Beautiful flowers for the garden make for a true color explosion

Have you always dreamed of beautiful flowers in your garden? Well, here is one possible solution to realize this dream. Today we would like to present you some special flowers. These flowers usually have many colors that will not fade for a long time, they spread quickly and can soon fill your garden in wonderful nuances and with a great fragrance. In addition, they grow in every flowerbed! Is not that unique? Are you interested now? Just read on to learn more about these wonderful flowers for the garden .

All these flowers are able to produce abundant seeds and multiply by self-seeding. So they can appear in their old place in the garden, but also in other areas. It is good to know that, so you will not be surprised by its location.

If you really have a lot of space in the garden, it is worthwhile to grow these beautiful flowers there. But beware: Do not plant them in the immediate vicinity of strong growing plants such as geraniums and periwinkles . They can not stand each other.

Usually these floral beauties are planted around perennial flowers. If they are bigger, they will fill the gaps of your garden and you will enjoy their wonderful colors. You can create many beautiful compositions without much effort and money. For this reason, many gardeners are particularly fond of these plants and use them to design the flower beds in a romantic style or in a rural idyll .

Nectar-rich flowers attract bees on a field surface behind the Limbacher Gänseweiher

However, the path from concern to action and countermeasures is often very long. The Saarpfalz district with district administrator Theophil Gallo focuses on short ways and unbureaucratic solutions. For example, the area of ​​"Rural Areas and Land Management" in the district administration has for years been promoting the cultivation of flower fields in agriculture and, since last year, also in the local areas.

The idea of ​​farmer Walter Hirsch from Limbach, to invest in a novel direct sowing machine, therefore met with open ears in the Saarpfalz district. With this machine can directly into an existing catch crop, such. B. an insect-friendly flowering area, are sown. The measure was supported as part of the agricultural promotion of the district.

District Administrator Gallo inquired with Torsten Czech, head of regional development at the Saarpfalz district, about the functioning of the machine and the working results of no-till on a seven hectare flowering area between Limbach and Kirkel-Neuhäusel. The no-till machine opens a furrow in the soil and sows the flowering seed directly without any additional tillage. Farmer Hirsch, who is constantly exchanging information on the latest developments in the field of agriculture and land use at international level, informed that he is sowing a mixture of sunflower, phacelia and a wind plant. But not only theory, but also practice was announced, as Hirsch demonstrated his direct sowing machine escorted by two storks in the use of the seedling in a meadow near the goose pond.


The district administrator emphasized: "It is our goal that more of such flowering areas emerge in a circle, thus making an important contribution to biodiversity. I am therefore convinced that our money here is very well invested. "Torsten Czech referred to the additional benefits of planting flowering areas as a catch crop. So the soil structure is improved and erosion protection operated. Last but not least, the use of the controversial glyphosate can largely be dispensed with. Walter Hirsch praised the commitment of the Saarpfalz district for agriculture and wished well for the future a good cooperation. District Administrator Gallo emphasized the important role of farmers in society, the cultural landscape and the biosphere reserve and would therefore continue to work for their interests.

Indoor waterlilies, the flowers that float

As we slide towards winter, my attention is always drawn to what I can grow in the great indoors to get my gardening fix. Now, over the past few years I have been experimenting with all manner of weird and wonderful houseplants and I think I have finally managed to find one that ticks all the boxes. Introducing indoor waterlilies, undoubtedly the quirkiest and yet one of the easiest of houseplants to grow.

Now you might think growing these beauties indoors would require some kind of massive heated pond in a Victorian conservatory, but if you pick your variety right, they will fit into relatively tiny spaces. How tiny? Well I have grown ‘Helvola’, to my knowledge the very smallest commercial cultivar, in a range of containers as small as a 30cm glass fruit bowl. Its button-sized white flowers can continue for a good nine months of the year under ideal light conditions indoors in exchange for very little work, aside from the occasional water top up.

I bought my little lilies online and washed as much of the claggy, nutrient-rich mud off them as I could and then planted them directly in a range of large fruit or salad bowls and a small fish tank. I use a soil-based aquarium planting mix (available online and at aquarium shops) which helps keep the water clear, and looks more like dark ornamental pebbles than grim pond mud. I like to give the mix a good few rinses under the tap, too, to remove any fine dust and other particles. Once the water is settled I slowly top it up to give the plant a good 15cm depth for its pads to float on. Any dwarf oxygenating aquarium plants (no more than 10cm high) can be planted around your lily, too, to help keep the water clear and add more visual interest.

All you need to do now is add a light. I use one of the new ultra energy-efficient LED grow bulbs popped into a standard desk lamp. These require far less energy than normal bulbs and produce very little heat. The combination between lamp, water and greenery makes striking living ornaments on my dining table and book shelves that require very little extra effort. Aside from flicking the lamp on each morning (you could of course get a cheap plug-in timer to not need to bother) and keeping the water level topped up, the only other thing I do is add a drop of aquarium plant fertiliser once every couple of weeks in the spring and summer.

In the Garden: Dead flowers can be feast for the birds this winter

After such a hot, dry and smoky summer, I can’t blame you for wanting to clean up your yard and move on to other things. But before you get started, I have a request: leave something for the birds to eat this winter.

