Solar How To Roof Gardening

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Energy is the latest buzzword to garner media attention. Fuel costs are rising, and finding an alternative and economical fuel source is vital to todays economy. Concern for the environment is also at the forefront of the energy issue. Solar energy is both an economical and eco-friendly alternative fuel source.

One simple step in harnessing solar power is planting. Growing fruit tress or having a vegetable garden is a healthy and natural way to use solar power. Home-growing fruits and vegetables also cuts down on grocery bills. Plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, which helps to clean the air of toxins. This idea can be taken a step further by planting a roof garden. Roof gardens can be planted on the tops of houses, garages or sheds.

Roof gardens help to insulate and retain heat in houses more efficiently than conventional thermal insulation. They also use natural precipitation for water, which reduces run-off and a homeowners sewer costs. Roof gardens also absorb ultra-violet light, which can strip a roof over time.

There are three different types of roof gardens:

o Extensive living roofs

o Semi-extensive living roofs

o Intensive living roofs

Extensive living roofs are the easiest to maintain and require the shallowest soil systems. They are also the lightest and are ideal for sheds or garages. The downside is that extensive living roofs lack the visual appeal of the other two types of roof gardens.

Semi-extensive living roofs are more aesthetically pleasing than the extensive living roof. They require a denser soil and can support different types of vegetation. They are heavier and are more suited to flat domestic buildings.

The third type of roof garden is the intensive living roof. This type of garden requires a strong structure to support it, such as the roof of a commercial building. The soil is denser and can sustain trees and full working gardens.

Roof gardens can be planted on flat or slanted surfaces. When choosing to plant a roof garden on a slanted surface like a shed, be sure to check for adequate structural support. The best types of plants for roof gardens on slanted surfaces are mosses and lichens.

The first step in planting a roof garden is to layer a moisture-retaining protective mat over the area. A root barrier and drainage layer must also be added. The root barrier protects the waterproofing of the rooftop. The drainage layer allows for collection and proper evaporation of water run-off. A filter layer is added to protect the drainage layer from fine particles being washed out of the soil. The vegetation layer contains a zinc-mineral based soil that helps the plants adapt. There are several different types of vegetation to choose from when building a roof garden.

The choice of plant life for a roof garden should be based on the type of garden and the climate. For extensive living roofs, the lightest vegetation is mosses and lichens. These are small plants that do not flower. They can survive in various different climates and are a hearty option. Sedums are the most widely used variety of plant as they are drought resistant. They also change color based on climate change. Wildflower and Calcareous Grassland plants can also be used for living roofs. These types of vegetation need ample space and would not be a viable option for a shed or small garage.

Roof gardens are a natural way to harness solar energy and insulate buildings. They can add style and beauty to a home while also saving a homeowner on heating and cooling bills. Investing in a roof garden or small home garden is an excellent way to save on natural resources and energy costs.

Why Hydroponic Gardening Is Becoming More Popular

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Hydroponic gardening has spiked in popularity recently mainly because the quality and productivity of hydroponically grown plants has been unmistakable. These plants grow faster and healthier than their soil-grown counterparts. This is due to the fact that they are grown in an environment where there is a virtual limitless supply of nutrients and water at their disposal.

These hydroponically grown plants, because they are not grown in soil, do not need to fight off diseases and pests which are natural in soil. Pesticides can be decreased or even eliminated.

And because the nutrients and water are delivered in just the right proportion directly to the plant’s roots, they are better equipped to grow – faster, healthier, larger!

Hydroponically grown plants have the following benefits:

– They will provide high levels of nutrition

– They will be better tasting

– They will be rich in color.

In hydroponic gardening you will find that the crop’s water and nutritional needs are less complicated and sometimes more effective. Just a few simple measurements and it will be evident what adjustments need to be made to the nutritional balance in the water. All the guesswork is eliminated!

Although nutrient solutions are available from local hydroponic suppliers and contain the correct proportions of essential minerals, gardeners may also make their own nutrient rich solutions. This may sometimes require quite a bit of extra work however.

