6 Amazing Ideas to Transform Your Garden

Are you tired of the same bushes and pots of plants in your garden? There are a few things that you can do to improve your outdoor living space, and transform it into a magnificent recreation place.

After many years of planning and saving, you finally have your own house. Or maybe after years of living in a tiny apartment, you can have your own little place to play and relax. Your new home has some very useful rooms, a very nice kitchen, and a beautiful front yard.  Keeping your garden area beautiful is a fun and exciting experience.

 

 

 

ideas to transform your garden

 

Are you tired of the same bushes and pots of plants in your garden? There are a few things that you can do to improve this green area and transform it into a magnificent recreation place.

After many years of planning and saving, you finally have your own house. Or maybe after years of cramming inside a tiny flat, you can have your own little place to play and relax. Your new home has some very useful rooms, a very nice kitchen, and a beautiful front yard. Keeping your garden beautiful is a fun and exciting experience. Pay attention to the following tips, and you’ll see how your garden starts to glow.

  1. Water your plants

It may sound obvious, but it has to be the first on your list. Plants vary according to how much and how often they need to be watered. The different plants need different amount of water, and thus you need to plan accordingly. You can build a smart water system that can use the unused water or rainwater. A good water system in the garden can make your garden blossom with flowers and fruits.

  1. Decorate with a hammock

If you have two big trees and they are reasonably close to each other, you can try hanging a hammock between them to add an extra chill look to your garden. You can take a quick nap while enjoying the beauty of your garden.

  1. Paint some rocks

Rocks are the natural decorative elements of a garden. They are everywhere. Find a medium-sized rock and then paint it with a bright colour. It will transform your garden into a perfect eye-catcher. However, don’t paint them all as huge pink rocks all over the place would have the complete opposite effect. Another practical décor idea is to have artistic paints on the surface of the rocks,

  1. Choose a theme for your garden

Who says gardens are boring? You can choose a topic or theme and plan your garden following that idea. Jungle, beach, or the forest are some of the vegetation types that you could use to give your garden a touch of the foreign world right there in your house. These plants have a special treatment, and you should also pay attention to your lawn care. If your lawn does not follow the same style of the theme you have chosen, it will definitively look odd.

  1. Ask a gardener

Sometimes an expert advice is the best way to start. If your garden has some problems, such as water supply, tricky areas for lights or maybe a fungus is attacking your plants; the best option would be to call a professional. It is nice to have somebody monitoring the place once in a while.

  1. Glass bottle border

If you want to divide your garden into areas, you can use some glass bottles. First, you will need to decide on the size and shape of the bottles, the medium-size ones work best if you want to delimit a path. Then, you can try painting the bottles and aligning them following a color pattern you have selected. If you don’t like it, you can easily remove the bottles and start all over again.

Hope these ideas to transform your garden will help you find the perfect balance to improve your garden. It can be difficult at the beginning to find the rhythm and energy to maintain an area as green as you want. But, it is surely worth trying.

About the Author: Jane Anderson loves to write on various topics such as health, gardening, and lawn care.  For more information visit yardday.com

 

 

7 Ideas To Decorate Outdoor Space for Fall

outdoor space for fall

 

Fall is in the air.  The air is getting crisp, and soon the leaves will changing from green to shades of red, brown, yellow, orange and burgundy.  As a result, most people are thinking about how they can decorate outdoor space for fall. It’s the perfect time to change up your décor and give your backyard and porch a makeover.

First, the changes don’t have to be extravagant.  You can go from summer to fall without breaking the bank.  Check out our tips on how to decorate outdoor space for fall below:

1. Add a Bench or Baskets So, benches are great for sitting on or displaying fall flowers, and pumpkins. And baskets filled with gourds and Indian corn are a sign of fall for sure. If you’re able to locate apple baskets, they would be perfect for displays.  

2. Build/Add a Fire Pit  – Next, add a fire pit to your deck or backyard.  They’re great for making s’mores or warming up while sipping a glass of cider or wine.  Don’t forget the hot dog roasts.  Open fires make a perfect venue for roasting them.  

