Andrea’s Garden Blog

Limited space in your backyard shouldn’t stop you from planting vegetables in your garden. There is always a way to conquer this shortcoming.

Farmers are being encouraged to go organic and you should probably do so as well. This is because it is very healthy but the problem that many are concerned about is how much they cost at the market. Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about that anymore when you consider having your own Vegetable Garden.

This means getting Container Vegetable Gardening instead of driving over to the supermarket. When you need them, you only have to take a few steps, take it out from the ground and you’re back in the kitchen.

Any vegetable can be planted, grown and harvested in your backyard. You will just… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: gardening, organic, vegetables

Hanging baskets are wonderful sights to behold. If a person does a little research, they can learn how to create their own hanging basket that can rival that of the local nursery. Instead of buying a generic plant from the local discount store a person should use the following tips to create a beautiful and bountiful hanging basket to be admired by everyone.

Flower box gardens
When making flower box gardens, a person should choose their plants carefully. Instead of buying just the regular begonia or petunias that normally appear in a hinging basket, a person should consider buying long-trailing plants that can create volume to any home made basket.

These only require top planting are quite easy to take care of. In order to accent long-trailing plants, a person can… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: gardening, hanging flower box, urban

The gardener in me really appreciates urban gardening because this is the area that I feel urban gardening began.

For centuries the inhabitants of Mediterranian have used the art of window box planting, hanging clay planters as they managed to garden and add beauty to their small personal spaces.

These people even knew how to compost in a small space by using containers in their homes where they added organic scrapes from their daily foods such as peelings, leftover vegetables and fruits and then adding a few worms.

Many gardeners in our cities are starting to have this European mindset. We are now seeing roof top gardens. Though most cities will not allow hanging planters and window boxes we are seeing these things on condo patios. These containers will easily create focal points… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: gardening, organic, self watering, urban

Watering the garden plants by means of drip irrigation is unquestionably more effective than by sprinklers and more efficient in terms of water management. Roughly speaking, drip irrigation, if installed and applied correctly, can save at least 20% of the water that is lost in run-off, especially where trees and shrubs are concerned. However, the great benefits of drip irrigation are often not attained by the home gardener, because three aspects are not addressed properly.

Working at the correct pressure

Drip irrigation should operate at as low a pressure as possible. In small, private gardens, a pressure of about 1.5 bars is appropriate. For this purpose, a pressure regulator ought to be installed at the system’s head unit.

Very often, the drippers at the end of the line barely emit water. The reason… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: drip irrigation, garden, watering

Everyone who wants to be green is into composting these days. But there are different ways of doing it besides a big bin in your backyard. There is more than one way to make natural fertilizer for your home.

Worm composting is a method of recycling food waste and organic materials into compost with the use of worms. This worm compost is called “vermicompost.” Worms feed off of scraps of food and leftovers, which turns into compost as it passes through the worm’s body. This compost can then be used as soil or fertilizer for growing your plants. The reason the vermicompost is so good for plants is because the worms have been eating vegetable and fruit scraps that are rich in nutrients. This is then turned into compost… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: compost, gardening, worms

Chemical weed killers or herbicides should be used as sparingly as possible in gardens as a whole, but especially in private ones. Excessive use of them is bad for the ecological balance in the garden itself, as much wild life is deterred from establishing itself, and in the wider sense, is a serious form of pollution.

Nonetheless, it is not easy to desist entirely from their application, although highly committed organic gardeners insist on doing so. As a devil’s advocate at least, one can outline the circumstances in which the use of herbicides is the most effective way of managing particularly troublesome weeds.

For example, virulent perennial weeds like Convolvulus, Cyperus, and Oxalis can totally ruin an herbaceous border, or a carpet of ground covers, unless eradicated prior to planting. Sometimes, the… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: gardening, herbicides, pesticides, weeds

Many gardeners wonder what exactly organic gardening means. The simple answer is that organic gardeners don’t use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides on their plants – this is the easiest organic gardening tip

But gardening organically is much more than what you don’t do. When you garden organically, you think of your plants as part of a whole system within nature that starts in the soil and includes the water supply, people, wildlife and even insects. An organic gardener strives to work in harmony with natural systems and to minimize and continually replenish any resources the garden consumes.

One of the keys to growing organically is to choose plants suited to the site. Plants adapted to your climate and conditions are better able to grow without a lot of attention… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: gardening, imrpoved quality, organic

If you hear the word concrete you may not think that it would be something to want in your yard but in fact, concrete landscape gardening has come along way in the last ten years or so. Concrete landscaping is very popular to day, and it’s no wonder, considering how attractive it is.

Backyard Fixes

You can use concrete landscaping for numerous various parts of your garden. When it comes to the walks and paths that wind through their gardens, most people use concrete landscaping ideas and designs. Concrete landscaping is mostly incorporated in larger gardens, but it can even be done in smaller gardens. You can add a beautiful patio in which you and your friends and relations and family could enjoy some drinks. A festive gathering of family… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: concrete, gardening, landscape

Hydroponic Gardening culture has been used widely and has been proven to make agriculture more efficient and effective, at lower overhead costs and high quality standard of produce.

Hydroponics mainly has two different methods of culture. These are the solution and the medium culture. Solution culture uses nutrient solution on its procedure. The three types of solution culture are static solution culture, continuous flow solution culture and aeroponics. Medium culture on the other hand, uses solid media in its culture. It can be gravel, soil and sand. Two main variations for each medium, sub irrigation and top irrigation.

Static solution culture. In static culture, plants are grown using containers. It may be of glass, plastic containers, tubings or tanks. Condition for culture is monitored such as the solution of the… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: advantages of hydroponics, gardening, watering

Beautiful Landscaping: Planning is the Key

So you want to create a fascinating landscape garden around your home? It may sound so easy, but it’s not. Putting your dream garden into reality always require proper landscaping planning so you won’t end up delaying its execution because of increased cost and other problems.

Backyard Landscaping

Even if you will to do the task yourself, you still need to plan everything from day one. Careful planning results to a well-designed landscape that will surely bring pleasure to your family and will increase the value of your property. Remember: it isn’t just about placing trees and plants around your home. It is rather an art involving conscious organization of your outdoor space to make it not just pleasing to the eyes but a truly… Continue reading the rest of this article...

Tags: design, gardening, organization, planning