I Wantobe A BETTER Gardener...( lot's of photos)
This post has nothing to do with cross stitch or applique or embroidery..
but it does have something to do with my second passion...GARDENING!
So if you are not interested at all in any lesson on what I learned yesterday...we will see you on another day...HOWEVER if you love gardens and what to learn a tidbit or two...please sit a bit and take notes....
It is metaphor for life..... ok, my life and how gardening pertains to me...I love simplicity, although I love many colours, in our garden, we do WHITE, GREEN and a bit of RED ( furniture accents). I had to laugh with a dear friend of mine who said "she is too busy raising kids to do gardening".
I think gardening is one of those rewards as we get older provides the same rewards as raising children, you plant seeds, you care for them, nurture them and then you have to let outside influences dictate the results. Many times those results by the way, bring you such joy, such love and you are forever celebrating the seasons of their lives.... That is me and GARDENING!
I spent yesterday morning at a GARDENING Class- here is why? I want to be a better gardener.....
As long as we can remember, my beloved and I have had only WHITE gardens....Our season is so short and during the summer months, you can always find us in our garden, me stitching something and David reading....he has a ferocious appetite for the written word...And well you know I just love all needlework..so this is where we do it.. This is last summer's photos.....I can share, it will
be even more spectacular this year....NOW that I have taken a GARDENING class!
David is very worried....( in a happy way of course), every time I learn a new technique -our garden explodes just a bit more....it means more weed control, pest control and dealing with the elements...
( by the way snow flakes are falling from the sky this morning) ...
All summer long, we have white buds and flowers everywhere.... we even have flowers that only open at night.... We have so many fireflies that visit us at dusk that we call our garden... Fairies in the Tea GARDEN.... OUR garden is filled with activity all hours of the day and night..
One of our garden beds is filled with daisies, they attracts many butterflies and bees and they just smell so sweet..
And our Viburnums, well I think at last count, we have 9 very Large bushes and trees.. they come up in the spring and last for about 3 weeks..
These are my Snowball Hydrangeas...we have 5 of these now... They just keep spreading growing taller each season...
One of my most favourite photos , Sumatra and my beloved just having a sweet moment!
Now for the lesson.....
I loved our facilitators name Pat SODwin... She was very good, kind and filled with gardening expertise!
One of the first things she mentioned as an asset to starting seedlings.... SPAGmoss, it is from New Zealand, it is the perfect addition to your Seed Starter, that holds moisture, keeps mould and mildew away and keeps you from over watering ...
One tiny brick, we are talking about 11 inches long and 1/4 thick... is like a magic sponge.... cost 9.00 in Canada
I poured warm water about 7 cups.... and within seconds....look... ( click on photos to enlarge them all)
After 5 minutes, the moss absorbs the water and it looks a bit like sea weed.. smells welllllllll odd.... but that is fine...because you take about a handful and mix it with your seed starter, I like Miracle Grow...
I took another bowl and mixed it and then you are ready to fill your trays..
Great tidbits..
1. YOU lightly fill the trays, with mixture, you do not pack it down... The seeds need roots to spread and grow...
2. You only add 2 or 3 seeds, and you do not push it in the soil. This can damage them if you push them into the soil...
3. Only large seeds ( that may look like a popcorn seed) have to be pushed into the soil just a bit ( 1/4 inch)
4. You top it with more mixture, placing it all over the top... you just sprinkle mixture, do not pack it down...
5. YOU mist the top.
6. You pour water in your tray, in the corner, waiting about 30 minutes, pour off excess.
7. Cover and leave somewhere near a window, just a bit of sunlight
8. And WAIT till you see the first signs of GREEN , remove cover and give it its first fertilizer. ( Wegeners Fertilizer was recommended) Cost $16.00
9. Every two weeks you fertilizer until they are ready to go into the ground. (the perfect nutrients provides ultimate results)
10. Once your seedlings have presents with a second set of leaves, not the first two that sprout, the second set...transfer to larger pots....
11. Climatize your seedlings when ready to plant outside, an hour a day, then 2 hours a day, 3 hours a day....and then......You are ready to plant anywhere in your garden....
Use 1/4 cup to 1 cup of seed starter, YOU have to wear gloves because it can cause a bit of reaction to sensitive skin, It is loaded with nutrients...
This is the tray they provided us in class, THIS IS like a PENTHOUSE class seed starter....it has room for 24 plants, the bottom tray holds water, and there is a mat that absorbs water and keeps it watered until you are ready to transfer to new pots.. ( these were $25.00)
( these were $10.00) for 70 plants...
I was pleased she talked about SEED PUCKS... this tray has 70 of them...( I have 2 of these already)
1. Fill tray with warm water to completely cover seed pucks
2. Wait 2-3 hours till they fill with moisture
3. open with a little knife the netting under each puck...
4. add only 2 seeds per puck
5. Sprinkle Spagmoss and Seed starter mixture
6. Spay with water all over the top..
7. Cover and place in sun....
Seed pucks have seeds, sprinkled on top. see the large seeds on your left, those were before I pushed them down 1/4 deep into the seed pucks.. the smaller seeds are just placed on the top..
I forget the name of these...they are great ground cover and they keep flowering to the first frost..
These re my cosmos..( from last summer)
Some of my most favourite annuals will be making another appearance this year.. Cosmo's Pscyhe WHITE, these keep flowerings from May right till the first frost...they grow to be about 6 feet tall. ( they are hard to find, I have to order them in each year)
I love these tiny white flowers, I put these in all of my hanging plants they are called Bacopa....and you can get them in a variety of colours but I prefer WHITE....
And another favourite are these ASTERS, they look bluish, but they come up striking white with a hue of blue... they smell so nice..
I hope you learned something from my gardening class..always nice to share something
with fellow gardeners... My next lesson will be my raised Vegetable garden so stay tuned...
if interested of course...
Tomorrow, I have a special project for our Tree Bird Hop...
In stitching and gardening warmth..
I hope you learned something from my gardening class..always nice to share something
with fellow gardeners... My next lesson will be my raised Vegetable garden so stay tuned...
if interested of course...
Tomorrow, I have a special project for our Tree Bird Hop...
In stitching and gardening warmth..
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