Hydrangea flowers are our soil's litmus paper

When we talk about hydrangea flowers which part of these extraordinary blooms are we referring to? Do we mean the large ball shaped flower seemingly suspended about a salutary bunch of offset leaves? Or, are we suggesting the individual colourful bracts that make up the whole?

Actually, hydrangea flowers are neither the massive dome-shaped bloom or the bracts that make it up. No. hydrangea flowers are the minutiae encased within the tonal bracts. But let's not be semantical!

So for this post we're going to take the view that hydrangea flowers are the dome-shaped blooms that catch our eye the moment they unfurl. And for the most part we're going to be looking at why their colours differ so vastly even when they are grown on the same bush in the same location.

H.macrophylla is the most common of the hydrangeas - probably the one your grandmother grew in her garden. It's responsible for many cultivars and differ in flower colour from heavily pigmented blues to pinks and reds and every shade in between. The bushes, mostly grown as perennial shrubs, can also range in size from 1-3m in height and similar width dimensions.

What I like most about hydrangea flowers is their ability to change colour. While a chameleon will change colour to fit in to its current habitat, hydrangea blooms change colour because of their habitat - namely their soil pH.

We've all heard the legend that adding some rusty nails to the soil surrounding your hydrangea will turn the blooms blue. In effect, this is quite possible as the rusty metal will increase the soil's acidity and alter the hue of the blooms. However, I'm not sure that putting rusty nails into the garden is a positive enhancement. It's great if you know exactly where they're located and how many you emptied into your garden. It would be disastrous for your children to find them before you did - and they found them in the bottom of their little feet!

Rusty nails aside, there are ways to alter the colour of your hydrangeas and this is where they become the litmus paper for your garden. Ours, for example, is delightfully pink - the colour demonstrating an alkaline soil - and it makes sense because our rhododendron planted next to it is struggling (R.'s appreciate slightly acidic soils).

Changing Hydrangea colour Pink!
If you're blooms are mostly blue and you'd like a change then the goal is to alter the pH of your soil. Note: achieving this in containers is far simpler than trying to make this happen in your garden soil - but it's still very possible.

Raising the pH level means adding lime - dolomitic lime to be exact. A few handfuls over the soil surrounding your plant every 3-4 months should ensure that the pH balance raise beyond 6-6.5. If your soil is a clay-based loam you may find that every 6 months is more appropriate and for sandy soils possibly every 2-3 months.

Changing Hydrangea colour Blue!
Blue hydrangea flowers are the seemingly be-all-and-end-all of the bloom colours. Our desires far more favour trying to reach this colour than the pink. Fortunately it's just as easy to achieve, but again you'll have more success in a container than your own garden soil.

To increase the acidity of your soil in favour of blue flowers you will need to add some aluminium sulphate. It's not a hard trace element to get hold of and most nurseries would stock it. The application would be as per the producers directions but usually a teaspoon or two in a 9l watering can would suffice. This is then applied to the plant during its growing season.

If your soil is as alkaline as mine then you might want to consider beefing it up with some home-made compost well before the season starts. Even mulching your hydrangeas with lawn clippings would be a helpful practice.

If you're looking for more resources on hydrangeas and how to change their colour try this site.

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A Challenge to the Gardening Blogging Community

Bloomingwriter's blogger, jodi DeLong, issued a challenge to the gardening blogging community to show where they are on the world's stage. Well, here I am in beautiful Busselton, Western Australia.

Busselton is a coastal town 220km south of WA's capital city Perth. With a mere 24,000 residents it's not exactly your bustling metropolis. But it does cater for most things and if we can't get it here, then Bunbury, a short 52kms north, makes up the difference.

For climate and gardening conditions, Busselton is second to none. Even with Austin's 18 garden bloggers they still fall far short of our blog per capita ratio of 1:24000 (Austin's is more like 1:83000) which proves that we are far more into gardening than this US city would let on.

Basically, Busselton is built on a flood plain 2m above sea level. The hills that surround it provide the necessary water for many of our low-lying wetlands and is diverted away from the town through a flood-mitigation program. Much of the water runoff also leeches into the soil and refills our vast Yarragadee Aquifier. This aquifer is the source of all our water consumption.

The town's history was born through the shipping of timber from Geographe Bay. While the bay is a safe harbour it's very shallow and required the building of an almost 2km long jetty. Shipping ceased soon after Cyclone Alby tore through the region in the early 1970's and the jetty has now become a tourist attraction and the source of much contention to who will foot the bill for maintenance.

