Spider Plants Spin A Nice Web For Low Growing Plants

Plant seeds of cleome -- also called spider plant -- for a colorful display of background flowers to compliment your low growing plants.
They also can be planted to mass in beds, grow as boarders to walks or even raised in tubs on porch or patio.
Clusters of cleome flowers, each - up to 2 1/2 inches across, grow in trusses of dinner plate size on 4-5 ft. tall stems. As the spent flowers wither and drop, new buds burst open for a continuous show of color from midsummer to frost. They are attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies.
After old flowers die, they send out stems with seed pods that extend beyond the pack of new flowers to resemble spider legs.
When the leaves of this plant are crushed they release a scent that resembles that of marigolds, causing many insects to avoid this plant.
Some old time gardners mixed the crushed leaves with water to make an insect repelling spray for use on other flower plants.
Even the stems of cleome can emit a sticky juice that also repels pests.
Look for seed of this easy-to-grow annual on racks at garden centers or order them from catalogs. For earliest blooms purchase professionally grown plants at a local nursery.
They come in many colorful shades of purple, pink and plain white. You many even find radiant orange.
Cleome plants will grow in light shade but are at their best in full sunshine. As natives to the jungles of South America they can endure summer heat and drought, but will welcome a weekly watering if the season is dry.
Spade up the planting area 8-10 inches deep. Mix in some well rotted cow manure or compost. As you rake it smooth, remove any grass roots and other debris. About mid May, when the soil is warm, sow the seeds as directed on the package. It takes about 10 days for them to sprout.
When the young plants are about 3-4 inches high, thin them out to space them 15-18 inches apart. Water and weed as needed.
Plants can start to bloom when 12-15 inches high and continue to flower into early fall. When buds start to show, fertilize them with liquid cow manure or fish emulsion.
About mid June, mulch the plants 2-3 inches deep with pine needles, hay or other organic material that won’t pack down under rain. This will keep weeds form sprouting and conserve soil moisture.
You can cut off the trusses of flowers to display in tall vases. Wear gloves to protect your hands from the burry and sticky stems.
In the fall, the plants will self seed. When the new seedlings sprout, in the spring, thin them out as mentioned above. The plants removed can be used to start new beds or give them to friends. Cleome seeds can even be sown in late fall by scattering them on the soil where they are to grow.

Bring Some Hawaii To Your Back Yard

You can grow a hybrid hibiscus plant in your yard with blooms similar to those of the state flower of Hawaii.
Flowers of this showy perennial open up to 8-10 inches across. They last only a day or two, followed by a succession of new blooms from summer to frost.
These plants are related to the rose mallow, hollyhocks, rose of Sharon and okra.
You can cut off the massive flowers in the early morning and store them in the refrigerator, to keep fresh until needed for making impressive indoor arrangements.
These plants are available at some garden centers or you can order them from a nursery catalog, such as Wayside Gardens, Hodges, SC 29695 (Phone: 800-845-1124).
They come in a variety of colors, such as red, rose, pink, white and combinations of these colors.
Plant several for a spectacular show in a sunny spot when the soil is warm, late May or early June.
Because they grow a long tap root, make a hole 12-15 inches deep for each planting where they’ll get six hours or more of sunshine. Mix one half organic matter, such as compost, cow manure or peat moss with the soil you remove. To this add some wood ashes or bone meal. These plants prefer soil pH 5.8-7.8.
As you fill in the soil around each plant, adjust the crown so it comes to ground level. Firm the soil and water well. Space plants 3-4 ft. apart. They grown 4-5 ft. tall and can spread over 4 ft.
Be sure to keep the soil moderately moist for a few weeks. Then water weekly as needed, Ideally, these plants will thrive in soil that stays moderately moist, but not soggy. Fertilize monthly with a liquid organic plant food, such as fish emulsion.
Mulch the plants about mid June to conserve soil moisture and smother weeds. This can be a few inches of pine needles, hay or dry grass clippings mixed with peat moss.
New plants may not flower the first year, but will start the second summer and bloom profusely in season over many more years.
In the fall after frost hits the plants, prune back the canes to 3-4 inches above ground level. When the ground freezes, apply a 4-5 inch winter mulch over the plants, like pine needles, chopped oak leaves or other organic material that won’t pack down under rain and melting snow.
When new growth shows, in the spring, gradually remove the mulch as the weather warms. Fertilize with a dressing of well rotted cow manure and water it in.
After several years the planting can become over crowed. Spring is the best time to dig out the roots for separation. This will require some careful digging because of the deep tap root. Japanese beetles may be one of the major pest that can be attracted to these plants. You can hand pick them off and drop them into a container or water mixed with a little household detergent. Milky spore disease applied to your lawn as directed, will help to control the grubs.

