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Why is My Lavender Plant Dying? If you’ve noticed your lavender plant is looking a bit peaked, the first order of business is to identify the cause. Lavender plants can be a bit persnickety. For one thing they require well-draining soil with a pH of 6 to 8. A soil test will help to determine if the pH needs adjusting. To raise pH, amend the soil with limestone. As lavender hails from the Mediterranean, this plant needs plenty of sun; six to eight hours per day....

Kohlrabi Companion Plants The nature of companion planting is that of symbiosis. That is two or more different plants are situated in close proximity to one or both plants mutual benefit. The benefit might be by adding nutrients into the soil, repelling pests, sheltering beneficial insects, or acting as a natural trellis or support. The most well-known example of companion planting is that of the Three Sisters. The Three Sisters is a planting method used by Native Americans....

What is the Characteristic of a Microclimate? A microclimate is a small area within a climate zone where the climate is slightly different from the zone predictions. A good example of a microclimate that is fairly large would be a valley where cold air settles. The temperature may be several degrees cooler than your zone maps indicate. Large bodies of water or urban area temperatures may also provide causes of a microclimate to form....

Regaining popularity in the landscape, crinum is usually started from large bulbs, although growing plants can be found in nurseries as well. The crinum plant can also be grown from the large seeds it produces or by offsets called pups. The crinum plant reaches 3 to 5 feet (1-1.5 m.) at maturity and the same around. Foliage is spirally arranged, coarse, and open. It is often used for a short, growing hedge where blooms and fragrance can be enjoyed....

When to Divide Plant Bulbs How often should I divide bulbs? That really depends on the flower. As a rule, however, bulbs should be divided when they get so overcrowded that it’s noticeable. As bulbs grow, they’ll put out little offshoot bulbs that cluster around them. As these offshoots get bigger, the space the bulbs have to grow starts to get too crowded, and the flowers stop blooming as vigorously. If a patch of flowering bulbs is still producing leaves but the flowers have gotten lackluster this year, that means it’s time to divide....

Separating Amaryllis Plants In the United States, amaryllis bulbs can grow well outdoors in most parts of zones 8 through 11, with some varieties even overwintering in zone 7. In the right conditions, outdoor amaryllis plants will produce new bulbs each year, naturalizing into dense colonies. When too many bulbs form underground in a spot, they can begin to choke each other out. Like lilies, hosta, daffodils, or many other plants, the overgrown clumps can be divided to space plants out and rejuvenate them....

About The Fall Harvest Cornucopia While there is no formal record of cornucopia decorations at the original Thanksgiving holiday, horn of plenty decorations date back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. The word “cornucopia” is derived from the Latin words ‘cornu’ meaning horn and ‘copia’ meaning plenty. A fall harvest cornucopia was depicted in mythology as a symbolic accessory carried by gods and goddesses such as Hercules, Fortuna, and Demeter. The actual horn was Amalthea’s, the baby Zeus’s goat nurse....

DIY Gifts for Gardeners Bird nesting house – Built out of wood, a bird nesting box helps attract songbirds to the backyard. These musical gardening gifts are suitable for bird loving gardeners of all ages. Bird seed wreath – Whip up a batch of your favorite sticky birdseed recipe, but instead of stuffing a pinecone, form wreath shapes. Complete the project by attaching a loop of ribbon for hanging these self-contained bird feeders....

Is Planting Potatoes in Pallets Safe? The shipping industry uses pallets to ship materials and products all over the world. To prevent the spread of pests from one country to another, both the U.S. and Canada require pallet manufacturers to treat pallets in a manner that would kill harmful insects living in the wood. Heat-treated pallets are safe for building a pallet potato planter. Luckily, it’s easy to find out if your pallets were heat treated....

Similarly, traditional growers believe no fruit should be removed from the tree until harvest, when all fruit is removed at once. However, there are strong indications that lychee fruit thinning encourages larger, healthier fruit and prevents overloaded branches from breaking. Read on to learn more about thinning lychee trees. Tips on Thinning Lychee Trees Thin the canopy to increase sunlight, as lychee trees won’t bear fruit without adequate sunlight. Thinning also improves air circulation in the center of the tree and protects the tree from wind damage....