3. Change Cushions and Pillows – Furthermore, switch your summer pillows to a fall theme.  Shades of orange, brown, yellow and burgundy are great ways to bring fall into your outdoor space. Just scatter a few here and there.  

4. Add a Rug  – Your deck is part of your outdoor space tool.  As a result, add a rug to your deck.  It will bring the space together.  An outdoor rug is just as affective as an area rug indoors.  Most importantly, it makes the outdoor living space cozy and comfortable. 

5.  Add Plants and Flowers – Additionally, fall is the perfect time to add mums and pansies to your yard.  And don’t forget your containers.  They will both last well into fall. If you decide to plant mums in the ground, mulch them well.  They will return year after year.  Mums can be found in white, yellow, orange and burgundy.  

6.  Add Cornstalks to Corners – Cornstalks give height and interest to an area.  So, stop by your local farmer’s market and pick up a bundle.  Or, if you know a farmer close to you, stop by and see if they will give you a few stalks from their fall harvest. 

7.  Add Pumpkins  – Last, pumpkins can be used in many areas of your yard.  The front porch, in baskets, on benches, in wagons and the list goes on.  Use large or small pumpkins, and don’t forget to get a variety in both orange and white.  Paint them black or gold, get creative.  

Finally, we hope that you enjoyed our tips on how to decorate outdoor space for fall.  Implement a few of our ideas, and you will be able to transform your outdoor space from summer to fall without breaking the bank.  Also, you may  like:  How to Throw an Epic Fall BBQ.

 

 

 

 

 

How to Grow Carrots in Your Garden

Today, I’m sharing tips on how to grow carrots in your backyard garden.  A backyard vegetable garden is the perfect place for you and the kids to grow yummy carrots.  They are a great snack and wonderful in soups, stews and other dishes. Carrots  are a root vegetable, which are a rich source of vitamins and a favorite food of many people.  However, growing carrots is not simple.   

Growing carrots requires more of a challenge than you might think.  It would be a pity if your achievements turn out small in size or their taste is not appealing.  So. if you intend to plant carrots, you need to know some useful tips to make sure that they will grow steadily.

 

 

gardening tips

Here’s how to grow carrots:

 

When and Where Should You Grow Carrots?

You can sow the carrot seeds from March to August because it’s a good time to receive enough sunlight and moisture from rain water. In case you want to grow carrots in the winter, you can plant them in the greenhouse.  Carrots can develop ideally in the fertile soil and a sunny location.  If the soil in your garden is stony or clay, you may need to plant short root carrot varieties such as Carson or Parmex.

 

How to Grow Carrots in Your Garden

If you carry out the following steps, you can harvest your carrots as you expect.

  1. Remove any weeds from the soil before you sow the seeds.
  2. Use a stick to make rows of 1 cm in depth and leave 30 cm for each row.
  3. Sow your carrot seeds thinly along the row to make sure that every single seed can receive enough nutrients, light, and moisture.
  4. Pull the soil at the edges of the row back to cover your carrot seeds.
  5. Water the area.

 

how to grow carrots

 

 

How to Take Care of Carrots

  • Water at least once a week
  • Make sure the soil is draining well.
  • If plants are taller than 3 inches, cut the top.
  • After 1.5 months, fertilize the carrots
  • Always eliminate weeds around the area where the carrot is growing

 

How to get rid of pest from carrots

  • Carrot rust fly and carrot weevils: The eggs of these insects can impede the growth of your carrots. They also take nutrients from your plants. One effective way to eliminate these eggs is to change the locations of your plants each year.  Or, you can grow them under row covers.
  • Footed Pests: Lots of animals want to eat the leaves of carrots, while the others tend to dig deeper to try the roots. The thumb rule to get rid of the pests is to keep them away from the growing area.  In this case, building a fence surrounding your plants is the best way.
  • Diseases: Some bacteria cause carrots to yellow, soft rot, leaf blight, and so on. You need to remove all the diseased carrots or change to a new location the next season.