A few years ago, fall came much earlier than usual. I ended up skipping my yard clean-up and figured I’d catch up in the spring. I’ve heard some gardeners do this on a regular basis but have to admit I was worried about feeling overwhelmed by the time spring arrived.

Every time I looked out a window that fall and winter, I was met with views of untidy flower beds that gave testimony to the “lazy gardener” indoors. Were neighbors and other passersby judging my gardening abilities, I wondered?

One wintry day, something wonderful happened. As I glanced out the window, a slight movement caught my eye. To my delight, I saw a goldfinch perched on the top of a black-eyed Susan seedhead, nibbling away. At one point, it had one foot on one spent flower, the other foot on a second, and was precariously close to doing the splits.

Plants get better as breeders correct their problems

If the only apple I’d ever eaten was a mealy Red Delicious, I would think apples weren’t anything I ever wanted to eat again. But “Fuji,” “Pink Lady” and
“Jazz” are three I relish.

All are apples, but not the same. German shepherds and Jack Russell’s are dogs, but poles apart in looks and performance. With ornamental plants, it can make a world of difference to know the desirable cultivars, and be open to improved forms.
This is not true across the board. If I want a Shumard oak, most any Shumard acorn planted will produce a similar tree, but you could not give me a free magnolia,crape myrtle, or rose of Sharon that sprang up from seed in your yard. I don’t want it.
It’s not free. I’ll put effort into planting and watering, protect it from mowers and dogs, and years from now it might be a decent looking plant...but then again, it might not. I don’t know anything about its genes.

I’d rather go to a progressive garden center that pays attention to breeding improvements. I’ll happily plop down my dollars for a plant that made the big time because it had good DNA. I’ll know the growth habit, the color of the foliage and bloom. I might even get an idea of its eventual size, but truth be known, that information is often dubious.

A few years ago, I would have had no interest in a rose of sharon. Most look lanky and tired. The flower colors are insipid pastel pinks, lavender or white, and spent flowers brought to mind Kleenex littering the ground where they dropped.
Now I am the proud owner of a form called “Purple Pillar,” and picking out a spot to add another called “Blue Chiffon.” These are just two of the “newer models” that have been introduced and have won me over in display gardens.

Flower photography skills

Flowers spend their flowers are no longer satisfied with their appreciation, more willing to shoot out to share with the netizens, where it is necessary to talk about the flower shooting skills, and this article like the flowers of some of the flowers of flowers experience, Skill is helpful.

1. choose thin clouds cover the scattered light weather.

This kind of weather light soft, no light direction of the restrictions, the picture by the smooth surface, tone and contrast moderate, color reproduction is good, the details of the rich performance. After the rain scattered light weather better, the picture of the flowers will look moist and fresh, color seductive.

2. shooting time should be before 10 am.

Flowers through the night moisture, posture tall and straight, bright color, this time the light and color temperature is also consistent with the best shooting conditions. If you bring a small spray to create raindrops, dew effect, will be more perfect. It should be noted that some flowers are open when sunny enough.


3. Use aperture priority mode to blur the background.

When using the aperture priority mode (AV) to shoot close-up of flowers, you should set the large aperture blur background, that is, reduce the aperture value, this is because the aperture value of the size and aperture size is inversely proportional relationship.

In fact, with a manual function of the card machine shooting close-up or macro better use. SLR for large scenes and the vision of the shooting, the lens of the large aperture value is often difficult to meet the requirements of macro shooting.

Enjoy lotus tea on Hanoi’s West Lake

VietNamNet Bridge - Every summer season, lotus ponds next to West Lake are a meeting place for a lot of Hanoians who want to relax and cool off.

Lotus ponds are assigned to households to grow lotus and do business. Hence, in afternoons, when the weather is not so hot or on weekend mornings without sunshine, people gather here to enjoy cool air.

You can take photos, hire a small boat to see lotus blossoms, enjoy a cup of lotus tea or simply enjoy lotus fragrance at West Lake.
You can taste delicious rural dishes such asball cake and peanut candy.
Each tea pot costs from VND30,000 to VND50,000.

While sipping tea, you also have a chance to see people here separate the pistils to marinate tea in the traditional way.

Gilbreth column: Night vigils needed for mysterious flower

The two best months in Charleston (in my opinion) are May and October. It’s nearly a toss-up. Most of the pollen is gone this time of year and everything is fresh and green with the renewal of spring; we’re into the white nights (longest days of the year) that will last from now until a month after the solstice and the anticipation of summer fun adds to the excitement. On the other hand, a perfect and refreshing day in October with the big autumn skies and multitude of colors, low humidity and waning insect population — can it get any better?
Now that the secret is out and the whole world knows that life here in Charleston is pretty sweet, it’s fair to note that sometimes it’s sweeter than others based on climate, seasonal activities, amount of available daylight and so forth. Accordingly, I rate the months out of the year as follows, staring with the best: October, May, April, September, March, August, November, June, July, February, December, January.
I surprise even myself by putting an autumn month as #1. Ten years ago that wouldn’t have happened, proving once again how progressive and amenable to change I’ve become with age (if not confusion.)