Chookie from Chookie's Backyard asked about info relating to our founding 'amateur botanist' Georgianna Molloy. While there's much written about this great pioneer you will get a very different story about her from many people who live in Busselton. Whereas she should have been honoured for her gardening work she is reasonably vilified for introducing the arum lily to our moist wetlands. All because she thought they looked wonderful in her English garden back home.

Gardening in Busselton is not as easy as it seems though. Sandy soils that leech nutrients faster than a greyhound on race day and soil alkalinity from the ocean's salt, take their toll. But once the soil's been built up with rich humus there's not a lot that won't grow in this environment. Hot summers reaching into the mid 30's C and mild winters with minimum's still above 0° C ensure gardeners don't give up easily.

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The Water Garden Landscaping TIps

by Carlo Morelli

There are a lot of new trends surfacing in gardening, and water gardening is one of the new interests. Water gardening can include waterfalls, ponds, streams and fountains, all of which can be combined with lighting, plants, and fish. Water gardening need not have a pond or natural water source moreover, it could be a plastic tub, plastic lined shallow in the back yard or, almost anything that will hold water.

An important consideration in planning a water garden is the choosing a location. Plants and fish both need plenty of sunlight, places in direct light away from trees and bushes are the top places. This will also help prevent leaves and debris from collecting in the water.

When planning for a water garden the next step is to choose the size you want. This depends of course on the resources you want to dedicate to it, how much money and time you are willing to spend. A water garden can be expensive if you go for a big garden filled with plants, rocks, fish, and lights. Also think about your property's size, which will also affect amount of time you'll spend maintaining your water garden.

Aquatic pond plants can be free floating, submerged, or marginal. What type you select is a matter of aesthetics and preference. Some plants are known for their scents, some for supplying oxygen keep the pool healthy, and some are just picturesque. Remember that the plants should only cover about half of the water, especially if you have fish. Fish are not only nice to look at; they're beneficial in that they help keep debris at a minimum and help in controlling larva and other insects.

One of the big challenges in water gardening is maintaining water free of algae. Algae problems are usually the result of nutrients in the water from feeding fish too often or over fertilizing plants. By cutting back on feeding and fertilizing, adding more plants, putting in a pond filtering system, or replacing the water with fresh water, algae is easily controlled. If a pond is constructed correctly and maintained properly algae problems can be kept at a minimum. All garden pools, no matter the size, require some maintenance during the year. With proper planning you can create a healthy equilibrium between living and decorative features of a water garden that can almost care for itself with simple maintenance inputs from you.

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Planning Your Flower Garden

by Lisa Sousa

You've wanted a flower garden for such a long time. They just add so much color and interest to your yard. You have waited in anticipation through the winter to start digging a place for a flower bed, purchase and plant your bulbs, seeds or plants, and to reap the many benefits of a well cared for flower garden. But maybe you need some tips and ideas for getting started. Here are some helpful hints for you to get going on that special gardening project.

It is wise to plan out your flower garden before getting your flowers. The fist step is make a sketch of your house, garage, trees, and any other buildings or landscaping on your property. An important consideration is the direction your property is facing as well. You don't want to plant a flower garden, and then find that it doesn't get enough sunlight for the flowers to grow. Flower gardens are also best when planted on a level or gently sloping ground because the water runoff from steep slopes will cause the soil to erode.

Another thing to consider would be the style of flower garden that you would like. Flower gardens can be straight or curved in shape, formal or casual. Your house can be a guide on deciding on your particular style. For example, if you have a traditional house, then a symmetrical, formal design might be for you. If you have a country-style house with gingerbread trim, then a less symmetrical and more casual planting maybe for you.

The next step in planning your garden is to decide what kind of flower beds would be desirable to your yard and you. A flower border is set against a backdrop such as a house, shrubs, or the edge of your patio as well as other places such as property edges. This choice of flower bed is a good option for those with smaller yards. Another type of flower bed which will work well with bigger lawns is called an island bed. An island bed is a flower bed that is planted in the middle of the lawn itself so it will give the effect of a splash of color washed up on the lawn itself. It is best to plant the taller plants in the middle of the island and to have the smaller plants around the them so they will look great on all sides. It is advisable though, to avoid making the island too small and having it made in the middle of the yard when the yard is otherwise empty.

