Creating Microclimates to Facilitate Growth

By Ahmed Hajouj.


Many gardeners live in areas where almost anything can grow effortlessly. Just plant the seeds and water it for a few weeks, and you’ve got a beautifully lush plant. But if you live in somewhere like Colorado, you’ll understand what its like to have a slim selection of plants that naturally
grow. It can be quite a challenge to facilitate the growth of a large variety of plants, especially when the very world you live in seems to be rooting against you.

Some people solve this problem by loading up their plants with every type of chemical and fertilizer known to man. This usually works, but to me it seems kind of unnatural to rely on man made materials to keep your plants alive. Also, if I’m growing fruits or vegetables, I don’t feel very comfortable eating something that is entirely composed of chemicals.

A gardening theory that I have relied on in the past to grow many types of plants is that of creating a “microclimate” for each type of plant. This is when you regulate the sunlight, shade, moisture, and wind factors for each separate plant. It sounds like a challenge, and it is. But you can regulate these factors in such a way that the plant feels just like it is in the ideal growing conditions. This can be achieved by the use of wind barriers, shading umbrellas, extra water, or different types or amounts of compost.

If you’re ready to make an attempt at creating microclimates, you’ll need to make a detailed plan in advanced. You should start by finding a large shade providing bush or tree that will grow fast and naturally in your area. Just look at some undeveloped plots of land and see what is there. Most likely it grew on its own without any planting or care. This is what you want to happen. Usually the growing of one plant can bring about the growing of another more desirable plant.

If you have a fence in your backyard (you would be surprised at how many people don’t) then you already have a good amount of shade to work with. You can start the microclimate process using just the shade of the fence, combined with (perhaps) a screen or large bush to shade your new plant for the other half of the day that the fence doesn’t take care of. The fence
is also useful for shading against wind for very fragile plants.

Once you have established the shade, be it natural or unnatural, you have created a slightly less harsh miniature environment. You must remember this is a gradual process, and find a new plant to put in the shade of the other one. Now your choices are a little more open. You don’t have to go with a rugged plant like the one you did before; you can now choose a plant that survives in cooler weather.

If the plant you are trying to grow next requires more moisture in the air than your area provides, installing a fountain or small pond can fix this problem due to the evaporation. You may think you don’t want to waste water on a pond or fountain, but it’s all going toward the betterment of
your garden. It’s just like the watering process, only indirect. As an added benefit, usually fountains are quite aesthetically attractive and a great addition to your garden.

I can’t explain every stage of the process, because everyone’s goals and setups are slightly different. But to reach your goal, you should do research on every plant that you would like to have in your garden. Find out everything you can about the zone that it flourishes in, and ask
yourself how you can emulate that zone within your own backyard. Almost always you can take control of the environment and recreate whatever you wish. Usually all it takes is some planning and strategy.

Container Gardening Tips for Newbies

By Ahmed Hajouj.


Container gardens can create a natural sanctuary in a busy city street, along rooftops or on balconies. You can easily accentuate the welcoming look of a deck or patio with colourful pots of annuals, or fill your window boxes with beautiful shrub roses or any number of small perennials. Whether you arrange your pots in a group for a massed effect or highlight a smaller space with a single specimen, you'll be delighted with this simple way to create a garden.

Container gardening enables you to easily vary your color scheme, and as each plant finishes flowering, it can be replaced with another. Whether you choose to harmonize or contrast your colors, make sure there is variety in the height of each plant. Think also of the shape and texture of the leaves. Tall strap-like leaves will give a good vertical background to low-growing, wide-leaved plants. Choose plants with a long flowering season, or have others of a different type ready to replace them as they finish blooming.