What is Hemp Dogbane? In a perfect world, all life would have its place on earth. However, sometimes plants are in the wrong space for human cultivation and they need to be removed. Hemp dogbane is a good example of a plant that is not beneficial when growing in cropland and can do more harm than good. It will crowd out the intended crops and establish itself as a creeping perennial that is difficult to mechanically remove....

What is Dragon Arum Lily? Dragon arum lily (Dracunculus vulgaris) is also called voodoo lily, snake lily, stink lily, and many more colorful monikers. With the spadix nestled in the center, it’s no wonder the plants are called amorphallus. The plant is a deciduous tuber which produces large-fingered aroid leaves of glossy light green. The leaves perch atop thick stalks decorated with a snakeskin pattern and are set in groups of three....

What is Yarrow? Yarrow is a low-growing plant that produces flower stalks four times its foliage height. The plant is recognized by the feathery, almost fern-like, green foliage. Each leaf is between 1 and 6 inches (2.5-15 cm.) long. Each plant can produce several flower stalks covered by fine hairs. Flower heads are borne in corymbs or umbrella shaped clusters. Each flower has five colored flowers surrounding 10 to 20 pale yellow florets....

How to Care for Exotic Herbs Nearly all herbs, exotic or not, require good drainage and lots of sun. With sufficient light and temperature, you can easily grow a successful exotic herb garden indoors or out. Many herbs, including exotic ones, thrive in containers. An exotic container-grown herb garden can offer flexibility in placement options and the like. Containers in just the right spot will also make it easier for others to appreciate the wonderful aromas of exotic garden herbs, not to mention their flavor....

Growing Solomon’s Plume Solomon’s plume is native to wooded areas and thickets across much of the United States and Canada. It thrives in the cool temperatures of USDA plant hardiness zones 4 through 7 but may tolerate warmer climates of zones 8 and 9. It is well behaved and not considered aggressive or invasive. This woodland plant tolerates nearly any type of well-drained soil, but blooms best in moist, rich, acidic soil....

Fertilizer for Chinese Fringe Trees Nutrients can be leached from soil by rain and watering. While there are many nutrients shrubs and trees like, Chinese fringe plants need many for proper growth. Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are the most important. These are the NPK ratios often listed on fertilizer packages. A fertilizer with equal amounts of NPK would be 10-10-10, for example. Lack of nitrogen in Chinese fringe plants can cause slow growth, small or malformed leaves, yellowing leaves, leaf drop, or premature autumn foliage color....

Ripe figs Tomatoes Grapes Berries Peaches Plums Figeater beetles can cause extensive injury in home lawns and gardens. Fig Beetle Facts Figeater beetles are generally harmless and actually quite attractive. Many people don’t mind their presence in the garden, but due to their clumsy air-raid flight habits and loud buzzing, they may wear out their welcome in a hurry. In large numbers, they can do more serious damage. Adult figeater beetles lay their eggs 6 to 8 inches (15-20 cm....

Flowering Pink Almond Flowering almond, or double flowering plum (Prunus triloba), is a deciduous tree with gorgeous spring flowers blooming pink with double petals. This medium growing Rosaceae family member is a lovely addition to accent shrub borders around parking lots, strip plantings, or around a deck or patio. The flowering almond makes a striking specimen plant. The shape of the flowering pink almond is a symmetrical, vase-shaped canopy with a smooth outline and a profusion of light green leaves....

About African Baobab Trees Native to the African Savannah, baobabs are best suited to warm climates. The trees are also grown in Australia and sometimes in large, open estates and parks in Florida and parts of the Caribbean. The tree’s overall appearance is unusual. The trunk, which can be 30 feet (9 m.) in diameter, contains a soft wood that is often attacked by a fungus and hollows out. Once hollow, the tree can be used as a meeting place or dwelling....

Spotting Flyspeck on Citrus Citrus flyspeck is a disease that may affect any type of citrus tree, but it is confined to the fruit. Look for small black dots, or specks the size of a small fly, on the rind of citrus fruits. The specks are typically seen near the oil glands, and they prevent that part of the fruit from turning color. The area of the rind with the specks generally stays green or sometimes yellow, depending on the type of fruit....