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What is Rough Bluegrass? Rough bluegrass is a spreading, aggressive, grass-like weed. It begins to grow and spread in autumn. Once it gets into your lawn, it takes over the grass already there, then dies back in summer heat, leaving bare spots where your grass once grew. Don’t confuse it with Kentucky bluegrass, although it is in the same family. Invasive rough bluegrass looks like bentgrass and is related to annual bluegrass, which can also be troublesome....

Saving basil seed is an easy, economical way to grow basil year after year. Read on for some tips on how to harvest basil seeds and ways to save basil seed. How to Harvest Basil Seeds Basil plants are pollinated by small flying insects. The different varieties will cross pollinate, so it is important to isolate a favorite cultivar by at least 150 feet (45.5 m.). This will prevent another variety from polluting your strain....

Flower and vegetable seed packets provide specific instructions that when properly followed, will result in healthy growth and production. Interpreting the Seed Packet Directions For help with understanding seed packet info, you should be aware of each item listed on the seed packet labels. For the majority of flower and vegetable seed packets, you will find the following seed packet information: Description – Seed packet information generally contains a written description of the plant and whether or not it is a perennial, biennial or annual....

About Common Self Heal Plant Prunella vulgaris plant is commonly known as the self heal herb. It has been used medicinally for centuries. In fact, the entire plant, which is edible, can be used both internally and externally to treat a number of health complaints and wounds. The plant’s most common use is for the treatment of cold sores. Prunella is a perennial plant native to Europe but can also be found growing in parts of Asia and the United States....

Standard bulbs take up a lot of space in the garden, but with miniature flower bulbs, it’s possible to create the same impact in even the smallest space. Plant miniature bulb plants en masse for a dramatic effect. Bulbs for Small Gardens Below are some of the most popular small space bulbs for planting in the garden: Grape hyacinth (Muscari): Purplish blue is the most common color for grape hyacinth, but this lovely little flower is also available in white....

Supporting Wildlife in Gardens A wildlife friendly garden is a great way to start supporting wildlife and helping to protect local species, both endangered and healthy populations. Here are some things you can do: Include plants that attract your local pollinators including birds, butterflies, bees, and bats.Pull out invasive plants on your property. Your local extension office can tell you what to look for and remove.Keep a brush pile in one corner of the yard....

Phytoplasma Life Cycle Phytoplasmas infect plants and insects. They are spread by insects through their feeding activities which inject the pathogen into the phloem of the plants. The pathogen causes a host of symptoms, most of which are potentially damaging to plant health. Phytoplasmas live in the phloem cells of a plant and usually, but not always, cause disease symptoms. These tiny pests are actually bacteria with no cell wall or nucleus....

Why Should You Thin Citrus Trees? As a gardener, you want the biggest crop of oranges, lemons, or limes you can get from your citrus orchard. So why should you thin citrus trees, pruning out some of those immature fruit? The idea behind thinning fruit on citrus trees is to produce less but better fruit. Often, young citrus trees produce many more tiny fruits than the tree can bring to maturity....

What is a Tree Lily? Growing tree lilies are tall and the stalks are large but, in spite of the name, they are not trees; they are herbaceous (non-woody) plants that die down at the end of each growing season. Average height of a tree lily is 4 feet (1 m.), although some varieties may reach heights of 5 to 6 feet (1.5 to 2 m.) and sometimes more. The plant is available in bold colors such as red, gold, and burgundy, as well as pastel shades of peach, pink, pale yellow, and white....

Why Choose Stone Wall Options A stone wall will not be your cheapest option for the garden or yard. However, what you lose in money you will make up for in a number of other ways. For one, a stone wall is extremely durable. They can literally last thousands of years, so you can expect that you’ll never have to replace it. A stone wall is also much more attractive than other options....

About Urban Vine Growing When it comes to growing vines with no space, it pays to do some research. Not only are some types of vines vigorous growers (which is good if you wish to cover an area ASAP), but they can get out of hand in terms of size. Size isn’t the only issue when choosing vines for small spaces. Some vines, such as Virginia creeper and creeping fig, use small suction cups and aerial roots to cling to whatever they are clambering up....

