Clematis Seed Why do I get lots of fuzzy seed pods on my clematis and no blooms?
I have a clematis that has been planted for at least 7 years now. Originally it bloomed beautifully. The last 2 years it has produced very few blooms. It is covered in buds that look like they will become blooms but then they go straight to the fuzzy seed pod stage. This is a late blooming clematis and I cut it back in late fall after the vines die. The vine is healthy and abundant every year. I have an early bloomer in a different location that is beginning to do the same thing. A friend told me to add some lime to the soil. I did that 2 days ago. Any other suggestions?
Yes, I have them both planted where they get lots of sun. I cut them back to a few inches above the ground and add mulch at the end of the fall. The ground around them is kept mulched. They are planted at the base of posts wrapped in stock wire. The vines come back strong every year and cover the posts.
Are you following the basics for clematis?
1. Clematis like full sun, but like to keep their feet cool...put plenty of mulch over the base of the plant.
2. After the flowers bloom, pinch them off.
3. Cut the plant down to the base at the end of autumn.
July gardening tips for the green (and not so green!) fingered!
Here are some tips for you this July for what you can be getting on with in the garden!
Easy and colourful pots and planters!
Dust off those patio containers and add some colour to your garden this summer. Now is the time for planting up some lovely bedding plants for containers and baskets and it couldn’t be simpler.
Create a nice Mediterranean feel by mixing some trailing ivy with geraniums to give a colourful and easy to look after container or hanging basket. Geraniums are great plants for those people who might not necessarily be green-fingered. They’re easy to look after and give an abundance of colour, without too much effort.
Give them a good watering before you plant them in their containers and then water as required and deadhead the old stems to encourage more flowers. Plant around three or so of the same type for a generous display.
They will also benefit from a feed every two weeks.
Vegetable crops to sow
Through June and July you can sow lots of vegetables directly outside. Why not have a go at growing your own salad leaves this summer and add a few radishes and French beans too for good measure. Just think how you can impress your friends when you tell them that what they're eating is home-grown!
Get down to your local garden centre and pick up your seeds, the hardest part will be deciding what to plant! Have a good read on the back of the packets for the best sowing times.
It’s cheap and fun to watch them grow and the added enjoyment from being able to eat your rewards is second to none!
Introduce some wildlife into your garden
According to a recent Mori commissioned survey by the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society), 38% of gardeners want to do more to encourage wildlife into their gardens, but two in five aren’t quite sure how to go about this and would welcome tips.
Whether you provide feeding trays and nesting boxes, or grow a few plants to encourage and provide for your local wildlife, there are so many things you can do.
Oh yes, the dreaded “w” word! Keep fighting the battle against the weeds by removing any flowering stems before they have a chance to drop their seeds. Lots of weeds can just be teased out by hand, but use a hoe or dig out any weeds that have larger roots…..little and often is the solution to staying on top of this.
Mulch
Mulch is a great way of providing a good feed and protection to both new and established plants. It can also look good and can even cut down on the weeding (hurrah!) Before laying down mulch, such as composted bark chipping or cocoa shells, ensure that the ground has been given a good water first.
Trim your clematis
Early-flowering species clematis (such as Clematis montana, C. macropetala and C. alpina) can be trimmed if they have become a bit overgrown, but only after flowering.
These plants flower from the growth that’s been produced the previous year and don’t generally require pruning unless it’s needed, so don’t get too carried away. Just a light pruning is enough to remove the spent flowers immediately after flowering.
About the Author
Isobel Sclater runs a garden design business in South West London (www.isobelsclater.com) and specialises in helping transform outdoor spaces into places that will give their owners year round enjoyment.
The greatest happenings in life are the times that you get to enjoy the things that you love the most be it an item you wished to have and now you have it, or spending time doing your favorite pastime. These are the things that can give a bit of satisfaction for some people. And sometimes, a hobby can also become a business.
Whenever you are in your house you always spend time in your backyard doing your gardening project. You loved to plant flowers and other decorative plants that make your garden filled with colorful gift of nature. And even outside your windows, flowers planted in the cedar window boxes are still the main view.
Well, cedar window boxes are very useful for gardeners like you. This item is very helpful for an easy gardening. And comes in handy for people who loves gardening but don't have the wide garden like those who lived in an apartment. It can also be used as the planter box in your deck or patio.
Window boxes are made with closed bottoms to hold the soil so you can plant the flowers or vegetables directly on the box. Otherwise, you can place the potted flowers inside it and place the box in the garden or patio to add beauty to the area.
An additional gardening item is the potting bench that also provides convenience and storage space for all of your gardening tools.
Those items mentioned above give you so much fun as you can work conveniently with your hobby. And this hobby became a business of your family. You now have a flower shop and most of the flowers you sell came from your own garden. You will really achieve success in your business in no time since you already have the passion on this thing.
About the Author
To provide additional help in improving your garden now we are offering a complete line of cedar window boxes and potting bench.