 

Harvest carrots

Once you learn how to grow carrots, you can harvest them within 50-75 days.  However, read the harvest guide on the seed package.  Remember that carrots will get their full sweetness when they are mature.

 

 

How to Grow Carrots

 

You can dig the carrots before the first frost by softening the soil. Simply water the growing area.  Afterwards, you can pull the carrots up.  Enjoy the great feeling of eating your carrots with tomatoes as a salsa or cook them in your favorite recipes.

We hope you have found our tips on how to grow carrots useful. So, purchase a pack of carrots and start planting.  You will be excited about watching your carrots grow and you will enjoy eating fresh and cooked carrots.  If you have questions or just want to share your tips, please leave a comment.

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Author Bio

Richard Clayton

Richard Clayton of My Greenery Life.  It’s a place, where we can discuss everything about lawn care, DIY gardening and critter control topics.

5 Things Beginner Gardeners Overlook

Today’s gardening tips are going to focus on things beginner gardeners overlook.  Gardening is becoming an increasingly popular activity.  And it’s not hard to see why. It offers a great source of light exercise, provides fresh air, and adds a new dimension to your property. Frankly, what’s not to love?

So,  this time of year many inexperienced gardeners embrace their growing love of using their outdoor spaces.  However, many of them will limit their success due to basic errors.

 

beginner gardeners

 

 

 

Here are things beginner gardeners overlook:

 

Wasting money   Let’s face it, your list of potential garden upgrades is as long as your arm. With this in mind, cost-efficiency should be at the top of the agenda. Remove the middleman by doing some of the work yourself. For example, investing in chainsaws and other garden tools.  Having your own tools will enable you to complete most jobs without the need of an expert.

Furthermore, it’s imperative to remember the right safety gear too. Some challenges may still require a professional touch.  However, keeping those to a minimum can be good for your finances. In return, make additional improvements with the savings.

Being short-sighted –  When completing any garden overhaul, it’s easy to get carried away. Yet, it’s equally important to consider the long-term benefits. Reducing the maintenance with artificial lawns and other time-saving gestures will aid the cause. After all, keeping the space in great health is probably the hardest challenge.  Besides, it’ll leave you with more time to enjoy the gardening tasks that are actually fun and rewarding.

Ignoring the potential –   First and foremost, we want our gardens to look nice. However, the outdoor space is also a great resource for making life a little more comfortable. Growing fruit and vegetables is a fantastic way to actively encourage your love of gardening while gaining huge rewards. Meanwhile, you shouldn’t overlook the benefits of having a BBQ.  Comfortable garden furniture is good too.  After all, the more time spent in this area the better. If nothing else, it will provide another incentive to keep up the good work.

 

Growing indoor plants

 

Overlooking personal needs –   No two gardeners are identical.  So, dealing with your unique situation is key. Not everyone has the mobility to bend down to flower beds.  Also, hanging baskets and raised flower beds can be very beneficial. Unfortunately, if your gardening tasks are causing pain you may give up.  Find ways to add comfort to your tasks.  Your passion will remain far more enjoyable.

Focusing solely on the garden –  Your love of nature doesn’t have to be limited to the backyard. The front garden is often a great place to add a little natural beauty. Moreover, indoor houseplants can inject a new sense of energy to the property. You could even grow herbs in the kitchen to further enhance your bid for practicality.

 

 

Gardening Options When Space Is Limited

The dream for most of us is a huge, rolling garden that sprawls as far as the eye can see.  It’s  just waiting for us to fill it with projects, flowers, and vegetables.  But reality sets in, and for most of us that’s not quite how it works out.   Backyard vegetable gardening is a dream for many home owners and renters, but a lack of space is a big deterrent.   However, on the hand a huge garden comes with  a huge price.  It takes time and energy to maintain a garden. 

Having a large garden might be something you can work towards in the future.  Deciding where you want to garden, increasing your knowledge of gardening, and learning to utilize the space you have to work in should be factors.

 

 

 

garden options

 

 

Backyard vegetable gardening might be a total restriction on outdoor space if you’re living in an apartment.  Or you may have a garden, but it’s too small for all of the innovations that you want to try. So what can you do? Give up the green thumb dream until you can move somewhere with the space you need?  Of course not.  Where there’s a desire to care for plants and grow things, there is always a way!

