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Interiorscape Houseplant Design Many studies have shown the positive impact that plants have when placed in homes, offices, and places of business. It only seems natural that adding valuable elements such as houseplants to interior spaces will allow its occupants to reap these benefits. Whether looking to improve air quality or simply a fan of the lush foliage of houseplants, interiorscaping may be for you! Interiorscaping is the use of various garden design elements – indoors....

Iresine Plant Info Bloodleaf (Iresine herbstii) is also called chicken-gizzard, beefsteak plant, or Formosa bloodleaf. Iresine bloodleaf plants are native to Brazil where they thrive in warm temperatures and bright sunlight. In their native environment, the plants reach heights of up to 5 feet (1.5 m.) with a spread of 3 feet (91 cm.), but when grown as annuals or potted plants they only grow 12 to 18 inches (31-46 cm....

Jackfruit Tree Info From the family Moraceae and related to the breadfruit, growing jackfruit trees (Artocarpus heterophyllus) can attain heights of 80 feet (24.5 m.) with a straight trunk branching out from the base. Jackfruit tree info finds these trees cultivated in India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Australia, Kenya, Uganda, and Mauritius. They may also be found in Brazil, Jamaica, the Bahamas, southern Florida, and Hawaii. This otherworldly looking oddity has a very thick, rubbery rind with short, blunt spikes and up to 500 seeds....

How to Control Kangaroos Gardeners in Australia and similar regions have to contend with all manner of wildlife. Controlling kangaroos is a popular forum topic and even the government has gotten involved with tips on how to repel these large marsupials. Kangaroos will jump a 6 foot (2 m.) fence easily and are attracted to all the interesting and diverse flora in an ornamental or produce garden. Their broad herbaceous diet spans many species of both native and introduced plants....

How to Grow an Indoor Topiary If you want to try something new in your indoor gardening, a houseplant topiary is very well suited to growing indoors and makes a nice project. Indoor topiary care requires a slightly different approach, but they can add a beautiful touch to your home. There are three types of topiaries that you can grow indoors: Pruned Topiary Pruned topiary plants probably take the longest time to make and require the most maintenance....

Why are Knock Outs not Blooming? Figuring out how to get Knock Out roses to bloom means finding out what’s causing them not to flower in the first place. Animal pests Are buds on the roses one day and by the next morning totally gone? Maybe they’re lying on the ground as if cut off, or perhaps missing all together. The culprits here are usually squirrels, deer, or elk. Deer and elk may eat just the buds off first with a small amount of foliage, returning another night to decimate the bush....

What is Asian Ginseng? Ginseng has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for thousands of years, and commercial cultivation of the precious root is a huge and lucrative industry. Ginseng is a perennial plant comprised of eleven or so species that grow in the cold regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Each species is defined by its native habitat. For instance, Asian ginseng root is found Korea, Japan, and northern China while American ginseng is found in North America....

Maple Tree Bark Diseases and Damage Canker Fungus Maple Tree Bark Disease Several different kinds of fungi will cause cankers on a maple tree. These fungus are the most common maple bark diseases. They all have the same thing in common, which is that they will create lesions (also called cankers) in the bark but these lesions will look different depending on the canker fungus that is affecting the maple bark....

Help, My Dill Plant is Flowering! So you say, “My dill plant is flowering.” This may be a good thing or a bad thing depending upon which part of the plant you use most often. Hot weather will enhance bud formation and cause the plant to bolt, or flower. The flower signals the end of the plant’s life and the cessation of foliage production. It really depends which part you use the most when flowering in dill plants initiates....

Using Plants for Nematode Control Nematodes are tiny, round worms that commonly live in soil, and many of them attack garden plants. These pests can damage the roots of numerous edible and ornamental plants, so many gardeners have looked for ways to control them. If you are one of those gardeners, you may have wondered: are there any plants that repel nematodes? Some nematodes can be controlled using nematode-killing pesticides (nematicides), but these can be toxic, and most are unavailable to home gardeners....

