Spring Planting Tips
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Article by: Michael McGroarty Spring means that the garden , Composting - aka: The Circle of Life! centers are packed with people, and car trunks are packed with plants. , Composting - aka: The Circle of Life! Everybody has dirt on their knees, dirt under their nails, , A Beautiful Rose Is Nature's Gift and is excited about gardening. , How to Grow Wildflowers To make certain that this excitement yields positive results, let's discuss the basics in this article of spring , Fertilizing Your Lawn for a Beautiful Landscape planting tips. , Plastic Pond Liners Installing new plants , Foraging In The Forest: Finding Materials That Link Your Home To The Great Outdoors and having them grow , Marsh Marigold successfully is not difficult, nor is it as complicated as some would have you think. Is it as easy as just digging a hole and setting the plant , How to Grow Wildflowers in? Yes, it certainly can be. I won't get into bed , Plants To Grow Old With or The Constant Battle preparation, as I have covered that in other articles that are available at http://www.freeplants.com Let's start with B&B plants. , How to Rid that Lawn of Thatch! B&B is short for balled in burlap. Closely examine the ball on the plant , Rosemary: The Herb of Remembrance and Friendship that you have purchased. Did the diggers wrap twine around the ball to hold the plant , How to Rid that Lawn of Thatch! secure? If they did, you should at least cut the twine and lay it in the bottom of the hole, or remove it completely. Pay close attention around the stem of the plant , The Not So Common Day Lily where it emerges from the root , Planting Roses (Bare or Semi Bare Root) ball, as diggers often wrap the twine around the stem several times as they tie the ball. This is extremely important because if the string is nylon, it will not rot and will girdle and kill the plant , Gardening Basics: Inspecting Your Soil two or three years from now. When B&B plants , Beauty After life - s For Drying - Grasses are stored in the nursery for extended periods of time it becomes necessary to re-burlap them if the bottom starts to rot before the plants , ing Roses (Bare Root or Semi Bare Root) are sold. If the plant , Dwarf Korean Lilac that you buy has been re-burlaped it is possible that there could be nylon stings between the two layers of burlap, so check the stem carefully. As long as the nylon string is removed from around the stem of the plant, , 3 Easy Steps to Growing s from Seed it is actually harmless around the rest of the ball, and you do not have to remove it. Is the root , The Flower Drying Game - Part 1: Air, Sand, and Sources ball wrapped in genuine burlap, or imitation burlap made of a non-biodegradable plastic , A Beautiful Rose Is Nature's Gift material? Genuine burlap will rot quickly underground and does not have to be disturbed before planting. If you're not sure or suspect a poly type burlap, you don't have to remove it completely, but should loosen it around the stem of the plant , A Beautiful Rose Is Nature's Gift and cut some vertical slices around the circumference of the ball. Now here's the critical part. What kind of soil , Important Uses of Weeds in the Lives of People are you planting in? If your soil , Outdoor Furniture Cushion Replacement- Redesign Your Outdoor Space is heavy clay, I highly suggest that you raise the planting bed , Say Your Feelings with Flowers - Flower Meaning at least 8" with good rich topsoil. If you can't do that for some reason, install the plant , Home for a Gnome? so that at least 2" or more of the root , Marsh Marigold ball is above the existing grade and mound the soil , Planting Roses (Bare Root or Semi Bare Root) over the root , Vermicomposting - Worm Composters For Eco-Friendly Waste Disposal and Recycling ball. Keep in mind that plants , ing Bare Root Roses installed this way could dry out over the summer, , Plants To Grow Old With or The Constant Battle but planting them flush with the ground in heavy clay can mean that the roots , The Not So Common Day Lily will be too wet at other times of the year. The "experts" suggest that when planting in clay soil , Gardening you dig the hole wider and deeper than the root , Dwarf Korean Lilac ball and fill around and under the plant , Say Your Feelings with Flowers - Flower Meaning with loose organic , Vermicomposting - Worm Composters For Eco-Friendly Waste Disposal and Recycling