Option 1: Indoor Gardening

Gardening and the outdoors tend to be synonymous with one another.  After all, plants need the sun to grow.  So, you’re not going to have much luck growing them in your living room unless you get lots of light.

Furthermore, you can grow indoors with the help of LumiGrowth.  It mimics the sun’s rays.  It will need to be set up, and it takes some adjustment, but the benefits are great. Not only do you not have to compromise on outdoor space, but you also have the option of growing what you want.  If you fancy growing strawberries just in time for Christmas, then with careful practice, that’s genuinely something you can do.

There’s plenty of resources to help get you started if the idea is appealing. You can find which plants work best when grown indoors and the various methods of caring for them with just a few clicks.

 

Option 2: Vertical Gardening

If you don’t have space in terms of length and width of your outdoor space, then make the most of the space you do have.  However, vertical gardening has no limits. Except beyond what you can comfortably reach.

 

 


 

 

The best way to grow vertically is with stacked plants and/or stacked beds.  Not only is this an effective method of outdoor gardening, but it’s also a great way to save on water – as watering the top layer will eventually trickle down to the layers below.

 

vertical gardening

 

Option 3: Growing In Pots

For most seasoned gardeners, pots are the beginning of growth.  However, the eventual goal is to plant into beds, the ground or raised beds. But you can grow some vegetables successfully in pots.  For example: sweetcorn responds well to pot growing. Just ensure that as your plants grow you stake them.  Depending on what you are growing, if not stalked, the plant may spread.

 

Check out my flower gardening tips before you leave.

 

 

Tips on Making Gardening Easier

gardening tips

 

As life becomes more demanding, we realize that time is of the essence. Work, cooking, children, school runs, housework and laundry.  The list is never-ending.  But with summer creeping up fast, there’s another job to throw into the mix, gardening.  We all know that feeling when the neighbours look down their noses at us because our garden isn’t pristine and flawless.

­Fear not! There are ways to adapt your garden to make it far easier to manage and save you that all-important time. From storage to installing artificial grass, here are some methods and techniques you can use to make gardening  minimum effort and stress.  Check out our making gardening easier tips below.  I have other gardening tips too.

 

gardening tips

Artificial Grass

When it comes to grass, you can fake it all the way.  Artificial grass doesn’t need to be fertilized or watered.  And you don’t need the lawnmower anymore. Fresh green grass can make all the difference to a garden and totally transform an outside area. It looks so good that it can fool anyone into thinking that your synthetic turf is the real deal.

The design, texture and color make artificial grass feel just like a natural lawn. The best thing about it is that there is absolutely no maintenance required. You can install it and leave it to look amazing. It’s also environmentally friendly because there is no water usage, no carbon emissions from a petrol lawn mower and no fertilizers. It’s win-win.

Use Kitchen Scraps

A really easy way to give your soil some nutrients is to mix coffee grounds into the potting soil or sprinkle it near to the base of the plants. If you have rose bushes, you can also plant banana peelings underneath.  Banana peels will give them potassium, which will encourage them to flower. Egg shells are amazing for deterring slugs from your beds because they don’t like the sharp edges.

When your neighbors have a luscious vegetable patch, you will understandably want one too. Well, now you can grow your own vegetables with the help of your food scraps, saving time and helping the environment. Mushrooms, garlic, potatoes and celery are all vegetables you can regrow just from planting the scraps.

Storage

Smart storage of your gardening tools can save you time and money. Get a large box and fill it to the brim with sand. You can then easily store your tools in there, whilst keeping it in a warm and dry space. Just simply wipe away the dirt after use and stab the metal part into the sand. The sand will pull the moisture away, keeping your tools rust free and ensuring they remain sharp.

 

 

Add Mulch

Mulch is amazing, it gets rid of pests, stops beds from getting too hot or cold and prevents those annoying weeds from growing. You can even DIY mulch yourself – just grind down fallen leaves, dead wood, yard waste and even shredded office paper. Eventually, the homemade mulch will just turn into soil amendment.

