Starting Perennial Flowers from Seed

As I dog eared my new catalogs and watched the bill go up (and up) I realized I have a strong tendency to order perennial plants, not seeds. I have cucumbers and peppers, cosmos and nigella, but I'm drawn to the photos of snazzy new perennial varieties, the flashy hybrids that you can't grow from seed. So I leafed back at the standards that have been around forever and this year I'm thinking of focusing on some of the older open pollinated perennial flowers and I'm going to try several from seed. I sowed some adorable dwarf columbines a few years ago and they've been seeding throughout the yard since then. And I was delighted last year when my Blue Flax came back lush and vigorous, so why not? They don't tend to bloom the first year, but you can work around that. It's a great way to get a whole lot of plants with little expense.
For more info- http://gardening.about.com/b/2011/01/13/starting-perennial-flowers-from-seed.htm

Winter Garden Ideas

Winter garden ideas, particularly in areas that have freezing temperatures, should be based on what you can do as a gardener to counter it. Yes, for those who are willing to face this challenge, harvesting from your garden will be a very gratifying experience. Basically, the challenge lies in how you can prevent this condition from killing your vegetable. The following are some winter garden ideas that may help:

If your garden is in a green house, it will help greatly in countering the temperature problem. The choice of vegetables to plant will play a big role. There are vegetables that are more tolerant to low temperatures than others. Good lists of these are available on the Internet. Check it out, and do some research. You must plant them in October, when conditions are more permitting, and hope that they are fully grown during the freezing months.

You need to control your watering. The best way to do this is to give them enough so that they will not dry up. However, do not give too much, as that will freeze your vegetable to death. You must also provide artificial light, in case the sun does not shine for a couple of days. On particular nights when temperatures are at their lowest, you can cover those vegetables with leaf mulch to form a warming blanket that can prevent freezing of the plant cells. The main difference between a plant cell and an animal cell is that, unlike animal cells, plant cells do not regenerate. So, once it is damaged, the damage is permanent.

Be sure that, after covering it with mulch, you remove the mulch the first moment that you experience better temperature conditions, in order to allow your vegetables to breathe and prevent them from rotting. The only thing that you can hope for is for your vegetables to be in a condition where they are enough for survival but not enough for growth.

Another Idea that you can try is using container gardening, particularly if you have enough space in your house. You must place your vegetables inside your house where the conditions are more favorable. Depending on the space you have, put them in spots that can receive at least ten hours of artificial light. Photosynthesis can still occur, even if the source of light is artificial and not the sun. During days when conditions outside your house become more favorable, take them outside. At least your chances of a winter harvest are better using a container garden compared to the vegetables in the green house.

Every enthusiast in gardening would want to harvest during the winter period. Doing this is something that you can cherish for your life time. Facing the challenge of Mother Nature is a daunting task, and coming out victorious makes it more thrilling. Try out some of these winter garden ideas, but do it on a small scale, so that it is something that you can handle easily. Now, you can use the majority of this season to prepare for your gardening in the coming spring.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Florin_Ciobanu

Gardening Question of the Week: Should I Store My Seeds in the Fridge?

A friend of mine saved flower seeds for the first time this year and she asked me if they would keep fresher if she stored them in her refrigerator. The temperature is certainly in the right range for storage. Ideally, seeds should be kept at around 50 degrees F. And it's usually nice and dark in the fridge, which is also good for storage. The only drawback to keeping seed in the refrigerator is the high humidity. This can be solved by storing your seeds in water tight containers and tucking in either a packet of silica or some other wicking agent, like uncooked rice.

The fridge might be a good solution for where to keep your seeds, but use caution before tucking your seed into the freezer. Some seeds can be kept viable for years in a deep freeze, but others will be killed, like tender plants left out in a frost. If the plant doesn't reseed itself in the spring in your area, it probably can't handle the freezer. The USDA has an interesting piece on storing seeds for the long term. If you're main goal is to have seed to plant next year, saving it in a drawer at room temperature will work just fine. Here are some more tips on saving and storing seed.

And if you're wondering about the photo here, this is how forum member Flower Lady has decided to keep her trumpet vine seeds this year. Yes, that's the pod of a trumpet vine with poinsettia leaves and bracts. Isn't it wonderful! She's posted a link to all her Christmas fairies and  blue Santas in the forum.

