In nature, composting happens as a result of decomposition. In our own gardens we could pile up our organic matter and leave it on its own. Without any additional help, your pile will heat up with billions of microbes breaking down the organic matter and turning it into a soft, dark crumbly material called humus. No work, just nature doing what it does. The down side of this method is that you need to have an area big enough to store a large pile, and you could wait over a year for the finished compost. For those of us who want and/or need our compost a little faster, there are ways to speed things up with a minimal amount of time and effort. So come on, lets get composting!

Start in an area that is easily accessible to you. If there is a faucet nearby, all the better. The enclosure or container you choose will be entirely up to you.· There are some great plastic bins you can purchase on line or in garden centers. I purchased 2 of my bins from Seeds of Change. They were easy to put together and are·made from 100% recycled material.· If you don’t have a bin, don’t give up!· Many items can work as a homemade bin, so look around for things you might already have. I have used chicken wire, 5 gallon buckets with holes drilled in and old "cracked up" trash cans. You could also use wooden pallets, cinder-blocks, bricks, straw bales, etc. Just about anything can be used as the walls of your bin as long as they allow air to circulate and water to drain.· Once you have a bin you are ready to create black gold, a gardener’s best friend.· Start·the bottom of the bin with a layer of leaves or crisscrossed branches from flowers and·shrubs. I make a grid or framework that helps with air circulation and water drainage. After the framework I am ready to start recycling my garden and kitchen waste. The general formula is to add equal amounts of green and brown materials, but I like to go a little heavy with the browns. The greens are the wetter materials. Common greens are grass, green leaves, fruit and vegetable peels and the stems and blossoms of flowers. The browns are the dryer materials. Common browns are dried leaves, hay or straw, paper and woody clippings. Don't add meat or dairy. Dog and cat feces can contain parasites or diseases and should not be added to your compost pile. The materials you add will decompose faster if you keep them small, around ½ to 1 inch in size. Continue to add browns and greens as often as you have them, adding a little finished compost from another bin, if you have it.  Once your bin is full, stop adding fresh materials. Turn everything once in a while, moving the materials on the sides into the center. Forgetting this step won’t cause any damage but it will move things along at a quicker pace. Don’t let your pile dry out, but don’t let it get too wet either. A wet pile is a smelly pile. If your pile is smelly (think amonia, phew) stop watering and mix in brown materials, like leaves or shredded paper. Your compost should be slightly moist, with the feel of a wrung out sponge. If your pile feels warm, everything is working well. If you aren’t feeling any heat, add more green waste to the pile.
The compost will be ready to use when the materials you put in are black and crumbly, and you no longer recognize them from the peels, grass and leaves that you started with.· Your compost pile will now be about 1/4 to 1/3 of the size it was when it was full.· It will have a pleasant earthy smell.

I like to sift the finished compost using·a couple of·plastic flats (the ones with the smaller sized holes) that I carry my nursery plants home in. Any materials that aren’t finished composting can be put in your next compost pile or used as a top dressing or mulch.  While waiting for mother nature to do her job, why not start your next pile. After all, there’s a never ending supply of organic material waiting for a second chance in the garden.

Items for Composting·

• Browns:

Leaves, straw, corn stalks (shredded), shredded paper (newspaper or plain paper-not glossy), shredded documents and bills, pet hair, pine needles (may change ph levels), saw dust & wood chips (from untreated wood), dried grass clippings, nut shells, peat moss, wood ash, contents of the vacuum bag, lint from the dryer, stale bread, stale cereal, stale pasta, cooked pasta (without meat or cheese sauce), coffee filters·

• Greens:

Grass, shredded green leaves, deadheaded flowers and flower stems (cut into 1" pieces), kitchen scraps from fruits and vegetables, egg shells, leftover cooked pasta (no sauce), coffee grounds and tea leaves (large amounts may change ph level), sea weed (cut into 1" pieces), rotted manure, weeds (but watch for ones that don’t decompose well or that may have gone to seed).

It's not often you grow vegetables with no intentions of eating your final harvest, but with decorative gourds, that is exactly the case. Growing gourds is a popular gardening pastime because they can be used for so many craft items once they are dried.