When it comes to the growing medium that will provide plants their nutrition, different materials have been successfully used. Materials such as sand, porous rock, gravel, pumice, perlite, and vermiculite have all proven to be good choices. Fired clay particles can also be used. These all are capable of providing a way of getting the nutrient rich water into the plant’s root system.

Also, there are various types of containers and pumping arrangements for delivering nutrient solutions to the garden and draining it back to the storage tanks for reuse.

If you’re just starting out in hydroponic gardening you may be wondering which types of plants are most suitable for hydroponic gardens. The answer to this is tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, and cucumbers. There are some types of tomatoes that will continue to produce year round.

Some plants can be started from seeds and seedlings. In this case use commercially available rock wool plugs submerged in the media. These make excellent incubators for germination and seedling growth.

And since hydroponic gardens are self-contained, they can be located just about anywhere space permits. It is not unusual to find these by windows, on rooftops, or in closets.

Gardening With Alice Mcgowan

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One of the problems we all face in spring is that we eventually must limit what we can grow”‘”perhaps nowhere is this worse than inside greenhouses, where the space is confined by four walls. Seedlings have a shocking way of increasing exponentially in their needs–that tiny handful of seeds sprouts into a modest seed flat, then move in a fairly orderly fashion into small cells– but all of a sudden– once plants are ready to move into larger pots, space can disappear fast. And when they go outdoors, you may face new space constraints. So, let”‘””s take a look at some of the new space-conscious vegetable introductions available this spring.

Carrot “‘Round Romeo”‘”” forms petite, spherical roots that don”‘””t require deeply cultivated soil “‘”making them great for containers. Don”‘””t forget that root-crops like carrots and radishes are fun to plant with children; they love harvesting them!

Chard “‘Pot of Gold”‘”” Swiss chard has undergone some amazing transformations lately. Featuring lovely bright colors, many are deliciously mild in flavor too. This one stays compact; an excellent candidate for window boxes and smaller gardens, and its plentiful gold-stemmed leaves provide healthy, delicious eating late into fall.

Cucumber “‘Bush Slicer”‘”” bears 6-8″‘ long cucumbers in 55 days on disease resistant, dwarf bushes perfectly sized for small spaces and containers. If you”‘””re really cramped for space, consider growing cucumbers or tomatoes in the Topsy Turvy Upside-Down Planter,”‘ available from the National Gardening Association. (www.garden.org)

Eggplant “‘Little Prince”‘”” I grew this eggplant in large pots last year, and was completely charmed. An attractive, relatively compact plant with handsome felted leaves and lavender flowers, its abundant 4″‘ eggplants are a perfect size to split in half and throw on the grill.

Lettuce “‘Garden Babies”‘”” is a butterhead lettuce that forms cute little heads of tender green leaves, making them ideal for containers.

Scallion “‘Delicious Duo”‘”” combines two different scallion varieties, one purple and one green. In a small amount of space”‘”how about a window box?”‘”you can grow scallions to enjoy all summer, thinning as you harvest.

Tomato “‘Tomaccio”‘”” is an exciting new introduction I”‘””m trying in my sunniest window. Its being advertised as early-fruiting, with exceptionally sweet, cherry size tomatoes bred specifically for drying; harvest whole stems and just hand them up to dry ( inside your Hartley Botanic house would be ideal).

And don”‘””t forget that edible flowers, like nasturtiums, and culinary herbs, such as parsley, basil, and thyme can be tucked into small spaces around your vegetables. Just make sure to give them plenty of sun.

How To Grow The Biggest Strawberries Ever

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Do you want to learn how to grow the biggest strawberries ever

How I discovered how to grow the biggest strawberries ever

I have been growing strawberries for a number of years now, along with a few other fruits and vegetable. Anyway about 6 months ago I was talking with one of my friends about a pest problem I had with a few of my strawberries plants.

Anyway my find told me about this TV program he had been watching about how farmers can now grow all kinds of plants in water without soil (hydroponics), which helps to stop pests from affecting the crop.

The growing of platys with hydroponics is very big in Holland where it is used indoors and also outdoors or in green houses. As my friend described more of what he had learnt form the TV program he had seen I become more and more interested in it.

There seems to be a lot of complicated science to understand abbot how a plant can grow in just water, well after my convocation with my friend about the TV show he had seen I had a lot of ideas and question about how I could do it myself to grow hydrophoic strawberries myself. So I set out on a little research project to find out more.