Collected from- http://gardening.about.com/b/2010/11/17/gardening-question-of-the-week-should-i-store-my-seeds-in-the-fridge.htm

Suggested Perennial Plants to Prune in the Spring

Gardeners in warm climates can treat fall, and sometimes even winter, as supplemental growing seasons. But for gardeners who experience hard winters, fall is a great time to get a head start on garden clean-up. We hear a lot about four seasons of interest in the garden, but this rarely applies to perennial plants. Most perennials turn ugly as the temperatures drop.

However there are a few that remain evergreen, especially in milder areas. These can be left standing for interest as well as to fuel the vigor of the plant. And there are perennials that simply don’t fare well if they are pruned too late in the season.

The following list is a recommendation of plants that are best pruned in spring. There will, of course, be exceptions. Any plant that is diseased, infested, or otherwise in poor condition, should be pruned in the fall. Consider this listing and the complementary Plants to Prune in the Fall, as guidelines. You will learn what works and what doesn’t, for your own garden.
Suggested Perennial Plants to Prune in the Spring
    * Artemisia Most Artemisia don’t like being pruned in the fall. The growth that results is too tender to survive the winter and the dieback is often enough to kill the whole plant. Clean in early spring. (USDA Zones 5 - 9)

    * Asters Fall blooming asters have generally been pinched and forced several times throughout the growing season. Once they are finally allowed to bloom, they appreciate being left alone to recuperate, until spring. Several bloom so late into the fall, the question of fall clean-up becomes moot. (USDA Zones 4 - 8)

    * Astilbe Astilbe don’t require much maintenance. Fall clean-up is unnecessary and may weaken the plant’s tolerance for cold. Minimal spring clean-up is required. (USDA Zones 3 - 8)

    * Balloon Flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) If pruned for sturdiness, Balloon flower blooms late in the season and remains attractive until frost. Since it is late emerging in the spring, it helps to leave the old foliage as a marker. (USDA Zones 3 - 8)

    * Basket-of-Gold (Aurinia saxatilis) Although Aurinia fares best and lives longer if sheared back after flowering and not allowed to go to seed, the foliage can be evergreen in mild winters and there doesn’t seem to be any benefit to cutting it back until spring. (USDA Zones 3 - 7)

    * Bear’s Breeches (Acanthus spinosus) You may need to cut back old, dying foliage throughout the growing season, but the new healthy growth remaining in the fall could well remain evergreen throughout the winter, depending on weather conditions. (USDA Zones 6 - 10)

    * Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida) Although not particularly attractive in winter, the seed heads will feed the birds. (USDA Zones 3 - 9)

    * Blue Mist Shrub (Caryopteris) Caryopteris bloom on new growth. Cut back to 6-8 inches in the spring. Newer varieties, especially, can be very sensitive to cold and shouldn't be cut back until buds begin to green. (USDA Zones 5 - 9)

    * Butterfly Bush (Buddleia davidii) To lessen winter kill, wait for signs of green at the base and then cut back to 6 - 10 inches. (USDA Zones 6 - 9)

    * Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) Although Asclepias is a prolific self-seeder and should be deadheaded if dozens of new plants are not wanted, it winters better if the foliage is allowed to protect the crown. (USDA Zones 4 - 9)

    * Campanula Most campanulas get sheared back at some point during the summer, to clean up ugly or damaged foliage and encourage another flush of blooming. Fresh basal foliage will result and should be left through winter, so as not to encourage more tender growth in the fall. (USDA Zones 3 - 8)

    * Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) Although Cardinal Flower likes moist soil, it doesn’t like sitting in cold, wet soil all winter. Leaving the foliage and flower stems in tact protects Cardinal Flower from some of the ravages of winter, so hold off clean-up until spring. At that point, you can trim the damaged areas or simply cut back to the ground. (USDA Zones 3 - 9)

    * Coral Bells (Heuchera) Heuchera are prone to heaving in soils that freeze and thaw. Leaving the foliage in tact helps to mulch the plants through winter. (USDA Zones 4 - 9)

    * Cushion Spurge (Euphorbia polychroma) In warmer climates, Euphorbia can actually become a shrub and it’s fine to leave the plant alone until spring and then clean out the dead foliage. In colder climates, simply cut the plant back to its base in the spring. (USDA Zones 4 - 8)

    * Delphinium If you’re lucky enough to grow Delphiniums as perennials, remove the flower stalks, but allow the foliage to remain until spring. (USDA ones 3 - 7)

    * Dianthus Most Dianthus can remain somewhat evergreen throughout the winter and nothing is gained by cutting back in the fall. They will still need some clean-up in the spring. (USDA Zones 5 - 8)
Collected from- http://gardening.about.com/od/maintenance/a/Spring_Pruning.htm