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Growing Gardens

May 30th, 2009

The Herb Garden

The Herb Garden

 

A few observations:

 

The spring bulbs are all but done, replaced by irises, dames rocket, lily of the valley, aquilegia and bleeding hearts. The old fashioned roses have begun to send out a few brave blossoms to test the waters. It will not be long before the rest of the rose buds follow.

 

I have noticed the irises and lilacs are producing smaller flower heads than in previous years. At first, I thought ours were the only ones blooming on the small side, but travelling the county, I see a good many in the same condition. The same with the aquilegias.  A result of the extreme cold and deep snow of this past winter perhaps? Read the rest of this entry »

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Posted in Container Gardens, Herbs, My Garden, Perennials, Plants, Trees and Shrubs | Comments (1)

Groovy Patchouli

March 26th, 2009

If you were around in the sixties, you probably remember the patchouli craze. Patchouli incense was considered totally groovy. Sitting around someone’s basement, listening or jamming to folk, rock or psychedelic music, there was always a stick of patchouli incense burning to add to the illusion of being one of the “cool kids”.

 

Here we are a couple (?) of years later and I still love the scent of patchouli. So much so, that I will go out of my way to find patchouli incense, candles and oils (not so easy these days). I have grown patchouli. It’s not a difficult plant to grow (except in this house, which sounds the death toll for every exotic plant I bring into it).  But I have grown it successfully indoors before. 

 

When planted in a container, Patchouli loves vacationing outdoors for the summer.

Patchouli (Pogostemon cablin)

 

Tender Perennial

 

Hardy in Zone 11

 

Full to part sun (loves the heat)

 

Rich, well drained soil

 

Tiny white flowers bloom in late summer/early fall

 

Can be grown well in pots if fertilized regularly

 

Withstands heavy pruning

 

Propagate by seed or cuttings

 

Natural insect repellent

 

Disease tolerant

 

Use dried leaves as a fixative for potpourris

 

 Oils used in perfumery and aromatherapy

Patchouli is not  commonly offered at most garden centres or greenhouses. You’ll have better luck finding it at your local herb farm, or it can be ordered from Richter’s Herbs.

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Posted in Container Gardens, Herbs | Comments (0)

Cold Damaged Plants

January 23rd, 2009

Just after Christmas a winter storm blew through this area and knocked out the power for thirty two hours. Not having a generator or fireplace, bundling up in every piece of warm clothing and lighting candles was the best solution to staying warm. By 3:00 AM, the temperature in the house was sitting at 46F and it would be another nine and a half hours before the hydro was restored.  The pets and I came out of it unscathed, but, the houseplants did not fare so well. It did not take long for evidence of cold damage to appear.

 

The spathiphyllum was the first plant to show signs of cold damage. Some of the leaves began wilt, then, turn brown. The Chinese Evergreen just to be different, exhibited brown patches on the mature leaves. The newer leaves simply turned yellow. The African violets were the hardest hit. Their leaves were browning and curling, the flower buds went black.

Cold Damage on African violet leaves

Cold Damage on African violet leaves

 

 

 

To help these poor plants recover required some TLC. First, I cut off and flower buds to help the plants concentrate their energy on recovering instead of blooming. The next thing was to remove all of the damaged leaves at their base.

I then began fertilizing them for two weeks with a 20-20-20 water soluble fertilizer applied at half strength every time I watered them. I opted for a balanced fertilizer so that each part of the plant would receive enough food to help them regenerate themselves. The third week after the power outage, I switched to a starter fertilizer 10-52-10, again applied at half strength. This will be applied for another two weeks. By using a starter fertilizer, new and, stronger existing root development will occur. This will boost the plants feeding system, giving them the strength they need to fully recover. Once the plants are showing signs of producing new growth and roots, they will be put back on their normal diets, either 20-20-20, 15-30-15 or 15-8-15 depending on the plant.

 

On an added note, when the power was restored, I gathered the plants all up from their various locations in the house and placed them under grow lights to further aid the recovery process.  Most of them have been returned to their normal spots, but a couple of the violets are taking their time to recover, so they are still under lights.

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Posted in Container Gardens, HOW TO GARDEN, Houseplants | Comments (1)

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