The Different Roses You Can Grow In Your Rose Garden

By Ahmed Hajouj.


There are actually many kinds of roses, with each one different from the other. If you are planning to grow your own roses and plant your very own rose garden, what type of rose do you think you should have?

The Floribunda Rose

Gardeners love the floribunda rose simply because it is easy to grow, easy to take care of, and constantly in bloom. The floribunda rose is the result of crossing the modern hybrid tea rose with the polyantha rose. Its flowers are medium-sized, rarely larger than three inches across, and it produces clustering flowers on a single stem. Though the floribunda rose is always in bloom, it is not really known for its perfume. There are nonetheless some kinds of floribunda roses that are indeed perfumed, though these are not common. Floribunda roses grow best in beds although they can also thrive as edgings. If you do not have a lot of space for planting, you can grow floribunda roses in pots without any problems.

The Grandiflora Rose

As its name suggests, the grandiflora rose is a type of rose that blooms in clusters of big flowers. It is a tall and sturdy rose, often growing up to five feet in height. Despite the height, the grandiflora rose does not really require support from a stake; it can support itself. The grandiflora rose has long stems, which make it excellent as cut flowers for inclusion in bouquets and flower arrangements. Another characteristic of the grandiflora rose that makes it so attractive to gardeners is that it blooms constantly when it is in season.

The Hybrid Rose

The hybrid rose is considered to be the most beautiful among roses, and is thought to produce the perfect bloom, blossoming as a double flower with a high cone at its center. It is also the most popular among roses, and they are the typical rose that florists carry in their shops. Hybrid roses are large, and they come in a wide range of colors, including purple and blue. They are also sparse in producing flowers, and each flower grows on a single stem. Hybrid roses require a lot more care than the other types of roses, and it is always necessary to prune them often.

The Miniature Rose

Though miniature roses generally grow up to no more than six inches in height, there are some types of roses that grow up to three feet and yet are considered to be miniature roses. Miniature roses come in large varieties, from shrubs to creepers, and from single-stem blooms to clusters. Some miniature roses are perfumed while some are not. Most miniature roses bloom continuously whenever they are in season, and many gardeners have come to consider them as the only type of roses that can be grown as house plants.

The Polyantha Rose

Mostly grown for breeding purposes, the polyantha rose is older than most of today’s modern roses. It is also not as popular. But for all its low popularity among rose gardeners, the polyantha rose is actually a very hardy flower that is very easy to grow. It usually outlives its more exotic sisters. The polyantha rose blooms late in spring, and it appears as clusters of small, very vividly colored flowers with small leaves. It usually grows up to two feet in height. The polyantha rose grows as a bush and it is best planted in groups.

Caring for Your Rose Garden

Regardless of what kind of rose that you have got planted in your garden or whether you have different types of roses gracing your flower beds, it is important that you spend ample time and effort in caring for your rose garden.

Roses need a lot of water, and they will not be satisfied with brief watering sessions in the morning. They need to get their roots truly soaked, and this can only be done by slow watering over a period of hours. Naturally, you would be too busy to deal with that kind of watering, so it would be a great deal if you install a sort of irrigation system that will help you water your roses whenever you need to.

Constant pruning is another detail that you need to attend to in caring for your rose garden. Dead canes and unhealthy growths need to be cut as soon as they appear so as not to steal nutrients from the healthier canes. Dead blooms need to be removed to encourage the roses to produce more flowers. Regular pruning also airs out the rose plants, letting the air circulate more freely and discourage the growth of disease-causing germs and mold.

Roses also hate the winter season. So that your rose garden would see the coming spring time, they must be protected against the cold of winter.

Caring for your rose garden can be a laborious task, especially if you are growing different kinds of roses. But the rose rewards any effort put into its upkeep by becoming as beautiful a flower as it can be. The rose is the queen of flowers, after all.

Fun And Food In Home Grown Vegetable Gardening

Growing vegetables in your garden will prevent cash. throughout season, your own manufacture becomes a part of your meals. Home gardeners feel deep satisfaction in making ready dish or seasoning the casserole with freshly picked plants from their own vegetable gardens. Their feeling of the style is incommensurable. recent surplus area unit distributed to friends and love ones whereas some area unit keep frozen.

