Magnolia Tree Gardening Blog

Nicholas Tan asked:


Congratulations! At last you have decided to have a nice garden for your biggest house. Now the big question is how to choose gardening supplies, which are useful for your garden at nominal price but with good quality. Identifying proper gardening supplies is an important thing for a garden lover like you.

Do you know gardening is an art, which requires tender care and deep passion for growing plants? But the part of the art knows how to choose gardening supplies. Just like that of pet care, you pat them on the head, you take them for walks and you talk to them. Your plant also requires same care from you. You should clearly know how to choose gardening supplies- the gardening trade tools.

As you care your plants, you can visually see how they grow? It can be both fulfilling and gratifying and also teach how to choose gardening supplies is a step towards that goal. You should also know that different kinds of garden require different kinds of garden supplies.

In general most of the garden supplies are available in packages, which deals with a particular type of garden. Hence the first and foremost tip on how to select your garden supplies depends mainly on the type of garden you own or envisioned. Some garden requires specialized watering system and not a water sprinkler, and some garden may require held shovel instead of ditch digger. It is also advisable that you don’t spend more money on the garden supplies.

In case if you are going to make a nice garden, you can contact the nearby garden supply store and may ask them to stock your requirement or in some instances gardening supplies can be made by yourself. But it is necessary to know how to choose your required gardening supplies won’t pinch out much from your budget.

Another important indispensable matter to consider is knowing the garden supply stores that can accommodate your type of garden. There are multi various garden supply stores, which are specialized in rooftop gardens, indoor gardens, and all the other kinds of gardens. Even you can easily identify the garden supplies stores, which offer alternative garden supplies such as ergonomic garden tools, pest control methods, and organic fertilizers.

If you find no time to visit mortar and stone shops of shopping malls to get your required garden supplies, you can browse and get your preferred garden supplies through online. Online shopping helps a lot to the gardeners by the way of comparing the prices of an individual garden supplies for better tools. In addition to this, online shopping helps to order your garden supplies without leaving your homes, and also get to know the latest trends in gardening supplies. It is noted that some online shops offer discounts for your supply of garden supplies in their shops. So go visit the online garden supplies to get a product at nominal price with esteemed quality.

Gardener

Nicholas Tan asked:


I think you know very well about the rules and regulations to keep your plants to grow healthy in your garden. For getting sustainable growth of your garden plants you do require good soil quality, sunlight and sufficient water. Although these items have been gifted by nature, you ought to require modern gardening tools to upkeep your garden in a good state. Gardening tools help a lot in taking care of your plants as well as the good growing conditions and positive effect on your plant’s health.

Defective gardening tools might have cause injury on your plants or cut your plants or totally plug your plants from the soil. In order to prevent the occurrence of such untoward incident, it is a must to look for the best gardening tools, which will provide your plants loving tender care. Once you called a tool as ‘Best gardening tools”, it refers to a tool, which will permit labor saving methods and that allows energy efficiency.

Here you can see some of the best gardening tools available in the market to provide a better care than ever for your plants in the garden.

Lawnmowers

Luxus Push Reel Mower rated as best by the gardening aficionados provides large top cover that protects overhanging flowers and shrubs. Another special gardening tool called American Lawn Mower Deluxe has also been accredited as best which will be helpful to operate on elbow grease alone and also causing no pollution. But this is not conducive for too tall grasses.

Garden Shredders

In general all the garden shredders have a high power motor and come with a silent crushing system. This kind of gardening tool used to accelerate your shredding activity.

Garden shredders with electric shredder is an easy to assemble gardening tool, which aids in tree pruning with maximum of 40 mm and making healthy hedges. This gardening tool is considered to be a best among all the garden shredders since it is available with a plunger for increased portability and built-in wheels.

Cultivators

These modern gardening tools are available with patented tines to help in cutting the hard compacted soil smoothly. Cultivators are available with a free border edger. It is perfect to use in cleaning the moss, aerating and in thatching. This garden tool helps extensively in preparing vegetable plots, flowerbeds, etc.,

Leaf sweeper

These gardening tools are extensively used for smaller lawns. It is having an infinite height adjustment with 200-liter collector.

Edge Trimmer

This gardening tool has also been accredited as important equipment by the gardening equipment reviewers. This aids in trimming the hedges and also aids in plant pruning.

