Fabric grow bags - Are these good for plants - A must know for every gardening enthusiast.

Grow bags made of fabric are becoming more nad more popular. When compared to the regular Terracotta plant pots and the plastic planters these   fabric grow bags are highly beneficial.

Let's see in detail about the advantages and disadvantages of fabric grow bags.

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No more worries about overwatering:
One major advantage of these grow bags made of fabric is that we need not worry about excess watering as the fabric allows excess water to drain out easily.

Stains on fabric might be a problem:
One major disadvantage on the other side is that, the seepage of water might leave stains on the outer side of the fabric grow bags.

But, this can be easily overcome because there are a lot of two-tonne colour varieties of grow bags which minimalists the staining problem.

Waterproof lining:
These two tonne fabric grow bags also come with a water proof protective liner which helps the grow bag stay clean for a longer period of time. The top layer of the grow bag is covered with waterproof lining and thus prevents excess water from being drained. The colour us also protected by the waterproof lining. You can now additional colour and look to your garden, patio, backyard and balcony with these fabric grow bags.

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Aeration zone:

Aeration zone at bottom is not lined with waterproof layer. So, the bag becomes breathable and the airflow to the roots becomes easy. Root circling is thus prevented and the plant grows well. These fabric made grow bags promotes air pruning for healthier and happier plants.

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Stiff bags:
These grow bags made of fabric is stiff enough to stand well even when empty and so they can be easily filled.

Comfortable handles:
Fabric grow bags also come with super strong handles that make it easy to carry the grow bags nad shift it around.

Dimensions:
These fabric grow bags come in various dimensions such as 12" diameter and 10" height - which is a 5 gallon bag. The other one is a 7 gallon bag with 13.5" diameter and 11" height.

These non-woven planter pots will definitely make a beautiful addition to your garden.

Grow these vegetable plants together and see what happens.

Companion gardening which is growing certain plants together will help

to improve the yield of plants. Growing certain vegetables, flowering

plants, herbs and fruits as companions will help resist pests, benefit your

garden in general, help bug control, improve yield and increase soil

health. There are a lot of benefits when it comes to companion

gardening. 

Here is the list of plants that can be grown together as companions

in your home garden. These companion gardening tips for your home

will help you maintain your garden easily. 

1. Garliccan be planted along with cauliflower, lettuce, tomatoes, strawberries,

broccoli, beans and peas. 

2. Carrots can be planted along with onions, rosemary, tomatoes, dill,

peppers, broccoli and beans.

3. Spinach can be planted along with strawberry, cauliflower and cilantro.

4. Melons can be planted along with marigold, squash, sunflower and sage.

5. Corn grows well along with cucumber, sunflower and tomatoes. 

6. Onions grow well with beets, carrots, lettuce and peppers. 

7. Potatoes can be combined with peas, beans and corn. 

8. Egg plant grows well with beans and pepper.

9. Cucumber can be planted along with corn and cabbage. 

10. Celery can be planted with beans and tomatoes.

Protip: Here are other best companions for your vegetable plants. 

1. Marigold: Marigolds when planted along with vegetables help in repelling insects.

Tomatoes and Marigolds are great companions, as Marigold helps repel

hornworms which bother tomatoes the most. 

2. Nasturtium and Rosemary are herbs which when planted with beans will help to deter beetles

that attack your bean plants. 

3. Oregano is also a wonderful companion for your vegetable garden as it deters

most insects, just like marigold. 

Companion planting, actually, is harnessing the power of nature to

enjoy a good yield and at the same time it is nature’s way of preventing

insect and pest attack on plants. 

5 Rarely known gardening tips for growing huge quantities of tomatoes

Caring for tomatoes throughout the growing season is highly essential and following these tips will help you maximise the harvest while minimizing effort and work. 

1. Nutrient dense soil - Rich in Phosphorous:

Did you know that tomatoes love nutrient dense soil, especially Phosphorous. Of the NPK fertilizers, Phosphorous is the one that promotes flower and fruit development in addition to sturdy root development. Over feeding tomato plants with Nitrogen fertilizer will promote a lot of  green foliage, but will not encourage flowers and fruits. 

