The Anarcho Geek Info Center

Gosh it is gorgeous outside. There are so many colors in the air right now that just a simple drive to the supermarket turns into a huge nature spectacle; the colors in the trees are uncountable and completely breathtaking. It seems to me like for some unknown reason this is the season where trees get to put their best outfits on to try to impress each other and the people that drive by them. I think of it as some sort of beauty contest.

We all know that the reason this happens has to do with photosynthesis and the lack of sun light in the fall and winter times. This is the time where the trees take a break and survive from spring and summer sun light.

The sceneries that you can contemplate when out and about are unmemorable and are worth you taking a weekend drive to where you might find a lot of trees. Make sure and take your camera with you, some great wall frames or pictures to decorate your home can come out of this.

Fall is not the warmest or funniest season out of all for nature has given us. But if you really try to make the best of it and enjoy it for its beauty, you can get some great fun out of it.

Farmers and gardeners of long -gone past
were aware of the importance of keeping some
form of order in their farming or gardening to
keep the plants healthy, repel insects and pests
with no other tool but the plants and how they
are grouped together. Plants that are not
“friendly” together are planted separately.

There were no supportive scientific data to
back up their findings. They conducted their
experiments, with their lands as the laboratory
using the trial and error method year after year.
This method of gardening helps to keep this
earth healthy, minimize if not eliminate the
use of chemicals for growth or pest and disease
control. It keeps the soil balanced.

Plants can be good companions to one another.
They provide pest and insect control to their
neighbors. It can be the scent, hormones and oils
coming from their roots, flowers or leaves that
help to discourage disease and harmful pests
without losing their beneficial assets.

Taller sun-loving plants provide shade for the shorter
plants that prefer the shade.

Some plants provide extra nutrients, such as
deep- rooted plants that bring out sulfur, potassium
and calcium to the surface, for the benefit of the
shallow-rooted ones to share.

Some plants act as fungicide, insect and pest
repellants. Some plants accumulate sulfur well
and this gives an odor that many pests avoid.

Flowers and leaves with strong scent are known
to repel flying insects.

Secretions from the roots inhibit weeds and kill
parasitic worms and nematodes.

Some gardeners provide a “trap” plant to absorb
the disease or attract harmful pests without causing
harm to itself

These plants can be used as borders, ground covers,

backdrops or interplant to keep the plants happy and
healthy and in good company.

Some good neighbors and partners

Marigolds top the list. The strong scent from
the flowers and foliage repel pests and the roots
inhibit nematodes. Plant with vegetables and
other flowering plants.

CAUTION: Marigolds are not friendly with
herbaceous plants. The root secretions can
inhibit the growth of the herbs. If you must
plant marigolds with herbs, don’t plant them
too close, keep them around the edges.

Foxglove ( Digitalis) have beautiful flowers
and it is known to stimulate the growth of plants
near it. It makes the neigboring plants disease
resistant. It improves the storage qualities of
fruits and vegetables and root vegetables.
probably due to gaseous secretions and minute
hormones.

Insect repellants :
Many flowers used as border plants repel flying
insects, such as: coreopsis, coriander, cosmos,
geranium, marigolds, chrysanthemum, marjoram,
oregano

Most vegetables are friendly to one another.

Peas and beans make good companions
for other plants because the roots fix the
nitrogen supply for the other plants,

Onions and garlic and other plants from the
alium family are beneficial to plants around
them. These plants are known as good fungicides
and insecticides. They accumulate sulfur
very efficiently and the odor they emit repels
many pest and other pesky four-legged critters.
Plant with cabbage, tomatoes, peas, corn.
Good for roses too.

Unfriendly neighbors:
Avoid planting these together for they are
unfriendly and definitely not good companions:

rue and basil
runner beans and potatoes
beets and beans
beans and onions or garlic
strawberries and cabbage
dill and carrots
cucumber and potato, no strong herbs
potato - no cucumber, pumpkin, raspberry, squash, sunflower, tomato

Fennel prefers to be by itself.

This is just a short list.

Herbs are good companions to most plants.
The strong scent repels most pests. Some
herbs are also known to bring out potassium,
sulfur and calcium to the soil surface for the
plants around it to benefit from. Chamomile is
especially favored for these qualities.

This can be a topic by itself for herb gardeners.

Reference: Garden Folklore that Works by Charlie Ryrie

STARTING A CONTAINER GARDEN

Container gardens are the ideal solution for people who enjoy gardening but simply have little to no space. With this type of garden, you have the opportunity to plant a wonderful selection of vegetables and flowers, but instead of using land outside, you use small containers. Obviously, for individuals living in apartments, city dwellers, or homes without outside yard space where only a small balcony or patio is available, a container garden makes perfect sense. Regardless of the size your space is, your garden can be designed with wonderful variation for color and fragrance.

The first thing is choosing the containers for your garden. Interestingly, with a container garden, you can use literally anything. For instance, some great choices include things such as old bathtubs, washtubs, whiskey barrels, glass jars, kitchen bowls, ceramic pots, watering cans, you name it, and you could probably start a container garden in it. As long as the container will hold soil, plants, and water, you are set to go.

With a container garden, the type of container you choose will need to have a good drain hole in the bottom. If not, you can put two pieces of masking or duct tape in a crisscross pattern on the bottom and then with a small drill, begin to drill through the center, slowly working your way outward until the size is approximately one-inch in diameter. Then, prior to placing soil in the container, we suggest you place broken potshards or gravel in the bottom to help keep the soil inside the pot, especially when watering.

