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The Best Fertilizer For Dahlias Most flower gardeners consider dahlia plants to be heavy feeders. This means that they will need frequent fertilization throughout the growing season. In fact, preparation for planting often begins several weeks before the tubers are even planted. This is especially true for those with heavy, clay soils. Planting soil should be well amended and have exceptional drainage. The most common amendment for the dahlia garden is finished compost....

Most methods for corn planting are similar. The differences depend on type of soil, available space, and whether or not you need to amend the soil for growing corn. How to Grow Your Own Corn If you want to grow your own corn, you need to know how to grow corn from seed. There aren’t many people who actually start corn plants first; it just isn’t feasible. Corn enjoys growing in an area that allows for full sunshine....

How to Plant a Vegetable Garden Beginners should start small and plan the garden accordingly. It’s often helpful to make a sketch of the chosen layout as well as a list and location of selected vegetables. When choosing vegetables, pick ones that are more easily grown, suitable to your area, and only those you actually will use. Generally, it’s recommended that your soil be prepared during the fall and left in a semi-rough state until spring, when it should be worked into a more suitable condition for growing plants....

How to Attract Toads Attracting toads to your garden mostly involves creating the right kind of habitat for toads. If you keep this in mind, you’ll have no problem getting a toad to take up residence. Cover from predators– Toads are a tasty meal for many animals. Snakes, birds, and the occasional house pet will kill and eat toads. Provide plenty of foliage and slightly elevated areas where toads can stay safe....

Types of Tomatoes for Burgers and Sandwiches Everyone has their favorite tomato and because we all have our own personal taste, the type of tomato you use on your burger is your business. That said, most people are of the opinion that slicing tomatoes versus paste or Roma tomatoes are the ideal sandwich tomato varieties. Tomatoes for slicing tend to be large, meaty, and juicy – the better to go with a ¼-pound of beef....

Assessing Wind Damaged Plants Following a huge windstorm or a tornado, your first step will be to assess the damage to your trees. Although garden plants may also be damaged, assess damaged trees and large shrubs first since broken limbs may be dangerous. Helping plants after a tornado is second to your family’s safety. So assess whether tornado plant damage to trees and shrubs have created risks to your home or family....

Training Roses on Structures Just as it is with raising our children, it is of the utmost importance to start early on in helping guide them towards the proper way to go, training them to follow a good path. First on the list with roses is to pick the area and structure desired for the climbing roses. Suitable areas consist of good sunshine, well-drained soil, and a place in need of an eye-catching focal point....

Why Does my Lettuce have White Spots? First of all, take a good look at the white spots. Actually, do better than look – see if you can wipe the spots off. Yes? If that is the case, it is likely something in the air that has drifted down onto the leaves. It could be ash if there are forest fires nearby or dust from a nearby quarry. If the white spots on the lettuce cannot be removed, the cause is likely a fungal disease....

Tree Aloe Info What is a tree aloe? Native to South Africa, tree aloe (Aloe bainesii) is a large tree-like succulent and aloe plant relative with mottled gray stems and rosettes of greenish gray leaves. Butterflies and hummingbirds are attracted to the clusters of spiky, tube-shaped blooms that show up in winter. Tree aloe is a moderately fast growing tree, gaining about 12 inches (31 cm.) per year. Allow plenty of space when growing tree aloe, as this lovely evergreen reaches mature heights of 20 to 30 feet (7-10 m....

How to Kill a Tree Stump Using Chemicals Some people choose chemical control for tree stump removal. Potassium nitrate, sulphuric acid, and nitric acid are the most commonly used but should only be used by those with experience and with great care, following label instructions. A simpler solution may be to bore holes throughout the stump and apply salt (rock salt) and boiling water in the holes. This will help dissolve the salt so that it reaches deep into the stump, eventually killing it....