Don't Cry Over Your Onion Patch

A sure way to have an abundant crop of onions by late summer is to plant sets or seedlings now, while the weather is cool.
Onion Sets are small bulbs started from seed last year and stored over the winter. Plant them with pointed ends up to grow into mature onions in about 100 days. They come in yellow (for cooking); white (for slicing): or red (for salads). Select firm bulbs one-half to one inch in diameter to grow more solid globes.
Merely press a row of bulbs into the prepared garden bed and cover them with an inch of soil. Space them two inches apart, firm the soil around them with your hands, water well and they’re off to start root growth, encouraged by cool weather.
Onion Seedling are young plants, available in several varieties. Soak them overnight in tepid water and transplant them into the prepared garden bed. Space each plant two inches apart. Water well. They’ll take longer than sets to mature, but resulting onions will be firmer, with better keeping qualities.
Both methods above are available at garden centers or from seed catalogs, such as Burpee, Warminster, PA 18974.
Prepare a planting bed in a part of your yard that gets six or more hours of full sunshine daily. Spade up the soil 6-8 inches deep. Work in organic matter, such as compost or well rotted cow manure. Add wood ashes, if available, to encourage strong roots. Onions like soil pH 5.8-6.5.
When top growth on each plant is 6-7 inches tall, pull out every other one to eat with meals as tangy scallions. This will give the remaining plants room to grow good size bulbs.
Fertilize monthly with an organic liquid plant food, such as cow manure “tea.” Water as needed, at least an inch weekly. Keep the plants weeded and the soil lightly cultivated. Onions resent competition from weeds.
Onions also can be grown from seeds which ideally should be started indoors in late February or early March. Seed grown plants produce firmer bulbs that are best for long storage.
When the green tops on your plants start to fall over, it is a sign that the bulbs are ready to harvest. Gently lift them out of the soil with a spading fork.
Prune off the foliage to about an inch from each bulb. Spread the bulbs out in a sunny area to dry for a few days.
Store the dry onions in net bags or in open containers. Keep them in a cool area such as a corner of your cellar, away from the furnace. Inspect them weekly to remove any that show signs of decay.
Although onions are bothered by few pests, one of the most destructive is the root maggot. Eggs of this insect are laid by a small fly in the soil near the plant or on it. Resulting larvae enters the roots and destroys the plant. Organic controls are to spread builder’s sand of diatomaceous earth (available at garden centers) around each plant. Or you can tent the plants under a row cover. Most damage by these insects is done in the spring.

