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Growing Banana Plant Problems Bananas are monocotyledonous herbaceous plants, not trees, of which there are two species– Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, native to southeast Asia. Most banana cultivars are hybrids of these two species. Bananas were most likely introduced to the New World by southeast Asians around 200 B.C. and by Portuguese and Spanish explorers in the early 16th century. The majority of bananas are not hardy and are susceptible to even a light freeze....

How to Repot a Houseplant When it’s time to repot your plant, you should use a combination of plastic pots and peat-based compost. Of course, this depends on the plant’s requirements. First, soak the clay pot for a day before using it so the pot won’t draw the water out of the compost. Pots are available in all sorts of sizes but you usually only need four or five different sizes....

Tips for Growing Ferns Indoors There are a lot of species of tropical and subtropical ferns, but there are also a lot of ferns that are native to more temperate climates. These ferns would be well suited to cooler parts of the house but won’t survive in rooms that are too well heated. Tropical ferns survive best in homes with central heating. Below are recommend indoor conditions for optimal fern growth:...

How to Create a Lavender Garden Lavender is a low maintenance perennial herb originating in the Mediterranean. Grown for its fragrant flowers, lavender blooms can be used in soap making, potpourri, aromatherapy, and much more. Lavender is often planted along walkways and patios, added to herb gardens, or used in formal knot gardens. With a few simple steps, you can create your own garden of lavender. Begin by choosing a good location for your lavender garden....

Potato tubers develop best at temperatures of 60-70 Fahrenheit (15-21 C.). They grow well in early spring and late fall when temperatures aren’t too hot. There are early, midseason, and late varieties. Select a late variety for optimal production in fall cropping situations. When to Plant Fall Potatoes Late potatoes work well for winter storage. The best time to plant these varieties is about 110 days before the first expected freeze, which may be as early as July in some regions....

Gardeners are always looking for ways to reduce waste. We compost our food scraps, save our grass clippings, and constantly look at ways to give back to our soil. Coffee grounds are a natural byproduct of enjoying a cup of Joe, but they don’t need to be garbage. Growing mushrooms with coffee grounds provides the pasteurized substrate that spawn need to colonize and grow mycelium, which will eventually fruit....

Plants such as lavender, basil, and chamomile, and spices such as ginger and turmeric, can be grown in an indoor medicinal herb garden. How To Grow Medicinal Plants Indoors Growing a medicinal garden indoors is a bit more challenging than it is outdoors, but it can be done. The trick is to mimic outdoor conditions as much as possible. Site the medicinal herb garden near a sunny window, such as south or west facing, away from heater vents and temperature extremes....

Information about Gardening Tools and Equipment The best kinds of tools vary widely depending on a huge number of factors, ranging from your physical ability, size of your garden, type of soil, and even your gardening style. For example, an urban dweller with a balcony full of containers requires very different tools than a homeowner with a huge vegetable garden or an orchard. The best way to proceed is to start with a few essential tools that will serve you well for nearly any type of gardening....

The Surprising Lycoris Lily The Lycoris bulb will indeed surprise you if you are not familiar with her ways. Lycoris first presents a lush display of draping foliage, similar to that of the daffodil. A closer look reveals rounded leaf tips on attractive arching leaves. Just when you expect buds to develop, the foliage dies back, and the unaware gardener can feel robbed. However, the Lycoris squamigera lies in wait for just the right time to bloom....

Zone 7 Invasive Plants The U.S. Department of Agriculture developed a zone system dividing the nation into zones 1 through 13 based on the lowest annual temperatures. Nurseries mark the plants they sell with their appropriate zone range. This enables gardeners to readily identify plants hardy for their regions. Most areas of the country have some invasive plants that grow well there. This includes zone 7, those areas of the country where the low annual temperatures range from 0 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit....

What is Top Dressing? What is top dressing? Top dressing is an application of a thin layer of soil over a turfgrass area and is used to smooth and level the surface or to modify the soil condition, usually no more than ¼ to ½ inch (6 mm. to 1 cm.). Top dressing is also used to control thatch, protect from extreme temperatures, and amend the soil medium around the roots....

About Fluorescent Light and Plants Modern plant lighting has focused on the LED sources of light, but fluorescent lights are still widely available and easy to use. They are an excellent source of light for young seedlings and plant starts. Fluorescent lights don’t last as long as LEDs but are easy to find and install. Whether you use them vs. LEDs depends upon the light requirements indoors that your particular crop or plant needs....

Louisiana Iris Information The name “iris” is derived from the Greek word for rainbow, which is especially applicable with Louisiana iris plants. They come in a host of colors, primarily due to their ability to inbreed amongst the five separate species – Iris fulva, I. brevicaulis, I. nelsonii, I. hexagona, and I. giganticaerulea. In south Louisiana, all of these species occur amongst each other and freely hybridize naturally, resulting in colors not found in any other iris group....

Mammillaria Information Mammillaria cactus varieties can span sizes from one inch in diameter (2.5 cm.) to one foot in height (31 cm.). The majority of the readily available species are the ground hugging variety. As interior plants, growing Mammillaria couldn’t be easier. They need well-draining soil, good light, and warm temperatures. There are over 300 species of Mammillaria, but most you won’t see in the nursery. The tried-and-true varieties that thrive as houseplants are the easiest to find and provide a glimpse into the Mexican desert....

Help, My Corn Plant is Turning Yellow! We’ve been growing corn for the last few years with varying success. I’ve chalked it up to our generally cool summers and the fact that the huge pine trees in the backyard are blocking most of our sun in the veggie garden. So, last year we grew corn in containers on the patio with full sun exposure. Bingo! Of course, we decided to grow our corn in containers again this year....

Rules for Oceanfront Gardening in Hawaii The most important rule for a Hawaiian oceanfront garden is mentioned above: use native Hawaiian beach plants. This is extremely important since the weather is warm year round and the soil is going to be more sand than anything else, meaning it doesn’t hold water well. This also means that Hawaiian plants for the beach garden should be drought and salt tolerant as well as able to withstand warm temperatures....

Comprehensive Book for Designing Organic Gardens For the backyard organic gardener, there is no better book than The Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening, published by Rodale Press. This gem of a book has been constantly reprinted since 1959. With well over a thousand pages of information, this organic gardening book is considered the bible by most organic growers. A word of caution though: The Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening went through a major revision in the early 1990’s, and while it now has more illustrations, much of the better information was cut....

Will Trees With Holes Die? The short answer to this is probably not. When a tree develops a hole or if that hole gets larger and creates a hollow tree, most of the time, it is only the heartwood that is affected. The tree only needs the bark and the first few layers beneath the bark to live. These outer layers will often be protected by their own barriers from the rot that creates hollows and holes inside the trees....

Dealing with Pineapple Problems There is something truly intoxicating about the rum-like smell of a properly ripe pineapple, but when you’ve grown that fruit yourself, the experience can be almost transcendent. Since it can take many months for a pineapple fruit to mature, however, the plant has a lot of opportunities to develop disease or pick up pests, like beetles. Fortunately, most common pineapple problems are simple to correct. Pineapple plant diseases and pests can ruin an otherwise promising harvest, but if you already know how to identify common issues, you can be proactive about managing them....

Log Planters for Gardens In nature, storms, old-age, and many other things can cause trees or large tree branches to fall. Shortly after these logs fall to the forest floor, they’ll become inhabited by insects, mosses, fungi, vascular plants, and maybe even small mammals. One fallen tree limb can quickly become a beautiful, little, natural ecosystem of its own. Planting flowers in logs adds an excellent, rustic flare to many garden designs....