Do Potatoes Produce Seeds? Yes indeed, potatoes produce seeds. As with most plants, potato plants bloom, but usually the flowers dry and fall from the plant without setting fruit. You’re more likely to see potato seed growing on plants in regions where temperatures are on the cool side; these cool temps combined with long days promote fruiting in potato plants. Additionally, some cultivars are more prone to fruiting than others. Yukon Gold potatoes are one example....

What is Tufted Hairgrass? Now that you know it exists, what is tufted hairgrass (Deschampsia cespitosa)? It’s an elegant ornamental tussock form that grows in mound-shaped clumps. Borders or containers are excellent tussock grass uses. This cool-season perennial plant produces flowers from June until September. The plant is 2 to 4 feet (0.5 to 1 m.) tall with a similar spread. The flowers are feather panicles with hairy seed heads and may be brown, green, or gold, depending upon the cultivar....

What is a ‘Twisty Baby’ Locust Tree? Black locust ‘Twisty Baby’ (Robinia pseudoacacia ‘Twisty Baby’) is a deciduous, multi-stemmed shrub to small tree that grows to about 8 to 10 feet (2-3 m.) in height. Twisty Baby locust tree has a unique contorted form that lives up to its name. Additional Twisty Baby Information This black locust variety was patented in 1996 with the cultivar name of ‘Lady Lace’ but trademarked and sold under the name of ‘Twisty Baby....

Can Uprooted Plants be Saved? Yes, sometimes uprooted plants can be saved. That’s the best answer you’ll get out of an experienced gardener because dealing with uprooted plants is a gamble at best. Uprooted plant damage ranges in severity from annoying and cosmetic to extremely damaging, especially when large portions of the root system are broken or left exposed to the air for extended periods. Tree roots coming out of the ground are especially problematic, both because of the challenge of up-righting the tree and that of re-anchoring it....

Learn More About The USDA Map Of Plant Growing Zones In Delaware The above map shows the growing zones for Delaware. These zones are meant to serve as a guide to you when you are making decisions about what to plant in your garden. To learn your zone, locate the area you live in on the Delaware zone map for hardiness. Match the area’s color to the legend on the right....

Learning About the USDA Plant Hardiness Zones in New Hampshire New Hampshire can have cold winters, down to -35 degrees F. (-37 C.) in some parts. The New Hampshire USDA planting map divides this northerly state into six zones: 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, and 6a. In the beginning of 2012, the USDA released a new plant hardiness zone map that was the product of 30 years of data collection from all over the country....

About Maranta Varieties Most Maranta varieties have underground rhizomes or tubers with corresponding sets of leaves. Depending upon the variety of Maranta, leaves may be narrow or broad with pinnate veins that run parallel to the midrib. Blooms may be insignificant or spiked and enclosed by bracts. The most common prayer plant types grown are those of the species Maranta leuconeura, or peacock plant. Commonly grown as a houseplant, this species lacks tubers, has an insignificant bloom, and a low growing vining habit that can be grown as a hanging plant....

Growing mixed ornamental and edible containers actually makes a lot of sense. It’s an efficient way to grow edible plants without building raised beds or plowing up the lawn for a garden patch. However, growing vegetables and flowers in pots does require a bit of planning. Here are some tips on growing potted veggies and flowers to get you started. Ornamental and Edible Containers It’s essential to consider each plant’s growing conditions before you grow food crops with ornamentals....

Viburnum Borer Life Cycle So what are viburnum borers? Viburnum borers are day-flying moths that look a lot like wasps. They have dark bodies with yellow markings and clear wings. It takes a close inspection to see the difference between the two distinct species of viburnum borers. The clearwing borer has white scales on its face while the lesser viburnum borer lacks the white scales. Both are about one-half inch (1....

Trapa comes from calcitrappa, the Latin name of the caltrop, referring to the strange fruits. The caltrop was a medieval device with four prongs that was thrown on the ground to disable the enemy’s calvary horses during European warfare. The term is more relevant to the T. natans water caltrop nuts that have four horns, which incidentally, were introduced into the U.S. in the late 1800s as an ornamental and is now listed as invasive to the waterways in northeastern U....