GardenSpotlight

Good drainage is essential to planting a successful garden or landscape.   Plants’ roots (and this goes for ALL plants) need oxygen.   If plants are kept in an area that is continuously wet, the roots will be starved for oxygen and the plant(s) will eventually die.   There are many different ways to improve the drainage around your yard and gardens. If you have potted plants or container gardens, make sure you have several drainage holes in the bottom of your pots.   If you have ceramic pots, adding gravel or styrofoam peanuts in the bottom of the pot prior to adding planting mix will also help.   Prior to planting your garden, you should till the soil well.   This will loosen the soil and break up any large clods.   The soil will be better able to drain this way than if it were left hard and compacted.     Rototilling in between the rows of an already established garden not only removes weeds, but also increases drainage and encourage...

My husband's favorite saying is "Don't kill 'em with kindness!" Sometimes, we are so used to having to water our plants so much during the summer months, that we tend to over-water them indoors, thinking the plants need the same amount of water. The simplest way to tell if your indoor plants need water is to touch the soil in the pot. If the soil is moist, leave it alone. It is usually OK to allow a plant to wilt slightly as most plants recover quickly and suffer no long term effects. Just don't drown them the next time you water them. Over-watering takes oxygen away from the roots of the plant. Oxygen is required for a healthy root system. Constantly wet soil also provides prime opportunity for fungi and bacteria to set up housekeeping and attack plant roots and stems. Many times there is no cure for these problems other than to try to take a cutting of a healthy portion of the plant, try to root it, and start over. Plants in very large containers ...