Monday, February 28, 2011

Tips for awesome garden photos



One of my favorite photos!  
My beautiful azaleas that are dead and gone . . . a casualty of way too cold winters in Tampa.  As I was going through my photos with thoughts of rebuilding the garden and getting ideas of what to plant, I realized how important it is to capture those beautiful garden moments.  Through photos I can still enjoy my now dead azalea plant in a different way.
I ran into these photo tips in my travels through Bloggerville and thought I would share them with you since taking photos of our beautiful garden moments is so important.

Photographers Alison Parks-Whitfield and Susan Teare offer tips on how to create garden photos with pizazz:
1. Get a worm’s-eye view. Don't be afraid to get your knees a little dirty. You’ll find the undersides of flowers often have appealing textures. In addition, if you’re down really low, you can include the blue sky in your photograph, creating a stunning background (just keep an eye out for any power lines that you might not notice until later).

2. Keep an eye on the sun.
 Rather than waiting until the sun is overhead, position the flower so the sun is behind it, shining through the petals. This will create a striking photograph with rich, deep colors. Or go out at dawn or at dusk, when both the light and the coloring of the flower will be fresh. Hold up a small white card or paper to act as a reflector and fill in the light, enhancing it further. As a rule, it’s better to avoid taking photographs at high noon because the light is so intense at that time that colors are often washed out.

3. Find something new. Sure, the row of sunflowers is lovely, and even Vincent van Gogh would appreciate your photo of it. But try going beyond the biggest and brightest plants and you may discover an even better shot. Look closely for dramatic textures and patterns, such as the cone of a purple coneflower, or try a tight shot of a cluster of hen and chicks.

4. Remember nontraditional subjects. Wheat, dandelions gone to seed, long grasses and even weeds are photo-worthy when you focus on them. As always, pay attention to the lighting and composition, and you’ll be rewarded with some unique shots.

5. Focus — or don’t.
 In a wider shot, think about what's in focus and what is not. You might try reversing what should logically be clear (usually whatever is nearest the camera). Leave the row of black-eyed Susans in front blurred as you focus on the maple behind, or try focusing on only one small part of a flower, letting the rest go soft.

6. Add a creature.
 Consider working with a “model”— whether an insect that alights on a bloom, a cocker spaniel or your grandson — to offer both interest and perspective. Want to show just how big your prized dinner-plate dahlia is? Pose a smiling child next to it and there will be no question.

7. See a flower as the sum of its parts. Every flower is a beautiful whole, but consider each element, as well — leaves, stem, pistil and stamen. Zoom in on a portion of a flower that looks interesting and  “crop” the flower using your camera. Try a couple of different angles, tilting your camera slightly from left to right. You may be surprised to see what a difference even a little tilt can make at such close range.

8. Just add water. Drops of water, whether from a recent rain shower or your watering can, add drama to a close-up of a petal. In addition, photos taken when the rain has just ended enjoy richer colors thanks to the resulting clear, even sunlight.

9. Record a day in the life. For an interesting study, take a photo of a flower or garden at sunrise. Take another at noon, a third at 4 or 5 p.m., and a final one at sunset. Display all four pictures in a multiple-opening frame.

10. Celebrate autumn. Don’t underestimate the beauty of bare branches or crisp brown leaves on the ground. There is plenty of interesting texture in and around the garden waiting for winter.



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Saturday, February 26, 2011

Awesome idea for the garden :)



What are these thingies and how can they cause an explosion in your garden?
How about an awesome gift for the gardener who has everything?
I don't want to give it away . . . you have to visit Alicia at McCrenshaw!


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Sunday, February 20, 2011

Creative seed starting containers






Looks like Spring has arrived in Central Florida and I couldn't be happier!  Time to start planting seeds in my part of the world!

In my travels around Bloggerville, I found this creative self-watering seed starting container idea from Brandy at Savin' Some using recycled soda bottles!

How cool is this?


Click on the photo to go to her post describing how she made it.


Thank you Brandy for this awesome idea!
Her blog Savin' Some is all about being frugal.



Do you have creative uses for recycled items and tips for starting seeds?

One of my favorites is egg cartons.  I cut them in half, poke holes in the little cups and use the top as a saucer.  They are readily available, a convenient size and a perfectly fitting saucer.  They use a small amount of soil, making it economical if you like to use those expensive seed starting soil mixes.