It doesn’t require much space to grow vegetables. Even a container pot or a window box will do the trick. Where space is limited, you can grow a mini-garden indoor or outdoor. If you have a good sun, access to water and enough containers, growing a garden’s worth of fruits and vegetables in a limited space is a no-brainer. You can even harvest more than one crop if your choice of plants and planting schemes are all well planned and executed. Windowsills, balconies and doorstep areas can be used, as well as empty packs of milks, pails, plastic buckets and cans.

When planting in containers, proper spacing is very important. One sturdy plant is better than several weak ones. Crowding chokes root systems will slow growth and poor production. With container vegetable garden, you no longer need to worry about poor soil types and bad drainage, or heavy-duty tiller to break up hard clay and rocks. There is no weeding to worry about and you can change the looks of your container placements by simply moving them around anytime to a place you wanted to. 

Vegetable gardening offers a change from the monotony of the supermarket. You can grow variety of vegetables that you want. When choosing plants for your vegetable container garden, consider container worthy crops such as beans, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, eggplants and radish. Other root crops such onions and turnips can also do well in containers, but remember to always take care of these crops by ample fertilizers and water. Also consider grapes and berries. Though some take a while to get established, they bear fruits more each year. Planting for fall crops can be started in early summer, though summer planting can still be done in June in most regions.

One great advantage of growing vegetables and spices in containers involves the advent of the upside-down gardening. Crops with the likes of tomatoes, basil, parsley, rosemary and peppers do well with this approach. The ideas is that the vines will cascade downward instead of growing up a stake. A grow box can be treated by punching perforations through the bottom of a container. The other option is to purchase a device specially designed for this purpose. Upside gardens do not require a great deal of space and is perfect for balconies and patios.

Equally important, seeds and soil must properly be taken cared of in your vegetable container garden. Seeds do not always have to be bought. Reasonably fresh dill, anise, fennel, coriander and other seeds already on the spice rack should grow. If not, they are too old to add much to food anyway and should be replaced. Scoop out seeds from vegetables you’ve bought, dry them a week or so before planting.

Soil preparation on the other hand is very crucial for good results. Have the soil tested. Every state has a land-grant college that will test soil for a small fee. It will give abundant basic gardening advice, and garden resources tips. Start growing those veggies in your garden and turn your home made meals into something truly special. Take care of your plants to make them productive by keeping them watered and harvested.

Chives Allium Schoenoprasum

By Ahmed Hajouj.


Known as common garden chives, Allium schoenoprasum, can be grown indoors and out. Chives are rich in vitamins A and C, potassium, and calcium. They are grown for the flavour of their leaves, which is reminiscent of onion, although much milder. Both the stems and light purple flowers are used in cooking and the snipped leaves are an addition to many dishes. Chives lose their flavour with long cooking so it is best to add them to dishes at the last minute. For chopping stems, a pair of scissors is the best tool.

Chives can be frozen or dried. They are less flavourful when dried rather that frozen, so they are best used when fresh and snipped, or snipped and frozen. In both cases sort them carefully, removing any yellowing leaves and shoots, and keep only the plump green ones. It is possible to place chives in non-iodized salt, keep them there for several weeks, remove the leaves, and then bottle the ‘chive salt’ for use in flavouring.

Chives are a perennial in the garden and grow approximately 12 inches (30 cm) tall. They are extremely easy to grow, are drought tolerant, rarely suffer from disease or pest problems, and don’t require fertilizer. Cultivation requirements for growing chives: full sun, will tolerate light shade; grow best in well-drained, organic, fertile soil; keep soil moist – use mulch, and water during periods of drought. Chives tend to get overcrowded so dig and divide every three to four years.