Popular choices for container gardens are wooden containers. In this case, just make sure the container is quality wood or you might be dealing with a bad case of wood rot. In addition to this, never use pretreated wood. With this, the wood has been treated with preservatives that can leak down into the soil, causing damage to the plants. Therefore, if you have your heart set on wood, simply choose something such as redwood or cedar, both excellent options.

You also want to make sure you have fun creating your container garden. Many times, you can find colorful trinkets or figurines already around the house or garage that would be perfect to enhance the look of your garden. If not, rather than spend a lot of money, you could check out local thrift stores, shopping for containers and knickknacks. With a container garden, you can create a sophisticated look, something Victorian, perhaps a rustic country look, or a garden that is colorful and whimsical.

Another important aspect of the container garden is the soil. Since you are planting in a confined space, soil from your yard is generally fine but you might consider buying a bag of good soil, which typically costs less than $5. The reason is that bought soil provides you with a cleaner mix, which is both disease and weed free. An important tip to remember when and if you ever report any of the plants - never reuse soil form the containers.

The growing mixture you use with container gardening is also designed so water will drain off quickly. The importance of this is to allow enough moisture to keep roots moist without the plants sitting in soaking wet soil, which can lead to root rot and other diseases. You also want to consider the plants that you grow since some may require different balances of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Just be sure you leave two inches from the top of the container between the top of the soil.

Because the soil for your container garden is formulated to drain quickly, fertilizer is important. A good rule of thumb is that the lighter the soil the more frequent you will need to fertilize. We suggest you go with a diluted type of liquid fertilizer. Two of the best options for healthy fruits and vegetables, as well as vibrant flowers are liquid seaweed or fish emulsion. However, remember that again, different plants have different nutritional needs to try to purchase those with the same requirements.

Typically, container gardens need about five to six hours of direct sunlight daily. Now, if you plan to grow vegetables such as carrots or beets, they would need more with fruits like tomatoes and cucumbers needing even more. For flowers, this would depend on the type of flowers being grown. In this case, your best option is to read the sunlight recommendations for plants when buying and purchase flowers with like requirements.

If you plan to grow flowers in your container garden, now the fun part starts with choosing what you will grow. Although you have literally hundreds and hundreds of possibilities, the following are some of our recommendations:

Browallia - Upward facing chalices that are simply beautiful. These desert bluebells can handle all types of conditions. Additionally, these flowers are beautiful as the main attraction or filler plants.

Coleus - This type of houseplant produces magnificent leaves of bronze, white copper, gold, yellow, red, pink, and purple. Hardy and strong, Coleus are a perfect addition to any container garden.

Impatiens - The flowers of Impatiens are dainty yet prolific. The petals shimmer with a magnificent coral, peach, and pink color with a darker petal margin that makes each bloom distinct.

Periwinkle - This type of flower is virtually disease and pest free. Best of all, it readily reseeds itself. The flowers are a beautiful white and pink color, adding gentle color to your garden.

Snapdragons - Everyone loves Snapdragons. If you have a container garden that can accommodate some height, these flowers provide a magical carpet of color with vibrant yellow, orange, pink, and red.

Black-Eyed Susan - Perfect for container gardens, these flowers are actually fast-growing vines that produce incredible yellow, orange, and white flowers with solid eyes, thus the name.

Keep in mind that these flower recommendations are just a few that you might consider. The best thing with any container garden is to do what you like. Once you have decided on a container and soil, choose flowers, plants, vegetables, herbs, or fruits that you enjoy. You will be amazed at just how rewarding a container garden can be.

WNY Alive © 2005

For more articles on this topic and others visit http://www.wnyalive.com

Eileen Melgar is an avid gardener and the editor of http://www.wnyalive.com

If you’re lucky enough to have a lawn with a good topsoil base, much of the hard work of keeping a lawn beautiful is already done for you. But many of us do not have this luxury, and besides, even with a good topsoil base, you still have to work hard to keep a beautiful lawn and garden.

1. The best time to mow a lawn is when it is cool and dry. Wait for the morning dew to dry off, and before the afternoon heat takes hold. Alternatively, late afternoon or early evening following a watering in the morning is also a good time.

2. A hedge is a much better boundary divider than a fence. It will provide better privacy and keep pets and children in - or out. It will attract birds to its shelter, and provide a great backdrop for plants and flowers.

3. Bring the beauty of your garden to you; plant hyacinths near walkways and doors. Their magnificent perfume will swamp the spring air and make your garden really come alive.

4. Add your garden to non-garden items, such a lampposts and mail boxes. Surround these items with flowers planted to take advantage of the earliest to the latest flowerings. You could have white snowdrops, purple and gold crocus, blue hyacinths, and various colored tulips. You could also surround the posts with rocks to provide added interest.

5. Simple, but effective weed control can be achieved on your lawn by mowing often during spring. This will prevent dandelions spreading by eliminating the yellow blossoms and preventing seed formation. Mow high during late spring and early summer. This will allow grass blades to shade the ground, and will help prevent crabgrass from sprouting.

Your lawn and garden should be a source of pride and beauty. You don’t need to spend lots of money on expensive fertilizers and herbicides, or fancy lawn furniture and ornaments. A little commonsense and thought can go a long way to making your lawn and garden a much better place.

George Chapman is the author of several commonsense approach gardening books filled with his lifetime’s experience of lawn and garden management. His website on the www.LawnAndGardenReferrals.com“>lawn and garden provides many useful tips.