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Flowering House Plants – What You Need To Know Before Buying Your Indoor Flowering Plants!

April 21, 2010 By Crissy Leave a Comment

Gardening is a true art form that is cherished by many people all around the world. The love of gardening is not just limited to having gardens outside either; lots of people love to garden inside with herbs, some vegetables, and of course the beloved houseplants.

With the most sought after houseplants being of the flowering variety. Since you have the choice of such a vast array of species and colors, flowering house plants can really make your home a beautiful and healthier place to be.

That being said, if you have never bought indoor flowering plants before you might not find it quite as easy of a task as you originally thought.

So here are some useful ideas and tips for buying and taking care of those wonderfully colorful houseplants!

Tips for buying flowering house plants: If you follow these tips it will help you when selecting your indoor flowering plants it will help ensure that you get the most colorful and longest lasting flowering plants possible.

1. When you are deciding which plant to buy don’t necessarily go with the one that has the showiest flowers right now. You want to look for the one that has buds still on it and has flowers that are not fully bloomed.

2. Make sure you read the directions on the plant to make sure that you will be providing it with the best possible environment for it to bloom. That means you need to figure out where you would like to put your plants before you buy them and not the other way around.

3. Look at the leaves of the plant you are considering. If they are getting brown around the edges or have some leaves that are shriveling, brown, or dry then you might want to pass.

4. Look around the area. Are their little bugs flying around the plants? I’m not talking about regular flies but little knat looking things. If there are you should consider buying plants from some where else. If you buy a plant that is infested and you have other plants at home they will all be infested within 1 or 2 days.

So what happens if you see a plant you simply love but it has little knats?

When you take the plant home Do Not take it into your house right away. You need to repot it before you do making sure that any dirt or containers that came with your flowering house plant are not used. Take the plant out of its original dirt and pot and discard them in an air tight bag. Carefully clean off the roots of the plant with lukewarm water until there is no dirt left on them. Repot your plant with fresh dirt and pot. Leave it outside or in your garage for a few days to make sure no little bugs appear before settling your new flowering indoor plant into its new home.

Filed Under: Featured, House Plants Tagged With: flowering house plants, flowering houseplants, indoor flowering plants

Growing Strawberries In Pots

April 14, 2010 By Crissy Leave a Comment

Have you ever wished you could grow your own juicy, mouthwatering, bright red strawberries?  Well of course you can but don’t just put the strawberries in the ground!

The best way to have your own strawberries is by growing strawberries in pots.

Why should you use pots when growing strawberries?

Great question!

Strawberry plants grow by sending out runners and if you do not keep them contained they will over take everything else in your garden much like planting mint.

In order to avoid your entire garden turning into strawberries it is suggest to grow strawberries in pots or in raised beds.

Raised beds also work wonders for containing strawberry plants and also allow you to plant many more strawberry plants then you would otherwise be able to.

So what do you need to know about growing strawberries in pots?

One important thing is to make sure that you put more then one strawberry shoot into your pot or container.

Strawberries also like well draining soil so when you are preparing your soil it is a good idea to use a mixture of  miracle grow, perolite, and small rocks.  This will keep the dirt loose and moist but will also let the excess water drain out of your pot.

Strawberries are also a huge fan of sunlight so make sure that when you are growing strawberries in pots that you keep them in full sun throughout the day.  This will provide you with the biggest and sweetest strawberries you can have.

How long do strawberry plants live for?

Strawberry plants usually produce at their peak until they are about 4-5 years old and then it is time to replace them.  Keep in mind though that strawberry plants do not really produce an abundant crop the first year so don’t get disappointed if you only get a few strawberries the first season.  They will produce better the next year.

It’s also a good idea to plant a second pot a year or so before the first on needs replaced so you will always have an abundant crop to enjoy.

Happy strawberry planting!