Chives are easily grown from seed or can be brought indoors at the end of the growing season. If you are bringing chives indoors, divide a clump, and pot up in good houseplant soil. Leave your chive plant outdoors for a month or so after the first frost to provide a short period of dormancy. Bring them indoors and provide the requirements needed for them to start growing again. To harvest, snip leaves 2 inches (5cm) from the base of the plant. Cut flower stalks off at the soil line once they have finished blooming. This prevents the plant form forming seed and keeps it more productive.

Chives require at least five to eight hours of sunlight a day. Grow them on a southern or eastern exposure to the light. If you are growing them on a windowsill, turn regularly to ensure every side receives light. If you are unable to provide this amount of light, they also grow well under fluorescent lights. Hang lights 6 inches above the plants and leave lights on for 14 hours per day.

In the garden, plant chives with carrots. They are good companion plantings for tomatoes and fruit trees. Chives or garlic planted between rows of peas or lettuce control pashas and are reported to control the incidence of aphids when planted between roses. In the kitchen, use chives in omelets, scrambled eggs, casseroles, rice, dips, gravies, butter, meat, and seafood. Chives can be added to soft cheese, salads, sandwiches, sour cream, vinegar, and bake potatoes. Chive blossoms can be used for garnishing and are particularly attractive in salads. Chive stems can be used for tying up little bundles of vegetables for appetizers.

A Take On Grasses Appreciating The Lowly But Important Garden Element

By Ahmed Hajouj.


When the subject of gardens and landscaping is brought to a conversation, the first things that pop into people’s minds are trees, shrubs, flowers. Rarely do people take notice of something very significant and crucial for the beauty of most landscapes – grasses. Humans step on them, children play on them, dogs roll over them, but most of the time people ignore these prominent figures of gardens and parks. Imagine how a landscape would be without grasses – it would be dull, dry, boring if not downright ugly. Without grasses, a scenery would usually not be complete.

Grasses are very useful not only for their aesthetic qualities but for some practical purposes as well. Grasses are very flexible as they can grow in almost any quality of soil more than other kinds of plants. Grasses do not need so much for them to thrive, just water is enough for most grasses to grow and make any landscape green. While many people have the notion that grasses are boring, their wide variety makes them interesting components of a landscape as they come in different colors, textures, and heights. Even when grasses die and get dry, they still have certain decorative and practical value. Grasses are very important for the environment as well as they serve as ground covering that can prevent soil erosion and maintain a good amount of water for other plants to grow.

There are many kinds of grasses each having their distinct qualities that make them worth planting in different kinds of landscapes. Here are some of them:

Bermuda grass – this is perhaps the most popular kind of grass which is extremely popular in places where the sun shines most of the time. This kind of grass is ideal for sunny areas because they are very resistant to heat and drought. This high tolerance makes it an ideal grass to cover vast tracts of lands. However, the hardiness of Bermuda also gives it the tendency to “invade” areas inhabited by other plants.

Blue grass – this is another popular type of grass that grows well during the summer being drought tolerant like the Bermuda. This is very common in the north because of its tolerance cold weather. However, blue grass can grow clumpy when not maintained well.

Bahia grass – this is very popular in the Southeastern parts as they are very easy to maintain. Bahia grass has coarse blades that are resistant to drought and shade as well as salty water and soils. However, this grass requires a lot of mowing because of its texture.

Buffalo grass – this one is very much like the blue grace and is also rather common in the Northern parts. This grass is good for parts that there is little rainfall. The appearance is somewhat a cross between the blue and Bermuda grasses. Its blue-green tinge in summer turns straw brown during winter.

Kentucky bluegrass – this is the most popular kind of grass in the north, and it is sometimes planed in the south. It is characterized to have a soft texture and a dark green shade, it is quite resilient to cold.

Bent grass – this is a perennial type of grass with a fine texture. It is known to form soft turfs that are tightly knit. This characteristic makes it an ideal grass for golf course greens.

There are many other types of grass, each grow for appropriate purposes for appropriate regions and weather conditions. There are several books and magazines for landscaping that tackle everything about grasses. There are also many online resources about the subject.

Grasses are important parts of any landscape. They add life to any dull piece of land as they provide a sense of warmth and coziness.