The miracle of nature manifests itself in many ways, but none as amazingly as a handful of rock-like balls such as garden bulbs that will produce a profusion of colour just with some sun and water. Daffodils, tulips and crocus, just to think that all their beauty and colour come from a tiny uninteresting brown ball.
If you are not familiar with gardening and are just starting out, it will help to divide plants and flowers up, for example annuals and perennial plants. Annuals are flowers that bloom only once and their whole lifetime lasts just one growing season. One prize example of an annual is the pansy, you buy these plants already blooming, plant them in your garden container, or window box and they will die in the Autumn never to return.
Perennial plants in your garden will keep coming back year after year as they don't die each Autumn, they just go dormant until the weather warms up again. The beautiful flowers from garden bulbs are perennials and if you plant them in the Autumn they will provide you with blooms year after year. If you see in a garden a clump of tulips or daffodils or iris that are bushy and thick with flowers, you can bet your bottom dollar these bulbs were probably planted years ago, simply because often the flowers multiply over the years.
Garden bulbs will be in your garden for some time to come unless of course you dig them up and move them, so care should be taken when planting them to take full advantage. Be aware that some bulbs flower in early March and others flower in June and your garden will look out of balance if you don't account for blooming times, also pay attention to height when planting and be careful not to hide short crocuses behind tall tulips.
The garden bulb is very versatile and can be planted almost anywhere and even used as hanging basket plants, or planted in pots for indoors. Wherever you plant them they will not disappoint and will give you so much pleasure.
Of course, to the experienced hard and fast gardener a well planted garden is not just about flowers. To them the soil is far more precious and most gardeners love to have vegetable plants that will feed the family through the seasons, such as runner beans, lettuce, spring onions, beetroot, potatoes, and so much more. These gardeners know that vegetable plants will save money and, more importantly, will be fresher and better for our health.
Lavender plants are a great favorite in many gardens and are the most popular cottage-garden plants. Evergreen lavender plants are great for attracting wildlife to your garden including butterflies and will help save the declining populations of our native species of bumble bee. Lavender plants are ideal for patio containers, hedging and can be used to make your own potpourri and can even be used in cooking.
A spokesman for Blooming Direct a horticultural business based on the Island of Jersey said, "visitors to our website will find it mind blowing such is the choice that we offer. We are confident you will find any plant, tree or shrub you are looking for as you can use our "plant finder" to track down exactly what you want and, on the way, maybe find something more exciting and interesting and of course we deliver FREE to the UK".
For further information visit: www.bloomingdirect.com or you can visit their Facebook page to discover more offers.
About the Author
Blooming Direct is represented by online advertising consultancy, Maxi Media Matters. Please direct all media enquiries to:
Flowers are defiantly one of the most popular presents for a man to give to a woman on Valentine’s Day. In reality the flowers are so popular that in most cases men give flowers together with some other gift as an addition instead of giving flowers as a gift. But the problem lies not with giving the flowers but in choosing the flowers, allot of man quite often make the mistake of thinking that red roses are the only choice of flowers to give to their loved one on Valentine’s Day and this is absolutely not true. Not only there are other flowers which are totally appropriate for Valentine’s Day but there are also a few different ways on how give flowers and flower related gifts. Here I will show a few different ways on how to give pick and give flowers on Valentine’s Day.
Roses are usually quite expensive on Valentine’s Day as the price for them gets jacked up on that day because of the high demand for them and people prepared to pay the price. So the solution is if you decide to stick to the roses you can buy those few days in advance otherwise you need to remember that roses are not the only flower out there which you can give as a gift. Think about your partner and what she likes if you know her then you probably know her favorite flower so go and buy them just think how surprised she will be when she would be expecting to get roses as everyone else and suddenly she gets her favorite flowers. This will show your partner that you care and you listen to her and also will save you some money and effort.
Another option you may want to consider is giving potted plants as a flower gift for Valentine’s Day. The reason behind it, is that these flowers last much longer then fresh flowers and can be as beautiful as fresh once, so you partner can enjoy the beauty of the gift for much longer. Another advantage of such gift is that you have quite a wide chose of plans and also they do not costs as much as some fresh flowers. One thing you should keep in mind when buying potted plant you should select a plat which is easy to care for so your loved one will not have hard time caring for the plant.
Another option you may want to consider is artificial flowers. It may not seem like a romantic gift but some artificial flowers are made so well that they look really lifelike and some ladies actually will prefer artificial flowers instead of real once. The reasons for it are that artificial flowers require no maintenance to keep their appearance they also last for much longer then the real once and they do not result in any rubbish like fallen petals or leaves.
Another idea you may want to consider as a way of a flower gift on Valentine’s Day is to give your partner flower seeds which they can plant in a pot or in their backyard. The reason why this idea may work quite well is because it can be quite fun activity for you and your partner to do together. This generally will work with people who have some sort of interests in gardening. This sort of thing will also make the gift a bit more special and also will allow you and your partner to spend some quality time together.
As the final thought make sure you always think about your partner when choosing a gift for them. Put some thought into it, do some research, notice what your partner like and dislikes and doing this will help you to pick the right gift and make your partner feel special.
