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How About Some Take-It-Easy Gardening Ideas?

Whether you have a new home to landscape, an existing home to maintain, or if you rent, making your surroundings pleasing will provide hours of summer enjoyment.

For apartments, a large pot or two brimming with sun loving herbs and flowers make a big difference in how the entry looks and feels. A shady entry can be transformed with ferns in hanging pots or in tall planters.

Trees benefit both homeowners and renters. Most trees need some sun to thrive but, they can be planted in a pot on a sunny balcony or deck to provide shade and improve the view.

Woody shrubs are indispensible around a property line, across a deck, or under trees. In the summer, shrubs add softness and fullness. Placed carefully, they provide shade and a windscreen.

Perennial flowers, bulbs and annuals also play a role in easy gardening.

Easy care perennials come back year after year with little effort on the gardener's part. Hostas in the shade, Knock Out Roses for the sun, fall asters and dozens of other perennial, flowering plants will return for several years. To keep them easy care, though, avoid plants that need weekly pruning or staking to maintain their appeal.

It's hard to go wrong with sticking some durable bulbs in the ground. In this category, daylilies cannot be outdone. From spring to first frost, their leaves fill the garden and in the summer their flowers bloom day after day.

Annuals have their place, too. These are plants that last only one season. For the summer though, annual plants add herbs for the table, flowers for the butterflies, and color to spice up a solid green garden. Budget-wise gardeners look for annuals that drop seeds and return next spring.

Do more of what works.
If there are successful plants in your landscape, consider adding more of the same type. For example, if hibiscus, viburnum or lilac thrive in your neighborhood, plant six as a hedge.

Avoid work.
Certain trees and shrubs are messy. Magnolias drop flowers and leathery leaves that create problems near a pond, fountain or swimming pool. For lower maintenance, stick with small leaf plants and evergreens that shed very little.

Be water smart.
A little mulch goes a long way toward reducing the amount of water that potted plants need. In the summer months, put mulch on top of the soil in planter boxes, flower pots and flower beds. Since most herb and succulent gardens need the soil to be dry on the top, mulch those sparingly.

Soaker hoses are inexpensive and can reduce the chore of watering. Lay them down so they circle the bed, attach to the hose and let them run while you sip a glass of tea and read a book. Tuck a tuna fish size can under the hose and watch for it to fill. That's one inch and the right amount of water for most plants. A soaker hose and some mulch will cut both the work and the water bill.

If you have a sprinkler system for the lawn, place azaleas, mums and other moisture loving plants near the edge of the lawn. They will be kept happy with little effort on your part.

Install a pebble pool.
Mark out an area with a hose or a bag of flour, dig down four inches, stacking the removed soil to form a berm. Line the spot with plastic and fill it with small stones. Edge the pool with large flat stones. Put out a few pots or plant water loving plants in the ground around the pond. Add water as needed.

Place a chair or bench nearby so you can watch the birds, frogs and butterflies.

A Few Scenes from Today's Garden

There's a New Gal in Town - Hort Couture

Hort Couture sent out their trial plants this week and I am thrilled to be one of their trial gardens for Zone 7.

My box contained variegated sage called Sage la Crema, , Heirloom tomato Black Krim, Ready to Wear Paris Calibrachoa, and Hemigraphis Blackberry Waffle.

This is a new brand to me and these cute plant tags were in the pots.
You can take a look at their blog here.

I researched the plants on the Internet and all the comments from trial gardens were terrific and outstanding. I can't wait to get them growing.

Another Earth Day Story about Organics- This One from Cuba

In today's issue of The Dirt from the American Association of Landscape Architects, the story is about Cuba.

The Future of Cuba's Urban Agriculture

Due to the collapse of aid from the Soviet Union and U.S. sanctions in the early 1990s, Cuba moved from a centrally-planned, fossil-fuel based agriculture system to a locally-organized organic urban one, writes Solutions journal. However, with lessening tensions and growing trade with the U.S., there are new concerns that Cuba’s model of self-sufficient green agricultural production will be scrapped.

Farmers and agronomists responded to economic isolation by localizing food production, which has now taken off across Cuba's urban areas. In fact, urban farms in vacant lots in the capital, Havana, and a network of producers across the country now provide 80 percent of the country with local, organic produce and helped turn Cuba into an unintentional leader of the green movement, says Solutions. CBS News adds that most urban farms where organic produce is grown are walking distance from residents.

So, Cubans are eating locally grown organic food grown within walking distance of their homes. Go figure. Then, read the rest of the story at this ASLA link.

Earth Day - Today Is the 40th

Our veggie garden is 20 by 20 - on the left are the peas on a trellis, then leeks, wax bush beans, Dinosour kale, Cos and Romaine lettuce, broccoli and Brussels sprouts, broad beans on the far right and potato cages in the back.

Earth Day is celebrating its 40Th birthday today. Denis Hayes, national coordinator for the first Earth Day in 1970 is the international chair of Earth Day 2010. Hayes is chairman of the board of trustees of the American Solar Energy Society and president of the Bullitt Foundation.

Twenty million Americans participated in that original Earth Day celebration. Within three years Congress passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act.

Today, most schools and many towns acknowledge Earth Day through activities meant to remind us that caring for the earth’s resources is important.

Small conservation activities include recycling paper, glass, cooking oil, plastic containers and plastic bags. Groups can participate in tree planting projects or pick up aluminum cans along our streets and recycle them.

Easy everyday efforts make a difference. Turn off the water while you brush your teeth and turn off lights as you leave a room. With a little more thought you can combine errands to save fuel.