material. That sounds like a really great idea, doesn't it? Some of these experts also recommend that you dig the hole extra deep and put a few inches of gravel , Know Your Bird Feeders, Part 1 in the bottom for drainage. Where do you suppose they think this water , The Truth About MTD Snow Blowers is going to "drain" to? Keep in mind that most B&B plants , s To Grow Old With or The Constant Battle are grown in well drained soil. , Summer Gardening Tips That means that the soil , Organic Gardening - The Pros And Cons in the root , How to Rid that Lawn of Thatch! ball is porous and water , The Truth About MTD Snow Blowers can easily pass through. Now imagine if you will, a root , Gardening Basics: Inspecting Your Soil ball about 15" in diameter, setting in a hole 30" in diameter. All around and under that root , Know Your Bird Feeders, Part 1 ball is loose organic , Basics of Landscaping matter. Inside , Important Uses of Weeds in the Lives of People of that root , Basics of Landscaping ball is porous soil. , Gift Ideas for Bird Lovers Now along comes Mother Nature , Dwarf Korean Lilac with a torrential downpour. There is water , Plastic Pond Liners everywhere, and it is not going to soak into that hard packed clay soil, , Gardening Basics: Inspecting Your so it is just flowing across the top of the ground searching for the lowest point. When it reaches our newly planted tree , Organic Gardening - The Pros And Cons surrounded by loose organic , Gardening Soil matter, it is going to seep in until the planting hole is completely full of water. , Hedge Trimmers Are Tools Not Toys (Remember my article on getting rid of standing water , The Flower Drying Game - Part 1: Air, Sand, and Sources and the French drain system?) By using this planting technique we have actually created a French drain around our poor little plant , The Not So Common Day Lily that cannot tolerate its roots , Planting and Caring for Flower Bulbs being without oxygen for long periods of time. Because the bottom of this hole is clay, even though we've added gravel , How to Decorate your Outdoor Space without Breaking the Bank for drainage, there is nowhere for the water , Tips For Cleaning Your Patio to go, and this plant , Gardening Soil is going to suffer and likely die. If you cannot raise the planting bed , A Couple of Good Places to Buy Lawnmowers with topsoil, and are planting in clay soil, , Mosquitos... Beware! I recommend that you install the root , 3 Easy Steps to Growing Plants from Seed ball at least 2" above grade and backfill around the ball with the soil , Gardening Basics: Inspecting Your that you removed when you dug the hole. Backfilling with the clay soil , PH...An Important "Key" To Successful Gardening--In Plain English that you removed is actually like building , Mosquitos... Beware! a dam to keep excess water , Fertilizing Your Lawn for a Beautiful Landscape from permeating the root , Lawn Moles and Proper Lawn Care ball of your newly planted tree. , Hydroponics Gardening - An Introduction to Hydroponics Gardening for Beginners (Part 12) H2O2 The plant , Dwarf Korean Lilac is not going to thrive in this poor soil, , Water Lilies - Pruning and Trimming but at least it will have a chance to survive. Once again, raising the bed , 3 Easy Steps to Growing Plants from Seed with good rich topsoil is the best thing you can do to keep your plants healthy , A Couple of Good Places to Buy Lawnmowers and happy. No matter what kind of soil , Rosemary: The Herb of Remembrance and Friendship you have, be careful not to install your plants , Outdoor Furniture Cushion Replacement- Redesign Your Outdoor Space too deep. They should never be planted any deeper than they were grown in the nursery. Planting too deep is a common problem, and thousands of plants , Basics of Landscaping are killed each year by gardeners who just don't understand how critical planting depth is. Staking newly planted trees , Organic Gardening - The Pros And Cons is always a good idea. If your new tree , Foraging In The Forest: Finding Materials That Link Your Home To The Great Outdoors constantly rocks back and forth when the wind blows it will have a very difficult time establishing new roots , Preparing The Garden For Winter into the existing soil. , Lawn Moles and Proper Lawn Care Stabilize the tree , Foraging In The Forest: Finding Materials That Link Your Home To The Great Outdoors with a stake. You can use a wooden , Lawn Moles and Proper Lawn Care stake, a fence