2. pH of the soil matters:

If you are expecting big reaps from your tomato plants, then looking into the soil pH number and maintiang the ideal pH is essential. Maximum nutrient absorption of tomato plant is between 6.2 and 6.5. 

3. Deep and horizontal planting of tomatoes:

Tomato plants unlike other vegetable plants have roots throughout the stem and so, planting the stem deep and horizontal will enhance the growth of the plants, thus increasing yield. 

4. Loosen the roots:

For healthy tomato plants, the roots must be loosened before transplanting it. Most of the time the roots appear entangled and circled inside the container. Before transplanting the plant loosen the root ball and then plant it deep and horizontally. 

5. Always add a companion to your tomato plant:

Never plant tomatoes alone This will increase the pests. A secret tip to reduce pests is to plant them with companion plants such as dill, cilantro, fennell etc.These will provide nectar for the wasps and thus control hornworms that damage tomato plants. Similarly, lowers like alyssum provide nectar for tachnid and syphrid flies which prey on pests such as leaf rooted bugs, whiteflies etc, which harm the tomato plants. 

10 beautiful gardening ideas for home

Creating a beautiful garden is a great passion for almost everyone. Gardening tips and gardening ideas for home are always sought out inorder to give that extra great look to our garden. 

Here are 10 sime tips for a beautiful garden. These garden ideas for home will make your garden look awesome. 

Beautiful gardens appeal to our senses. The colours and immense diversity of design combinations, fragrance, flavours, sounds from birds and insects attracted to the plants and variety of textures.

Go for a drive around your neighbourhood and take notice of the gardens that catch your eye or next time you visit a friend’s garden, be observant and tune in to what you love about it. No doubt they will be applying some design principles and elements that apply whether they are used in art, graphics, building, interior or garden design.

“A garden is a thing of beauty and a job forever.” – Richard Briers

Simple concepts can make a HUGE difference to the enjoyment of your garden space and particularly so, when it is a micro garden. Designers use these principles all over the world to make spaces really stand out and visually beautiful. Less really can be more if you know how.

1. Add flowers or flowering plants

Splashes of colour break up green, provide variety, contrast and focal points. Try sowing both annuals and perennial flowers. e.g. cosmos, hydrangeas, sunflowers and marigolds.

You don’t specifically have to plant flowers though. A wide range of herbs and vegetables have beautiful flowers too. These include: chives (purple), spring onions (white), dill (yellow), thyme (pale pink to purple), basils (white or purple), pineapple sage (red), rosemary (purple), rocket (white), as well as all flowering vegetables and fruits.

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NASA clean air study - Top ranked NASA approved air purifier plants for your home.

20 small balcony garden ideas for home

Garden ideas for home:

Most of us who live in apartments love to have a garden, but space constraint is one of the major blocks that makes it almost impossible. One good idea to make this dream of having a garden come true for those who live in cities and highly crowded apartments is to make a small balcony garden. When it comes to garden ideas for home, interesting and attractive ideas are always sought for. 

These garden ideas are easy to implement DIY garden projects with a minimal budget. Terrace garden ideas for home are also becoming more and more popular. But, those who cannot implement the roof garden idea for home, such as those living in a rental house or in an apartment can go for balcony garden ideas for home. 

Small balcony garden ideas for home:

There are various garden design ideas including vertical garden ideas for home. Here are 20 best, attractive easy to make small balcony garden ideas for home. 

If you are a lover of a lot of plants and would like to have a jungle look in your home, then this particular garden idea for your balcony will make your desire come true. 

If you want to give your balcony garden a trendy look, with vertical planter idea and a good place to relax with your family, then designing your balcony like this will get you a lot of space to sit and relax amidst plants. 

You can make your small balcony look much more spacious by using the hanging baskets on your railings, or by making the space on the outer side of the railing your planter space. 