When digging your flower bed, be sure to consider the width of the flower bed, so that it will be wide enough to accommodate the front, middle and back layers, and provides enough room for your plants to grow. As a rule, the longer your flower bed is, the wider it should be as well. Most flowers need well drained soil, so it is advisable to avoid locating your garden where there is standing water after heavy rains or during a spring thaw. The exception to this woud be when plants that can tolerate boggy soil conditions are desired. You should take the sun exposure into consideration as well because this is key to your garden planting. Some plants like full sun while other love shade

After the flower bed is dug up, and the landscaping is in place, the next thing to consider is the plants themselves. Do you want to have color throughout the year or only in certain seasons? Do you leave town in certain times such as the mid summer? If this is often the case, be sure to obtain flowers that are low maintenance during those times, such as mid summer or that bloom in the springtime. Flowers that bloom in late summer, as well as a few shrubs and trees that provide great autumn color can also add beauty to your garden through out the year if year round enjoyment is desired. Light-colored flowers, evening-scented plants, as well as garden lighting, can make your flower garden into a pleasant evening retreat after a long day at work.
Now for the fun part of planning your garden begins. The overall color of your garden is very much based on your own personal tastes. However, there are a few guidelines to follow. It is not a good idea to add too much contrast or too many colors to your flower bed due to the fact that these colors will cancel out each other and will give a visual overload. However, if the contrasts are used in moderation, it can add some spark. Colors can also reflect mood as well as the seasons themselves. Hotter colors such as reds, oranges and yellows work very well in mid summer, while the soothing effects of lighter, pastel colors go well with the springtime of early summer. Or perhaps you would like a single color garden is more to your tastes.

With careful planning and preparation, you can create a spectacular spectrum of color and fragrant scents right outside your door for you and your family to enjoy.

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Gardening Tips To Keep Your Garden Beautiful After The Winter Months

by Gary Milroy

Some simple gardening tips to keep your garden tip-top after the winter months. Sometimes getting into the garden and doing the simple things will be most beneficial to your garden.

February has lived up to being a cold and windy month (for most of us). However, with all the changes in the weather recently, who knows, we might get a heat wave soon. This is a good time to take stock and check the condition of trees and shrubs.

Recently planted stock should be checked to make sure that they are still firm in the ground. The frosts can kill the roots if exposed. If they are too unstable, support them with a suitable stake. Also make sure that existing staked trees don't have their ties too tight.

The cold frosts can be your friend too. If you have heavy clay soil you should dig it over leaving it in big lumps. Pick a dry day when the soil itself is not too wet. A lawn that is prone to inadequate drainage will benefit from aeration. Ideally use a hollow tined fork (although an ordinary garden fork will do). This will remove small plugs of soil to a depth of about 6 inches, which can then be incorporated in the beds. If using a garden fork push it in to the full depth of the tines and wiggle it back and forth to leave holes. In each case immediately brush washed sharp sand all over the lawn, which will fill the holes. The area may look messy when you are finished but a shower of rain will soon clean it up.

Lawn Maintenance
DON'T FEED OR CUT YOUR LAWN YET.
Any reputable gardener will tell you that feeding your lawn too early will do it more harm than good.

Feeding the lawn causes fresh new young growth, which would be damaged by frost. The first feed should be no earlier than April and should be a lawn sand with a low level of feed, just enough to act as a tonic for the grass. Let it start the new season gently. Also don't be tempted to cut the grass yet even if it started growing during the recent warm spell. Frost damage could again result.

Being a gardener is one of the most enjoyable experiences you can have. But remember to keep doing the simple things.... Your garden will pay you back for doing it.

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Tips For Your 'Full of Bulbs' Garden

by Nikki Phipps

Want a successful garden? Try planting bulbs into your landscape. Flowering bulbs are not only easy to grow and popular among garden plants, but they can fit into nearly any type of gardening style. And with proper care, bulbs will continue to bloom year after year. Flowering bulbs make lovely additions to any garden, especially when planted in groups or mixed borders.

Bulbs are widely available at most garden centers; however, most of the more spectacular ones need to be purchased through mail-order catalogs or nurseries that specialize in these types of plants.

Actually, ordering your bulbs through catalogs or obtaining them from nurseries can provide many benefits. Since bulbs are dormant, shipping them is easy and done so according to their appropriate planting times. This means all you have to do is simply stick them in the ground. There's no worrying with keeping particular bulbs stored elsewhere until needed.

The quality of your bulbs from a mail order company is normally better, too. They are healthier and picked for you by experts; whereas, picking them yourself may not always be easy, unless you know what to look for.

When selecting bulbs yourself, try choosing only those that are firm. You don't want any soft, withered, or blemished bulbs as these will not produce a healthy plant.

Always consider your landscape prior to planting or choosing bulbs. Observe your surroundings, taking notes as to the types of plants already growing within the landscape.

Choose bulbs which will thrive in your particular area and climate. Check reference books, labels, and packaging for the bulb's hardiness requirements.