Spading fork

This is a wonderful gardening tool used for aerating and transplanting. By using this gardening tool it is possible to perform splitting grasses and perennials. In addition to this these gardening tools helps a lot as the job of a manure fork, mulch, sorting hay, for tiny gardens.

Mattock

Mattock is an important gardening tool for breaking up the clay soils and also working around established trees with the roots. There is no need to have a pick and a hoe and handles in your garden, if you are having mattock with you.

Before you leave the garden center, it is highly advisable to have a look at these check list of gardening tools and confirm if you’ve got all the gardening tools you’ll need to make your garden just like that of spring to life.

Tree Identification

Ewa in the Garden asked:


Moss is either loved or hated in the garden. People very often passionately rake it away. Why not to look at it as blessing to your garden? Its kinds are very difficult to recognize – you need proper book for that and magnifying glass. I don’t remember since when I love moss. I think since always. Soft, fragile and moist. In my garden moss is welcomed everywhere. I try to grow it on my stones as well. Few months ago I covered them with yoghurt dilluted with water 1:1. No great effect yet, just little greenish something appeared.
You can appreciate moss beauty especially in the winter – when it is lush green and so soft to walk on. Grows in the lawn in the shadow? Great! I don’t need to move it. Grass is weaker and weaker in these spots, and moss patches are larger and larger… and more and more green. Moss reminds me my second big and earliest garden fascination of Japanese Gardens.
I look for tranquility and harmony in the garden. In the smaller gardens it is even more important to not overload it with too many different plants.

I like them for meditative and tranquill character. I remember that in communist time in Poland there was not so many books about landscaping and Far East – that was of my special interest at that time. I made friends with the owner of the shop selling used/old books. Whenever something about Japan appeared on the shelf I was getting a phone call and I immediatelly run to the shop to see it.

There is six features as a synonym for an excellent not only Japanese but landscape garden.
According to the ancient book of gardens, there should be six different qualities to which a garden can aspire.
They are grouped in their traditional complementary pairs, they are:
spaciousness & seclusion
artifice & antiquity
water-courses & panoramas.
As the specialists say "it is difficult enough to find a garden that is blessed with any three or four of these desirable attributes, let along five, or even more rarely, all six."

Yet there is such case in Japan.
Its name is “Kenroku-en” which means “garden that combines six characteristics”, which is named by Sadanobu Matsudaira, a feudal load in the present Tohoku district (northern part of mainland Japan).

Plants recommended for Japanese gardens:

Trees and shrubs
Acer plamatum, Acer japonicum, Acer ginnala, Amelanchier canadensis, Cercis chinensis, Chamaecyparis obtusa, Cornus kousa, Cryptomeria japonica, Gingko biloba, Pinus nigra, Pinus thunbergiana, Pinus densiflora, Magnolia kobus, Magnolia stellata, Prunus cerasifera, Prunus mume, Prunus serrulata, Prunus armeniaca, Sciadopitys verticillata, Tsuga canadensis,

Trees and shrubs of medium size
Acer palmatum ‘Dissectum’, Spirea japonica, Chaenomeles japonica, Chaenomeles lagenaria, Euonymus alatus, Enkianthus campanulatus, Forsytia x intermedia, Forsytia suspensa, Juniperus chinensis ‘Armstrongii’, Kerria japonica, Mahonia aquifolium, Pieris japonica, Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Syringa vulgaris

Small shrubs
Buxus microphylla, Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Nana’, Daphne cneorum, Ilex crenata, Juniperus chinensis ‘Blue Vase’, Pinus mugo ‘Compacta’, Rhododendron obtusum, Rhododendron kaempferi, Spirea japonica, Spirea bumalda, Thuja occidentalis ‘Globosa’, Viburnum carlesii

All these plants are accompanied by different kind of grass, moss, perennials, bamboo, ivy that might be chosen according to the climate zone.

If you are interested to read more please visit http://wwww.ewainthegarden.blogspot.com

Growing Trees

Elizabeth Jean asked:


A botanical garden is a place in which plants are grown and displayed primarily for scientific and educational purposes. A botanical garden consists chiefly of a collection of living plants, grown out-of-doors or under glass in greenhouses and conservatories. It usually includes, in addition, a collection of dried plants, or herbarium, and such facilities as lecture rooms, laboratories, libraries, museums, and experimental or research plantings. Concrete fountains and wall water fountains are often included in the display of botanical gardens.