Another idea is to buy locally produced food whenever possible. It takes less fuel to transport food from regional producers to your table.

Locally grown chickens are available at Central Meat Market and local eggs, beef, pork, and lamb are sold at the Muskogee Farmer's Market. Fruits, herbs and vegetables are sold at several area farmers’ markets, plus Reasors, Arnolds and at seasonal stands that pop up in the summer.

Muskogee Wellness Committee has sponsored two gardening events to support and educate local residents in the art and science of growing a little of their own food in a home garden or in containers.

To promote gardening on a slightly larger scale, the Wellness Committee put on a community gardening event last year.

Community gardening can be summarized as healthier people growing healthier food in healthier neighborhoods.

Families who garden together have an exercise based activity that produces fresh fruits and vegetables to build their health, and increase their food security.

Community gardens strengthen community bonds, and create a positive, recreational space for neighbors to get together. Neighborhoods become safer and community gardens increase the value of homes in the immediate area.

Children learn about science, math and the environment from family and friends when they are engaged with others in a garden. They learn job skills and increase their community connections. Similar programs report that participating students improve their school attendance.

In Muskogee, on Tuesday, April 27 from 5:30 to 6:30 there will be a community garden meeting at the Parks and Recreation Dept. especially for people who live in the area of Spaulding Park.

The section of Spaulding Park where the old greenhouses stood is going to be developed into community garden plots for the use of the residents of the area. Paths and raised bed growing plots will be laid out before the planting begins.

The April 27 meeting will be held to discuss how the Spaulding Park Community Garden will operate, discuss the ground rules, and to find out how many might be interested in participating.

The plots will not be reserved only for those in the immediate area, but gardeners who live within a short distance are more likely to remain enthusiastic about weeding, watering and harvesting over the summer.

Doug Walton, Community Foods Coordinator with the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture, and manager of Muskogee Farmer’s Market, will help facilitate the discussion. Walton has a wealth of information about community gardens around the state.

If you live in the Spaulding Park area and have an interest in the community garden effort, please call the Parks Department, 684-6302, and let them know you would like to attend the meeting.

Spaulding Park Community Garden Planning Meeting
Tuesday April 27, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Parks and Recreation Dept., 837 East Okmulgee
Please call 684-6302 to let them know you are coming so there will be chairs and snacks for all.

Old News Can be Worth Reading

The American Society of Landscape Designers sends out a monthly email called
The Dirt with links to stories of interest. Through a series of clicks I found a link to a Sept. 23, 2009 New York Times story that is perfect for the Earth Day thoughts we are all having.

In the Garden, by Ann Raver, "The Grass is Greener at Harvard"

Follow the link above to read the entire piece. Here are a few excerpts to help you think Earth Day thoughts.

There is an underground revolution spreading across Harvard University this fall. It’s occurring under the soil and involves fungi, bacteria, microbes and roots, which are now fed with compost and compost tea rather than pesticides and synthetic nitrogen.

Our goal is to be fully organic on the 80 acres that we maintain within the next two years, said Wayne Carbone, Harvard's manager of landscape services.

The lumps of soil showed how grass grew when treated with chemical fertilizers and how it looked when treated organically, she said. You could really see the root systems and how different they were.

The organically grown grass on campus is now green from the microbes that feed the soil, eliminating the use of synthetic nitrogen, the base of most commercial fertilizers. No herbicides or pesticides are used, either. Roots reach eight inches into soil that was once so compacted the trees planted in it were dying.

Soil tests show the presence not only of beneficial bacteria and fungi but also of the micro-organisms that feed on them, recycling nitrogen back into the soil.

And the 40-year-old orchards at Elmwood, which have been treated with compost tea, are recovering from leaf spot and apple scab, two ailments that had afflicted them.

Mr. Van Valkenburgh, who grew up putting DDT on the family’s vegetable plot, had seen how Mr. Fleisher's use of compost and teas had improved Battery Park City's 36-acre landscape, which thrives, despite heavy foot traffic, without the use of pesticides or synthetic fertilizers.

An organic approach requires a radical change in thinking.

This is not a product-based program, it's knowledge-based, Mr. Fleisher said...

When the project started, Mr. Fleisher said, the soil was so compacted, we could not dig past three inches.

But when Mr. Clyne stepped down on his spade this day, it went through the grass like the proverbial knife through butter. He made a core sample, a square of turf and soil as wide and deep as his spade, then lifted it gently and laid it on the grass. The soil was dark and crumbly; the roots were six to eight inches long.

Healthy soil is a mixture of sand, silt and clay particles held together by the gums and gels formed by bacteria as well as by fungi and plant roots. These micro-organisms, as well as insects and earthworms, create the spaces through which air and water can trickle.

Organic growing techniques are so simple that any homeowner can get the hang of them. But to do so, it’s necessary to learn some basic facts about the structure and biology of your particular soil. In an organic approach, one bag of chemicals does not fit all. And timing is key.

Without good drainage, water and air cannot be properly absorbed by plant roots.

There’s a give-and-take between fungi and plants, as the fungi consume carbohydrates exuded by plant roots and give back water, phosphorus and other minerals. Bacteria also consume carbohydrates. And they in turn are eaten by protozoa and other creatures that convert the bacteria’s protein into nitrogen, which feeds the plants.

Adding compost to soil gets that biological community cooking.

To help laypeople unravel the mysteries of the soil in their own yard, Harvard has posted a kind of mini-course on its Web site www.uos.harvard.edu/fmo/landscape/organiclandscaping. It includes simple directions for building a compost pile hot enough to eat weed seeds, building a compost tea brewer, and brewing teas particularly suited for grass, perennials or woody plants.