Keep a Diary

It may seem like an added chore now, but it will save you time in the long run. Keep a little notebook which can be your gardening diary. Write down the things that do and do not work. It will be like gold dust to you during the following year because you’re bound to have forgotten by then! You can refer to it to easily to see what you need to do in order to maintain your beautiful garden.

Last, take the stress out of gardening with these top tips.  Making gardening easier is what you are striving for.  These tips will make your time spent pruning a little bit smoother. You will never have to feel ashamed of your garden again!

 

 

How To Plant a Rose Garden

A beautiful rose garden is the ultimate dream of many gardeners. Roses have a long tradition of symbolism–love, hope, and passion. All of these are contained in the beauty of a perfect rose. The blooms are loved by almost everyone simply because of the feelings and memories they evoke.  A satisfying rose garden is not impossible.  There is some specific care and growing techniques required when growing roses.  I’m going to give you a few flower garden tips on how to plant a rose garden. 

 

how to plant a rose garden

 

 

Let’s take a look at how to plant a rose garden that you will love:

Planning a Rose Garden

The first step in putting together a rose garden is deciding what type of roses you want. Roses come in hundreds of varieties, so it’s not likely you’ll be growing all of them. So, it’s helpful if you can decide what style of garden you want. Furthermore, this will help guide your decisions on the types of roses you should choose to grow.

Decide if you want a formal rose garden, or something wilder and more natural. Formal rose gardens usually stick to one or two traditional colors (like red and/or white). Less formal gardens allow the freedom to plant various styles and colors. And the plantings will probably be more random as well.

 


 

Another decision is whether your roses should be scented or not.  Maybe you weren’t aware that unscented roses exist.  However, modern hybrid roses have very little fragrance. If you’re growing a rose garden to enjoy the fragrance, then you need to select roses that can provide the fragrance you want.

Another difference between roses is the size and arrangement of the plants.  Roses range from bushes, shrubs and climbing vines to small trees. Include this size variation in your initial planning. If you plant a climbing rose you will need a trellis.  Otherwise, you end up with roses creeping along the ground.  Consider what type of trellis you will need and where you want it placed.

 

 

Caring for Your Rose Garden

Specific foods, fertilizers and soil mixes have been formulated to assist the modern rose gardener. These products are particularly helpful when you’re just starting out.  You don’t have to worry about soil adjustments, vitamins or minerals.  Research what roses will grow in you zone and local climate. You will want to stick with varieties that have a better chance of thriving in your garden.  Keeping the lawn mowed regularly will help your rose garden look better, and control the invasion of weeds.

 

How to Plant a Rose Garden

 

Additionally, roses have specific light and water requirements. Read the package to ensure you know about any special needs. This information should help you figure out where to place the plants in your landscape. Don’t forget to add mulch around the rose plants. This helps prevent the emergence of weeds and also helps retain moisture in the soil.

Furthermore, once your roses start blooming watch for blooms that have died off.  Deadheading your  vines regularly will stimulate enhanced blooming through the season.  It will become second nature as you stroll through your garden.

Rose bushes also need regular pruning and trimming.  This will encourage healthy growth over time. So, taking care of a rose garden may be not a simple task, but think about the gorgeous rose garden you will have. I believe it’s worth your effort.

We hope you find our tips on how to plant a rose garden helpful.  Following these tips will get you get on your way to having the rose garden of your dreams.

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Author Bio

Richard Clayton

I’m an owner of a small gardening shop. I love gardening, especially lawn care. I can spend all of my free time taking care of my lawn and discussing lawn care experiences with my friends. Especially those who have the same hobby as me.  My site, www.mygreenerylife.com is my playground, where I discuss everything about lawn care techniques.

 

Tips To Make Your Garden Gorgeous Again

Has your garden been out of action because of winter?  With the promise of spring, most of us are ready to get back outside.  It doesn’t matter whether you want to relax and entertain or grow new crops.  Now is the perfect time to get your garden back in shape.  Today, we will discuss tips to make your garden gorgeous again.  Check out my other gardening tips  before you leave too.  Now, lets get started.  