Experiment with creative containers. You might have an old porcelain bowl or copper urn you can use, or perhaps you'd rather make something really modern with timber or tiles.  If you decide to buy your containers ready-made, terracotta pots look wonderful, but tend to absorb water. You don't want your plants to dry out, so paint the interior of these pots with a special sealer available from hardware stores. 
Cheaper plastic pots can also be painted on the outside with water-based paints for good effect.  When purchasing pots, don't forget to buy matching saucers to catch the drips. This will save cement floors getting stained, or timber floors rotting.
Always use a good quality potting mix in your containers. This will ensure the best performance possible from your plants. 

If you have steps leading up to your front door, an attractive pot plant on each one will delight your visitors. Indoors, pots of plants or flowers help to create a cosy and welcoming atmosphere. 
Decide ahead of time where you want your pots to be positioned, then buy plants that suit the situation. There is no point buying sun lovers for a shady position, for they will not do well. Some plants also have really large roots, so they are best kept for the open garden. 

If you have plenty of space at your front door, a group of potted plants off to one side will be more visually appealing than two similar plants placed each side. Unless they are spectacular, they will look rather boring. 
Group the pots in odd numbers rather than even, and vary the height and type. To tie the group together, add large rocks that are similar in appearance and just slightly different in size. Three or five pots of the same type and color, but in different sizes also looks affective. 

With a creative mind and some determination, you will soon have a container garden that will be the envy of friends and strangers alike.

About Tree Seeds And Bonsai Seeds Germination Instructions

By Ahmed Hajouj.


About Basic Care of Seeds

It is important to maintain the freshness of the seeds in order to facilitate proper germination. This is why we store all of our seeds in a refrigerator dedicated for this purpose. Therefore, in order to preserve their freshness until you are ready to begin the germination process, you can store the purchased seeds in the plastic bag we have provided. You can place the seeds in the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator.

About Germination Instructions

Once you are ready to germinate your seeds, you have two (2) germination methods: natural germination or forced germination.

Natural germination: Sow seeds outside in autumn. Overwintering the seeds will accomplish all the necessary natural processes seeds require to germinate. Next spring, you should have sprouted seeds.

With forced germination, you are accomplishing the germination process artificially. Therefore, you will need to follow the steps listed below. Each seed is different. However most of them require three (3) steps. Some may require more while others may require less. These steps are: the scarification, the stratification and sowing.

1 – Scarification

Each seed has a shell around the live inner part. Some are harder than others. The goal of the scarification process is to soften the shell and allow water to reach the inner part of the seed. You will scarify the seeds by placing them in water, usually a glass or a bowl, for a period of twenty four (24) to forty eight (48) hours. The norm appears to be the use of warm water. Some seeds require boiling water while others require water at room temperature. Normally, the viable seeds will drown after the twenty four (24) hour period while others will float on top. If there are still seeds floating after the forty eight (48) hour period, you can discard them as they are empty seeds. Once completed, you are ready to begin the next step ( please note that some seeds require you to proceed directly to the third step).

2 – Cold Stratification

The next step is the cold stratification period. This step is where all the magic of nature occurs. In nature, most of the seeds fall from the trees in autumn. Consequently, seeds spend the winter period under colder temperature permitting the chemical in the seeds to develop and trigger the germination process once the ideal temperature is reached in spring. In the forced germination process, you attempt to recreate the winter period. In order to accomplish this process, use the following materials:

Plastic Ziplock bag

Paper towel

Water

Fold the paper towel in two and moisten with water. It should not be dripping wet but humid. Place your seeds on the humid paper towel and fold it over the seeds. Place the paper towel with the seeds in the ziplock plastic bag and store them in your refrigerator for a period varying from thirty (30) to one hundred and twenty (120) days. We suggest that you check your seeds every thirty (30) days in order to prevent rot and allow for proper air circulation. You will also check for germinated seeds. If this is the case, take the germinated seeds and proceed to the next step. If not, wait the required period and then proceed to the next step.

3 – Sowing

Sowing can be accomplished in the ground or in a pot. You can use any soil suitable for planting and growing. Make a small opening in the soil (approximately half (1/2) an inch deep), place the seed in the opening and cover it with a few millimetres of soil. Keep the soil moist.

