How to Buy a Porch Swing
September 2, 2010
The Porch Swing is enjoying a surge in popularity thanks to the latest Home & Garden trend towards building “Garden Rooms”. Patio Furniture Retailers have responded by flooding the market with so many options that making a choice can be a daunting task. Here are some factors that you should consider to help you make the best Porch Swing choice for you:
Porch Swings are now made from a wide range of building materials. The most common are wood and wicker. Popular woods used are cedar, teak, pine, maple, and oak. The materials vary greatly in terms of strenth and durability. While Oak is the strongest, it also tend to be very heavy. Cedar offers the greatest strength to lightest weight ratio. The wood is very light and has 80% the strength of oak. Cedar also has natural properties that enable the wood to resist rot and decay. In addition, it won’t bow or sag, crack or chip making it one of Outdoor Furniture’s most desired building materials. Pine is lightweight and relatively inexpensive but is soft and dents and cracks easily. The durability of wicker varies depending on the materials used to make the wicker.
Wooden Garden Furniture
August 30, 2010
Wooden Garden Furniture can be the ideal solution to various seating problems in your garden. You can add new seating areas to your garden by perhaps turning a path into a destination for a sit down or consider adding a few pieces of wooden garden furniture to less frequented corners of the garden.
Your garden may be a coastal beach or you have a garden naturalistic wooded landscape, you can easily find some pieces that add the perfect touch to your garden, since wooden garden furniture can suit just about any style.
For example, rustic wooden furniture can add just the right touch to your woodland garden. It is possible to get benches, tables, and seats that are often made entirely from who tree trunks that still have bark on them. Other pieces are a combination of pinewood and tree branches. This style of wooden garden furniture has a natural handcrafted look that makes them an excellent addition to any garden.
A classic combination for coastal gardens is an Adirondack chairs with a matching side table and footstool. These chairs are ideal for a decking area or patio, particularly when they are painted in bright primary colours. They are very comfortable to sit in and the wide arms of the chairs are ideal for holding a glass of something.
Earthworm Friends in the Garden
August 27, 2010
Earthworms are a gardener’s best friend.
Research has shown that earthworm excrement, also called castings or vermicompost, improves the aeration, porosity, structure, drainage, and moisture-holding capacity of soil.
Many studies prove that when compared to conventional composts, vermicompost is less variable and much more stable. Mixing vermicompost into the planting medium essentially eliminated the need for additional fertilizer in the production of tomato plugs as one example.
Studies show that earthworm castings increase height, stem diameter, enhance root growth, increase dry weight, and produce more flowers per plant than peat moss.
Redworm castings are the richest and purest humus matter in the world. Humus is believed to aid in the prevention of harmful plant pathogens, fungi, nematodes and bacteria.
One pound of worms can convert one pound of pig manure into compost in 48 hours!
Worms consume three times their weight a week or more. Red wrigglers are very active, reproduce quickly and consume their own body weight of waste every 24 hours. Therefore ten pounds of worms will eat ten pounds of waste in 24 hours!
Worm castings provide a rich source of a variety of essential plant nutrients.
Dream Yard
August 23, 2010
Do you ever dream about what your yard could look like some day? As you look through garden catalogs filled with beautiful trees, shrubs, flowers and pictures of beautifully landscaped yards–complete with ponds and garden sculptures–the choices seem endless. Before ordering hundreds of plants or giving up because you cannot decide what you really want, here are a few things to consider.
A common issue in landscaping is creating a peaceful, private environment. While fencing can provide immediate privacy, consider a buffer strip of shrubbery between your yard and the one next door. Many shrubs will grow quickly–within a couple of years–and act as a screen while providing habitat for a variety of birds. Consider planting native shrubs because they are usually well adapted to local conditions and may provide the best habitat for local wildlife. Other considerations: whether the plants have special characteristics such as flowers or fruits, how large they will eventually become, and how much maintenance they require to remain healthy and in scale with your yard. Check with a local nursery or garden center for recommended species.
Buying Teak Wood Furniture Responsibly
August 20, 2010
Teak has many qualities that make the indoor and outdoor furniture made out of this a coveted high value asset. They last for generations. The durable nature is due to the hard grain nature of the tree. These are a high demand items in many parts of the world. The prices are sky-rocketing and unless you get it from the source you are going to pay a huge price to add this to your Home Collection. The products made out of teak wood have a pleasant smell unlike other untreated wooden furniture. The hard nature of the wood makes it easier to work with by the craftsman creating unique patterns and designs. You could have come across the priced museum collections of old south Asian kingdom there is teak in most of them. This has the ability to create smooth patterns and complex designs because of the properties of the wood. They don’t create splinters like other wood and hence the furniture is safe. The smooth finishes created by the craftsmen can be enjoyed by many generations as it is more resistant to rot and other damages.