I have experimented with using actual egg shells to plant the seedlings in, making transplanting a breeze.  They fit perfectly in those egg cartons!

Another favorite recycled item . . . clear plastic containers that department store pastries come in.  Same concept . . . I cut them in half, poke holes and use the top as a saucer.  I love using those for starting pepper and tomato seedlings.

My best tip for seed starting is to water them with a sprayer . . . sometimes I will use heavily diluted fertilizer to get them off to a strong start.  It is so easy to kill the babies with too much water!

I will be posting some of my soil recipes in a future post.






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Friday, February 11, 2011

Garden Inspiration

Click here to view this photo in a new window.

Although I like a property that has a natural park look to it with unmanicured mass plantings, I like the garden decor concept of "rooms" . . . definite themed sections of the garden . . . I love the garden in this photo for some inspiration.  There is something so soothing about white against the high contrast of green that brings a feeling of serenity.  A small water feature in the center would be awesome!

This photo comes from Fine Gardening . . . 
This is today's "Garden of the Day" . . . 
subscribe to their newsletter!



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Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Outdoor spaces

10_mcgarigle

The seating area surrounded by lattice really caught my eye and gave me some ideas for our carport that is not so private.  The nice shady spot calls out for chill out time.

Even though we have had a very cold winter that has killed much of the greenery, most of the days have been pleasant enough to enjoy the outdoors, even if not gardening.  Now is the time to get those areas cleaned up, painted and redecorated.  


Our cleanup is underway and the first major project is putting up gate additions and finishing up the front of our wood fence to make the back yard entirely private.  The second project just may be something similar to that lattice seating area in the photo.  Before and after photos coming soon!

This photo comes from the website Design Sponge Online, one of my favorite websites!  


Check it out for lots of home dec inspiration for your inside and outside spaces.


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Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Waiting for spring!


Hurry Spring!!!

We are in Zone 9 . . . it is really rare for us to get
 freezing temps that burn the plants.

Well, this year it started early in November and just about killed everything that last year's unusually cold winter didn't kill. Big time bummer!!!  I always rely on taking cuttings and starting them during the winter months when I have had the best luck.  There isn't too much to take cuttings from.

Out of all the hibiscus I had, only one remains.  I am feeling fortunate that it is my favorite, the fluffy red doubles . . . very easy to propagate.  The plan is to take the cuttings now and take the chance that more cold weather won't kill any new growth that it encourages.

The aucubas are a bit crispy, but there is still some green . . . more cuttings!

The cold weather started for us in November, just when the black eyed susan vines were starting to bloom and cover the fence.  I didn't take photos :(  Time will tell how hardy those gorgeous vines really are!  They just might come back, especially after the hard rain we had yesterday.

I'm really down about the damage, but the good news is that future freezes won't make much more damage.  It  has already happened!  I'm just looking forward to Spring and starting over again.





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Sunday, November 28, 2010

What's blooming in paradise


Their beauty makes them look fake, like brightly crinkled paper perfectly formed. My cranberry hibiscus plants are loaded with buds and I just noticed the first blooms the other day. 

They are a different species than the tropicals, these are more like a native plant, requiring less care, drought tolerant and propagating all by themselves. The flowers are a beautiful shade of purple/maroon with oddly shaped leaves and stems to match in a darker shade. 

I'm going to make a point of gathering seeds to get them started all over the yard for no-fuss beauty . . . the shrubs are pretty without the flowers with those beautiful green and purple leaves.

The photo is from another season since I haven't gone out there to take photos.   This past winter with unusual freezing temps for more than one or two days  destroyed all that I had.  I lost many of my plants, especially the tropical hibiscus and some of the gingers.  Anyway, the cranberry hibiscus babies started popping up here and there . . . they have had no care at all and need to be transplanted.

Awesome plant!  It was one of those plants that I acquired through plant swaps with local members of an old gardening group that I maintained online.  I'm really starting to enjoy native plants moreso than any others . . . they are the ones that bounced back quickly from the brutal winter.


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Monday, November 15, 2010

Organic pest control






Someone left a comment on one of my posts asking the question . . .
"how do I keep bugs from eating my basil?"



I'm an organic gardener and don't use chemicals in my garden, especially on herbs and vegetables. 