Growing gourds is easy, provided you have the space for them. That can be the biggest challenge. Most gourd species produce long spreading vines that can quickly take up all the room in your garden patch. If you have the space, just let them roam around on the ground. A convenient alternative to letting them spread is to grow your gourds on a trellis or fence to keep the vines in control.

Though a trellis will keep your gourds up off the ground, making for easier care and fewer insect pests, it's not a suitable growing arrangement for large or heavy gourds. Check what the expected size will be for the full-grown gourd before trying to build a trellis. You should be cautious if you think your gourds will be too heavy for a trellis. After all your hard work growing the plants, you would not want to bruise your still-soft gourds by a top heavy trellis.

If you are familiar with growing plants like zucchini or other edible squash, then you are well on your way to growing gourds. You'll need a location that is warm and gets plenty of sunshine. Well-drained soil is a must for growing gourds. Start your gourd plants from seed about 90-110 days before you want to harvest but you do need to wait until the soil has completely warmed up before planting. Plant your seeds in small hills, with 3 to 4 seeds per hill, and keep about 4 feet of space between the hills.

Though you are going to eventually want a dry gourd, you don't want to let the plants dry out while they are growing. Gourd vines need plenty of water to produce their large fruits, so keep your garden patch well-watered during the dry summer months.

Unlike zucchini or squash, you want to leave your gourds on the vine until they have passed that early tender stage. You need to wait until the gourd is quite mature or you risk it rotting before it fully dries out. When the growing gourds start to feel hard to the touch, cut them from the vines and leave them in a warm, well-ventilated area to finish curing. It can take several weeks to completely cure a gourd, so be patient. The finished gourds will be very light and the seeds will rattle inside.

Once your gourds are dry and cured, then you can let your creativity take over and use them to make all kinds of crafts. Round gourds can be cut to make bowls, or all-natural bird houses. Long necked gourds can be used to make spoons or water dippers. Dried gourds look lovely as a table centerpiece in the fall months.

Flowers aren't the only plants that can add beauty to your garden. The lovely and sometimes unusual foliage of an ornamental grass can provide a splendid change among your flowering plants. You might be surprised at the wide variety of looks you can find with ornamental grasses. Some are bold, tall and spiky and other grasses are willowy and fragile. Colors can range from all shades of green to reds, browns, yellows, whites and even purple. Most ornamental grasses are chosen for their foliage, though some varieties do have attractive flowering phases as well.

Unlike most flowering plants, ornamental grasses provide beauty for the entire growing season. Though they will change slightly during the season, an ornamental grass plant is going to offer its unique presence all year long. Ornamental grasses are one of the few types of plants that will still look good in your garden late into the fall, when most other plants have died back.

Ornamental grasses are perennials, meaning they become dormant over the winter months and come back each spring. They are easy to care for, and require little maintenance in your garden from year to year.

The only work you will need to do with ornamental grasses comes when you need to divide the plants, which you will likely need to do every few years to control their size. You can also divide them if you want to start another plant in your garden. You should try to divide your grass plants in the early spring, before the year's growth gets underway. Simply dig them up, and pull sections of the plant apart so that each piece has its own bundle of roots. Large clumps may not pull apart easily, so be prepared with a garden knife or shovel to help with the separating.

If you don’t want the hassle of dividing ornamental grasses as they grow, try planting ornamental grasses in containers instead.  This  offers a perfect way to add their beauty while still controlling their growth.

Not only can they spread in your garden, some species of ornamental grass can grow quite a bit taller than your average flower garden plant. It’s not uncommon for some to grow over 4 feet in height. Make sure to plan for that when arranging the plants in your garden setting. Giving your plants a good trim each spring can help keep the height down, if you prefer.

As with most perennial plants, ornamental grasses are not typically grown  from seed, though it is certainly possible. Ornamental grasses are available in many varieties that will suit most climate areas, though the majority of them do best in zones 4-8. You can find varieties for both sunny and shady locations too.

Ornamental grasses can provide the perfect foundation of color and interest for your flower bed, and shouldn't be looked at as simple ground cover. Consider adding some  ornamental grass to your garden this year.