Given the tens of thousands of plants native to the west coast’s many ecosystems, it can be difficult to select a few native California plants to install. Read on for tips and advice on selecting California and Nevada native plants. Considerations When Selecting Plants There are so many reasons to add native plants to your garden. Anyone trying to attract more birds, pollinators, and other wildlife will find native plants are more appealing to native wildlife than anything else you might offer....

No matter your specific location, the following applies to you. March is a great time to add annual flowers, some bedding plants, and summer blooming bulbs. Remember to plant appropriate shrubs, fruits, and vegetables. When choosing the best time to plant various varieties this year, consider the weather forecast and the protection you’ll need to provide for seedlings and young plants. This aspect varies from year to year. Check the best planting dates as indicated by your favorite almanac....

First, it relieves the gardener of the yearly headache of what to try this year to cover the awful spot. Visually, planting ostrich ferns can turn an eyesore into a triumph of woodland delight, eventually forming a backdrop for other shade lovers like hostas or bleeding hearts. Looking for a bit of the tropics in your garden? With their pots surrounded by ostrich fern, houseplants of various tropical varieties, many of which need a bit of shade, will look simply stunning....

Growing Herbs from Seeds To give your garden a head start, you can grow seedlings in pots on a sunny windowsill about six weeks before the last frost date in your area. Plant the seeds in a good potting soil mix according to package directions. Thin out the seedlings to one per pot by using tweezers to remove any unwanted growth, or snip the weaker seedling at the soil line. After all danger of frost is over, harden off your seedlings by taking them outside for lengthening time periods over the course of two weeks before planting them in their permanent spots in your garden....

Antennaria Pussytoes Attributes Cat lovers will swoon with delight over pussytoes flowers. Pussytoes ground cover is remarkably resistant to disease and pests, including deer and rabbits. It is also an attractor for pollinating insects and a host for the American Lady butterflies. Learn how to grow pussytoes plant for season after season of fool proof texture and greenery. Native plants are always a good choice for the landscape. This is because they are already adapted and hardy to the region and offer no fuss beauty and vigorous growth....

Can You Compost Styrofoam? Styrofoam is not recyclable in city waste programs. There are sometimes special facilities that will repurpose the material but not every municipality has one nearby. Styrofoam will not break down like organic items. It is made of polystyrene and is 98% air, which gives it the light texture and buoyancy characteristic of the product. It is also a possible human carcinogen, which has led to its being banned in many states....

Rockfoil Saxifraga Information A commonplace form of Saxifraga is mossy rockfoil. There are many types of rockfoil, but mossy rockfoil is readily available in nurseries and garden centers. The mossy varieties are in the section of Saxifraga called hypnoides. The plant is an excellent groundcover, forming a thick, tenacious carpet over rocks and under trees. Rockfoil produces its thickest and most lush foliage in spring. The bright green, crinkly leaves pack tightly together and carpet rocks, pavers, and lightly shaded nooks....

How to Grow Roses from Cuttings The best time to take rose cuttings and rooting roses is in the cooler months, perhaps starting in September, as the success rate is higher for home gardeners at this time. The rose cuttings that one is going to try to root are best taken from the stems of the rose bush that have just flowered and are about to be deadheaded. The rose cutting should be 6 to 8 inches (15-20....

Verbena Seed Harvest There are about 250 varieties of verbena but only a fraction are commonly cultivated. Verbena seeds will not germinate evenly if exposed to extreme periods of cold. For this reason, cold region gardeners usually have to reseed their plants annually, either in a cold frame or indoors six weeks before the date of the last frost. The sweet little flowers of verbena brighten any garden plot or container....

What is Sedge? At first glance, one might assume sedges are grasses. They are not and are held in the genus Carex. Sedges span both native varieties and hybridized versions. They are useful in moist areas, such as around ponds, but there are also types of sedge that thrive in dry regions. Both ornamental and native sedge plants produce tiny seeds which feed some bird species, and many animals use the foliage to line and create nests....