The plants in a botanical garden may be arranged according to one or more subdivisions of botanical science. The arrangements may be systematic (by plant classification), ecological (by relation to environment), or geographic (by region of origin). The larger botanical gardens often include special groupings, such as rock gardens, water gardens, wildflower gardens, and collections of horticultural groups produced by plant breeding, such as roses, tulips, or rhododendrons. A plantation restricted to exhibits of woody plants is called an arboretum. Most botanical gardens will incorporate water features such as water wall fountains. For more information on wall water fountains visit http://www.garden-fountains.com/Categories.bok?category=Wall+Fountains.

History of Botanical Gardens

One of the earliest botanical gardens for the study of plants was established in ancient Athens about 340 B.C. by Aristotle and run by his pupil Theophrastus. The oldest public botanical gardens in the world are those established at Pisa, Italy, in 1543; at Padua, Italy, in 1545; at Paris in 1635; and at Berlin in 1679. In the 16th and 17th centuries, herbalists cultivated medicinal herbs in private gardens. In 1673, the Society of Apothecaries planted the Chelsea Physic Garden in London to provide materials for research and medicine. The American botanist John Bartram near Philadelphia established the first experimental botanical garden in the U.S. in 1728.

Where Botanical Gardens Are Found

Almost every major city has a botanical garden. The Royal Botanic Gardens, better known as Kew Gardens, near London, founded in 1759, is the largest in the world. Experiments and research done there have led to the transplanting of commercially productive crops, such as rubber, from their native habitats to other parts of the world.

More than 300 botanical gardens are in the U.S. Among the most important are the Missouri Botanic Gardens in Saint Louis (1859); the New York Botanical Garden in Bronx Park (1895) and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, both in New York City. The Arnold Arboretum, established in 1872, is located at Harvard University.

Benefits of Visiting a Botanical Garden

By visiting botanical gardens or arboretums, city dwellers can discover a part of the natural world to which they ordinarily have no access, escape from the pressure of dense urban population, and perhaps even develop new interests and hobbies having to do with the natural environment. In these special parks, plants from all over the world are scientifically cultivated, studied, and artistically displayed for the pleasure and enlightenment of the public. Arboretums specialize in raising trees and shrubs (woody plants) in their natural surroundings. They may exist independently or as part of a larger botanical garden.

Unlike ordinary parks, botanical gardens and arboretums are laid out with more than just the beauty of the landscape in mind. They will offer sculpture and cast stone water features. Although trees and shrubs may be interspersed throughout the area to enhance the pleasant surroundings, plants are usually grouped according to their scientific relationships. Often there are small, special gardens, such as rose gardens, rock gardens, wildflower gardens, or Japanese landscape gardens contained within the larger botanical gardens. Many have sections devoted to plants of particular geographic origins, such as a tropical plant section, or an aquatic plant section. Usually, plants are labeled according to common name, scientific name, and region of origin. For more ideas on great cast stone water features visit http://www.garden-fountains.com/cast-stone-fountain-patinas.htm.

A garden may contain a few hundred or as many as 20,000 different species and varieties of plants, depending upon the amount of land, money, and professional help available. In size, botanical gardens range from about 2 1/2 acres (1 hectare) to over 220 acres (90 hectares). There may be a greenhouse, or more than one greenhouse, in a botanical garden. The greenhouse is used both for displaying plants and, where winters are cold, for growing plants that would not otherwise survive the seasonal change. In temperate climates, certain tropical plants must be grown in greenhouses-for example, tropical orchids and ferns, pineapples, Spanish moss, cacti, African violets, and begonias. Seedling plants that are to be set outdoors as soon as the weather is warm enough for them may be started in greenhouses or in hotbeds, which are beds of earth that are heated and covered with glass. Learn more about featured botanical garden plants at
http://www.garden-fountains.com/water-lilies/main-page-history-of-water-lilies.htm.

Many kinds of plants need certain climatic conditions at certain seasons, and a botanical garden may need special storage areas for them. Some young plants, for instance, may need a winter growing period but cannot survive freezing temperatures. They must be stored in cold frames, which are unheated, boxlike structures covered with glass. Houses built of lathing may be needed to store some plants temporarily in semi shade and to grow certain plants that cannot stand the hot summer sun.

