If you’re not the type of person that wants to spend their time managing an elaborate fruit or vegetable garden, you might consider planting and maintaining an herb garden. While the product might not seem as significant, you’ll still enjoy the constant availability of fresh, delicious herbs to flavor your meals with.

First you’ll want to choose the herbs that you’ll plant. You might have a hard time doing this because of the huge scope of herbs available. But the best way to choose is to do what I did; just look at what you have in your kitchen. By planting your own collection of these herbs, you can save money on buying them from the grocery store while having the added benefit of freshness. Some of the herbs you might start with include rosemary, sage, basil, dill, mint, chives, and parsley among others.

When choosing an area to put your herb garden, you should remember that the soil should have extremely good drainage. If the dirt gets watered and stays completely saturated, you have no chance of ever growing a healthy plant. One of the best ways to fix the drainage problem is to dig a foot deep in the soil, and put a layer of crushed rocks down before replacing all the soil. This will allow all that water to escape, thus saving your plants.

When you are ready to begin planting herbs, you might be tempted to buy the more expensive plants from the store. However, with herbs it is much easier to grow them from seed than it is with other plants. Therefore you can save a bundle of money by sticking with seed packets. Some herbs grow at a dangerously fast rate. For example, if you plant a mint plant in an open space then it will take over your entire garden in a matter of days. The best way to prevent this problem is to plant the more aggressive plants in pots (with holes in the bottom to allow drainage, of course).

When it comes time to harvest the herbs you have labored so hard over, it can be fatal to your plant to take off too much. If your plant isn’t well established, it isn’t healthy to take any leaves at all, even if it looks like its not using them. You should wait until your plant has been well established for at least several months before taking off any leaves. This wait will definitely be worth it, because by growing unabated your plant will produce healthily for years to come.

Once you’ve harvested your delicious home grown herbs, you’ll want to use them in cooking. Why else would you have grown them? Well first the process begins with drying them out. This is easily achieved by placing them on a cookie sheet and baking them 170 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 to 4 hours. After they’re sufficiently dried to be used in cooking, you can consult the nearest cookbook for instructions on using them to effectively flavor a dish.

If you want to store your herbs for later usage, you should keep them in a plastic or glass container. Paper or cardboard will not work, because it will absorb the taste of the herbs. During the first few days of storage, you should regularly check the container and see if any moisture has accumulated. If it has, you must remove all the herbs and re-dry them. If moisture is left from the first drying process, it will encourage mildew while you store your herbs. Nobody likes mildew.

So if you enjoy herbs or gardening, or both, then you should probably consider setting up an herb garden. It might require a little bit of work at first to set it up for optimal drainage, and pick what herbs you want to grow. But after the initial hassle, it’s just a matter of harvesting and drying all your favorite herbs.

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Sue Fleckenstein

Home and Garden Specialist

905 722-0115

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Yes I did, quite by accident and beleive me I paid the price. What I am talking about is the dreaded posion ivy. I have never had a case of it and boy did I ever suffer. What with all ready having bad allergies all I needed was this on top.
At first I thought I had several bad mosquito bites, but they did not clear up and a few days later my legs were hard, red and swollen. Then I started to itch and developed a rash and blisters that opened up and pussed, all over my toes and feet. It wasn't a pleasant thing at all. Having to struggle at work with safety shoes on was no improvement and I limped pretty good for two days. I tried all kinds of treatments but nothing worked and finally ended up at the Dr's for a prescription which worked like a charm to releive the pain and itching.
It is a week later and things are healing nicely and I guess I have learnt my lesson. I had just not realized that the ivy was out in July, blame my English upbringing for that one! I had been in the process of cutting down some small bush at the edge of our property to convert into a wild flower garden. Once everything was cut I put a taurpe down over the weeds and covered it with rocks to keep the air out, I wil add leaves and mulch in the fall and should be able to plant next spring. That garden will definetly have memories.
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Dealing with Garden Pests

While tending to my own garden, I have found that one of the most frustrating things that can happen to a gardener is to walk outside to check on your plants. It’s just a routine walk to make sure that your garden is thriving, but you end up finding holes in all of your plants that looked fine only hours before. The explanations for some of these plant-destroying holes are garden pests. Some of the main garden pests are slugs, worms, caterpillars, birds, snails, and the occasional gopher. Although you can never wipe out these pests entirely, after all your hard work in the garden you have to do something.

Insects are one of the worst things to have in your garden; they can live under the soil, in old weeds or piles of leaves, or in a number of other places. In order to help keep insects away, always try and eliminate places in your garden and near your garden that these insects and other plant diseases could be living. Remove old leaves, weeds, or any other decaying matter that insects and diseases could be living in from your yard. Also, regularly turn over your garden soil and break apart any clumps of dirt so that you can eliminate the living spaces any insects that might be hiding underground.

Another way to rid your garden of the pests is to use dormant spray, which is used to keep destructive insects and diseases under control. It is best that you use dormant spray when your plants are dormant, usually around February or early March. I have used dormant spray many times on my garden and it has worked wonders on keeping insects out. But as I learned from experience, dormant spray is only effective if you follow the correct instructions. When I first decided to use some on my garden, I just dumped it everywhere in hopes of killing everything harmful. Unfortunately I ended up killing my entire garden along with my neighbors. Some insects can be beneficial to your garden though, so be sure to find out which insects help your garden.

Another pest problem I've had besides insects has been birds. Whenever I see birds in my garden I run outside a chase them away, but as soon as I step inside they come right back. The solution that I've come up with to keep the birds away from my garden is to put a bird feeder in my yard. Instead of costing me time and money by eating my garden, the birds eat at the bird feeder. In the long run it’ll save you money. Not only can a bird feeder help keep birds away from your garden, but they can also be a new part of your yard decoration. Although not completely eliminating my bird problem, my bird feeder has made the problem smaller. Getting a dog has also helped.

