When to Plant Crops in Fall Fall planting cool season crops only takes a little planning beforehand. To get plants that produce in cool weather, you’ll have to start them in late summer. Look up the average frost date for your area and count backward in time the days until maturity for your plant. (This will be printed on your seed packet. For the best yield, pick seed varieties with a quick time to maturity....

Best Fertilizer for Poinsettia Plants Poinsettias do fine with any good quality, all-purpose fertilizer. A water-soluble fertilizer is easiest to apply, but a dry fertilizer will also satisfy poinsettia fertilizer requirements. Be sure to water the plant thoroughly after fertilizing poinsettias, especially if you use dry fertilizer. Otherwise, the fertilizer may scorch the roots and damage the plant. Don’t bother fertilizing your poinsettia while it’s blooming, it isn’t necessary. Similarly, if you don’t intend to keep the plant and your goal is to simply enjoy it as a holiday decoration, no fertilizer is needed....

Fruit Tree Quince Pruning If you have a quince tree growing in your backyard, you know how attractive these fruit trees can be. They grow to around 15 feet (5 m.) tall, offering bowl-shaped pink flowers and fuzzy leaves. Not to mention the large, edible fruit. These stunning trees can live to 50 years or more, so it’s well worth taking good care of them. Fruit tree quince pruning is part of that care....

What is Iron and its Function? The role of iron in plants is as basic as it can get: without iron a plant can’t produce chlorophyll, can’t get oxygen and won’t be green. So what is iron? The function of iron is to act much like it does in the human bloodstream — helping to carry important elements through a plant’s circulatory system. Where to Find Iron for Plants Iron for plants can come from a number of sources....

On a piece of paper, neatly write or print (from your printer) a garden scavenger hunt list. Below we have posted a sample list for a nature scavenger hunt in the garden. You do not need to use all of the items on our nature scavenger hunt list. Choose as many items as you feel are appropriate for the kids’ age levels. You may also want to give the kids a basket, box, or bag to hold the items in while they hunt and a pen or pencil to mark items off their list....

Golden Transparent Gage Info Transparent or diaphanous gages are a subset of gages that have almost see through skin. If you hold the fruit to the light, the stone can be seen inside. They are considered to have a more refined “plum” flavor. Golden Transparent gage info indicates the variety was named for Sir William Gage, who popularized the gages in the 1800s. Some tips on growing a Golden Transparent gage can see you enjoying these delicious fruits in just a few years....

About Brunnera Plants The light blue blooms of brunnera plants rise above the leaves of various cultivars. Brunnera plants have leaves that are glossy green or in variegated hues of gray, silver, or white, such as the popular cultivar ‘Jack Frost’. Brunnera Siberian bugloss blooms in early to mid-spring. When growing brunnera, locate the plant in part to full shade, and in well-drained soil that can be kept consistently and lightly moist....

How Do Orange Trees Pollinate? The process of pollination is the transfer of pollen from the male part of one flower, the stamen, to the female part of another flower, the pistil. In nature, this process is taken care of mostly by bees that carry pollen on their bodies as they move from flower to flower. If your orange tree is kept indoors or in a greenhouse, if you live in an area without many bees nearby, or if your tree is blooming but the weather is still cool (meaning the bees may not be out in force yet), you should consider manual orange tree pollination....

What is Himalayan Rhubarb? Himalayan rhubarb is one of about 60 perennial plants in the rhubarb family. Nearly all of these can be eaten, including R. australe. The use of Himalayan rhubarb, though, is more often as a showy edition to ornamental beds. The plant is native to the slopes of the Himalayan Mountains and produces large, attractive, dark green leaves topped by dense clusters of reddish purple flowers. You don’t need a lot of Himalayan rhubarb information to grow this pretty plant....

Recognizing Leaf Spot on Hollyhock Hollyhocks with leaf spot display small spots which may be brown, gray, or tan, depending on the pathogen. As the spots enlarge, the dead tissue in the center may drop out, which give the leaves a “shot-hole” appearance. The spots often run together to cover entire leaves when conditions are moist. In dry conditions, the leaves take on a speckled, tattered appearance. You may also notice tiny black spots which are fungal spores....