I decided to give hydroponic strawberries a try

After learning about hydroponic strawberries from my fined, I decided to get online and learn more about it and whats involved. So I want on line and I had a look around online for some information and very quirkily become very confuted by all the different information out there on the subject of hydroponics grading.

Well after a day or so of online research I worked out the basics I needed to start growing my strawberries plans with hydroponics. My first crop were grown with some strawberries plants I bought from the garden center, and I was surprised at how fast they grew, the final crop was well over twice what I would normally get when I grew my strawberries in soil, and also there was no issues with insects and pests on the plants also. And most amazingly of all was that the strawberries I grew hydroponically were massive almost twice as big as when I grow them in soil.

When I was looking for help to get started with growing strawberries with hydroponics I was confused with all the complicated information out on the internet about whats involved. Well after hours of research online I finally broke it down to three key areas to work out to get a hydrophobic system up and running.

The three key areas to sort out to start growing the biggest strawberries ever

1)The first key area you need to work out is which a hydroponics system you will use.

2)The second thing you need to work out is what hydroponics nutrients you will use

3)And the final thing you need to work out if you are growing your strawberries indoors is a plant lighting system or hydroponics lighting system.

If you would like to double your strawberries crop and double the sizes of your strawberries I seriously recommend that you have a go at growing your strawberries with hydroponics and see the differences for yourself its amazing the results you can achieve.

How Beautiful Can Your Outdoor Space Be

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How Beautiful Can Your Outdoor Space Be?

The answer to the question of How Beautiful Can Your Outdoor Space Be is only constrained by your imagination. Putting aside your budget for a minute, think of how you would really love your garden to look. It doesn’t matter how large or small your garden is, if you have any outdoor space there are many ways to utilise it so that you can get enjoyment from it for most of the year. Of course, if you are lucky enough to live somewhere with the right climate then there is no reason that you cannot be enjoying your garden all year round.

You will need to give some thought to what you actually want to use your garden for. Do you want somewhere to relax, to entertain, does it need to be family friendly. You might want lots of vibrant colours or even prefer to mix flowers and vegetables. Would you prefer raised beds so that you don’t need to bend over when you are weeding. Do you need wider pathways for wheelchair access. No two people have exactly the same needs, and no necessities should preclude something from looking good.

Some things that you might want to consider are a decking or patio area. Then do you want this area to be open or enclosed. How about a pergola or arbour over part of it. This could give you a nice shady area to escape the full glare of the summer sun. Then of course you could have a barbecue or outdoor kitchen at the edge of this area. Wouldn’t it be great to eat outside when the weather is good, even better if you can cook outside as well. You might want to fence this area off. Do you go for timber, brick or stone. Keep it muted, natural colours or paint it something vibrant and vivid.

Another consideration is outdoor lighting. If the weather is nice then you want to be outside as often as possible. Use the right lighting and you can stay outside as late as you like. Things to think about apart from general mood lighting are do you have any features in the garden that would be enhanced with lighting. This could really raise your outdoor space another level.

What about heating when it is a bit cooler. Would a fire pit look good in your garden. Could you take advantage of hard landscaping and get a stone wall and patio area to soak up the sun during the day, then this will slowly release the heat later on when you want to sit outside.

Have you thought of outside furnishing. What colours and styles do you like. How durable does it need to be. Are you going to leave the furniture outside or will you be putting it under cover when not in use.

That’s an awful lot to be thinking about, then of course you will still need to consider your budget. Are you the sort of person who has not only the imagination to picture all of this, but also the ability to bring it all together within your specific budget. If so, then get planning and go for it. Get it done and start enjoying your new beautiful outside space.

On the other hand, if you are not sure how to get started (or you just don’t have the time) then you don’t need to give up. You can always hire the services of a Garden Designer. If you use a local firm, then they will know what your local growing conditions are like. They can advise you after listening to what you want as to what your best options are. Do you want the best person to plan and build your ideal outdoor space. If so, then talk to your local Auckland garden designer Pasley Park Landscape Co:- http://www.park.co.nz/ .