Consider the color, bloom time, height, and compatibility of the plants you want to grow. You want to select bulbs that will offer significant blooming throughout the seasons with plenty of ongoing color year-round.

Mix them up with a variety of annuals and perennials as well as interesting foliage plants such as hostas and ferns.

Proper planting of bulbs will keep the garden full of blooms through the seasons and ensure healthy, vigorous growth for years to come. Place your bulbs in the ground as soon as possible; otherwise, keep them stored in a cool, dry area. Bulbs are normally planted well before the ground freezes in the fall or after the planting of perennials, annuals, and other plants in the spring.

Both winter and spring bulbs require a dormant period in cool temperatures in order to stimulate their growth and development. These types of bulbs include crocuses, cyclamens, tulips, daffodils, snowdrops, and hyacinths. Generally, these bulbs are hardy enough to be left in the ground throughout the year; however, your summer and fall bulbs may require lifting.

Gladiolus, begonias, dahlias, and autumn crocuses fall into the summer bulb category. These bulbs are usually considered to be quite tender and cannot survive in excessively cold environments. Spring is normally the best time to plant these bulbs. After the first initial frost, they should be dug up and kept in a dry, frost-free area.

Regardless of the type, bulbs prefer and thrive in light, well-drained soil. To improve the quality of your soil, you can easily work in some sand and compost. Make sure the site you choose for planting does not stand in water at any time as this will ultimately cause your bulbs to rot. Larger bulbs are planted about 8 inches deep; while the smaller ones can be placed about 5 inches in the ground. However, the lighter the soil, the deeper the bulb can be placed. Always place the bulb with its point facing upward. Water generously after planting, but take care not to drench the bulbs. Cover with a layer of mulch.

Flowering bulbs make great companions for woody plants, providing the landscape with an array of sizes, shapes, and colors. As spring bulbs die out, you can add various annuals and late-blooming bulbs, like lilies, to keep these areas of the garden looking their best. Adding an assortment of perennials into the bulb garden will provide a nonstop procession of flowers and foliage.

If you want to try a naturalized effect with your bulbs, take them by the handful and gently toss them out into the yard or garden. Plant the bulbs wherever they land.

If you want to test out different plant combinations before incorporating them into the garden or you simply don't have a lot of space for one, you can grow your bulbs in a container. A variety of bulbs can thrive in containers, and when mixed with annuals, you will have a beautiful miniature garden. Choose a container that has sufficient drainage and line it with pebbles. Add some potting soil and a few bulbs and annuals. Keep the container moist but not too wet.
If you follow these tips, pretty soon you will have a bulb-o-licious garden.

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Tips For Easier Garden Care

by Lee Dobbins

Gardening is an enjoyable leisure time activity for many and it can be quite easy to see the fruits of your labor bloom all summer long. Although gardening can be simple and rewarding, that doesn't mean that you won't have to put some hard work into it. There are times when gardening can be a lot of hard work!

In this article, you will learn about how you can get ahead of your gardening tasks. Keeping up with the chores and being organized and prepared can make you're the whole thing much easier.

Start feeding your soil. You need to start a healthy soil before you can grow healthy plants. You should also remember that healthy plants have fewer possibilities to succumb to disease. You should make sure your soil is perfect at the beginning of the season and then fertilize all summer as needed for each type of flower you have.

Using organic fertilizer is the best course of action. Other fertilizers may kill all the beneficial organisms that are essential for plant growth. Organic is better for your plants and for the environment as a whole.

To get healthy vibrant plants, make sure you plant them in a spot where they will be happiest. Plants that need direct sunlight must be placed in a spot where there is an adequate source of sunlight. Plants that need large amounts of water can be placed near a spot that has an abundant water supply.

You should also remember to choose plants that grow profusely, reseed or come back every year. Choosing plants like this can cut your gardening time in half. There are plants like sedums and astilbes that grow in any season. It is easier and even economical, because you do not need to change it every season.

A large garden is fun, but a smaller garden will be easier to manage and will require less of your time. You can also make some container gardens which are easier to control, water, and maintain.

All plants need consistent watering so consider installing dripping irrigation so you do not need to water your plants by hand everyday. Make sure that you only drip enough water for your plants and avoid over watering as standing water in the garden can invite disease as well as make some plants get droopy and sick.

To add beauty to your garden and keep down on weeds you can add mulch to it. Mulch not only looks good but keeps the soil and plants cool. It also retains moisture so you don't have to worry so much about watering your plants.

To make the job of gardening easier, invest in some good gardening tools. A rocker chair and knee pads are a must. Make sure you have the appropriate tool for the job and remember, a cheap tool will probably make you work harder, so go for the best quality you can afford.

Happy gardening!

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