Oct 16 2008
Thank the Lord We Have Rain
It is rained this morning, and luckily we had some just a few days ago. You know what that means, more pictures to share with you guys. I was not going to take pictures of my poor little plants right after the dead heat of summer. I had to give them some time to bounce back. They are looking better every day. Rain also means that I do not have to water anything for the next few days. Although I cannot go too long, or they’ll be all dried out and wilty again. I have gotten such joy out of sharing my photos with all of you that I do not want to quit taking photos, lol. Thank you all for your nice comments, also. It makes me happy to know someone is getting some enjoyment out of them too.
I hope you all enjoy these! The first one, the Gerbera Daisy, is my favorite one out of this group of photos, followed closely by the Japanese Spider Lilies in the second photo. The third photo is a Sun Coleous, and this variety is Sherbert, and the last photo is of a plant that is commonly known as Bloodleaf. I try to ind plants that are not in everyone’s garden, ad if they are, I try to find a variety that most do not pick.
Happy Gardening!
Miss Crystal
To me, fall time is the prettiest time of the year. The leaves begin to turn colors even a painter can’t duplicate. This is also the time of the year that we get to do prep work for the next spring. We have over 2 acres and our property is surrounded by trees, so we have a large amount of leaves to get up and try to keep up so it won’t kill the grass. That is probably our largest job, our next is trimming all of my Althea bushes (commonly known as Rose of Sharon), hedge bushes, and fruit trees (that’s another post). It has become a lot of work in the last few years since we moved into the new place, but should not be as much from now on since we have it cleared out and under control. My biggest tip for gardening of any kind is to buy yourself a Farmer’s Almanac every single year and follow it according to your zone. The years we have followed it, we have great crops; the years we don’t, they don’t produce much. Now that could be a coincidence, but who wants to chance it.
Can you believe the depth of the colors? They are a work of art by the Big Man himself. It is times like this that really makes gardening enjoyable.
This happens to be one of my favorites, Wax Begonia (Begonia semperflorens), is a plant that will grow and bloom in the shade. Mine has been relatively easy to care for. It has remained beautiful and bloomed all year when some of my other shade plants seem to shrivel from the heat. It is kind of an all-around plant, in my opinion, because you can grow them as houseplants, outside in a tub, or even plant them in beds. This is also another one of those plants that do not like to stay wet. I noticed that when I watered it as often as the rest of my plants, the blooming would slow down. When I cut back on the watering a bit, it got lush and started blooming like crazy. I have also noticed that this certain plant does not seem to get bothered by bugs or other critters. I am also able to make new plants from cutting very easy, without the help of a growth hormone.
The Boston Fern, or the Sword Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata) is one of the prettiest plants I have ever seen. I also think that they are one of the easiest plants to grow. They love moisture and partial shade. I have sat mine in a tub of water (on a brick where the bottom of the pot just sits in the water) and it got very green and lush. If you have this plant indoors, be sure to mist it regularly. Now, if it is planted outside in zones 9-11, it will come back up the next year. It will look dead through the winter, but it will grow back. In my home state of Florida, they grow wild.
Regular maintenance is the only way you are going to ensure that you have a nice, healthy yard that is free of weeds. The most important step, as far as I am concerned, is that you keep your yard free of debris and leaves. This keeps the grass underneath from getting the sunshine it needs to grow. The next most important step is to be sure that you are giving your grass enough water throughout the year, especially in the driest times of the year and at the end of the year before it begins to freeze. Next, you can pick out a weed control spray, and luckily, they now sell it in weed and feed, it only kills the weeds and then feeds the grass. (Be sure to follow the directions on the label to a T.) And the last step, and definitely not the least important one, is to cut your grass on a regular basis. Be sure that you do not cut the grass too short, or this will cause it to brown and look as if it is dying. I suggest setting the blade a little higher than you normally would and cut a little more often. (As you can tell in the above picture, I am constantly fighting cloves in my yard
)
There are many types of fertilizers on the market these days. I prefer the old tried and true Miracle-Gro. I use it on everything from my roses, azaleas, and peace lilies to my tomatoes, peppers, and squash. I also use it on the plants I keep indoors just in a watered-down state. I have tried a whole bunch of others out there and as far as I am concerned, none can stand up to the power of Miracle-Gro. I use the regular kind year round, but during the time certain plants are blooming, I use their Bloom Booster. Wow! It will literally make buds and blooms pop out within days.
When starting off, most people prefer to go to their local nursery to purchase seedlings because they tend to grow slowly. Some people do get the enjoyment of watching it grow from seed. You can start them off inside and then transplant them into your garden after the last frost of the spring. They prefer full sun and love the hot weather. Amend the soil with fertilizer and compost, and then be sure to space them about 20 inches apart. These plants tend to get pretty big and need the room to breathe. Be sure to water often, especially in the hottest part of the year. It takes about 80 days until maturity and they will put off peppers until it frosts. One tip, do not plant peppers too close to other varieties (as in banana peppers and bell peppers) because pepper plants pollinate themselves and they will cross pollinate easily. 
Caring for Purpe Fountain Grass, Penniston rubrum, is pretty easy. It grows fast and comes back year after year. You can plant this in a bed or container and use it as the main focus. It can grow as tall as 3 feet and fill a space quick. It can take most soils and does not need a great amount of water, it is pretty hardy and does need full sun. The plumes that come out feel like a cat’s tail, soft. I have this plant in my garden (and you can see it if you look through earlier posts) and it is probably the prettiest plant I have. Out of all of my plants, this one did not wilt any all summer long. It took the heat and drought like a trooper. I do plan to buy more of them next year and plant them in several places.
