Spring Fever

[coosa]

I don't have a green thumb either. When we built this house, I filled it up with live plants. They all eventually died. Just 30 more days til Spring!!!!!!!!

[bb]

Jonquils (aka daffodils) are sooooo easy! They grow wild all over the place!

[queenbee]

We use to go to old home places and dig up flowers tha had planted for years. Not all of them just split them and take them home and plant them.

I think forsythia's are easier to plant then jonquils.

[bb]

Oh, I love forsythia in the spring when they are so bright yellow before everything else has started to even think about turning green!
Bee, can you just take a pruning and stick them in the ground? I know some plants really take off when you do that.

[queenbee]

I think I will go ahead and plant my garlic bulbs. They are use to cold weather and produce all year long.

Since grumpy has decided to extend the porch I am going to have to dig up some of my plants and move them to a different location. Probably get rid of the honeysuckle bush all together since it never produce flowers just made a nice bushy attraction.

Going to plant more Coneflowers on my bank in between the Daylilies and Irises. They are drought resistant, don't need a lot of watering and would grow pretty good there.

Working on a plan to make a slight arch over my gate opening to train my morning glories and some other climbing plants to grow up and over instead of out and all over.

Already watering down my coffee grounds and will start pouring them on the Azaleas. They love the acid.

[queenbee]

Best Moon Planting Times for February

Best time to plant leafy annuals, February 8th, 9th, 10th. Best time to plant fruiting annuals, February 17th, 18th, 19th. Best time to plant perennials and root crops, 23rd to the 28th February.

[queenbee]

Butterfly Gardening

Simply put, butterfly gardening is the practice of growing flowers and plants that will attract these colorful and dainty creatures to your garden. You can delight your family and visitors with beautiful butterflies.

The design your butterfly garden is a matter of personal preference. Typical points to consider are the size of your garden and the types of flowers and plants you want to grow. Pick a style of garden that appeals to you, but ensure it also contains the native plants and flowers that appeal to the butterflies you wish to attract.

It is important to find out which native plants and flowers will attract the species of butterflies that live in your area. You acn get this information at your local library To create the kind of environment that they find attractive, you will also need water of some kind. A birdbath will look attractive and keep the butterflies up off the ground, away from stray cats or mischievous puppies. A shallow dish on a post or hung in a tree will do just as well.

When planting your butterfly garden be careful how you coordinate the colors you choose for your flowerbeds. Butterflies care about flower colors, and they are attracted to those flowers that have nectar, rather than pollen. Some of these plants include honeysuckle, milkweeds, grevilleas, and hibiscus. For more info about butterfly gardening go to the website just below.

[queenbee]

Companion planting is when you want to garden the natural way,
so you will want to include companionplanting pratices.

Clever gardeners have recently rediscovered this old and simple technique, which makes a lot of sense. Some plants grow in harmony with others, because their needs compliment each other.
*Species with different water and nutrient requirements grow well side by side, because they are not in competition with each other.
*Shallow rooted plants thrive near deep rooted plants, because these loosen the soil, and provide good drainage for the shallow rooted plants.
*Tall plants provide shade for smaller plants
*Some species expel aromas which discourage certain insects, and are of great benefit when growing near plants susceptible to attack.
*Certain species have roots that give off nitrogen, and help those plants that need plenty of this fertiliser.

GOOD COMPANIONS

*Asparagus* Tomatoes, Parsley

*Basil* Peas Tomatoes, Beans

*Carrots* Peas, Lettuce, Chives, Onions, Leek, Rosemary.

*Celery* Cauliflower, Beans, Leeks.

*Chervil* Radish.

*Cabbage* Tomato, Sage, Rosemary, Chamomile, Aromatic Herbs, Onions, Beans.

The following are considered to be companionplanting ideals.

*Cucumber* Beans, Corn, Peas, Radish, Sunflower.

*Gherkins* Peas, Sweetcorn.

*Beets* Onions, Kohlrabi.

*Corn* Potatoes, Peas, Beans, Squash, Cabbage, Cucumber, Cabbage, Pumpkin, Dill.

*Beans* Tomatoes, Parsley, Basil, Carrot , Potato, Corn, Cauliflower, Cucumber, Cabbage, Strawberries.

*Garlic* Potatoes, Roses, and most Plants.

*Lettuce* Carrots, Radish, Strawberries.

*Peas* Carrots, Turnips, Radish, Corn.

*Potato* Beans, Cucumber, Coriander, Garlic, Catnip, Tansy, Marigold.

*Pumpkin* Corn

*Onion* Carrots, Capsicum, Beetroot, Chamomile.

*Turnip* Peas, Mint, rosemary.

*Strawberries* Bush Beans, Spinach, Borage, Lettuce, garlic.

*Leek* Celery, Carrots.

*Tomatoes* Asparagus, Basil, Parsley, Peas, Nasturtiums, Marigolds, Chives, Onion, Carrot.

[queenbee]

Now I know you are telling yourself "That Queenbe sure is a fountain of knowledge." Well even though I would like to take credit for it, I can't.

It's from a newsletter I get by e-mail for free.

Here is the webpage link and you can subscribe if you like

www.home-herb-garden.com/index.html

[queenbee]

This is a White Egret flower. How cool is it??

[queenbee]

Bat Lily.



Leaves of it in other pictures remind me of a lady's slipper

[bb]

That's really cool, bee! Will it grow around here? It looks tropical.

[queenbee]

I believe you need to put the bulbs in the ground in the fall.

Personally I poke them in the ground when the weather warms up and never dig them up, they stay there all year long. They will bloom and come back every year.

[queenbee]

While at Home Depot yesterday, I was in Heaven looking at the flowers and the seed packs.
I resisted the urge to buy flowers, waiting for the weather to turn better.

However, when I got home I raked the winter leaves and such from several of the flower beds. I have some little green sprouts coming up.

My Forsythia's have buds and we found 1 that had actually opened, so I got the first Forsythia bloom. nanananananaa

My Tulip get well basket my friend brought to me has opened and they are beautiful.

Next weekend we are taking some blocks and timbers to down to Gainesville to get an early start on Wildflower honey. We will move some hives there when the Maples get a little further along.

Drove by the lake today and it is really coming up.

[bb]

I noticed lots and lots of daffodils in bloom!