Magnolia Tree

William McRea asked:


An attractive garden is a dream which requires proper planning and careful nurturing. To create a beautiful landscape around your dream home you need basic garden plans to begin with. These garden plans are generally provided by a professional garden planner or landscape designer.

The garden plans can be of many types. You can plan for more than just beautifying your garden, your Garden plans can also be made to decide the theme of the garden. Some of the popular garden plans are:
* Garden for full sun
* Garden for shade
* Corner of grasses
* Corner of shrubs
* Corner of perennials
* Island bed
* Privacy garden
* Butterfly garden
* Fragrant garden
* Vegetable garden
* Bird-friendly garden
* Clay soil garden

Garden plans give an aesthetic dimension to the garden along with its basic theme. Color schemes, quality and variety of plants, height of the plants, border, flooring etc are done to give the garden its uniqueness. The color scheme of the garden is created blending the different colored and textured plants. The plants are also selected according to their height which creates the contour of the garden and the skyline of the garden. Garden plans also include the kind of plants to be used according to the theme chosen. For example a fragrant garden will contain flower plants or the bird-friendly gardens will have the high trees for the birds to reside. The butterfly garden may have the plants that caterpillars feed on.

It is very important that the garden plans are both beautiful and emotionally restorative. A garden can provide a visual, perfumed, sound and tactile, sensory experience. The garden design needs to compliment the home and connect the interiors with the external environment, making the most of the available usable areas. Master planners know that the selection of plants is of equal importance along with their strategic placement on the landscape. Garden plans also include the planning of the garden gates, arbors, gazebo as well as garden furniture.

Modular design and a unique frame layout can make a simple garden gazebo. The garden gazebo is the perfect place to relax or to hold family dinners, weddings, and other special events. A gazebo in the garden plan ensures a favorite spot to unwind. Another important criterion for the garden is its gate. An attractive gate makes a warm welcome for guests. The gate combined with a proper floor or patio definitely draws one outdoors. The proper garden furniture also comes under the garden plans. The furniture is decided according to the theme of the garden. For example an arbor is inevitable for a bird-friendly garden. With a canopy one can relax in the shade of an arbor garden even during the sunniest days. A greenhouse can be created to protect the outdoor plants from damage by frost and cold weather.

Gardening

Jude Wright asked:


Does Your Home Garden Have a Style? You may be asking me “Style? For a garden? I just plant flowers.” But, if you think about it, you can see that there really can be different styles for gardens.

A garden style can help you decide what kind of look you want for your garden as well as where to put your plantings.

How do you take style design into your gardening plans when you have so many practical matters to think about? You have garden size, whether the area is in sun or shade, its proximity to buildings, and how you will be using the space.

The solution is to treat is element of your garden as a part of a single design. The walls, garden furniture, even potted plants should all relate to the overall garden style. The most successful and beautiful gardens have started with a plan.

Let’s take a look at some different garden styles:

You’ve probably heard of the cottage garden. This style is suggested by rambling roses, type of fencing (usually rock or stone walls) , stones for garden paths, ponds and other natural grasses and materials.

Some other garden styles can be classified as “national” styles. These garden styles can be Italian, Japanese, English, Spanish and American. American gardens are broken down further into southern, desert, southwest and others.

Many times, the style of a garden is determined by climate and location. Gardens located in Arizona, for instance, must be of a different style from those located in northern, colder climates. And plants in southern gardens with their lush greenery and overblown flowers won’t live in either hot desert or cold snowy climates.

So, you can see that the style of your garden is closely tied to the climate conditions surrounding it.

Gardens can also be defined in style as formal or informal. For instance, a simple rose garden can look dramatically different when planted in a cottage garden style than when planted in a more formal geometric style.

When trying to decide on a style for your garden, first look at your geographical location. Then, think about what style you have in your home. Is it more casual or quite formal? This will give you a place to start for designing your garden.

Now, decide on how you will be using the space. Will you be having family barbecues or will you be doing more formal entertaining? Do you have children or pets that will need a lawn or enclosed area to play in?

Next, take a look at your trees and buildings. You will need adequate shade (or sun) for certain flowers and plants.