Use the extra vertical space on the side walls to have beautiful hanging plants that add charm to your balcony garden. 

A balcony that receives good sunlight can be designed with a mix of sun loving outdoor plants and indoor plants. This simple balcony garden gives a lot of space to relax as well. 

If you are a beginner gardener, and want to set up a balcony garden, then it is quiet easy to start with easy to grow plants that can be placed on the vertical space on the wall. Placing the plants on the vertical garden space will also help you to monitor and care them easily. 

If you love a clean look and a minimalist approach, then the garden design idea above will be highly suitable for you. 

To give a simple neat and trendy look to your balcony using wooden planks and wooden planters on the corners will give an attractive look to your balcony garden. 

If you are willing to spend an extra budget for your balcony garden set up, then using some lights and wall hangings in your balcony garden will add an extra charm to your home. 

Making a green wall idea for your balcony garden in an excellent garden idea for home. It gives that fresh look and feel to your home. 

For those who love a lot of flowers adding perennial flowering plants to your balcony will  make your sit-out look bright and colourful to enjoy your tea time. 

Even the smallest, narrow balcony can be made look green with an artificial grass on the floor and plants in hanging pots.

A simple, yet rich look to your balcony can be given by using this tree branch garden design idea for your balcony. 

If you are not some one who would like to do a lot of work and yet want to make your balcony look beautiful with plants, then this kind of design is for you. 

A flower bed  on a raised balcony floor kind of a look can add more colours and beauty to your balcony. The actual balcony space can be used to design a sitting space to enjoy the beauty of the flowering plants in your garden. 

If you want to have all sorts of plants and shrubs in your garden and have only the balcony space to make your garden, then this kind of an  design will allow you to place even shrubs that look like trees. 

Gardening for beginners can be made very easy with this kind of a balcony garden design. Flowering plants and easy to care plants can boost up your gardening passion. 

A lot of hanging plants on your balcony terrace can add more lush green look to your balcony garden.

A simple elegant garden design for your balcony will  make you fresh and will look cool. 

The creepers that can be planted in y our balcony space will add shade and green look to your balcony, giving it a park like look to your home. 

Plant propagation techniques - How to propagate plants from hardwood cuttings.

Plant propagation is an extremely interesting process for gardeners, as it creates a lush thick look with more plants all free of cost. But, propagating plants successfully has been a challenge to gardeners till date. There are various factors that play a role in successful propagation of plants. But, choosing the right cutting is the most important thing when it comes to propagating plants from  cuttings.  

Here we will see about propagation of plants through hardwood cuttings. The in-depth process of plant propagation techniques using hardwood cuttings has been given here. Following these gardening techniques and gardening  tips will lead to successful growth of new plants from plant cuttings.

 

 

 

Hardwood cuttings are even simpler to prepare than softwood or herbaceous cuttings, as we use cuttings from dormant deciduous trees and woody plants, and this technique is very useful for propagating fruit trees such as figs, pomegranates, mulberries and quince. Some plums can grow well from hardwood cuttings too, while other’s don’t do so well, it depends on the variety.

This technique is also used for propagating vines such as grapes and kiwi fruit, and the currant family – blackcurrants, redcurrants, golden currants and gooseberries.

 

Step by step process to propagate plants from hardwood cuttings.  

 

Kind of stem cutting to be used for various types of plants:

 

When it comes to stem cuttings, there are are various types of stem cuttings, and for each plant, the kind of stem cutting that has to be chosen varies. The type of stem cuttings are to be decided based on whether it is a herb, shrub, tree or indoor plant. Also certain stem cuttings are easy to root and thus easy to propagate. Whereas certain stem cuttings such as semi hardwood plant cuttings and hardwood plant cuttings are quiet difficult to root and propagate. They also take a longer tie period to root. 

Herbaceous cuttings are made from non-woody, herbaceous plants such as coleus, chrysanthemums, and dahlia. A 3- to 5-inch piece of stem is cut from the parent plant. The leaves on the lower one-third to one-half of the stem are removed. A high percentage of the cuttings root, and they do so quickly.

