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Using Seaweed as Fertilizer for Plants There are many benefits to using seaweed in the garden, and many different ways to use it. Like most organic material, seaweed improves soil structure, increasing soil porosity while also improving moisture retention. Nutrients in the seaweed also stimulate beneficial soil bacteria, creating rich, healthy soil for flowerbeds or edible gardens. For this purpose, dried seaweed is tilled or turned directly into the garden’s soil....

Iris Borers Symptoms Iris borers may be hard to see at first but they grow to 2 inches (2.5 cm.) long and are pinkish grubs. Iris borers symptoms are first noticed in April or May as they tunnel into the leaves. The leaves become ragged and dark streaked. The leaves will also leak a fluid. These symptoms also mimic bacterial soft rot, leaf spot, and iris scorch, all common iris diseases....

Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato Information There must be hundreds of heirloom tomatoes available. One such, Kellogg’s Breakfast, is a tasty, unique, orange fruit that is ripest when the color deepens to a classic carrot color. The plants produce mid-season and have prolific fruits for weeks. One of the more desirable heirloom tomatoes, Kellogg’s Breakfast is an indeterminate plant requiring staking. Big, 14 ounce (397 g.) fruits and meaty, almost seedless flesh characterize the Kellogg’s Breakfast tomato....

Korean Boxwood Information Korean boxwood plants (Buxus sinica insularis, formerly Buxus microphylla var. koreana) are broadleaf evergreen shrubs. They grow upright to about 2 feet (0.5 m.) tall. They are slightly wider than they are tall when they are mature and develop a partially open branch structure. These shrubs are dense plants. Their many branches are covered with finely-textured evergreen leaves that give the shrubs visual interest all year long. In summer, the leaves are green....

Since often it is stressed trees that are infested, the best defense is to provide adequate irrigation and use good cultural practices. Read on for more information about the causes of eucalyptus tree oozing. Why is My Eucalyptus Tree Leaking Sap? The first time you see a eucalyptus tree dripping sap, you may think it looks like it is weeping or bleeding. In fact, the fluid you see coming from holes in the weeping eucalyptus is the attempt of the eucalyptus to kill and wash out boring insects....

Why is My Squash Bumpy? You are in the zucchini patch and see that the squash is warty looking and knotty. This leads to the question, why is my squash bumpy? Squash are cucurbits and fall in a family that includes cucumbers, melons, and pumpkins. Fruits in the cucurbit family are plagued by several different viruses, which can cause lumpy squash plants. Usually the foliage goes unaffected for quite some time, while the forming fruits get knots and bumps in the skin....

Why is My Frangipani Not Flowering? Frangipani flowers come in a colorful array of tones. The bright hues of these five petaled beauties are standouts as container plants in cooler climes, or as garden specimens in warm climates. The foliage is glossy and nice to look at, but since most gardeners grow the plants for their profuse blooms, a non-blooming Frangipani is something of a disappointment. There are three main reasons for a Frangipani not blooming....

Shade Trees for North Central States Some trees that make good shade in the North Central regions are those native to the area. Others are not native but aren’t considered invasive and can thrive in this climate. Choices for northern shade trees in the North Central U.S. include: Buckeye: This smaller shade tree, buckeye grows to about 35 feet (11 m.) in height, is a good choice for cold icy winters as it tolerates road salt....

About Pacific Northwest Gardens Northwest gardening tasks seem to never end, but it can help to accomplish something every month of the year. Doing so will help you get a jump start on spring planting and make sure pests and disease don’t take root in your garden. Outside of general cleanup, there are still many chores to do that will make life easier when the warm weather arrives. Weather can really run the gamut in the Pacific Northwest....

If you are interested in planting an Osage orange hedge row, you’ll need to learn about techniques for pruning Osage orange trees. The tree’s thorns present special pruning issues. Osage Orange Hedges Barbed wire wasn’t invented until the 1880’s. Before then, many people planted a row of Osage orange as a living fence or hedge. Osage orange hedges were planted close together – no more than 5 feet (1.5 m....