There are several recipes that I've used to control pests, but the one that is very simple . . . a squirt of dishwashing liquid in a gallon of water (do not use Dawn or any other grease cutting dishwashing liquid). You can also add a teaspoon of cooking oil to make it stick to the leaves of the plant.

Something else I have learned to do is spray the plant with plain water with the spray nozzle on the hose . . . the spray of water will knock the bugs off the plant.

Another remedy is to utilize beneficial insects, such as ladybugs . . . they can be purchased at organic gardening centers and widely available online.

The key is to keep the leaves clean and check your plants often.

Most of these practices are good for indoor gardening as well as outdoors.

Check out my website, DonitaWorld.com, for lots of gardening pages.




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Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Calissia fragrans . . . thriving in my Paradise




This is an older post from another blog
 that I am currently restructuring.

The calissia fragrans are still thriving, although the
unusually cold winter knocked them down a bit this year.

I'm currently propagating them from runners and cuttings
in containers and will start another "farm" in the ground.
I love these plants!!







They are multiplying and blooming for the first time . . .
they must love acid since I have been feeding them coffee.








Calissia fragrans is an unusual and tropical semi-epiphyte (grows mainly in trees, but will root in soil). Individual leaf rosettes may be 8" wide at the center stalk. Snaking out from the stalk are runners that trail as much as several feet to find a new place to root. Fragrant white globular flowers on upright spikes bloom in summer, then fade and lose their fragrance, then perk up and become fragrant again on and on.

Flowering or not, it is a spectacular plant that would look awesome hanging from a tree in a shady spot in the greenhouse or in a hanging basket as a houseplant. I plan on lining my carport jungle with hand painted hanging containers loaded with these gorgeous plants.







This is where the plants in the carport jungle began . . . I cleared out a few of these plants that were growing in the pathway and placed them in this container that I use to start plants or experiment with my propagation projects.

At the moment, I am experimenting with the calissia fragrans in my carport jungle, planting the runners into individual containers. I've been doing this for several months and those babies are already putting out their own runners. I left the runners intact in this container and they are growing another rosette. How cool is that? You can see some of the runners in the above photo.

I have a few spots in the yard where I planted a few here and there and now have my "farm" of mass plantings. Hopefully, they will be one of the plants to start my mail order plant business.

It all started about 7 years ago when I had a gardening group on MSN and made some local gardening friends that I swapped plants with. These came from Sally in St. Petersburg . . . she is very much into native plants and I have some other plants I got from her that are still thriving through neglect. There is something to be said about native plants!

All my container plants in the carport jungle have been getting a regular dose of watered down coffee and water that I boiled vegetables in (without salt) . . . the calissia fragrans are especially responding successfully and I have never seen them looking so healthy and big. Keep in mind that I have not used commercial fertilizer on them at all.

These are my new perfect plant . . . as you can see from the following photos taken from previous seasons, I have them growing in my "trash to treasure" book rack lined with moss. They went through one winter night freeze, neglect, no watering, no fertilizer with minimal damage. The ones in the carport jungle look much better since they are being pampered and I will soon transfer some of them to renourish the rack. I'll take some recent photos soon.











I'm getting the gardening bug again . . .
it makes me smile!





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Thursday, November 4, 2010

Screening with container plants





My gardening theme for this month
is container gardening.
We plan on restructuring the carport jungle and the surrounding area this month and look forward to starting many herb and vegetable plants that we will grow in containers.

Container gardens can add a green privacy screen to a balcony or an open area.

A trellis gives vines a structure to grow on and stakes added to the bottom of the trellis help support it on the outside of the planting box. Trellises and stakes should be attached to the containers with galvanized bolts.

Water-sealed redwood and cedar are good choices for planter boxes. To help them last longer, line boxes with landscape fabric which has the added benefit of preventing soil from washing out the drainage holes. After the fabric is in place, add a mixture of half potting soil and half compost. Fill the box to within 10" from the rim.

Select a fast-growing evergreen vine to cover the trellis. Once you've selected a vine, remove it carefully from the nursery container, and place the back of the stake supporting the vine against the trellis. Cut away the plant ties from the support stake, and disentangle the vine. Tie each stem to the trellis, fanning out the stems as you go.

If you like, add other plants to your container for additional color and interest. Make sure the additions have growing requirements similar to those of the vine.



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