Filed Under: Featured, Growing Strawberries Tagged With: Growing Strawberries, growing strawberries in pots, strawberry

Starting Plants From Seeds

April 12, 2010 By Crissy Leave a Comment

Starting plants from seeds sounds easy, right?  No big deal you think.  Stick some seeds in dirt, water them, and watch your plants grow.  Well not quite.  If you have tried and failed it’s not your fault.  Some things require a little bit more then having a green thumb then others.

Planting seeds and growing strong healthy plants is one of them.

The first thing you need to be aware of when planting seeds is that they need indirect sunlight especially if you use one of those jiffy pot things that act as a green house.

If you stick the seeds directly in the sunlight chances are really good that you will be cooking them so it is no wonder they will not grow.

You need to keep the dirt moist at all times while the seeds are germinating.

Don’t have your own mini greenhouse?

No problems.  A piece of Saran wrap covering the gardening container works wonders and acts as a mini greenhouse.

Once your first seedling pops through the dirt you need to pull the plastic back to give it some fresh air.

Don’t stick your seedling in the direct sunlight just yet though.  You need to let them get used to the sunlight.  Every day move your seedlings a little bit closer to the sunlight while turning your plant a quarter of a turn.

This will keep your seedlings from growing awkwardly by trying to reach the sunlight.

After a few days take the plastic all the way off of the gardening containers and turn on a small fan on low and point it at your seedlings.

This will accomplish two things:

The first is it will keep mold from growing on your seedlings and dirt which will cause stem rot which is one of the biggest killers of fragile seedlings.

The second is that it will make the stem good and strong so that your plant can grow big and strong.  The constant swaying is what makes the roots and stems grow strong.  At nursery’s they actually gently run their fingertips along to top of the plants a few times a day to accomplish the same things.

Are your plants sprouting up like string beans?

If they are that is a sure fire sign that your little seedlings are getting way to much water and their poor little stalks won’t be able to support them much longer.  Hold off watering them for a few days to see if they get stockier instead of longer.

Follow these tips and you will be well on your way to successfully starting plants from seeds!

Filed Under: Featured, Seed Gardening Tagged With: growing plants from seeds, making seeds grow, starting plants from seeds

How To Plant Rose Bushes

April 12, 2010 By Crissy Leave a Comment

Yes, there is a certain way to plant your rose bushes if you want them to survive and flourish for years to come.  So… How do you plant rose bushes?

The first thing you need to do before you plant your bushes is to dig a hole.  Not just any hole, a big hole.  Rose bushes need lots of room for their roots to grow and they have delicate roots so they will not be able to push through hard soil.

When you dig your hole you should be aiming for anywhere between 1 1/2 feet deep and 1 1/2 feet wide to 2 feet deep and two feet wide.  The bigger the better because that will give the roots plenty of room to roam.

So you have your hole.  Now what?

Next you are going to need to make a dirt mixture to put in the hole.  You should not use the soil that you took out especially if it is hard dirt like clay dirt.  Use a mixture of half and half miracle grow and peat moss.

The peat moss will keep the soil from getting too dense and will also help hold moisture in the dirt for the rose bushes.

Next, at the bottom of your hole you want to build a mound about 2/3′s of the way up in the whole  with the mound coming to a point in the middle and sloping down to the bottom.

Carefully untangle the roots of your rose bush and place the base of the roots on the top of the mound spreading the rest of the roots down the slopes.

How can you tell if your rose bush is the correct height?

At the base of the rose bush you will see a  nub where the bush has been spliced.  You need to make sure that when the whole is filled with dirt that this nub is above the dirt.

This is where the rose bush get it’s sunlight to stay healthy.

When your rose bush is at the correct height then fill the rest of the hole in with your dirt mixture, gently pat the dirt down and give it a good drink of water.

When you are watering your rose bushes try to avoid getting the leaves and roses wet especially if the sun is shining.

Now sit back and enjoy your beautiful rose bushes.  They should be blooming soon!

Filed Under: Featured, Rose Gardening Tagged With: how to plant rose bushes, planting roses, rose bushes, taking care of roses