Find the Best Vegetable Garden Size for You Normally, a garden of about 10 feet by 10 feet (3 x 3 m.) is considered to be manageable, provided your landscape permits the space. You should try sketching out a small diagram noting the area of each vegetable to be planted. If something a little less is preferred, try working vegetables within smaller-sized plots. Since there are many vegetables that are also considered ornamental in appearance, there’s no need to hide them from view....

Growing Bamboo Plants in Zone 9 The biggest true grass is the bamboo. This monster of a plant is a tropical to temperate genera, with the biggest concentration found in the Asia Pacific region. However, there are not only warm weather bamboo, but some species found in cold mountain regions. Zone 9 bamboo will rarely experience freezing conditions, but it may suffer if it is grown in an arid area. If you do choose to plant bamboo in zone 9, extra irrigation may be necessary to fuel this grasses’ phenomenal growth....

What Are Alternative Pollinators? Eighty percent of the fruit, nuts and seeds that make up the American diet depend on animal pollinators, including insects, birds and mammals. In the past, gardeners depended on honeybees, but with the decline in the honeybee population, the focus is shifting to alternative pollinators in the garden. There are about 3,500 additional species of bees in the United States, some of which make excellent alternative pollinators....

What are Worm Castings? Worm castings are an organic form of fertilizer produced from earthworms. Also known as vermicast, worm castings manure is essentially earthworm waste, otherwise known as worm poo. As these creatures eat through compost, their waste creates an optimal soil enricher. Worm castings resemble football-shaped particles that improve soil aeration and drainage, as well as increase water retention in the soil. Can You Use Worm Castings for Plants?...

What is Miniature Narcissus? Miniature narcissus is just another name for a dwarf daffodil variety. Like regular-sized daffodils, they grow from fall planted bulbs and bloom in spring. The size of a dwarf daffodil depends on the variety, but generally they grow 4 to 6 inches (10-15 cm.) tall with flowers that are just one and a half inches (4 cm.). Some mini daffodil varieties to try include: Baby Moon: This variety produces cheerful yellow flowers that look like a classic daffodil....

What is Barley Covered Smut? The fungal disease is actually called “covered smut.” When it attacks barley though, some refer to it as covered smut of barley or barley covered smut. Barley with covered smut is caused by the fungus Ustilago hordei. It has a significantly real and very negative impact on a grain crop. The covered smut fungus can be transferred to a barley crop by spores on the barley seeds, spores blown over in the wind, or spores overwintering in soil....

What is Green Goliath Broccoli? Green Goliath is hybrid broccoli, with seeds bred to withstand extreme temperatures of both heat and cold. It reportedly grows heads of the vegetable clusters as large as one foot (31 cm.) across. After removing the central head, numerous productive side shoots continue to develop and supply the harvest. Harvest for this plant lasts about three weeks instead of the typical all at once. Most broccoli varieties bolt as the summer heats up, while Green Goliath continues to produce....

What is Yellow Sweetclover? So what is yellow sweetclover? A forage crop? Or is yellow sweetclover a weed? That all depends on your perspective. The biennial plant is a legume that grows to 6 feet (2 m.) tall and is topped by bright yellow flowers. It has coarse stems and the leaves are toothed. Yellow sweetclover is not a native plant to this country but was imported from Europe and Asia....

These plants are prized for their ease of growth, adaptability to regional growing conditions, as well as their bloom time and dependability. Aloysia whitebrush entices bees with its strong vanilla-scented flowers, which are produced throughout the entire warm growing season. What is Beebrush? Before determining whether this plant is a good candidate for the yard, it will first be important to delve deeper into whitebrush information. Also known as beebrush or Texas whitebrush (Aloysia gratissima), Aloysia whitebrush plants are native to regions of Mexico and the southwestern United States....