Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Fun Project with Your Kids
I stumbled upon this website through a garden forum and found it to be a great idea for a fun project to do with your kids. Make home-made wind spinners out of plastic pop bottles, colorful electric tape, easy turning swivels and string for hanging. Enjoy!
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
New Wild Bird Houses!
You asked for it! We now have a selection of functional wild bird houses!
$64.95 $29.95
$59.95 $24.95
Plain Nest Box Cedar Bluebird House
$59.95 $24.95
Monday, June 7, 2010
New Wild Bird Feeders
Check out our new selection of Wild Bird Feeders!
Haven Cage Feeder -Finch Feeder-
$83.95 $38.95
Cling-a-wing Platform
$29.95 $64.95
Friday, May 28, 2010
Benefits of Birdbaths In Your Garden
Birdbaths can make a wonderful addition to any lawn and garden space. They are used to water and bathe birds and as a place for birds to frolic in the sun with their avian friends. But birdbaths bring more than just that to the garden. They come in many different kinds, shapes and sizes; you should be able to find the right birdbath to fit any lawn and garden decor. Read further to find out the many benefits of having birdbaths in your lawn and garden as well as some helpful birdbath tips.
If you set a birdbath out in your lawn and garden, it’s a sure bet feathered visitors will come flocking, especially on warm summer days. Birdbaths run the gamut from simple to elaborate. Some are simple bowls that sit on the ground or atop pedestals or hang from chains. Others are designed as much for the people who watch the birds as for the birds themselves. You can also display eye-catching birdbaths as garden art. Once birds discover your garden bath as a reliable source of water, if placed in the right spot and kept filled and clean, your garden will come alive with their color, music and activity. You’ll discover the pleasure of watching sparrows, cardinals and other songbirds swoop into the birdbath for a splashing good time. If you have squirrels in the area, they might also delight you with their antics as they attempt to take advantage of your birdbath. A dip in a birdbath cools birds in summer, and it can help them keep warm in winter. Frequent bathing stimulates birds by keeping their feathers clean and fluffed. So keep the birdbath filled, clean and ready for whatever flies your way.
Here are some birdbath basics to follow to get the most out of your birdbath. Try to find a birdbath that is shallow and roomy. Ideally, baths should be 2-3” deep and 24-36” across. The sides should slope gradually. Consider the material your birdbath is made out of. Some materials like plastic are too slippery for birds and can crack with age. Metal dishes, if used, should be of stainless steel or other rust-resistant material. It’s very important to keep your birdbath clean in order to keep your avian friends returning. Use a strong jet of water from the base to clean the bowl. Keep your birdbath safe by putting it next to shrubs or trees that will provide cover and escape routes. Place ground-level birdbaths where they have 10-20’ of open space around them, but no more or you’ll leave damp birds exposed to hawks, owls and cats. In cold climates keep it from freezing by adding a heating element that insures it stays thawed. If possible, add a fountain of some kind to your birdbath. Birds are attracted to running water. Some birdbaths already come with some kind of water fountain feature. And lastly, keep in mind that standing water has the potential to attract those tiny annoying little bugs called mosquitoes, so place your birdbath somewhere that won’t be a problem for you.
With the help of these tips and ideas for birdbaths, you should be able to find the right one for your lawn and garden and be able to attract your feathered friends for a visit or two. The benefits of birdbaths are well worth the effort it takes in keeping them clean, filled, placed safely and picking the right one. Add a birdbath to your outdoor space today and enjoy the many perks they bring to your lawn and garden.
Beginner Flower Garden - Tips For a Beautiful Garden
Planting a flower garden may be an overwhelming experience for anybody let alone a beginner gardener. The good news is there are easy ways to get around it by following these simple steps. Read on to find out what these simple tips are for planning your garden landscape and what lawn décor to choose to get what you want from the sweet escape in your backyard.
Before you head to a nursery or garden center, make sure you have a plan. Think about where you want to put your flowers and garden accessories, what colors you want where, how many and so forth. This will make your shopping experience much easier and faster and probably less expensive. You’ll want to enjoy a garden that’s in bloom from early spring to late fall by choosing annuals (plants that do not come back every year) and perennials (plants that do come back every year) based on when they flower. Refer to plant tags for specific information that pertains to your garden. When picking plants at the nursery pay attention to the height and width before assigning them a permanent home. When it’s time to divide your perennials, offer to share your extras with your garden-savvy neighbors in return for plants you don’t have yet. Make sure to observe your yard’s sun and shade areas. Look for wet or dry spots. Watch for sandy soil and dense clay. By knowing your garden’s conditions, you can plant flowers where they’ll thrive. For soils that do not produce thriving plants consider putting garden accessories such as garden statues, gnomes, wind spinners, wind chimes, stepping stones, mulch, rock, and other lawn and garden décor. When choosing garden accessories for additional lawn décor around your garden, consider potting perennials and/or annuals in containers and placing them around your yard. Garden planters are an easy way to create colorful accents. Many plants benefit from deadheading, when faded blooms are removed to encourage new growth. To deadhead, cut off the spent slower close to a bud that’s lower on the stem or above a leaf node. To enjoy perennials or annuals indoors, cut the flowers in early morning or late afternoon, submerge them in lukewarm water and add a floral preservative.
