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Figuring out your particular soil type isn’t as complicated as you might think, and it requires no expensive lab tests. You can implement DIY soil testing very easily by using a jar test to measure soil texture. Let’s learn more about this type of soil texture jar test. How to Test Soil Using a Mason Jar In simple terms, soil texture refers to the size of the soil particles. For example, large soil particles indicate sandy soil, while clay is made of very small particles....

Earworm Lifecycle Before we discuss how to get rid of corn earworms, we need to talk about the life cycle of the moth since many of the treatments, particularly organic control of corn earworms, are dependent on the stage of development to be most effective. Corn earworm moths are most active during the evening and at night. They’re small moths with wingspans of only 1 to 1 1/2 inches (2.5-4 cm....

Help! My Lima Pods are Empty! Lima beans are sometimes called butter beans and are the stereotypical antithesis for kids. My mom used to get a frozen mélange of veggies that included lima beans and I would collect them all into one mouthful and swallow them without chewing, with a large glug of milk. I’m an adult now and then some, with tastes that have changed and the realization that lima beans are extremely good for you, high in fiber, protein, and magnesium....

If you live in a climate where the temperatures fall drastically in winter, you’ll want more information on how this can affect your trees. We’ll also give you tips on how to prevent exploding trees. Frost Cracks in Trees When the temperatures drop well below zero, you may prefer to stay indoors, but landscape trees do not have that option. Truly cold temperatures can cause thin-skinned tree trunks to crack vertically....

Understanding Your Lawn In order to take the proper care of the lawn, a few things must be taken into consideration before getting started. You need to know what type of grass you have and what it takes to care for it. If you are starting with a new lawn, it would be a good idea to find out what type of grass would grow well in your area; take your soil type and eco-environment into consideration....

Many herbs do exceptionally well as houseplants and include: Basil Chives Coriander Oregano Parsley Sage Rosemary Thyme Sweet marjoram is another such herb, which when grown outside in cooler climates may die during icy winter, but when grown as an indoor marjoram herb plant will thrive and often live for years in that mild clime. Growing Marjoram Indoors When growing marjoram indoors, there are a couple of considerations that apply to any indoor herb....

What is a Tecomanthe Vine? Tecomanthe petticoat (Tecomanthe venusta) vine is also called New Guinea creeper, forest bell creeper, and New Guinea trumpet vine. The descriptive name of pink petticoat vine refers to the thickly decorated wiry stems that are coated with layers of the hot pink blooms. The plant is a fast growing evergreen vine with waxy leaves and thick flower clusters. It is a tropical plant that cannot withstand temperatures below freezing....

Tamarack Tree Information Tamaracks (Larix laricina) are medium-sized deciduous conifers that are native to this country. They grow wild from the Atlantic all the way across to central Alaska. If you look for tamarack tree information, you may find it under other common names for this tree, like American larch, eastern larch, Alaska larch or hackmatack. Given the huge range of the tamarack, it tolerates extremely varied climatic conditions, from -30 degrees to 110 degrees Fahrenheit (34 to 43 C....

Gryphon Begonia Information In mythology, a gryphon is a creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion. Don’t worry, Gryphon begonias don’t literally look like that – that would just be weird. So why is this begonia being named after a gryphon? It is because this begonia embodies the same underlying qualities that the mythical creature possesses, namely its majestic beauty, strength, and durability....

Growing Hardy Ground Covers Ground covers can be used as an alternative to a lawn as well as a mulching substitute. Persistent, evergreen ground covers can also hide a multitude of eyesores, and no one is the wiser. The options for hardy ground covers actually range from evergreen, perennial, flowering, fruiting, tall, short, fast- or slow-growing, and many more in between. This gives the zone 6 gardener many more choices than traditional ground covers, which may not survive in cold winters....

My Hops Stopped Growing Even if you aren’t a home brewer, hops plants make elegant ornamental vines when trained over an arbor or trellis. The plants need at least 120 growing days, nutrient rich, well-draining soil, a soil pH of 6.5 to 8.0, full sun, and plenty of water. These twining vines should be female to produce cones and should come from healthy, robust rhizomes. Failure to meet all these conditions can cause stalled growth on hops....

Indoor Plants That Need Medium Light Examples of medium light loving plants are as follows: African violet: The African violet (Saintpaulia) is your classic indoor plant. It blooms like crazy for some people, and never for others. This is a good plant to experiment with. It has fuzzy leaves that form a rosette and the flowers come in a variety of pink and purple shades. It likes average to warm temperatures along with medium to high humidity....

About Plants in the Kitchen As mentioned, the kitchen is not necessarily the most ideal place for plants. Of course, everyone’s kitchen is different, so what my kitchen lacks, perhaps yours has in spades. The common denominators, though, generally remain the same. Kitchens tend to have dramatic temperature fluxes from extreme heat when baking to chilly nighttime conditions when the heat is low, and appliances are off. If you don’t have a hood over your range, steam and greasy deposits can affect the health of kitchen houseplants....

Though early humans were hunter/gatherers, that largely ended with the neolithic period. Today, most food – both animal and plant based – consumed by humans is produced by those who cultivate crops or raise animals for consumption. This process is called agriculture. Origins of Agriculture During their first million years on Earth, humans lived in small, nomadic bands. They obtained food by following wild animal herds to get meat and gathering plants from nature along the way....

About Sanitizing a Greenhouse Whether you are a commercial grower or a home grower, keeping the greenhouse clean is of paramount importance. Over the course of a growing season, plants aren’t the only thing that’s growing; potentially infectious microbes may be as well. Algae, too, are busy developing on moist surfaces that foster fungus gnats and shore flies. Prevention, as they say, is the best medicine and is the case here as well....

How Do You Get Rid of Elephant Ears? Giant elephant ear (Colocasia gigantea) and Taro (Colocasia esculenta) are plants in the Colocasia family that both get referred to as elephant ears. The common elephant ear can grow up to 9 feet (2.7 m.) tall though, while Taro, only grows to about 4 feet (1.2 m.). Elephant ears are native to Central and South America where their large tubers are eaten like a potato....

Looking to start or expand on a monarch waystation in the spring? You can get a head start now with your fall cleanup. Simply collect the fallen leaves from your yard and place them in a bin. (You can easily build one out of discarded wooden pallets). Allow the leaves to sit and “cook,” and with a little time you’ll have a nutrient-rich mulch for your native plants, an incredible substance called “black gold....

Attracting birds of prey to gardens requires you to make an attractive habitat for the predators. Discover how to attract birds of prey and protect your yard from rodents and invading pests. Attracting Birds of Prey to Gardens The presence of birds of prey in the garden is a mixed blessing. They can make excellent rodent controls but they also tend to eat the little songbirds that enliven the garden....

Foraging is a popular activity which has experienced a resurgence in recent years. Many wild plants can produce nutritious and tasty recipe ingredients. Just as the bees enjoy the nectar of blooming plants, we can also utilize that in homemade recipes. Make some dandelion jelly, or enjoy the flavors of a clover jelly. There are plenty of wild flowers to harvest and turn into scrumptious preserves to adorn our tables....

Herbs for Xeriscaping Many herbs thrive in hot, arid conditions and are great for xeriscaping. Consider some drought-hardy herbs when planning your xeriscape herb garden. These may include: Bee balm Lavender Marjoram Yarrow Sweet alyssum Oregano Thyme Rosemary Russian sage Lamb’s ears Herbs are plants for all seasons and situations. Herbs are a great asset in a landscape designed for low-water use. Most herbs bloom profusely throughout the summer season with very little water....