Once you have taken these matters into account, you can start your actual garden plan. Draw up a plan for your garden. Even a rough sketch of the space where your garden will be and where each element (such as flowers, foliage, stonework,or pond) will be can be a tremendous help in planting your beautiful new garden.

Now, all you have to do is plant it!

Plants

Abhishek Agarwal asked:


Well, you have turned your leisure pursuit into a passion and you are at present considering turning into a master gardener and thus pursue your interest more intensely. But what exactly does this entail?

Most people make up their minds to upgrade their gardening skills and enroll for master gardener courses that extension agents and universities in Canada and America offer. These gardening programs provide the necessary information and practical experience in return for putting in volunteer hours. In that case, what sort of gardening supplies would a master gardener require for joining such a course?

Well, it will comprise of supplies for instruction purposes as well as gardening.

A few activities that need to be carried out are:

1. Addressing gatherings

2. Be present at or hold events

3. Carry out community projects or demonstrations

4. Convey information to students, peers or others

On top of the volunteer activities cited above, one will also have the opportunity to participate in training programs conducted by the University or the extension agent. The training provided can extend from vegetable and organic gardening, lawns, to the various means of getting rid of pests and weeds.

Consequently, one may wind up with a substantial quantity of gardening supplies of a master gardener, in the garden shed, due to extensive range of material dealt with.

Gardening Supplies of a Mater Gardener for Instructing
Evidently, displaying exhibits calls for some degree of resourcefulness and scheduling. Photocopying and paper costs are involved. If a community project is on the cards, then one needs to find out and purchase adequate plant material. Moreover, the transfer of the equipment and plant material has to be taken into account.

These days, a master gardener may also require a computer and software such as landscaping software or PowerPoint, in order to train students in the classroom environment. Turning into a master gardener does not indicate you just have to spend time in the grime and sunlight, but you have the responsibility of communicating the necessary information to other persons in the community.

Gardening Supplies of a Master Gardener Required for Gardening

If you are a master gardener, you need to spend many hours in the garden. Therefore, you need to be properly equipped with kneepads, garden shoes, hats, and gloves. As the season advances, you will also require insect repellents and sunscreen lotion. Gardening project supplies such as soil, plants, pesticides, mulching and fertilizers will have to be purchased during various periods.

In due course, a master gardener even acquires a car with ample storage space for moving these garden materials from one location to another. A pick up truck having a sizeable base is the ideal choice.

To make gardening simple and easy a variety of gardening implements need to purchased such as picks, hoes, spades, rakes and shovels together with garden power tools. In case more specific and detailed work such as planting bulbs needs to be done, then a bulb planter becomes an indispensable tool in the master gardener’s equipment collection. Everything hinges the location they are working on and the kind of projects being executed. But, a master gardener, for sure, will be engaged in a wide range of projects and will therefore require an extensive collection of gardening supplies.

Gardening

Garden Lodges asked:


In today’s world, garden offices have gained much popularity and are in great demand. People purchase garden rooms from different suppliers and manufactures. However, there are certain essential things that a person needs to consider before purchasing a garden office. A person, prior to purchasing garden offices, should ensure that he is getting the best deal. There are ten essential things that should be considered before buying a garden office or garden studio.

Before purchasing a garden office one must be sure of the purpose that it would serve. This will help the person to ascertain whether the requirements of the building can be met by the design. If the building is being purchased to be used as a garden office, sufficient amount of lighting should be provided. If the room is to be used as a gym, then there should be provision for sufficient ventilation. If it is for the purpose of garden a lodge, then there should be provision for proper heating.

The position of one’s garden office is also of utmost importance. One rarely requires planning permission most of the time as long as the garden office is situated at a distance of 5 metres from the person’s home and occupies less than 50% of the garden’s area. Permission is also not required if the garden office or garden studio is built for private use and is about 20 metres away from any public place.

A person while buying a garden office or garden studio should also be careful about the height of the building. However, the height of the modular garden offices should not exceed 4 metres. If the height of the garden office exceeds 4 metres a person will have to seek permission. Permission also has to be taken if the building consists of two or more floors. Permission also has to be taken if the size of the rooms exceeds 30 Sq metres.

Further, a person prior to buying a garden room should be sure of the type of room he requires. A person buying a room for a garden studio should ensure that the room is in accordance to his requirements. The design of the room should also be taken into account.