Thankfully, deer in the garden aren't something most city-dwellers have to deal with.  But if you live in an area that is rural or near any large wooded tracts, you may have had deer attempting to destroy your plants. Besides eating any tasty flowers, these large animals will trample everything else in the process.

Given their size, a deer is a formidable opponent for a gardener, but not an impossible foe. There are several ways you can protect your plants from deer, with some being more work for you than others.

A fence around your garden area is the most reliable  way to keep deer our of your plants, but be prepared for a sizable construction project to do so. Considering the jumping ability of a deer, your fence will need to be at least 7-feet high as well as quite sturdy. This may not be a practical solution if you only have a small garden bed to protect, unless you choose to fence off the entire yard from deer.

Bird netting spread directly over your plants might help, though it will become a hassle to remove it every day and could damage delicate plants.

A less work-intensive solution is to make your garden less appealing to deer visitors. You can do this either by planting things they find less tasty, or adding repellents to your plants. Unfortunately, deer do like just about anything. Some say that plants with fuzzy or leathery leaves are less likely to get munched, as are plants with thorns or nettles. Rather than limiting your flower choices, adding repellents can be a much better option.

Deer repellents can be purchased commercially, or you can try some home-grown ideas. Garlic is a favorite among gardeners, as is using fragrant bars of soap, hot Tabasco sauce or even bundles of human hair. These types of repellents can be a hit or miss affair, with no one solution being perfect. Many will need to be reapplied after rainy weather as well. Remember that foul smelling repellents will smell bad to you too, and could ruin the enjoyment of your garden.

Some gardeners try mechanical or sound devices used to scare deer.  These can be annoying for you and your neighbors, and usually their effects do not last long. Like any wild animal, deer will quickly learn that there is no real danger and come walking back into your garden.

If you’re contemplating adding a water feature to your garden, here are a few basic tips for getting started.

Choose a Location
Start out by selecting the most ideal place in your garden to install a water feature.  Find a location that is not in full shade or full sun.  Too much sun can cause problems with algae and aquatic life, and too little can make it hard for anything to grow.

In addition to choosing a spot for your water feature, you will need to decide how involved you want your project to be, and how much time you have to commit to it.   Small, pre-assembled garden fountains can be up and running in a matter of a few hours, but larger varieties can take several days of situating before they are complete.  Gardeners selecting to install a garden pond water feature should plan for an extensive project that will require ongoing maintenance and fine tuning from season to season.

Choose a Style

Water feature styles are as diverse as the gardens in which they are found.  For formal gardens, one may consider selecting an Old World style water feature made of granite and topped with a cherub or other ornamental sculpture.  Other more casual choices include whimsical frogs, children at play, or a group of seemingly discarded flower pots with water bubbling among them.

Choose Your Budget

Like most other categories of home and property improvement, garden water features come in styles and sizes for every budget.  From small, plug-in corner fountain water features priced around $40 to large copper or granite models priced in the thousands, garden water features come in hundreds of choices.

Enjoy Your Garden Water Feature

As you complete your garden space with a water feature, you’ll find that you’re even more drawn to your special outdoor place.  Relaxing and comforting, the sound of bubbling water only a few steps from home will create enjoyment for years to come.

While shady areas are often thought to be problem areas, with the right varieties of plants and proper care, a shade garden can be just as, if not more enjoyable than their bright and sunny counterparts.

What is a Shade Garden?

A shade garden is a garden which receives little sunlight throughout the day.  Because of the lack of sunlight, shade gardens are planted with varieties of plant life which do well in such conditions.

 What Can I Plant in My Shade Garden?

There are many varieties of flowers and foliage that grow well in the shade.  A plant commonly used in shade gardens is the hosta.  Ranging in size from four inches wide to four feet wide, hostas are leafy perennials that come in many varieties, many of which even bloom.

Impatiens:  Truly shade lovers, impatiens will thrive in your low-light areas.  Impatiens come in single and double varieties, and in several colors including pink, white, salmon, and red.  Bursting with blooms, impatiens show their colors from spring until fall, and require little care except for a good soaking every few days.

