Can Beer Make Plants Grow?

It's said that beer can be fertilizer for plant. Wow! It's so amazing but is it true??? According to Jeff Gillman, an associate professor in the Dept. of Horticultural Science at the University of Minnesota, he has done the scientific research himself. Beer does, however, get a four-flower recommendation as a slug killer, so long as the traps are set up not only to attract the slugs but to catch them as well. In the fertilizer department, eggshells are a five-flower solution, although they shouldn't be your only source of fertilizer. The author suggests four to five crumbled shells per plant, mixed into the soil around the plant, in the garden or in a pot.

Most of us are familiar with the practice of some gardeners who sprinkle today's used coffee grounds around their plants as additional fertilizer or as a soil acidifier. Dr. Gillman indicates that, to have any impact on the plants, the coffee grounds must be incorporated into the soil. Further, he says, not every plant benefits from the addition of coffee grounds; lettuce benefits quite a lot, while tomatoes do not. There are better soil acidifiers.

One theory around since the early 1900s suggests that it is beneficial for good pot drainage to have a layer of gravel covering the bottom of the container. To my surprise, Dr. Gillman illustrates how this practice actually increases the amount of water in the growing medium above the gravel, as well as hindering the movement of water from the top of the container through the gravel and out of the pot. His advice is to use a good-draining medium in the entire pot, adding perlite if you think it necessary to have even better drainage.

The practice of using dish soap to control insects has been around since the 1700s. He even cites a recipe for a mixture of urine and soap from the early 1800s for getting rid of aphids on melons. Dish soap is thought by many gardeners to be effective in washing off the waxy covering of insect bodies at a fraction of the cost of commercial insecticidal soaps. Unfortunately, the commercial insecticidal soaps have been specially formulated to protect the waxy cuticle of the plant; dish soap has not, and can cause wax removal, leading to loss of water, leaf scorch, and death of the plant. The author's conclusion is that, without first testing your dish soap on plants you are willing to sacrifice, you are playing Russian roulette; moreover, today, more and more soaps are antibacterial and even more harmful for plants than the old-fashioned variety. This is certainly an instance when the extra money spent on a commercial product is money well spent.
By Madeline Wajda

Container and Small Space Gardening

You can make your small gardening space or container come alive with an almost endless array of blooming plants. Sun or shade, or part of both, an in-ground garden, small or large containers, you can have it all!

For in-ground small space gardens: starting from scratch? Take things slowly in the beginning. Try to plan on paper and walk your garden space, perhaps laying down a hose(or two) to identify the size and shape you want, then use rocks, tools or empty pots to mark spaces where plants, shrubs or possibly a specimen tree will be placed. Remember to consider the size of the plant when it matures.

First consider the size of the garden you have to work with and try to resist the temptation to go out on May 1st and buy 22 plants then find out you can only use 15! Secondly, consider the orientation – does you garden space receive full sun, part sun, afternoon sun, part shade, all shade? Next week's article will contain a list of plants for all orientations. Third, consider your soil. If you're using a soil test kit at the Ag Center (670 Old Harrisburg Road, Suite 204, Gettysburg, Phone: 334-6271) and the results will tell you what it may need before you plant in it. Generally speaking, if you have a clay soil, you will need to add amendments like compost and other organic matter like peat. Is your soil sandy? Does water run right through it? You need amendments such as peat moss, manures, compost or organic matter. Using the stryrofoam makes the planter less heavy and easily moveable.

Container: your plant choices are much greater with container gardening. Too much sun? Just move the container. The great advantage of container gardening is Mobility. And just think – you can use one or more containers to hide some unsightly feature in your space such as a utility meter in the ground.

Cactus Show - Sale in Connecticut

Hello! I've not updated my blog for a while because I had to finish my project in the last week and now I'm free!!!!

Now, the spring is coming and that's a very good time for planting and gardening. Meanwhile, there will be sales and garden shows.

I just read a Horticulture magazine and found an interesting show for Cactus and Succulent: Connecticut Cactus & Succulent Society23nd Annual Show & Sale on 31 March - 1 April (Saturday & Sunday) It is created by In the fair, there will be auction and show of cactus, succulent, bonsai, haworthia and etc. Addimission is FREE and first 50 family on each day will get free plant. You can find more information from its website: www.ctcactusclub.com

Aloe polyphylla - Cute Succulent

The spiral aloe is a rare and beautiful aloe from the high Maluti Mountains of Lesotho, South Africa. It does not occur naturally anywhere outside Lesotho with the exception of one record on the Lesotho border with the Free State. And one of the reasons that Aloe Polyphylla is rare plant is that normally, it is extremely difficult to grow in cultivation. Plants which have been removed from their habitat usually do not survive for more than a few years. Besides, it is a criminal offence to remove plants or seed of Aloe polyphylla from the natural habitat or to buy plants from roadside vendors. Anyway, you can buy it from US nurseries. Some of them can grow it now.