A person buying a room for the purpose of running a garden office should also check the materials used for both constructing and designing the office. There are numerous suppliers who can provide the best garden offices. For information regarding garden offices and garden studios visit gardenlodges.co.uk.

Trees

Lisa Sousa asked:


Japanese style gardens are very popular due to the beauty and serenity they offer. The concept of these gardens is to provide a place where one can be relaxed and calm. When designing a Japanese style garden, it is important that the plants and rocks meld together in the landscape; and the design of the garden itself must be well thought out.

Did you know that there are several different Japanese garden styles to choose from? Even though there are different types, you have the freedom to meld two or more different types together to make your own unique combination. However, you should have enough room in your yard to be able to do so. Here are the different styles for you to choose from if you are going to plan a Japanese style garden.

Island and pond style gardens are gardens with a centralized pond that is large enough to either have a boat go across or one in which you can stroll around the edge of the pond. This type of garden is designed to where all plant life, as well as rocks and other features, can be seen from the pond area. The elements as well as the plants are blended into the landscape beyond the garden itself. Small islands are also created within the pond with a small bush or tree to serve as a focal point and small bridges can also be built from the shore, to the island and back again.

Primarily used by Buddhist monks within their temples, the Zen garden is comprised of various size boulders, small and big rocks, gravel, and/or sand. Occasionally, they can also have one or two plants consisting of a shrub or tree. The rocks of a dry landscape Zen garden are very carefully positioned and consists of unique shapes and sizes; often representing islands. The sand and the gravel represent water and raked into various patterns. The Zen garden’s goal is to help clear the mind of the viewer as well as aid in contemplation and meditation without distractions. The garden is to be viewed from a single focal point and is not entered into other than to rake the gravel.

A Japanese tea garden is good choice for a garden that is either incorporated within a larger Japanese garden style or in average sized yards and it is a popular one to create. It consists of two gardens; one being an outer garden and another being an inner garden. The outer garden consists of the entry gate and is less formal in planting with a stone path leading to the inner garden. Visitors to the tea garden go through a second gate where a water basin, called a tsukubai, is located and used in the tea ceremony itself. The inner garden consists of a stone path that flows through it and formally placed non flowering plants. A small building where tea ceremonies take place sits at the end of the inner path.

A stroll garden is made of various paths that lead the visitor through interesting turns and new sights. Landscapes that are found in nature are usually the focus of these gardens and are often recreated in miniature form within the garden itself. Large yards of at least an acre are required to create these gardens with interesting views.

Do you want a Japanese garden but have a small yard? A Courtyard garden just might be the perfect solution for you. These gardens work especially well in yards that are very limited in space and are enclosed by a brick or stone wall or wooden fence. It is simple in design and can be observed from inside your house or enjoyed outside if it. Courtyard gardens consists of few plants, perhaps a tree, small water feature, often times a dry stream, or other simple elements.

The most important thing to consider when planning a Japanese style garden is to determine what you wish to achieve with it. Be sure to do some research on the subject and decide what you want to do with it before you start.

Magnolia Tree Gardeing

Bare Bones Gardener asked:


It does not matter whether you put your kitchen scraps in the compost or the bin, did you know that you could grow many of your favourite fruit or vegetables from those scraps. Indeed, unless your compost is very well matured you will find stray veggie seedlings may appear wherever you deposit the compost.

Take for instance those potato peelings, if it is a fairly thick section of peel with an eye (shoot), then you can often get these to grow into full potato plants. Another indication that a potato is only good for planting or throwing out is the colour. If the potato is starting to look fairly green on the skin then *DO NOT EAT*, as it is an indication that it is producing a poisonous substance common in the nightshade family to which it as well as the tomatoes, chillies and capsicums belong. You can also get sweet potatoes and taros to grow from sections of the tubers.

Have you ever tried to plant or thought about trying to plant the seeds from a particularly nice tomato, capsicum, chili, watermelon or pumpkin? While any plants grown from such seed may vary quite a lot from the parent fruit, you can still achieve fairly good results from them if you are on a tight budget.

The plants grown from seeds of many of your kitchen scraps will not produce fruit to the same high standard as the original fruit/vegetables because of the complicated interbreeding programs put into place by the big seed companies. However the progeny can give a very wide range of resulting offspring. But if you come across one or two particularly good plants in the resulting season, then reuse the seeds of that and always-in future pick the best fruit from the best plants for your future propagation material.