 

 

 

gardening tips

 

 

A Gorgeous Lawn

First, after a long winter chances are your lawn is looking incredibly tired.  A  lack of sunshine, watering and fertilizer has probably left it patchy and brown.  However, it can be salvaged.  Determine if it needs to be reseeded, aerated or weed control applied.  Spring is a good time to fertilize it as well.

If you decide to reseed your lawn, spring is a good time to implement a new one.  Start by cleaning out debris, such as twigs and rocks.  Next using a rototiller, turn over the top eight to ten layers of soil.  If you need to purchase a rototiller, check out these rototiller reviews.   Also, you may also consider hiring someone to till for you.  Remember, ground that is compacted won’t drain well.  Furthermore, grass will have a hard time taking root in compacted soil.

Be sure to till in organic matter to add nutrients.  Then level the area by raking it in different directions.  From there you can either sprinkle grass seed or lay down turf.  Spring is a good time to do this since it’s rainy and sunny.  If you’re re-installing a lawn in the summer you will need to water it far more often.

 

Stunning Flowerbeds

Check out your local garden center.  Going to a garden center, and picking out beautiful blooms is always fun. However it can be expensive, and most of the plants will be ‘annuals’.  Annuals only flower for one year and then die. If you want your pots and beds to spring into life each year, choose plants labeled ‘perennials’ or of course evergreens.

Another good gardening tip if you don’t want the hassle of replanting each year is to buy different bulbs. Go with flowers that bloom at different times of the year.  When one variety starts to fade another is just starting to flower. Right now the daffodils are up, and the tulips are on their way.  Plant some bulbs, and you’ll get a gorgeous display of color next spring.

 

gardening tips

 

 

A Patio Area

The great thing about having a patio in the warmer months is you have an additional ‘room’ to enjoy and entertain from.  Being able to dine out on warm evenings and weekends is a welcoming idea.  So, purchase a patio table and chairs. You could go with slabs, a deck, or even pea gravel.  Either way creating a section of the garden designed for sitting, relaxing and eating is important.

Another idea is to go with picnic style benches, outdoor sofas, or just classic garden furniture.  Add pots of plants to the area, and when hosting a party or barbeque string up some bunting and LED lights.  You could also consider a swing seat too.  It’s a perfect way to sit and relax with a cup of coffee in the daytime or a glass of wine in the evening!

 

A Pond For The Wildlife

If you want to attract wildlife into your garden, one of the very best ways to do this is with a pond.  Surround it with some ornamental grasses and brightly colored flowers.  Bees, butterflies, birds, frogs and other creatures will benefit.  Add a water fall to the pond. The trickling of water is relaxing, pretty to look at and can help drown out the noise of traffic and other street noise.  Adding  outdoor lights to the arrangement, and make a nice place to sit and relax on summer evenings.

 

 

gardening tips

 

 

A Handy Shed

To keep your garden looking it’s best, you will need a lawn mower,  various shovels, a leaf blower and a rake to name a few. Be sure that you have place to keep them safe, dry and tidy.  A garden shed would be perfect.  Furthermore, you can keep pots, garden soil and other odds and ends in there too.  If you only have a few things to store (or if you have a smaller garden) you could go with a outdoor wheelie instead. These are usually much smaller, made of plastic, and can be locked.

Have you put much thought into your garden yet this year?  We hope that you like our gardening tips, and will implement a few so you garden will be gorgeous too.  

Tips to Make Your Garden Ready for Winter

tips to winterize your garden

The warm summer is almost over and days of worrying about the drought are gone.  Fall and winter, however, are seasons during which your plants are at their most vulnerable. In order to make sure that your garden remains healthy during the cold months, you’re going to need to prepare your garden. Here are some tips on how to prepare your yard for the fall.  Be sure to check out my other backyard vegetable gardening tips too.