Extra steps for certain species

If you choose to germinate your seeds via the forced germination process, you may be required to follow this extra step. This step takes place prior to the cold stratification. All you have to do is expose the seeds to ambient room temperature for thirty (30) to ninety (90) days. This is called heat stratification and is accomplished by leaving the seeds exposed in a plate on your desk. After you have achieved this step, you resume with cold stratification.

Landscaping Stone Designs That May Make The House Look It S Best

By Ahmed Hajouj.


When you own a home, you want the exterior to appear just as good as the inside. This is why you notice lots of people on the weekends planting tons of plants and trying their best to create their yards appear amazing. However, the only problem is the fact that plenty of the good ideas for landscaping have previously been performed. Obviously, there is one thing that people used to forget about whenever it comes to landscaping, and it actually is one of the great things to work with, and that is stone. Landscaping stone ideas can, not only provide your yard a look all of its own, however at the same time, it will give your yard a fresh feel. There are so lots of various things that you can do with stone, it’s curious that more people do not utilize it. The possibilities are endless, and that stone is a best method to create every yard different.

To start with, you have to understand that stones, not only make an ideal walk way, but they create a good patio. Whenever people are using stones around their house, the main thing that they always do is utilize it for a walk way. Sure it’s a good idea, but it’s been played out to death. It’s time to come up with a fresh idea. Rather than just using it for a pathway, utilize it to build the ground of your patio. They make very flat stones that are perfect to be used as a floor. This will furnish your patio a very classy, yet, very outdoor feel. Another plan you may want to consider about using is using the stones to create levels to your floors. What you do is put down stones to build a wall (not a big wall, but a small one). Then behind the wall you fill it by dirt. Then you set your flowers. Behind those flowers you craft one more wall, but this time you build it a bit bigger. Then you fill that with dirt and you repeat as several times as you desire.

The finest idea for stones, however, is to apply them when making a pond in your plot. This is actually simple to do, and just about anybody can perform it over the course of just one weekend. Not only that, but the stones around it are going to give it an incredible look. If you add a little pump to the pond to create the pond have moving water, then it will keep things like mosquitoes out of it. There is no end to the amount of things that you can do with stones in your backyard. The great news is that the majority of it can be completed in a day, and stones (for the most part) do no cost that much to work with.

Buying Or Building A Water Fountain Things To Consider

By Ahmed Hajouj.


A great deal about fountains has changed over the last decade. Now there are really high class ones made of copper, stainless steel, bronze, concrete, and stone, and some fairly nice ones made of resin and fiberglass. There are several things to consider, though. As a pump wholesaler, I speak with fountain owners all the time and also look at lots of samples of 

fountains at trade shows and in magazines. Before purchasing a fountain, there are quite a few questions to ask. What looks good in a store might not look good at your home or business. 

Bronze and Stainless Steel Fountains

These are at the high end of fountains, and can retail for ten to twenty thousand dollars. They are plain classy. But will one of these fit in where you want to put it? Do you have the right yard or business or location for such a classic kind of display? Also, do you like the aging process (the verdigris patina) that bronze undergoes? Can you afford one of these? If you answered yes to these questions, a bronze or stainless steel 

fountain might be right for you. It will last your lifetime, your kids’ lifetimes, their kids’ lifetimes, etc. And they are durable enough to be moved from house to house.

Copper Fountains

Like bronze 

fountains, these too tend to be classy, especially the name brand ones like Water Wonders, which mix copper with glass and slate. These make especially nice Wall fountainswall fountains. There are certain things to think about, though. Are you locating the fountain in a room with good acoustics? Some rooms make the pump noise really echo, especially small rooms with walls that are close together. Do you know someone or can you hire an electrician to hide the cord in the wall? These fountains are a bit too expensive to buy if you’re going to let the cord run outside the wall for everyone to see. Finally, it is a good idea to go listen to them run at a store before purchasing. Some of them make little water noise and some make a lot. To increase water sound you might have to turn up the pump to the point of there being slight splash.