How to Make Your Backyard a Wonderland Oasis
August 17, 2010
Home and garden accessories make the difference between house and home. Unfortunately, quality accessories can be notoriously expensive and in today’s economy, finding beauty at a price one can afford is sometimes difficult but can be done. The difference between an empty backyard and a lush garden oasis comes down to the details. Visual and aural grace notes can transform any space.
Creating a relaxing atmosphere has as much to do with sound as with visual details. For instance, a simple white hammock suspended between two trees or a solid-wood swing becomes a perfect spot for Sunday afternoon naps and quiet conversations. Accompany that with tea-light candle lanterns, arranged attractively on a treated outdoor cocktail table placed next to a rose bed makes a perfect place for morning coffee. Hang a wood and steel wind chime nearby, hung high in the trees, sending pleasant notes over the air. Depending on the materials used in construction, wind chimes can sound like tinkling bells, or have rich, sonorous chimes. Finally, place a gently flowing fountain just behind is always an elegant finishing touch. Voila. You’ve incorporated all the elements: fire, water, steel and wood, and created your own Feng Shui paradise.
Tractors and Their History
August 13, 2010
I recently bought a small tractor for my garden, which prompted me to right this article.
The tractor was a John Deere, GT235. John Deere tractors are quite popular in the USA, so thought I would share a few words about the man himself!
John Deere was born in Rutland, Vermont in 1804. In 1837 he built the first steel plough, using steel from an old sawmill blade. By 1842 100’s of plows and by 1852, Deere & Co. were located in Moline, Illinois, who were producing 4000 ploughs per year. John Deere passed away in 1886 and the company was taken over by his son.
Tractors form a major part of any farm work throughout the world, Previously, this task would have been carried out by traditional horse and cart, but with the industrial revolution, and the advent of the modern engine, is now done by tractors.
In 1918 Deere & Co. acquired the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company and were instantly in the tractor business.
John Deere’s most popular tractor, the Model A, began production in 1934. This spawned a popular line of two-cylinder tractors including the B, G, L, LA, H, and M.
Bedding Plants and Plugs (small plants)
August 9, 2010
It is not difficult to grow bedding plants from seeds, and you may be surprised to know you do not need to have a greenhouse or some hot room to grow them in. I have managed to grow my plants by placing them in an old carton/pot covered in a polythene bag. However, please remember to leave the pot where sunlight can get to it, i.e., a window ledge or a balcony.
In a previous article I have advised purchasing seedlings and bulbs from places like, a local fair or pound shop ( quite a phenomena here in the UK). Most magazine tend to have quite good offers on seedlings as well. Alternatively you can buy a young plant which means you do not have to incubate them like the seedlings.
Bedding plants are cheaper when bought in trays and can be bought from most garden centres and the like. Although, if you can afford it, it maybe worthwhile buying them in pots as they generally tend to grow better.
Alternatively you can buy young plants, called plugs, but please do check for obvious signs, such as leaves going yellow or mouldy.
How To Plan A Garden Right
August 5, 2010
Gardening is a hobby that brings joy, entertainment, and a better quality of life. It is a creative activity, the result of which is a more aesthetically appealing home.
Thoughtful planning of a garden starts with the type of garden you would like to have. Deciding on a type of garden is essential defore choosing which design elements to include. Will your garden be just a place to plant a bunch of flowers, which will blossom only during the growing season? Or would you rather have a thoughtfully-chosen herb garden? Or maybe just a vegetable plot?
Another issue to consider is the climate in your location. It can be surprising how little we know about the facts, figures and statistics of the weather where we live. You may want to consult an online map to get statistical data regarding climate elements like rainfall per month or average temperatures.
The next step, after having decided about the type of garden and after investigating the local climate, is to figure out the plants that you would like to grow in your garden. Think of plants that are suitable for the duration of the growing season in your location and that will survive the changes in temperature, typical for your location.
How To Attract Hummingbirds
August 2, 2010
Yes! You can attract hummingbirds to your home. Even if you live in the middle of the city, and even if you’ve never had any luck getting them to come in the past.
Try one or more of these tips, and you should begin to see hummers around your yard soon.
Plant A Hummingbird Garden:
One good way to attract Hummingbirds is by planting a Hummingbird garden. In addition to providing them a natural diet, a hummer garden is an excellent way to attract birds to your nearby feeder since hummingbirds feed by sight on regularly followed routes. This is called traplining. Their inquisitive nature will quickly lead them to investigate any possible new source of food.
Hummers, like most birds, have virtually no sense of smell, the flowers that attract them tend to have little or no fragrance, apparently directing their resources instead toward high visibility and nectar production.
Some plants to consider that will attract Hummingbirds include:
Azalea
- Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) - Cape Honeysuckle - Manzanita - Mimosa - Red Buckeye - Coral Honeysuckle - Cypress Vine - Morning Glory - Trumpet Creeper - Bee Balm (Monarda) - Cardinal Flower - Columbine - Coral Bells - Four O’Clocks - Hummingbird Mint (Agastache) - Penstemon - Yucca - Fuchsia - Jewelweed - Petunia - Shrimp Plant