Cover Crops

Hairy vetch and cereal rye are excellent cover crops.  They are a type of plant species that will keep the soil microbes alive and active during cold winters. This will further boost your garden at planting time, which can bring a ton of ease for the next spring.  Cover crops are also great at adding organic material to the soil, in addition to helping your garden during the fall and winter.  Remember to gently rake the crop seeds into the soil surface, in order to avoid disturbing the standing crops.

Harvest and Preserve

Fall is the perfect time to harvest your storage crops, such as carrots, potatoes and onions and properly cure and put them away for winter. Make sure not to overlook plants such as broccoli side shoots, herbs, and sunflowers.  Herbs are particularly easy to dry and freeze, so even a small garden can create a winter-long supply.

Soil PH

Vegetables like acidic soil, so keep this in mind when checking for PH. Yes, dealing with chemistry stuff such as soil acidity does seem somewhat nerdy, but it plays a vital role in in ensuring the success of your crops the next spring.  A PH kit or electronic tester can be found easily in most plant nurseries.  If your local nursery doesn’t have it, you can always opt for online shopping. Of course, if you don’t like dealing with chemistry, you can look for a company that specializes in gardening services–although you will need to cough up some extra cash.  Nothing beats calling the experts, especially if your garden means a great deal to you.

Compost and Manure

Fall is a perfect time for adding sources of organic matter, such as compost and manure to the garden. Adding 1 to 2 inches of soil supplements will ensure that your garden is resupplied with enough nutrients for your plants to weather the cold months. The only thing you need to keep an eye on when adding compost, manure, or any other similar material are weed seeds.  Weeds multiply easily and are somewhat adaptable.  So even traces of weed seeds can ruin your entire spring. The best way to go is by checking with your supplier!

Pro Tip

It smells, makes you cry, but it’s a brilliant addition to many meals. Garlic is the perfect crop to plant in the fall. Once the temperatures have dropped significantly, yet before the ground freezes, plant garlic.  Plant individual cloves, 3 inches deep, spaced 6 to 8 inches between each other.  Add a couple of inches of mulch to the bed. Each clove will become a full head by next summer – talk about an investment!

Making sure that your garden is fall-ready comes down to preparation and experience.  Applying cover crops, compost and manure, harvesting on time and checking for soil acidity are key factors in keeping your garden healthy.  Do this and your garden will thank you once the winter passes!

About the Author: Diana Smith is a full time mom of two beautiful girls simply in love with interior design and DIY projects. In her free time she enjoys exercising and preparing healthy meals for her family.

 

Raaya Garden Hose Nozzle Review #RY_GARDENER

raaya garden hose nozzle review


I received this Raaya Garden Hose Nozzle for free or at a discount in exchange for an honest review.  I needed an additional nozzle for a hose in the back of my house.  This particular hose is used to wash off the picnic table, deck, and outdoor furniture.  I hate taking the nozzle off one hose and moving it to another.  So, I was looking forward to receiving the set and putting it to the test.

The package finally arrives.  The nozzle is heavy and quality made.  It comes with 2 connectors, 4 washers and 2 O rings.  You won’t have to worry about leaks for quite some time.  It was easy to attach to the connector and to the hose.  It has a nice grip and the handle is easy to apply pressure to it.  I love that it has a little triangle on top that can be used to hold the handle in place.  You can set the handle and let the hose do the work.

 

garden hose nozzle review

 

The handle is ergonomically designed too.  This feature is important to me because of my carpal tunnel.  It’s heavy, but it doesn’t add a lot of weight to the hose.

The nozzle has several water streams.  First, the full stream is what I use to wash the car or clean off the deck and outdoor furniture.  It is powerful and does the job.  It’s perfect for cleaning off the driveway or the vinyl siding on the house.  This is a plus.

The one negative on this nozzle is that the streams are not marked.  I would not use the full stream in my garden or shrubbery bed.  It’s too powerful for tender plants and it would blast the mulch from the shrubbery beds.  Because the nozzle is not marked, you have to literally turn the knob on the hose to unmarked settings and just wait and see what stream you arrive at.  It’s not a show stopper, but it is an inconvenience. Other than that, I would recommend this nozzle.