via Blogger The Importance of Getting a Head Start on Your Spring Lawn and Garden Projects

via Blogger The Advantages of Composting – How Can Composting Help Your Lawn and Garden?

Fertilization of house plants should be started after carefully observing their behavior and respecting their rhythms.

Effective organic fertilization involves the precise dosage a plant needs, administered at the right time. In practice, however, the intake of fertilizer is always empirical. We do not know precisely the needs of the plant and the concentration of nutrients stored in the soil. That is why we use some simple rules suggested by specialists.

Experience shows that the best time to fertilize house plants is early April and mid July, and then in September. It seems that a large number of plants have a slower growing process during the hot summer days. In September, the process is revived, and then comes a progressive sleeping in October and a total stop in vegetation, from November to mid-February or early March. This vegetative rhythm is more or less visible, depending on the species, and can be controlled or modified by different techniques (temperature variation, artificial lighting, watering and fertilization).

In general, we can say that fertilization must be more intense at the beginning of the growth period; after that, nutrients are not so vital until the beginning of autumn and then again, they are not so necessary until March. Except for plants that are in full bloom, you do not have to fertilize house plants in the winter.  For more on organic fertilizers, check out https://www.revive.com/.

[Read More ...] Article source here: Fertilizing Tips For Your House Plants

via Blogger Fertilizing Tips For Your House Plants

A major problem many dog owners must face is lawn dog spots. They appear when dogs urinate on the lawn, because their urine contains a high percentage of nitrogen that causes the apparition of brown spots on the grass. Although the grass actually needs nitrogen for growing, dog urine releases a concentrated amount of nitrogen in one place.

Follow these steps to revive your lawn and prevent brown spots in grass from your dog in the future.

When you notice your dog urinating on your lawn, immediately saturate the area with water, using a garden hose. This way, the nitrogen concentration is diluted and uniformly distributed. To be efficient, you should perform this operation as promptly as possible.

If you do not notice the problem and take no measure, the grass will turn brown and you must clean the area by pulling off the grass and also by removing at least a few centimeters of. Add a new layer of soil and mix it with some lime to help neutralize any remaining particles containing dog urine. Replant the grass in the affected areas; preferably use a more resistant type.

Finally yet importantly, train your dog to urinate somewhere else; this is the only way to get rid completely of the unsightly lawn dog spots.

[Read More ...] Article source here: What Should You Do With Lawn Dog Spots During Winter?

via Blogger What Should You Do With Lawn Dog Spots During Winter?

If you live in Colorado, there are a few good reasons why you should choose native plants for gardening.

First, they are beautiful. Colorado provides a wide range of gorgeous plants and flowers that look amazing and unique in any garden. Native plants have also evolved to withstand local environment and weather conditions, so they typically require lower care and water than vegetation coming from other areas. If you fertilize, you can also use organic lawn care products for use for your plants.  Weather in Colorado is hot and dry during the warmest months; therefore native plants are drought-tolerant and fruitful during the entire season.

Another great argument for growing native Colorado plants in your garden is that, this way, you will also help local fauna. Native plants are in symbiotic relationship with countless of bees, butterflies, birds and beasts that need their habitat to survive – and this is exactly what you offer them.

Growing native Colorado plants will make your garden different than standard gardens with marigolds and pansies.

So, enjoy the uniqueness of these beautiful species:

• Wood's rose, blossoming into purple flowers atop red

• Golden currant, Rubber rabbitbrush and Sulphur flower, all yielding beautiful yellow flowers

• Spiderwort, producing powerful blue small flowers, perfect for gardens that exist near the mountains

 

[Read More ...] Article source here: Native Colorado Plants That Are Great For Your Garden

via Blogger Native Colorado Plants That Are Great For Your Garden

Let's see which are the most important things to keep in mind when planning your garden landscape and how to get it done even with a small budget.

Let the plants be the main stars of your garden

Despite what is suggested in all garden landscape tutorials - that you have to invest in all kinds of costly accessories, create water fountains, decorate the garden with statues and much more that require time and money and plant drought tolerant grass to save money - you can actually get amazing results if you just leave the beauty of nature be the star.

Set up a budget

When you start shopping for the necessary accessories, it is easy enough to let yourself carried away, because you will find a lot of nice things to buy. However, in the end, you will realize that many of them do not actually find their place in your plan, so you should better stick to your budget.

Arrange the items according to the available space and keep in mind the color scheme you are going to use, from flowers and plants to accessories. Flowers and plants must not necessarily be all different; you can choose the same plants and flowers for several areas of the garden, if you just arrange them differently.