However, this plant looks interesting becuase of the perfect spiral in which the leaves are arranged. This may be clockwise or anti-clockwise. The spiral is formed by five ranks of leaves which contain between 15 and 30 leaves each. The plants are stemless and usually not multiple although they grow in dense groups. It has become a prized collector's item and is possibly also used for muthi. Due to this and the specific habitat requirements, the numbers in the wild have diminished and it is now listed as endangered. The change in the water regime due to overgrazing is also a possible reason for decreasing numbers. Natural regeneration is from seed as the plants do not form off-shoots.

Aloe polyphylla grows in high altitude grassland, between 2000 and 2500 metres - sometimes higher - although apparently only on the more easterly facing slopes at these higher altitudes. This could be due to the cold, where it may be important for the plants to receive early morning sun in winter. The spiral aloe grows in basalt rock crevices on very steep slopes with loose rock which aids in keeping the plants very well drained. They often grow in the mist and cloud belt in Lesotho. Although soils are well drained, the plants here have a continual flow of water in the summer months. The rainfall is very high and the summers very cool at these high altitudes in Lesotho.

The leaves themselves are broad and have a grey-green colour. The tips usually become dark, purplish brown and are quite sharp. The margins are irregularly toothed. Plants have approximately 150 leaves each, which explains the name "polyphylla". "Poly" means "many" and "phylla" is Greek for "leaves". The flowers are attractive, ranging from dull red to salmon-pink. They may be yellow occasionally. The infloresence is branched with each flower head being quite compact. Plants usually flowers in spring and early summer.

Wollemi Pine - Jurassic Tree

This morning I read House & Home section in New York Times and found an interesting plant. It's Wollemi pine. It's one of living plants which evolved themself to survived when all dinosour died. Wollemi pine was just discovered in 1994 in Wollemi National Park, 120 miles west of Sydney by David Noble, a bushwalker and national parks officer. The scientists premused that the tree had been itself extinct for 2 million years.

To preserve the Wollemi's genes and try the pine in a variety of growing conditions, botanists took cuttings from wild colony and started propagating baby pines. They were then sent to worldwide botanic gardens and now you can purchase a 12-inch plant from the Brooklyn garden's gift shop for $129 including shipping (www.bbg.org) Or through National Geographic's online shope for 10-inch pine at $99.95 including shipping, too (www.nationalgeographic.com) (I think it's good to buy from that website as I searched on internet for Wollemi pine sales and it recommended to buy through National Geographic website)

Now you can plant Wollemi pine indoor by putting in a cool sunny room and then outside on a terrace in the spring. You should give it as much light as possible by putting near a window or a doorway. And if winter tempuratures don't drop below 10 degrees, it can grow outdoor year-round. Anyway, according to the United States Botanic Garden in Washington D.C, the pine can survived with 20-degree winters.

Botanical Name - What's it???

For myself, I don't pay attention to the botanical name too much. Firstly, I love my plant because of its characteristic, but not its name or spicy. Secondly, some botanical names come from Latin or Greek language which is difficult for me to remember. However, I then realize that the botanical name is important when you talk with another people about your cacti selection. Besides, such name can descibe the originial root of the plant. From these reasons, it is reasonable to study more about the Botanical name.

A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN). The purpose of formal name is to have a single name that is accepted and used worldwide for a particular plant or plant group. For an example, the botanical name Bellis perennis is used worldwide for a plant species, which is native to and has a history of many centuries use in most of the countries of Europe and the Middle East, where it has accumulated various names in the many languages of that area. Later it has been introduced worldwide, bringing it into contact with languages on all continents. English names for this plant species include daisy, common daisy, lawndaisy, etc.

The usefulness of botanical names is limited by the fact that taxonomic groups are not fixed in size; a taxon may have a varying circumscription. The group that a particular botanical name refers to can be quite small according to some people and quite big according to others. This will depend on taxonomic viewpoint or taxonomic system. The botanical name itself is fixed by a type, the size and placement of the taxon it applies to is set by a taxonomist. Some botanical names refer to groups that are very stable Depending on rank, botanical names may be in one part (genus and above), two parts (species and above, but below the rank of genus) or three parts (below the rank of species) For example:


Family: Cactaceae


Genus : Echinocactus


Species:grusonii



Its common name is Golden Barrel. Normally, the genus and species name is often mentioned and concerned. Moreover, I'd suggest you an useful website to learn about the botanical name's pronunciation: Plantapalm

Let decorate your garden with hanging succulent & cacti

Normally, we put cactus and succulent on floor. This way may consume your garden space and not be suitable for person who lives in an apartment. Today, I also suggest an interesting solution to you: put the plant into a hanging basket or pot. You can hang it on the wall or fence according to your creativity or design. It can let your cactus and succulent look more attractive, make your garden more beautiful and save your garden space.

However, when you hang the pot, please make sure it is in the balance. And here are some samples of hanging pot/deck as for your guide line.