post, or for small trees , Worm Composting Bin I often use 1/2" electro magnetic tubing, (conduit), available at any hardware , Know Your Bird Feeders, Part 1 store. You can secure the tree , Gardening Soil to the stake with a single wrap of duct tape. In about six months or a year the sun , Planting Bare Root Roses will dry the glue on the duct tape and it will fall , Worm Composting Bin off. Check the tape to make sure that it has fallen off. You don't want to girdle the tree , Plastic Pond Liners with the tape. Container grown plants , Starting Seedlings Indoors are much easier. Follow the rules for depth of planting as described earlier. Before gently removing the plant , Backyard Landscaping Ideas - A Guide To Evergreen Trees And Shrubs from the container, check the drain holes in the bottom of the container for roots , Foraging In The Forest: Finding Materials That Link Your Home To The Great Outdoors that might be growing , Gardening Soil out the holes. If so, cut them off so they will not make it difficult to get the plant , Gardening Soil out of the container. The easiest way to remove the plant , ing Roses (Bare Root or Semi Bare Root) from the container is to place , Dutch Tulips your hand over the top of the container and turn it completely upside down and give it a gentle shake. The plant , How to Decorate your Outdoor Space without Breaking the Bank should slide right into your hand. Examine the root , 3 Easy Steps to Growing Plants from Seed mass as you hold it in your hand. Sometimes when plants , Soil PH...An Important "Key" To Successful Gardening--In Plain English have been growing , Planting and Caring for Flower Bulbs in a container for a long time the roots , Water Lilies - Pruning and Trimming start to grow , Fertilizing Your Lawn for a Beautiful Landscape in a circular pattern around the root , Toxic Pollutants & Their Effect on Fish Health mass. This is not good, and you should disturb these roots , How to Grow Wildflowers before planting so you can break this circular pattern. You can take a knife and actually make about three vertical slices from the top of the root , Hydroponics Gardening - An Introduction to Hydroponics Gardening for Beginners (Part 12) H2O2 mass to the bottom. This will stimulate new roots , Composting - aka: The Circle of Life! that will grow , Know Your Bird Feeders, Part 1 outward into the soil , Planting Bare Root Roses of your garden. , The Not So Common Day Lily Or you can just take your fingers and loosen the roots , Rosemary: The Herb of Remembrance and Friendship that are circling the root , Plastic Pond Liners mass and force them outward before you plant , Important Uses of Weeds in the Lives of People them. What about fertilizer, bone meal, peat moss, and all those other additives they are going to try and sell you at the garden , Organic ing - The Pros And Cons center? Raise your planting beds , Mosquitos... Beware! with good rich topsoil and forget about the additives. Be very careful with fertilizers, they can do more harm than good. I landscaped my house , Summer Gardening Tips 14 years ago and I haven't got around to fertilizing the plants , Say Your Feelings with Flowers - Flower Meaning yet, and have no intention of doing so. They look great. As far as bone meal and all those other soil , Know Your Bird Feeders, Part 1 additives are concerned, don't get too caught up in all that stuff. The only thing that I know for sure is that they will make your wallet thinner, but I don't think you'll see a difference in your plants. , Organic Gardening - The Pros And Cons Over the years I've landscaped several hundred homes , Hedge Trimmers Are Tools Not Toys with fantastic results, and I never added any of these additives to my planting beds. , The Beauty of Basil Did I mention planting in good rich topsoil? That's the secret!Michael J. McGroarty is the author of this article. Visit his most interesting website, http://www.freeplants.com and sign up for his excellent gardening , Beauty After life - Plants For Drying - Grasses newsletter. Article provided by http://gardening-articles.com You are welcome to use this article on your website or in your newsletter as long as you reprint it as is, including the contact information , Gift Ideas for Bird Lovers at the end. Website URLs must be active links. You are welcome to use this article with an affiliate link, http://www.freeplants.com/resellers.htm. |
  
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