[Read More ...] Article source here: Tips For Planning Your Garden Landscape

via Blogger Tips For Planning Your Garden Landscape

In autumn, the weather becomes less favorable to the vegetation and you can expect it to affect your lawn, in some degree. Humidity, low temperatures and low light tend to have a negative effect on the grass. That's why you need to take care of it a bit more than during the summer.

Dead leaves should not be left on the lawn, where they fell from the trees. Contrary to popular belief that dead leaves are a natural fertilizer, beneficial for vegetation, they may actually prove harmful to the grass and the plants beneath them, because they will prevent the light and air from reaching them. The most effective solution is to gather dried leaves with special tools, such as vacuum cleaners with collector bags that absorbs vegetable matter and chop it, for better storage. However, if you do not have time to gather the dead leaves on your lawn, a handy solution is to pass the lawn mower over them. By breaking them into small pieces, they become harmless to the lawn, which will grow greener and more beautiful the next spring.

Alternatively, turn them into compost. Dead leaves are great for this, since they are rich in carbon, which helps break them down. So, gather the shredded leaves into a bag or throw them into a crusher, then put the result on the compost pile. Remember that the shredded leaves will decompose faster.  For other organic fertilizers, visit https://www.revive.com/how-revive-works/how-it-works.

 

[Read More ...] Article source here: Should YouKeep Fall Leaves On Your Grass During Winter?

via Blogger Should YouKeep Fall Leaves On Your Grass During Winter?

Winter can be snowy and very cold but also rainy, with many temperature fluctuations around the freezing point. In each case, your lawn is exposed to significant stress.

Snow itself does not affect a properly cared lawn, but it can favor various problems and diseases.

As a measure of precaution, you should not step on the lawn as long as it is frozen and covered with snow. Also, make sure you remove the leaves that fall from the trees in autumn; do not make piles and leave them there and apply organic lawn care products to nourish your lawn for winter. Making piles of snow is also a mistake, because they favor the apparition of snow mold, which is a type of fungus that destroys lawn areas. This disease occurs mainly in areas that have not been trimmed before the winter, and where leaves and snow blocked the proper aeration for a long period.

Like other pathogen-causing diseases, snow mold pathogens are always there, but the disease erupts only if there are conditions for its development.

A well-groomed lawn is typically more resistant to snow mold. For this reason, proper lawn care is the best method to prevent this disease. During the year, regular lawn aeration, fertilization and monitoring are recommended for optimal protection in the cold season.

[Read More ...] Article source here: Will Snow Hurt Your Grass?

via Blogger Will Snow Hurt Your Grass?

Even if the cold season is here and nature is numb, do not hesitate to make the necessary steps to prepare your lawn and garden for the spring. Be sure to use organic fertilizer from Revive in the fall, and early Spring.  Despite the weather, some resistant plants successfully make the transition from winter to the next season, growing in vibrant colors that will stand in the winter`s monotony.

Hepatica is a flower of the family of anemones that produces inflorescences of different colors, from white and pink to purple, in the late winter or early spring. Another member of the same family is the wind flower; it produces lovely flowers in different colors that appear in March.

Cyclamen is another plant that does not care about the cold outside. Its amazingly beautiful flowers, in a pink-violet shade, delight us in late autumn, resisting the winter until early spring, when it enters its vegetative state.

Hellebore, popularly known as winter rose or Christmas rose, is a vigorous flower able to cope with many enemies, including the cold. In the natural environment, hellebores bloom in early spring, when the winter still haunts us.

You can also decorate your garden with ivy and perennials that remain green all year round. They look great along alleys or at the garden`s entrance.

[Read More ...] Article source here: Plants To Grow In Your Lawn and Garden in December

via Blogger Plants To Grow In Your Lawn and Garden in December

Now that winter has come, low temperatures and frost can become a real problem for your lawn and garden. Taking the following things into account ensures that in the spring you will have the same beautiful lawn as as in the previous season.

First of all, we must get rid of the idea that we can leave everything as it is, considering that winter is a completely dead season after all. But how can you avoid lawn frost damage? The answer is simple: prevention. Nutrients and proper irrigation during the year provide a solid background for the grass, and if it stays healthy, there is little chance that it will be affected even by the harshest conditions, so make sure to use an organic liquid fertilizer in Spring and Fall. It is also very important, during the winter, to avoid traffic over the frozen lawn. Other type of damage specific to the cold season is easily reversible.

How do we help the lawn to revive after a harsh winter? Once the cold season passes, even if no complications have occurred, the lawn will need a boost provided by fertilizers. Also, the water it receives should not be neglected. There are rare but existing situations when total replanting was needed, if the lawn has been neglected.

 

[Read More ...] Article source here: Tips For Avoiding Lawn Frost Damage

via Blogger Tips For Avoiding Lawn Frost Damage