Garden accessories are a great way to add a little extra something to any outdoor space. The nice thing about garden accessories is that they come in all forms, shapes and sizes. Choosing the right lawn décor for your garden or backyard is always a fun experience because there is so much you can do with it. Garden stepping stones make transitioning from one place in your backyard to another very easy and it is also very decorative. Stepping stones can be anything from limestone rock, cement blocks or slates to flat plaques. Don’t forget about your avian friends. Putting bird houses, bird baths and bird feeders in a flower garden invites even more color and entertainment to enjoy. There are tons of different kinds of bird feeders out there; some are decorative, some are for specific kinds of birds and some are very plain-jane bird feeders. Which ever strikes your fancy your avian friends will be sure to re-visit your flower garden. Other garden accessories you can consider putting up in your flower garden are wind chimes and wind spinners. You can find many different kinds of hook stands out there for hanging these types of garden accessories as well as brackets for the side of a post or wall.
Your flower garden will look amazing after following these simple steps in planning for a garden. The nice thing about garden accessories is that they are versatile. You can put them almost anywhere and plant flowers around them or accent some already planted flowers and plants with the garden accessories. Whatever you choose to do you will be happy with the result it produces.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
New Bird Baths!
We have just added some new bird baths, check them out today! Bird baths are a wonderful way to interact with your feathered friends and can be a very entertaining piece of garden art for your backyard or garden space!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Hummingbirds - Nectar, How To's & Fun Facts
NECTAR
In the natural world, hummers feed on a combination of flower nectar and
insects. Flower nectar is a simple chemical solution of sugar and water.
Hummers seem to like sucrose best – table sugar – and it is the most
digestible. Making your own nectar ensures that there are no preservatives
or food coloring. Using tap water will add electrolytes if your water is hard.
If it is soft, add just a pinch of salt to a quart of nectar. Too much salt and
the hummers won’t drink it.
To make your own mixture, bring the water to a boil and stir the sugar into
the hot water at a ratio of 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. The solution will
keep in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Making your own nectar is
easy and often superior to using packaged mixes, as our experience has
shown that the hummers prefer homemade sugar water.
Please don’t use food coloring, honey, brown sugar or
sugar substitutes, as they can be harmful to hummers.
LOTS TO KNOW
• Besides nectar, Hummingbirds consume protein in the form of insects
which they find inside flowers, on plants and in trees, in spider webs
and in midair as they travel through your yard. Consider that when using
pesticides in your yard and gardens. Hummers also drink water.
• Hummers feed 5 - 8 times an hour.
• Hummers have the greatest energy output, gram for gram, of any known
warm-blooded animal. If your sugar water freezes, replace it immediately
(even at dawn). They rely on established food supplies.
• A Hummingbird’s wings can beat 200 times per second during courtship!
• A Hummingbird’s tongue is roughly twice the length of its beak. It licks
the nectar. (Approximately 13 licks per second!) You might see its beak
and think that it can’t reach the nectar in the bottom of the feeder. Look
closely with binoculars to see the tongue.
• The Bee Hummingbird is the smallest hummingbird in the world at
2" long, weighing 1⁄15 of an ounce!
Under no circumstance should insecticides or other poisons be used at
Hummingbird feeders.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Vegetable Garden Planning - Sun & Soil
I am getting ready to plant our 2nd ever vegetable garden and so was looking for some good articles to help me out on the topic. Last year was my first year doing one and let's just say I bit off more than I could chew. I didn't know much about soil and didn't think much about fertilizing it to get the best results. And we don't even have an outside hydrant so I had to hand-carry one water can at a time out to the garden and water as much as I had time for, which usually ended up just being my tomato and pepper plants and that was it! I just figured mother nature would do the rest. Needless to say, our garden was not as productive as I had anticipated. So I thought I'd do some research first and share it with you all! Happy Vegetable Gardening...
Sun and Soil
Good vegetable garden planning requires that you meet two special requirements: sun and soil. Vegetables can be fussy and they are very specific about their sun and soil needs.
You must have a garden bed that receives a minimum of six hours of full sun each day. The more sun, the better your garden will be. Your harvest will be bigger and your vegetables will taste better. A garden that faces south and has good space between the rows (six inches or so) will generally produce a better crop.
The other unbending requirement is good soil. You must have proper soil, but what is that? How do you know if your soil is good for a vegetable garden?
Fertile soil for the vegetable garden should be loose, brown dirt. It should shake easily through your fingers. It has to be rich in nutrients and organic matter. You may use commercial fertilizers or manure to enrich the soil. If you have a friend with a horse of two, offer to clean his stable. Horse manure is great fertilizer.
The soil should also be just a bit acidic. The pH should be about 6.5. A pH reading of seven means your soil is neutral. Any reading above seven means that it is alkaline and a lower number means acidic. You can pick up a cheap testing kit at your local nursery or home care store. If the soil is too alkaline, just add a little peat moss and work it into the soil. If it is too acidic, add lime.
Just a side note: flowers and flowering bushes require more alkaline soil than vegetables. While your flowers may bloom when planted against your vegetable garden, they will generally produce bigger flowers and more of them if the soil in which they are planted has a pH a little above 7. Having said that, there are certain flowers (marigolds, etc.) that you may want to put in among your vegetables to help ward off pests.
When in doubt, don't hesitate to call your county agent or the manager at your local nursery. These folks have probably been active gardeners for a while and they can provide you with information specific to your area. What's more, they will be delighted to help. Vegetable gardeners love to talk shop!
Good sun and soil can make all the difference in the success of your garden. Begin at the beginning with great vegetable garden planning and reap the rewards of your labor all summer long.
A guy has celery sticking out of one ear, lettuce out of the other, and a zucchini up his nose. He goes to the doctor and asks him what's wrong. The doctor tells him, "Well, for one thing, you're not eating right." I love that joke! If you like it too, you'll love the information we have at Vegetable Garden Planning. If you like great bargains, check out Blue Topaz Gemstone. See you there! Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_Haley |
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