If you start seeing mounds of dirt around your yard, and your plants keep unexplainably dieing, you can assume that you have a gopher problem. Thankfully, this is one of the few garden pasts that I haven't had. However my friend has struggled with a tremendous gopher infestation, so I decided to research it. Gophers are rodents that are five to fourteen inches long. Their fur can be black, light brown, or white, and they have small tails. One method of getting rid of these root-eating pests is to set traps. The key to successfully capturing a gopher using a trap is to successfully locate the gopher's tunnels and set the trap correctly. Another way to get rid of them is to use smoke bombs, which you place into the tunnel and the smoke spreads through out it and hopefully reaches the gopher.

If you suspect that your gardens are being pillaged by any of the pests I mentioned, I encourage you to try your hardest to eliminate the problem as soon as possible. The longer you let the species stay, the more established it will become.

Sue Fleckenstein
Home and Garden Specialist
Home and Garden Inspiration
905 722-0115
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Well our first long weekend of the year came and went. I can't remember having such a cold long weekend for a long time. I was unable to plant too many of my flowers for fear of the frost getting at them. I still managed to dig through my veggie garden one more time and weed the flower beds. My lettuce is growing nicely and doesn't mind the cold at all, and it is almost time to start picking the mesculn mix that I started from seed directly into the garden.

While it was too cold too do much gardening I went through and maintained my equipment. Here is a quick check list of useful tools you should have. Make sure to wash and clean your tools after every use to keep them in good condition and prolong their life span.

1. Trowel - A strong quality trowel will make easy work of turning the soil and getting out weeds.

2. Shovel - Look for a shovel that matches your shoulders, the width of the bar fitting comfortably in your hands. A forged or stainless steel shovel will last longer, but be more expensive to buy.

3. Wheelbarrow - This makes transporting heavy materials easier. Plus is great for moving soil, leaves, rocks and lawn clippings.

4. Spade - A sharp edged spade will make it easier to divide perennials. Forged steel is not rust proof, but works better against rocks under the soil.

5. Pruners - Pruning is a must in every garden. Removing dead and diseased plants and cutting back overgrowth will ensure healthier plants. A pruner is a clean cutting tool that allows you to cut through thick branches with minium strain on your hands.

6. Hoe - A hoe allows you to cultivate, weed and mix as you push and pull the soil.

7. Cutlivator - These feature claw like spikes that will dig and rotate the soil to loosen it.

8. Shears - There are electric models that allow you to easily slice through thick branches to help maintain a neat shape of your bushes.

9. Leaf rake - Plastic or wood prongs collect leaves from your garden and lawn.

10. Lawn chair - After all of your hard work getting your garden in order you need a place where you can enjoy the view and put your feet up!

Of course once the weekend is over the weather improves and we can now start to plant our flowers. The cold spell was a great time spent visiting nurseries and seeing what they had to offer before making any purchases.

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Roses

Roses, a wonderful gift on Mother's Day which can mean and say so much. Roses are those small little wonderful miracles which can do wonders and of which a million words can’t do. The flowers speak when the lips seal with emotions, emotiions which are so tough to put into words. The best of the gifts that one can give is roses, a bouquet or may be just a single bud of the flower that has not yet bloomed can unfurl the heart filled with emotions.

Rose can be said to be a synonym of love. The beauty of rose has always cast a spell on people which are strong enough to bind them in love bonds. Different colours of roses signify different feelings. A red rose has always been a sign of LOVE. The most romantic gift that two love birds can give is a red rose. Pink roses have always meant admiration and the yellow rose’s suit best to show the depth of a platonic love. White has been the choice of all the creative minds, showing peace, innocence and respect. And the best to show the passion which can drive one crazy is the orange colour. Roses have been the best choice of an artist who paints a thousand colours on his canvas to capture the beauty of all kinds, beauty of nature, beauty of women and beauty of minds.

The original name of rose (Aeolic wrodon) comes from the Persian name “vrda” which is “rhodon” in Greek. There are many species of roses, some are considered to be the wild species of roses. The records of different species of roses show that there are about 100 to 150 species, but the botanists claim that there are not as many as 150 species but it sums up around 100 species only.

There are two kinds of roses, the old roses which were discovered before 1867 and the modern roses which include Hybrid Teas, Floribundas and Grandifloras. The most lovable roses, the English roses, were created David Austin, an English rose hybridizer, in the year 1969. These roses are often called David Austin roses.

People are really fascinated about growing roses at home and make their home, heaven, where pretty flowers bloom and give their lives new zing. But roses are that species of flower which is the most difficult to grow. They need high maintenance and proper regular care. Roses should be pruned just before the spring when the buds start appearing on the branches. The bushes and the dead branches should be cut in proper time; the shear used for cutting the branches should be sharpened. Roses need special care during the winters. They should be fed water often to keep them healthy, but watering should not be done directly and should be given very lightly.

Roses inspire the lover within everyone and this sheer love drives people crazy and they go about loving this flower by actually becoming the gardener, and growing roses at home or buying them from any florists shop. The florists go high in demand during special occasions like Christmas, New Year but also in off-season their business never witnesses any downfall. People buy it in every season and for every occasion. This has become a very high-profile industry now, so big that there are many companies’ which have the business of selling bouquets of different styles especially made for special occasions on the net. People can now send bouquets of roses from one country to another, and these companies also make it possible of delivering the bouquets on the same date.

Sue Fleckenstein
Home and Garden Specialist
http://www.ladybizmarketing.com