Archive for August, 2007

It is almost fall and you know what that means – rain and cooler temperatures. If you have a plant that needs to be moved, digging and moving it during the summer is often a choice that leads to the plant’s death. However, fall is another story. All of that rainy weather can really help plants settle in after a good rain and they don’t suffer stress from 100+ temperatures.

Of course, you still need to keep an eye on things. If you have a few really hot days or a few days of no rain, you’ll want to pull out the watering can and give those plants you just moved a good, long drink.

Another good reason to move in the fall is that plants have time to establish some roots before the ground freezes. If you move them in early winter, they don’t get settled and could heave right out of the ground during the thawing and freezing cycle.

I absolutely love these adorable Tiny Print designs. There are so many floral and absolutely girly designs that are the perfect finishing touch for gardening gift baskets. (I noticed that quite a few baby themed designs are available,too.) They are planning to sell a line of Christmas cards and Christmas gift tags. The gift tags are stickers, which makes them perfect for all the forced bulbs and poinsettias you are planning to give as hostess gifts this year. (You are planning to give gardening related gifts, right?)

The cool thing is that these items can be personalized, which really gives them a ton of gardening related options. I’d like to use these cherry address labels as seed swap labels for all those little seed packets I swap back and forth.

This post sponsored by Tiny Prints

As summer comes to a close and crisp autumn weather takes the place of hot and humid weather, I can’t believe that another season has flown past. For many people, fall is all about cleaning up the garden, but don’t forget to pause to enjoy the beauty of Mums, Asters, and Plumbago in full bloom or to watch the deciduous trees change color. Fall is the time to evaluate your garden and think about what you loved and what you want to change next year.

* Once again, make a list or map of any bare or boring areas. You can fill in the areas with fall bloomers now, or wait until next spring. If you don’t want to plant now, place potted plants, such as ornamental kales and cabbages, in the bare areas for instant pizzazz.
* Dead-head mums to keep the blooms coming.
* Divide and move any perennials you didn’t have a chance to move in the spring.
* After the first hard frost, dig bulbs and tubers of tender plants. Store them carefully in a cool place until spring.
* As foliage begins to blacken and wither, gather dead plant material for your compost pile. You can keep a light layer of leaves on your plants for winter protection, but don’t let the leaves pile up, since they can become dense, impenetrable mats.
* Check your plants for insect infestations and diseases. Prune out damaged stems or pull diseased plants and throw the plant material away. Do not compost diseased plant material, since it could spread disease.
* Prune your summer blooming bushes now.
* Add a layer of fresh mulch to your garden beds to help protect your plants from heaving out of the ground during the winter months.

Passionflower Blossom

Perfect rose bud

wildflowers

close up of wildflower

autumn leaves already?

Welcome to the August edition of Garden Fest! I can’t believe I’m going back to school next week and the kids are going back the week after. What happened to our long, lazy summer? We have a ton of entries in this month’s edition, so grab a cup of iced mint tea and prepare for a leisurely stroll through the posts:

Arvind Devalia presents Time to rest, sow and reap posted at Arvind Devalia, saying, “it is time to start sowing and reaping in both our gardens and in our lives!”

Mary Jo Manzanares presents Enjoy Japanese-Style Gardening at Kubota Garden posted at The Seattle Traveler.

Garden Hints

Mary Jo Manzanares presents Backyard Sanctuary Program Helps Keep Washington one of the Best Places to Live posted at The Seattle Traveler.

Louise Manning presents 10 Facts about Bumblebees posted at Green Garden Chat.

Stephanie presents Second Plantings posted at Stop the Ride!.

Lucynda Riley presents Making Sun Dried Tomatoes posted at Quietly Into the Night, saying, “A good use for extra tomatoes”

Frugal Panda presents How to Save Money with Xeriscaping posted at Frugal Panda.

Michelle Mitchell presents scribbit: Fairy Gardens | A Blog About Motherhood in Alaska posted at scribbit.

Lucynda Riley presents Fall Mini Pumpkin Wreath posted at A Crafty Nature.

Emma Castille presents Who Would Like A Maintenance Free Garden? posted at Garden-Ideas.

Garden Woes

Lucynda Riley presents The heat of an Arkansas Summer posted at Quietly Into the Night.

Silvia presents Po Moyemu–In My Opinion: Tobacco Hornworms Strike posted at Po Moyemu–In My Opinion.

Gardening Brags

Stephanie presents Cucumbers Frozen? Cucumbers Fried? Really! posted at Stop the Ride!.

Lucynda Riley presents Basil Bread and an Abundant Harvest. posted at Quietly Into the Night.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Curb Appeal: One Of My Best Investments Yet Or How I Turned $80 Into $5,000 With Minimal Risk posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “This is a financially oriented post but it still has a lot of relevance to gardening. I am a huge garden afficionado but also a finance blogger. ”

Misc.

John presents Is Backyard Habitat Illegal? posted at A DC Birding Blog.

Alvaro Fernandez presents Yaakov Stern: Build Your Cognitive Reserve posted at SharpBrains, saying, “Why leisure activities such as gardening may be so good for our brains.”

Lexi Sundell presents Summer Awakening posted at Energies of Creation, saying, “A painting of sunflowers celebrates the glorious light of summer before fall brings a different palette.”

And one on living more greenly:
Sagar Satapathy presents Working Green: 50 Tips To Reduce Your Office?s Waste posted at Bootstrapper.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of
garden fest using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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