Though there are some veggies in the kitchen where it is not possible to grow them from the seed in the fruit. These are those vegetables where the edible fruit is still in an immature state and the seed is not yet viable. These fruit/veggies include the cucumbers, okra and squashes to name just a few. This is because the fruit when it reaches a stage where the seed is viable is just too big and coarse for human consumption.

If you leave the top of a pineapple out in a shady spot for a week or so during warm weather, then strip back the lower dead leaves. You may even notice some small juvenile roots already forming at the base of the plant top. One thing to remember with pineapples is that it is a species of bromeliad. And as such it requires the same moist but well drained growing conditions.

When the garlic cloves are starting to get a green sprout coming out of the top, it is a pretty good indication, that it might be a good idea to plant them out individually for a good harvest in about 8-10 months time of this fairly expensive herb plant.

Treat it like any member of the onion tribe, because they like moist, well drained soil and a fair amount of feeding during the growing season. Harvest as the tops are dying back. But let them dry out in a cool but airy place, before you try to use them back in the kitchen.

Another fruit/vegetable along a similar line is corn, try leaving a fresh, uncooked cob of sweet corn in a shady dry spot for a couple of weeks, then you can strip the kernels away from the cob and plant them. A quicker suggestion is to grab a handful of corn kernels out of a packet of popping corn, The only comment would be that corn grown from these seeds would not be as sweet or juicy as sweet corn, and in reality would be better dried and used as popping corn.

Why not try growing your own peanuts? Always only using the raw nuts, and only choosing those nuts, which are still whole and encased in the brown skin. Peanuts can be grown during warmer weather in most parts of Australia. One of the fascinating things about peanuts is that they are one of the only plants which flower set fruit and then bury and pre plant their own seed ready for later germination. Yes the peanut, which is dug from the ground, is actually a fruit buried by the parent plant, after flowering.

You can always grow your own ginger; all it takes is a section of the root, purchased from a greengrocer. Plant it in a well drained but moist soil. Allowing plenty of room for the plant to spread out. You can be harvesting your own ginger roots within about 8-12 months.

Whether you have got a long fence, chook pen or an unsightly shed to cover, why not try planting a choko. The Vine can be very prolific, as long as you keep the moisture and fertilizer up to it.

Though once it is established, it can be left to fend for itself, and will still produce a steady supply of fruit for the family. If you have a few dollars why not look at purchasing some of the heritage or heirloom seed ranges of Fruit and vegetables. Many seed firms as well as organizations like the Seed Savers Network have many fascinating and unusual varieties of plants available for the home gardener to grow.

Of course once you have various plants growing in your veggie garden don’t forget to keep some propagating material back ( whether it is root sections, seed or divisions), for future plantings. Also you should think about letting certain plants like lettuce, parsley and basil go to seed, for planting later. I regularly have to weed my lawns around the gardens for rouge seedlings of the above plants. Such spare seedling weeds are easily replanted or swapped with other gardeners for plants I don’t yet have, or given to school and/or charity plant stalls. It is useful to have weeds that other people want and are willing to pay for.

While it usually not a good idea to try and propagate most of the tree fruit, simply from a time perspective and again because the results can also be very variable. It is still interesting to try even if you only end up getting a pot plant out of the results. It is possible to grow the seeds of such trees as mangoes, citrus, avocado, apple, pear, etc. While the fruit of some species simply have no viable seed at all eg, bananas. There is however a few, which readily lend themselves to home propagation eg, pawpaw (papaya), tree tomatoes, unroasted coffee beans, etc. I remember as a child, accidentally germinated a coconut palm, from throwing the mostly eaten out shell onto a garden bed for a few months.

Another suggestion for those of you out there, who are visited by birds to your garden, why not take a handful of birdseed and plant it out in an out of the way section of your garden. These bird friendly plants like Sunflower, oats, sorghum, etc, can be a real bonus for many native birds to supplement their diet. Many of the seeds in any packet of birdseed are very viable.

When my kids were younger and I was showing them such wonders, I used to have trouble convincing them that I could not do similar things in growing and multiplying with a variety of items of importance to them at the time, from toys to chocolate, lollies and even coins.

Gardener