Identifying Pear Oak Root Fungus If a healthy tree suddenly gets limp and lacks vigor, it may be pear armillaria root and crown rot. Pears with armillaria root rot are not going to get better and the disease can be spread quickly in orchard situations. To avoid loss of the tree, site selection, plant resistance and careful sanitation practices may help. The fungus lives in the roots of trees and thrives when soil is cool and moist....

What Causes Leaves to Curl on Pepper Plants? Pepper leaf curl can result from many different problems, ranging from pests and viruses to environmental stress. Pests Pests like aphids, thrips, mites, and whiteflies cause leaf curl on pepper plants with their feeding activities. Mature leaves may develop spotted or stippled areas, dry out, or fall off, but leaves fed on during development emerge randomly curled or twisted, depending on the location of the feeding....

Can You Plant Store Squash? The answer to “Can you plant store squash?” is all in the semantics. You can plant any type of seed your little heart desires, but the real question is, “Can you grow squash from the store?”. Planting seeds from grocery-bought squash is one thing, growing them is quite another. Can You Grow Squash from the Store? Seeds from grocery store squash can indeed be planted but will they germinate and produce?...

Plants for A Southeast Pond Ideally, a plan for pondscaping in the South should include a variety of plants. Here are a few beautiful pondscape plants to consider. Duck potato (Sagittaria lancifolia): You may also know this plant as Katniss. Its unusual name is derived from the ducks that feed on its stems, seeds, and potato-like root structures. From spring until fall, duck potato displays bright white, orange centered flowers extending from its broad leaves....

Planting Cantaloupe in Pots If you want to grow cantaloupes in pots, there are a few caveats you should know prior to planting your container-grown cantaloupes. Unless you can provide an extra-large container such as a half whiskey barrel, you’ll have better luck with a dwarf variety like ‘Minnesota Midget,’ which produces juicy melons weighing about 3 pounds (1.5 kg.), or ‘Sugar Cube,’ a sweet, disease-resistant variety that tops out at about 2 pounds (1 kg....

What’s Wrong with my Dracaena? Problems with dracaena houseplants usually involve inappropriate cultural care rather than something more serious. Plant diseases are very rarely a problem. Dracaena cultural care is not difficult, but you need to pay attention to their requirements to keep them healthy. These plants need bright but indirect sunlight. They also need to be irrigated with tepid water on a regular basis when they dry out. So what’s wrong with my dracaena houseplant, you ask?...

Do Garden Hoses Need to be Filtered? Studies have shown over 2,000 chemicals are found in municipal U.S. water supplies. Most of these are benign, although a few do have some health implications and can even affect plants. This raises the question, “do garden hoses need to be filtered?” That depends on the use you have for the water and what your city puts into the supply. In some regions, chemicals, like chlorine, are added to the local water....

What are Reblooming Flowers? Reblooming plants are plants that produce more than one set of blooms in a growing season. This can occur naturally or as a result of specialized breeding. In nurseries and garden centers, plant tags will usually say reblooming or repeat bloomer on plant hybrids that rebloom. When in doubt, ask nursery workers about a plant’s blooming habits. Or, look up the specific variety online. What Plants Rebloom?...

Let’s take a look at some great choices of plants for a terrarium that includes reptiles. We will also explore how they are mutually beneficial to each other. Indoor Plants for Reptiles It is especially important to know which houseplants are toxic if you have any reptiles or other animals that are herbivores or omnivores. Get to know exactly which reptile you will have in your terrarium because the tolerance of ingesting certain plants can vary depending on the species of plant, and the animal....

What is Rice Sheath Blight? When your rice crop looks diseased, the odds are good that you have rice with the fungal disease called rice sheath blight. What is rice sheath blight? It is the most destructive disease of rice in many states. This blight doesn’t only affect rice. Other crops can be hosts of this sheath blight as well. These include soybean, bean, sorghum, corn, sugarcane, turfgrass, and certain grass weeds....