Soil - Lawn - Cactus - Roses - House Plants - Shrubs & Trees - Bonsai - Japanese gardens - Diseases - Compost - Taxonomy - Ferns - Propagation - Landscaping - Home Improvement
How to Make Compost
For a good compost Consider also:, Swine, flora1heap, the layers of refuse should be 6 to 8 in. thick and should be trodden down moderately firmly. If the material is very dry, water More interesting articles:, Lighthouses, When to Plant Rosesmay be added before the activator is applied. If you have to use very tough material such as cabbage stumps, it is best to break them up first on a chopping block to pulverize them. They should then be intermingled with grass Consider also:, Rose Fertilizers, Farming Trade Showsmowings or similar material to help build up heat. Other resources include:, The Illusion of Age in Bonsai, Pruning Roses Healthy See:, flora5, Orchids - Cut Flowerssoft growth, but not woody material, can be included. Woody material should be burnt and the ashes collected, to be stored dry for use as fertilizer. Never burn any soft material unless it harbours soil-borne diseases; to do this is a waste of potential compost. See:, flora14, Gardening in Alaska mowings and cabbage leaves, provide a ventilation shaft by driving a post of 3 or 4 in. diameter into the ground in the centre of the bin or pit, pile the vegetable Go here:, Lighthouses, flora25waste around it layer by layer and activate in the normal way. When the heap reaches the correct height pull out the post, thus leaving an air Try:, Fungi - Fungus Diseases, Pruning Established Rosesshaft through the middle, or use a double roll of wire netting about one foot in diameter in place Other resources include:, Brahman, flora9of the post and leave it in the heap. This is seldom necessary for small heaps but is quite a good practice for heaps that are 12 ft. by 12 ft. or larger. Some gardeners believe that the compost Other resources include:, Watering Cactus, Swineheap should be turned at the end of three months, but the heap rots satisfactorily without any attention. It will probably be ready for use at the end of six months, though it need not be used for one, two or more years. If the outsides See:, Prevailing Winds And Planting, Bonsai Styleshave not rotted down properly, cut them off with a spade, just as the black part of a burnt cake is cut off with a knife, and put them on the reserve compost See:, Bonsai Propagation, Gardens in Alaskaheap to complete their decay. When the compost Try:, Rocks and Stones in a Japanese Garden, House Plantsis ready to use, it should look like earthy mould or moist peat. It should be dark brown or black, free from any objectionable odour and show no traces of the original materials. Eighty-five per cent of it should pass easily through a in. sifting screen. When it is properly made, compost Including:, Farrier Equipment and Supplies, Hereford Breederscan be as valuable as manure, because in addition to containing plant Go here:, Floorcloths, flora5food, it is alive with millions of microorganisms. It will also have most of the minor minerals, known as trace elements, which plants Consider also:, Insurance in Washington, Romanovrequire. What we have described embodies the general principles of compost Try:, Tiles, Tree Organizationsmaking. Two other methods are sometimes used. The first is as follows: For the small garden See:, Bonsai Display, Fungi - Fungus Diseasesmake a bottomless box to contain a heap 4 ft. by 4 ft., and 3 ft. 4 in. high. Such a heap will provide 2 cubic yds. of good compost, More interesting articles:, Rose Pests and Diseases, Swimming Pools and Spas weighing 1 ton. Bolt or screw And:, flora14, Biblicalthree sides of the box together, and make up the front with loose boards slipped into position as the box is filled. Where possible. make a reserve bin. Cut all the vegetable And:, Swimming Pools and Spas, Roses in Virginiawaste into lengths of a few inches and put it into the box with one third or one quarter of the same volume of manure. Incorporate a little soil Try:, Floorcloths, Roses Exhibitingat the same time. If animal manure is not available, use blood and bone or dried blood at the rate of 1 to 2 per cent of the dry vegetable And:, Preparing your lawn - Levelling, Gardening in Oklahomawaste. When the box is full, make three holes vertically through the mass with an iron bar to improve the supply of air. And:, Rose Fertilizers, House Plants Cover the top with sheets of plastic Including:, flora9, Bonsai Shapingor other material to keep out the rain. After six weeks dig the material out and stack it on a convenient site where it can ripen for another six weeks. Four tons of compost And:, Bonsai