terrace hillsides to create level beds for planting a vegetable garden.
Entertaining at home is easier if you have a way to serve drinks to your friends and family. From dedicated spaces to portable places, having a spot for liquor, mixers, ice and glasses in a place you can sit and socialize is a welcome addition to your home and creates a publike atmosphere.
Home lockers don't have to mirror the gray metal contraptions you see lining school building hallways. They don't have to cost a lot of money either. You can make your own, using materials or furniture you already have, or modify them to fit a specific need your family may have. Home lockers can help you reduce clutter, find items quickly and protect possessions from damage or loss.
The Colonial Revival period of design awakened interest in America's colonial heritage. Spanning many decades around the turn of the 20th century, the revival was at its height during the 1920s. Reacting to Victorian clutter, this style was less concerned with accurately imitating Colonial design than with reproducing the finest homes and introducing classical elements.
Garden paths organize space, allow accessibility to plants and create the manner in which you will journey through your garden. Many materials including stone, wood, grass, concrete, brick, and loose materials such as gravel, crushed stone, and bark mulch can be used to create a pathway. Choosing a material for garden paths depends on the style and location of your garden.
A survival situation can occur at the spur of the moment. Being prepared for these desperate situations will give you an advantage. During a crisis when food is scarce, having a survival vegetable garden is an ideal contingency plan. These types of gardens can be grown indoors or outdoors and will at least be able to sustain you and your family while other food sources are located.
Creating a healthy vegetable garden means giving your plants all the nutrients they need to thrive. Each year the vegetable plants deplete nutrients from the soil; annual fertilizer applications are needed so the soil can remain productive. Some fertilizers, such as compost, can be made at home, and many others are available for purchase at your local garden center. Two applications a year keep the garden soil nutrient rich.
The game of darts, which originated in England in the late 1800s, is easy to learn but takes a great deal of skill to master. Luckily, the game is essentially a portable one, which means that it can be set up easily in most rooms of the house without taking up too much space. With the right home set up, anyone can take the time to perfect his abilities.
Planting a garden near the seashore presents a specific set of problems that most home gardeners don't have to face. The beach can be an advantage to the gardener who is interested in raising plants that thrive under those seaside conditions. Be prepared to do some extra maintenance if you want to enjoy both being near the beach and being a successful gardener.
Gardens can be created in the front or backyards of just about any home, large or small, adding natural beauty to the property and upping the enjoyment for those tending these gardens. These gardens don't have to be complex, but rather simple areas where plants can be planted and will grow almost entirely on their own.
Garden trains, also known as garden railroading, are the best of both worlds. They combine people's love of model trains with outdoor gardening. Not only have garden trains created a whole new aspect to gardening, but enthusiasts have created clubs where they can gather together to discuss and collaborate on ideas for garden trains.
According to the Colonial Williamsburg website, garden design "during the period of the early 20th century when the Colonial Revival style was developing, relied on formal regularity..." Landscape architects implemented principles of symmetry, formality and geometry. While highly organized, the design was softened by the planting of less regular plants. For example, a garden of four symmetrical beds would each contain different plants, altering the height and density of each bed.
Walkways and paths wind through backyards, gardens, and around properties. They serve both a functional and aesthetic purpose within the landscape. Walkways and paths can lead guests to key locations within the landscape, such as a water feature or seating area in the backyard. The best option for walkways and garden paths depends on your style, budget, and the materials available in your area.