Bleeding Hearts Put On A Show In The Shade

For a spectacular show of color in shady areas, May or early June, plant old fashioned bleeding heart (Dicentra Spectabilis).
Rosy red, heart-shaped blossoms, tipped in white, dangle gracefully from arched stems on 2 1/2 - 3 ft. plants amid blue green foliage.
Where fall frosts come late, roots of this plant can be planted now, to become established before the soil freezes. They’ll be off to an early start next spring. Otherwise plant the roots next spring as soon as the soil can be worked.
Early fall is a good time to dig up clumps of dormant roots on over crowded bleeding heart plants, to be separated and replanted.
Handle these roots gently to avoid damage as they are very brittle. Cut them apart with an eye on each.
Because these plants dislike being moved, be sure they are overcrowded before you do so.
Purchase new roots at a local garden center or order them from a nursery catalog.
Select a planting area in a corner of your yard where sunlight filters through the tree branches.
Get your new planting off to a good start by digging a hole 12 inches square and as deep for each root. Fill it with a mixture of one half compost or peat moss to one part good loam and one part coarse builders sand. Add a few handfuls of bone meal. Plant roots in this mixture and mark the area so you can locate it easily in the spring.
Mulch a new planting after the soil is frozen so winter frost heaves won’t work roots out of the soil.
After flowering, the foliage on a bleeding heart plant withers and dies down. Remove it promptly. Mark the area with a stake, as mentioned above.
When new growth shows, in the spring, fertilize with well rotted cow manure, fish emulsion or other organic plant food.
Be sure the plant gets water as needed, if the season is dry.
There are some 15 species of bleeding heart plants in Asia and North America, among which are:
White bleeding hear (D. spectabilis alba), White heart shaped blossoms on graceful arches, May or early June. Plants with blue green foliage grow up to 30 inches tall.
Perpetual flowering bleeding heart (D. Luxuriant). Cherry red blossoms open from April until early fall. Fern like, blue green foliage. Grows in partial sunshine or light shade.
You may find some plants of the Dicentra genus growing as wild flowers in woodlands. Do not disturb them as they are part of our natural environment.
Dutchman’s breeches (D. cucullaria) is a wild species that grows to 10 inches tall, with pale green leaves. It’s sometimes called fairy eardrops. White-to-pinkish flowers have two trouser like spurs. It blossoms late April to early May. Squirrel corn (D. canadensis) is another wild species with leaves that resemble Dutchman’s breeches. It grows elongated heart shaped, cream colored flowers.

Hosta Plants Can Florish For 25 Years Or More

You’ll see hosta plants flowering in many home gardens during the months of July and August.
These easy-to-care-for perennials, also called plantainlily and, formerly funkia, are related to daylilies. Most grow best in light shade, such as ground covers around trees and shrubs. They make interesting borders and beds in areas that get little sun. A few will tolerate full sunshine.
When established, hosta plants can flourish in a garden for 25 years or more, with little care. They are bothered by few insects or diseases.
There are many hybrids of these plants, with leaves in an assortment of colors from blue green to true green and in-between shades, with variegated foliage. Some leaves are bordered in white or cream. Leaves can be 15 inches long and up to 10 inches wide or only up to 5 inches in length.
Flower scapes grow a foot or more above the foliage, depending upon the variety. Blossoms resemble miniature lilies. They can be white or many shades of lavender.
You can set out plants in the spring or fall. Some gardeners favor spring plantings so that the roots will be well established by fall. Springtime is also an ideal season to thin overcrowded plants. It can take two years for new plants to start flowering.
Spade up the soil for new beds 8-10 inches deep. Work in compost, peat moss or well rotted manure, plus some bone meal. Just before the plants start flowering, mulch them with well rotted manure or compost to give them an extra boost and to conserve soil moisture and smother weeds. Be sure they get water as needed.
Flower stalks can be cut to make graceful indoor arrangements in a tall vase.
Remove the foliage after it has been hit by frost, in the fall. When the ground is frozen, protect new plantings with a winter mulch. This can be pine needles, composted oak leaves or other organic matter that won’t pack down under rains or melting snow.
In the spring, when new growth shows, remove the winter mulch and fertilize the plants with well rotted manure or other organic plant food.
Night working slugs, snails and earwigs are some of the few pests that are attracted to these plants. They eat holes in the foliage. Check the leaves occasionally for signs of them.
To find out which of these pests are doing the damage, use a flashlight to check the foliage at night.
An organic method for trapping slugs and snails is to set a saucer of stale beer at ground level near the plants. They will be tempted by the fermenting beer only to drown in the liquid.
Trap earwigs by crumpling newspaper into a can or a flower pot and laying it on its side near the plants so they can hide in it by day. Shake them out into a container of water mixed with a little household detergent.