How Do Ferns Purify Air? The ability of ferns, and some other plants, to remove pollutants from air, soil, or water is called phytoremediation. Ferns and other plants are able to absorb gases through their leaves and roots. It is the microorganisms in the soil that help to break down many VOC (volatile organic compounds). Around the root system, there are many fungi, bacteria, and other microbes. These organisms not only help break down nutrients for plant growth, but they also break down many harmful VOCs in the same way....

Mowing stripes in grass is important for golf courses because the direction the grass is lying can affect how the ball rolls. Striped grass in home lawns is aesthetically pleasing but not necessary. The same holds true for sports fields. The creative striping is a true crowd pleaser, but it does not affect the playability of the field. Nonetheless, you might like to learn how to cut stripes in grass and be the envy of the neighborhood....

Should you Cut Back Horse Chestnut Trees? Horse chestnut (Aescuclus hippocastanum) is a non-native deciduous tree whose name is derived from the mark left on twigs after the foliage has fallen, which looks much akin to an inverted horseshoe. Aesthetically, the tree is known for its large white flowers. These give way to conkers, large brown spine-covered nuts. Horse chestnuts do not send out shoots that require maintenance in the form of aggressive pruning....

Signs of Scale on Palm Tree Leaves There are two very noticeable signs of scale on palm trees: One is that the palm tree leaves will become covered in a sticky substance. This sticky substance may become so plentiful that it will drip off the palm tree leaves onto the floor. This sticky substance will be difficult to remove and will return if you do remove it. The other sign of scale on palm trees will be small brown or tan bumps somewhere on the palm tree leaves....

Feeding Houseplants Growing in Water Although plants get some important elements from the air, they draw most of their nutrients through their roots. For those grown in hydroponic plant environments, it’s up to us to provide fertilizer in the water. If you’re serious about creating hydroponic plant environments, it’s a good idea to have your water tested before you begin. Often, water contains a significant amount of calcium, magnesium, sodium, and chloride, and in some cases, may contain excessive amounts of boron and manganese....

How to Grow Rhubarb When thinking about how to grow rhubarb, plant it where the winter temperatures go below 40 F. (4 C.) so that dormancy can be broken when it warms up in the spring. Summer temperatures below 75 F. (24 C.) on average will yield quite a nice crop. Because rhubarb is a perennial, its care is a little different than that of other vegetables. You will want to be sure you are planting rhubarb along the edge of your garden so it doesn’t disturb your other vegetables when it comes up each spring....

Phlox vs. Thrift Plants Is thrift a kind of phlox? Yes and no. Unfortunately, there are two completely different plants that go by the name “thrift.” You guessed it, one of them is a kind of phlox. Phlox subulata, known as creeping phlox or moss phlox, is also frequently called “thrift.” This plant is a true member of the phlox family. Especially popular in the southeastern U.S., it is actually hardy in USDA zones 2 through 9....

If you don’t have space for a full-size bog, creating a container bog garden is easily done. Even small potted bog gardens will hold an array of colorful, fascinating plants. Let’s get started. Creating a Container Bog Garden To make your bog garden in a container, start with something measuring at least 12 inches (31 cm.) deep and 8 inches (20 cm.) across or larger. Any container that holds water will work, but keep in mind that larger bog garden planters won’t dry out as quickly....

What is the Mandrake Plant? Wrinkled and crispy mandrake foliage might remind you of tobacco leaves. They grow up to 16 inches (41 cm.) long, but lie flat against the ground, so the plant only reaches a height of 2 to 6 inches (5-15 cm.). In spring, flowers bloom at the center of the plant. Berries appear in late summer. Mandrake roots can grow up to 4 feet (1 m.) long and sometimes bear a remarkable resemblance to a human figure....

Mexican Fan Palm Info The Mexican fan palm (Washingtonia robusta) is native to the deserts of northern Mexico, though it can be grown through much of the American South and Southwest. The trees are hardy in USDA zones 9 through 11 and Sunset zones 8 through 24. They tend to grow to a height of 80 to 100 feet (24.5-30.5 m.). Their leaves are dark green and fan-shaped, reaching between 3 and 5 feet (1-1....