Softwood cuttings are prepared from soft, succulent, new growth of woody plants, just as it begins to harden (mature). Shoots are suitable for making softwood cuttings when they can be snapped easily when bent and when they still have a gradation of leaf size (oldest leaves are mature while newest leaves are still small). For most woody plants, this stage occurs in May, June, or July. The soft shoots are quite tender, and extra care must be taken to keep them from drying out. The extra effort pays off, because they root quickly.

Semi-hardwood cuttings are usually prepared from partially mature wood of the current season’s growth, just after a flush of growth. This type of cutting normally is made from mid-July to early fall. The wood is reasonably firm and the leaves of mature size. Many broadleaf evergreen shrubs and some conifers are propagated by this method.

Hardwood cuttings are taken from dormant, mature stems in late fall, winter, or early spring. Plants generally are fully dormant with no obvious signs of active growth. The wood is firm and does not bend easily. Hardwood cuttings are used most often for deciduous shrubs but can be used for many evergreens. Examples of plants propagated at the hardwood stage include forsythia, privet, fig, grape, and spirea.

Here is an in-depth information on which kind of stem cutting has to be taken for the most common plant varieties. 

How to propagate plants successfully like a pro - Gardening tips for Plant propagation.

Propagation has been the most looked out method for multiplying plants as we would like to fill our garden space with beautiful plants in an cost-effective manner.  Multiplying the plants in our garden and balcony, to give that jungle look to our living space, using plant propagation, has also become trending among young gardeners. 

Moreover, Propagating plants can easily add more plants to either your indoor or outdoor collections. 

There are various methods of plant propagation and propagating plants through cuttings is one of the easiest and cost effective methods. 

When it comes to Growing new plants through plant cuttings, it can either be through stem cuttings, leaf cuttings, or root cuttings. 

Now we will see about the process and few plants that can be propagated through stem cuttings. The list will include a mix of indoor and outdoor plants. 

When it comes to stem cuttings the kind of stem can be categorised as 

1. Herbaceous

2. Softwood

3. Semi hardwood

4. Hardwood

Herbaceous stem cuttings:

These are done for herbaceous plants that are non - woody. 

Herbaceous stem cutting propagation method can be used for Coleus propagation, Chrysanthemum propagation, Philodendron propagation, propagating Impatiens, propagating Poinsettias, wandering Jew propagation and Dahlia propagation. Rosemary cuttings are very easy to propagate. Thyme and mint propagation can also be done from herbaceous stem cuttings. 

Softwood stem cuttings:

These are the soft, succulent, young, stem cuttings from woody plants. These softwood of the plant will snap when bent and will also have leaves that are not yet fully mature. 

The bending test is the best method for finding the right softwood for plant propagation. 

• ‌New growth will generally be greenish and will not break easily when bent. 

• ‌Soft wood will easily break when bent and this is just right for propagation of plants through stem cuttings. ‌

• Hardwood will not break easily. 

Some plants that can be propagated through softwood stem cuttings are, coleus, gardenia, geranium, hibiscus, lilac, salvia, etc. Hydrangea cuttings, lavender cuttings, jade plant cuttings,

Semi hardwood cuttings:

Semi hardwood cuttings are collected from the stem that has grown in that season, but has hardened and matured. 

These stems will have leaves of full size. 

Semi hardwood cuttings take longer to form roots. 

Some plants that can be propagated using semi hardwood cuttings are Coprosma (taupata), camellia, azalea, New Zealand broadleaf (Griselinia), hebe, Fuschia, Leucodendron, boxwood, rhododendron and holly. 

Hardwood cuttings:

Hardwood cuttings are nearly 1 inch in width and are taken from stems that have grown the previous season. They are not easy to break. 

Examples of plants that can be grown from hardwood cuttings are figs, Pomegranates, mulberries, grapes, gooseberries etc. 

Here is the exact process of propagating plants from stem cuttings.