Concrete Fountains

These still provide the most bang for the buck, primarily because concrete is so inexpensive. In fact, a huge part of the cost of concrete fountains is in transporting them to stores for sale and in the labor of painting them. The concrete itself is the least expensive part of the fountains’ manufacture. Most concrete companies (though not all) reinforce their fountains with steel. This makes them strong but also means the concrete must be sealed. If not painted (as most fountains from Mexico are not), then they do need to have a clear sealant put on them. Otherwise the water will seep through to the steel, which will rust. Eventually, the fountain is likely to crack. One final word of advice on concrete, beware of “cute.” Cute 

fountains (mama dogs with baby dogs, boys peeing) sometimes don’t look so cute over time. Ask yourself if you’ll still think the fountain is cute years later. Remember, concrete fountains can last hundreds of years. And they are difficult to move so pick something that will stay put. The traditional Italian 3-tier fountain is always a safe bet.

Resin and Fiberglass

Fountains

The quality of these has gotten a lot better, and they have the clear advantage of being more easily handled than concrete ones. Some do look like concrete and stone, though they tend to look much more realistic at first glance than they do after a week has passed. Then it is pretty clear that they are faux. These are also a lot easier on employees who work in tores, as they don’t have to worry as much about their backs. We would sell these at our store but just don’t like their looks as well as the real thing.

Stone Fountains

These look incredibly good or mediocre. The handcrafted stone fountains out of Mexico and many of the large ones out of China are beautiful. But there are also mass-produced stone 

fountains, which use crushed stone mixed with resin. These just don’t look like real stone to us even though they are.

Making Your Own 

Water Fountain

There are lots of ways to make your own 

fountains. The easiest way, perhaps, is to place a pump in a small tub or on some liner. Then place a wire or plastic grate on top of the tub or the liner, and layer pebbles, rocks, etc. over the wire or plastic grate. Your pump and plumbing will be hidden! No one will no where your water is coming from. You can then connect black PVC piping to the pump (black sprinkler pipe is incredibly inexpensive yet professional looking) and let the water rise up seemingly out of rocks in your yard. You won’t have to worry much about pets as the water source is covered with stones. Likewise, you won’t have to worry about kids drowning. You can also build a little 

waterfall over such a pit if you want, just throwing in boulders to hide your electric and tubing, etc. Some people use bamboo for spouts. You can also drill holes through slate (we’ve found it’s really easy if you soak the slate for a day first). Slate is so porous, however, you ought to seal it once you’re done drilling. You can also find rocks in nature that already have holes in them.


How Big of a Pump do I need? 

Basically, if you buy a 

fountain at a store you should have instructions on the best size pump for that particular piece of garden art. If you are making your own fountain, here is a rule of thumb: for every inch of width you need to pump 100 gallons per hour. But note that a100 gallon per hour pump is not pumping the same volume at one foot head (elevation above the pump), two feet head, three feet, and so forth. If you are making your own 

fountain, it is likely you will have to guess which size to buy, and you might be wrong the first time you build one. Most pumps are adjustable but often can be adjusted down only a bit. However, magnetic-driven pumps, the most common kind, are inexpensive and durable.

Water Garden Feature How To Save On The Pennies And Labour

By Ahmed Hajouj.


A Water Garden Feature without doubt is the cherry on the cake giving the ultimate finish to enhance the beauty of a garden or patio – but unfortunately some gardeners are put off because of the work involved with the installation and maintenance of having a water feature. Cost can also hamper the decision of adding a water garden in your courtyard etc. 