Ferns: Delicate ferns do well in shade gardens as they cannot tolerate the sun.  Ferns make an excellent border along a lazy path, or as a backdrop for a pretty scattering of hostas, and will give your garden an old world look.

Will My Shade Garden Require Special Care?

Since shade gardens are typically located under mature trees which use a lot of the water in their surrounding soil, shade gardens can often be rather dry. Besides watering, there are ways to keep your shade garden moist including mulching with fallen leaves and bagged mulch.

When working in your shade garden, be sure not to injure the roots of the trees which shade your garden.  Digging too vigorously or cutting too much can damage roots, which are important to the stability and overall survival of the trees in your garden.   Some gardeners recommend not cutting any root which is bigger around than a common ink pen.

Enjoy Your Special Space

One common thread among shade gardens is that they are typically soothing and private spaces for their owners to enjoy.   With this goal in mind as you plan and care for your garden, you’re sure to reap the benefits of your shade garden for years to come.

If you’re interested in adding roses to an existing garden or planting an entire garden of roses, here are a few basic tips to get you started on the way toward enjoying the fragrant beauty of the rose.

Select a Location

Roses thrive when they receive at least 6 hours of sunlight per day. When selecting a location for your rose bed, choose carefully. Be mindful of trees, shadows from neighboring homes, and the amount of light the area receives overall.

Prepare the Soil

Roses prefer soil with a Ph level between 6.0 and 7.0. To avoid problems with rotting roots and other plant diseases, it is recommended that roses be placed in well-draining soil. In addition, it is beneficial to mix peat moss or compost into soil before planting your roses.

Select a Variety

With hundreds of varieties of roses available, you may feel overwhelmed when its time to visit your local garden center, which can actually be a wonderful resource for beginning rose gardeners. Ask for disease resistant varieties that do well in your climate.  In addition, look for bare root roses rather than grafted roses, which are weaker roses grafted onto a stronger root system.

Maintenance

After planting your new roses in the selected area, remember to water them often for the first few weeks to help establish  healthy and hearty root systems. In addition to the basics of sunlight and water, some roses require feeding. Select plant food formulated especially for roses for best results.

When your roses begin to sprawl, it may be time for a pruning.   Pruning is simply the cutting back of overgrown branches to prevent disease, extend blooming time and maintain a lush and full plant.

A Little Effort Goes a Long Way

Contrary to popular belief, roses are not extraordinarily difficult to grow. With a little education, and a few hours of gardening, even beginner gardeners can grow beautiful and colorful roses for all to enjoy.

Herbal Uses of Yarrow

Yarrow has long been credited with having significant medicinal value.  Through the years, yarrow has been used both externally and internally to treat multiple ailments including colds and flu, bruising, hemorrhoids, hay fever, eczema, and asthma.  Yarrow is also credited with enhancing the effects of other herbs taken at the same time.

Many herbal treatments involve extracting the healing qualities of fresh yarrow flowers by infusing them in boiling water.

Yarrow as a Food Source

In the 17th century, yarrow was eaten as a vegetable, and prior to that yarrow was used to make beer before hops was commonly available to brewers.

Grow Your Own Yarrow

Yarrow is a hearty plant with light and feathery leaves that requires little care.   The yarrow plant prefers dry soil and little watering.   While it does best in full sunlight, yarrow can also be grown in the shade.  Yarrow plants grow to be up to three feet high and up to three feet wide.

Yarrow grows best in grasslands or forest areas, and is known for being a drought-resistant plant.  Because of these qualities, it is often utilized for preventing erosion.  In addition, yarrow is considered to be a good companion plant, meaning that it repels harmful insects, and attracts helpful insects.

Yarrow is an ideal planting choice for both the beginning gardener and gardeners interested in growing their own herbs.  With its limited maintenance and climate needs, and myriad of uses, yarrow is truly one of the most versatile plants on earth.

Simply explained, the term xeriscaping refers to landscaping which does not require additional irrigation beyond what occurs naturally.  The term is a clever combination of the words “xeris” (Greek for “dry”) and “landscaping.”  Following you will find an easy-to-understand overview of xeriscaping.