Shaping, Mortgage Resources Washingtonper year can be made in one of these 1-ton boxes. The second method is to make the bins with old boards (old railway sleepers are excellent, because they are thick and help to retain heat), wire netting or bales of straw. The straw can later be put on the heap. Make the bins 6 ft. by 6 ft. with open ends for ease of access, and intersperse the 6 in. layers of waste with fish Other resources include:, Farming Equipment in South Carolina, flora3meal, dried sheep or poultry manure at 3 oz. per sq. yd. When available add the urine and excreta from any animals that are kept. Once a week or so, in the summer, Go here:, Fish, Choosing Your Plants From The Nursery give the heap a good watering. When it is 4 ft. high plunge a long-tined digging fork into it in several places And:, Landscaping Accessories, Emergency Suppliesand move it backward and forward to provide aeration. At the end of six months the heap will be ready. The top 9 in. and the sides may not be fully decomposed so skim them off and put in the reserve bin for further rotting. If the garden More interesting articles:, flora21, flora12soil is acid, use lime in addition to the fish Consider also:, Roses Exhibiting, Pruning Rosesmanure meal or sheep manure as the activator, at 4 oz. for every 2 cu. ft. of waste. Apply compost Consider also:, Rocks and Stones in a Japanese Garden, Swineat the rate of at least a large bucketful to the sq. yd. each year. Mix it thoroughly with the topsoil to a depth of 6 to 10 in. with a digging fork or rotary hoe, or apply it as a top-dressing or mulch on the surface of the ground.The worms will pull much of it in, greatly enriching the soil Consider also:, Climbing Roses, Bonsai Containersas they consume and excrete it. Their tunnels aerate the ground. With the use of compost Try:, Sports and Leisure Insurance, Emergency Suppliesthe soil And:, Temperature and House Plants, Fishwill not dry out so readily, the tilth will be improved and there will be ample humus to feed seedling plants. 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   What's Inside
Preparing for Planting Roses - soil preparation should be completed about three weeks before planting in order to allow the ground to settle. For spring planting, it is better if the rose bed is prepared the preceding autumn. Beds for massed planting are best prepared by digging the wh... more Lawn Plugs - Plugging - Plugs are pieces of sod, one and a half or two inches or so in diameter, of creeping grasses. When planted, they quickly grow together and cover the ground. They differ from sprigs in that each consists of many rather than a few shoots and includes the so... more How to Grow Roses - Most roses will grow and flower with relatively little attention. They will, however, give much better results, increasing in both size and beauty if looked after properly. This extra care is well within the scope of the average gardener, even if he is gr... more Plants Suitable for Bonsai - A few of the plants commonly used for bonsai are pine, spruce, juniper, Japanese maple, Atlantic cedar, flowering quince and azalea. The evergreen varieties are most frequently used because they tend to have small leaves or needles which are in proportion... more Bonsai Care - Throughout its life, a bonsai needs special attention - at times daily care - and it cannot be overlooked if the tree is to remain healthy and grow steadily more beautiful. A prime need is for fresh air and sunshine, which can best be supplied in the open... more Grass Seed - Except for very special purposes (making a putting green, for example) it is always better to sow a grass seed mixture than just one kind. In a way it is insurance. Different grasses, even different varieties of the same kind, prefer different soil condit... more Cactus Cultivation - A general rule is that a densely-spined or thick-skinned plant is more able to stand the full sun than a thinly-spined or spineless one which would do better in a more protected position. To enable the plants to breathe more readily in collections that gr... more The Illusion of Age in Bonsai - Creating the illusion of age is one of the important aspects of bonsai. The shape of the trunk contributes to an aged look, but surface roots add to the venerable appearance. They should radiate around the trunk on all sides and reflect a solid base on wh... more Light and House Plants - Light can be supplemented by artificial lights, especially by fluorescent tubes only half a metre or so above the plants. This works well for foliage plants but to make flower buds, the red rays of incandescent globes are needed. Too many of these too clo... more |