Expense may not be an issue if you decide on doing the work your self. If you have a good manual at your side when you take on the task then that is the first step in the right direction – follow the instructions accordingly and all should be okay. By chance if you are not DIY minded then you need not worry because Water Garden Features come in all different shapes and sizes thus cutting costs to meet your budget – where you can have an expert fit the fixture. 

Small water garden features not only will save on the pennies but will save on the labour also when it comes to the cleaning. And with what you save you can buy different garden novelties.

Combining a fish pond with a water garden has to be carefully planned if plants like the lotus and lily are used; you need to have access to these. Your water garden needs to be approx 16 to 18 inches deep. This is good depth for plants to flourish. Young plants are not dependant on deep water.

How you ornate your water garden feature is entirely up to you but we do not want is to over do it, to much can spoil the appearance. 

Water Gardens that host too many plants and shrubs can lose the effect of what you want to inject from the whole project and that is beauty. Shelving is best kept to a minimum if the feature is small – plants can be elevated on to rocks. Shelving is a good idea – it keeps the fish happy providing them with cover from the rays of the hot sun.

Nature comes to the fore from your Water Garden Feature with uninvited guests – what you have to remember water will always attract aquatic life and also children so be careful. Frogs toads and newts will enjoy your water garden feature just as much as you, if not more – so be prepared. There will be the upkeep of the pond/waterfall you have installed – the work involved with the maintenance will not be heavy work if you keep on top.

Installing a water garden feature is not a complicated mission unless you make it one by not having the right tools for the job. Be sure to obtain a good book with details on how to erect and to find the best place to locate the feature. Also do some research on what flowers and plants are suitable? How to clean and maintain a water garden are all important issues you need to know about and last but not least find out what you have to do to meet with the fishes needs and requirements if there is to be any marine life in your pond or pool. 

Safety Tip – When next at the garden store purchase your self some netting or mesh so that the Water Garden Feature can be covered in your absence. This is a safety measure for when – CHILDREN ARE AROUND AND YOU ARE NOT.

Flowers For you

By Ahmed Hajouj.


There are many times when flowers are the perfect gift. There are specific occasions when flowers add just the right touch. Flowers are also used for decorating at weddings, receptions and parties.

Who doesn’t like to receive flowers? Unless you have an allergy, flowers are one of the favorite gifts to give and receive.

There are birthday flowers, anniversary flowers, get well flowers, I’m sorry flowers, and new baby flowers. You can send flowers to remember special dates, to celebrate new homes and to wish people well with a new job or business.

Christmas flowers look beautiful above the fireplace or mantle. A Thanksgiving bouquet makes the table complete and an Easter basket loaded with tulips and other spring flowers looks lovely on the coffee table. Put a vase of Valentine roses next to your bed or send your Irish friend a St. Paddy’s bouquet filled with bright flowers and greenery.

Even a vase of daisies brighten up the darkest winter day. Order flowers to welcome spring and to celebrate a graduation. Flowers can make an ordinary day less than ordinary and just a small bouquet makes a thoughtful gift.

A baptism is a wonderful time for a special bouquet. First communion or a confirmation is even more beautiful when flowers are sent.

Time for a wedding? You can choose from the most exquisite flower arrangements. Use flowers to decorate the church for the service. Plan gorgeous flowers for the bride and for all the attendants. Don’t forget the groom and all the other family members and friends. You can use flowers at the receptions, too. Flowers will look wonderful on the tables and placed around the room.

If you are planning a party you may want to use flowers. Fresh flowers perk up a table and add flair to any party. You can use flowers in vases, bouquets, with candles and other decorating items.

Don’t forget the other things that can be added to flower orders. You might have an occasion that calls for flowers and balloons, flowers and cookies, flowers and stuffed animals, etc.

For an excellent selection of flowers you should begin your search online. There are many sites that have fantastic flower arrangements and bouquets. You will be able to look at all kinds of flowers and then choose which ones you want.

Flowers can be used for many gifts and occasions. Don’t forget the flowers when you need a gift or want to celebrate a special day or plan a party.