Is Xeriscaping for Me?

Xeriscaping is most common in areas which have warm climates and are prone to drought conditions. Since the varieties of plants used in xeriscaping do not require supplementary watering, xeriscaping is an efficient alternative to traditional landscaping and lawns.   Considered earth-friendly, xeriscaping is quite appealing to those committed to living a green lifestyle.

Xeriscaping Plants

The varieties of plants used in xeriscaping depend largely upon your geographical area.  However, several quite common varieties include ornamental grasses such as purple fountain grass, and blue oat grass, as well as native wildflowers, succulents and aloe.  

 Plants typically used in xeriscaping do not bloom often, and if they do, their blooming period is short-lived.   For homeowners interested in having continuous bursts of color throughout the year, it will be necessary to plan carefully for timing.

Xeriscaping Methods

Mulch:  One of the best ways to conserve water within the soil is through mulching.  Shielding the earth from the sun’s dehydrating rays, and holding in existing moisture, mulch is an essential element of xeriscaping.

 Zoning:  A common xeriscaping method is grouping plants which need the most water.   By consolidating these plants into a small area, less water is used overall.

Limiting Lawn Space:  It is a common xeriscaping method to limit the amount of lawn space on a property. Although some lawn space may be necessary for children’s play areas or pet areas, through the use of mulch and drought resistant plant life, it is kept to a minimum.  In addition, special drought resistant varieties of grass are often used in xeriscaping.

The Future of Landscaping

In a world where issues such as drought, global warming, and conservation of natural resources are becoming increasingly serious threats, xeriscaping and other earth-friendly choices for everyday living may be the next generation of landscaping methods.

 There are enough color choices to suit any taste, or garden palette. Some blooms are multicoloured and variegated.All tulips have the characteristic cup-shaped flower, though you can get varieties with some unique features such as ruffled edges or double blooms. Depending on the variety, your tulips will grow between 5 and 20 inches high.

In order to have an early spring blooming of tulips, you need to plan ahead and plant the bulbs the fall before.  Dig your tulip bulbs down about 3 times the height of the bulb, and plant them with the pointed end facing up. Loose sandy soil is the best for tulips, as well as a location that will get a good amount of sunlight. Tulips bulbs are quite hardy, and will only have serious problems in very wet soil.

Though tulips are best known for their early spring showing, it's not necessary to have varieties that bloom early. There are all kinds of tulips that will produce their bright blooms mid-season or even later in the summer.  With some careful selection you can have tulips blooming for months on end.

Many of the larger and more "exotic" varieties of tulips bloom their best only during their first year, and are treated as annuals by some gardeners. Smaller "plain" tulips (known as species tulips) may not be as showy, but they will produce bright blooms year after year.

Tulips do require a winter period of cold in order to bloom in the spring, so if you want to plant tulips in a warmer climate, you will have to chill your bulbs before planting. Buy your tulip bulbs in the fall or winter then leave them in your refrigerator for 6-8 weeks before planting in your garden.

Tulips come out in a burst of color, but blooms are not usually long-lasting. Each flower will begin to fade after only a week or two. You can bring the blooms indoors as cut flowers to prolong your enjoyment. Keep the water in the vase fresh and away from direct heat.  Stay away from cut flower food or other additives. Tulips aren't like other cut flowers and won't benefit from things like sugar in their water.

Once the blooms die off of your tulip plant it's tempting to cut back the leaves in order to make space for other plants. This is not a good idea, as the leaves should be left in place as long as they are still green so they can keep producing food for the developing bulb underground. By leaving the foliage intact, you are more likely to have future success from your tulips. Once the leaves have completely died down you can remove them without any harm to the bulb. If you don't intend to keep your tulip bulbs for next year you can pull up the plant and bulb at any time and compost or discard them.

Tulips are often considered a Dutch flower, but they actually originated from areas of Persia, known today as Iran, Turkey and Afghanistan. They were brought to Europe in the 16th century and became extremely popular due to their vivid colours. They are still a favourite garden flower today.