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Wake Up And Smell The Flowers – Why Gardeners Are The Happiest Workers

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There is this hallowed idea among the general working population that some of us are happy. Do you know any of these people? I know a few but I also know a few more that aren’t  Maybe in your social circle job satisfaction is the norm but there are an awful lot of people for whom this is not the case. They may have had ideas and dreams as a child or teen but somehow life didn’t pan out that way. We’ve all heard the cliché that money doesn’t bring happiness. According to a City and Guilds study, gardeners are the happiest workers and the least happy are, wait for it… bankers! What is it that makes us happy and contented in our work and why is it so important? We spend such a large part of our week at work. Even when we’re not there, we’re often thinking about it or preparing to go back, so it makes sense that our feelings towards our work will affect our general well being. Apparently, to be truly happy and contented at work, we need to feel recognised, appreciated and supported. We need to feel as if we’re doing something worthwhile while being able to use our skills every day, as well as receiving training and having the opportunity to learn. Gardeners, it would seem, are getting all of this in spades. Ahem. Read on to see how they manage to tick all these boxes.

Exercise

It’s good for us! We all know that really. Many of us spend the day sitting at a desk and call at the gym after work, or go out for a run. Well, I have heard of such people anyway, but gardening is pretty much hard core exercise all day long. Bending, squatting, digging, weeding, hoeing and raking makes a pretty good workout for the whole body and most gardeners will be fit and toned, presumably adding to their general contentment as well as filling them with endorphins.

Breathe

An added bonus of all of this lovely, happy exercise is that it is executed outside in the fresh air. Plenty of sunshine, vitamin D, and lots of lovely oxygen in the lungs contribute to a healthy lifestyle. The downside is being required to work in bad weather but fresh air is mood boosting even if it is a rainy day.

Creation

People tend to feel real pride in creating things and gardeners are constantly surrounded by the fruits of their labour. Planting a seed and watching it grow into a plant is one of life’s simple pleasures and in gardening this will often be happening on a grand scale. Being surrounded by beauty that has been cultivated and created by ourselves is extremely pleasing, leading to that all elusive job satisfaction.

Nurture = Love

Creating a wonderful garden is an act of love. It requires the gardener to nurture and care for their plants and raise their babies into healthy adults. This is the same for relationships and well, if it can be done in the garden…

Dirt is good for you

As well as the digging part being good for you, there is actually something in the mud that improves mood and reduces anxiety. A particular bacterium has been shown to be present in the soil that can have all sorts of health benefits as well as increasing serotonin. With all of these pointers for happiness and well-being, I, for one, am going to log off now and get out in my garden.

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Sam Wright is happily growing and working as a journalist for HorticultureJobs.






Beauty And The Beasts: Care For Your Orchids By Getting Rid Of The Pests

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Orchids are beautiful and exotic blossoms that are very delicate to care for. There are about 20,000 pieces of orchid plants that are divided into over 700 genra and they are all a symbol of love and beauty. They are prized for their uniqueness, elegance and beauty, thus the reason for many gardening hobbyists to care for them. In fact, orchids are so exquisite that they are quite expensive too. Unfortunately, they are also victims of pest infestations which are a nuisance. The best way to deal with pests on your orchids is to prevent them from the very beginning.

 

Caring For Your Orchids

Orchids are just like any plants that can be infested by pests and diseases. To prevent this from happening you must first be very observant and make a habit of inspecting your plants regularly. When you are vigilant about it, you can avoid having to deal with pests or diseases in the long run. It is also a good idea to sterilize your gardening tools before you work on your orchids and invest in new one sided razor blades for cutting. Never use a blade on an infected plant and then on a healthy one. Knowing what type of pest can infest orchids is also necessary so you can apply the proper treatments.

Identify Pests That May Be Infesting Your Flowers

When you learn to identify the different types of pests that can infest orchids, you will find it easier to care for these beauties. Here are a few common pests that infest different varieties of orchids:

Aphids

This is a common pest found in a variety of plants and they can be easily distinguished by their black, orange, pink, red, yellow or beige colors. Aphids are normally seen on flower buds, new leaves and shoots feeding on the plant. Sadly, these pests can deform orchids and infect them with virus and bacteria, but hey can be washed off with water or you can spray them with orange oil or isopropyl alcohol.

Scale

Scale is a pest with a hard shell to protect the soft hidden body from danger, making it more difficult to eliminate it with alcohol or other natural remedies. If you look on the underside of leaves or on the edge or bracts of leaves, you will find this pest feeding. Getting rid of it can be tiresome, but with plenty of patience, you can simply pick them off your orchids. When you remove this pest from your plants, you can expect your orchids to become healthy.

Slugs

These are also common orchid pests and they can do serious damage to your expensive plants from the roots all the way to the flowers. You can easily find them at night hiding under flower pots and in cool damp places. However, you can eliminate slugs by simply placing a few broken egg shells around your orchids as these shells can cut through slugs.

Mealy Bug

Resembling cotton masses, this pest can be found hiding on the growing tips, stems, bracts and buds.  Usually, they can be seen together with aphids. Unfortunately this pest is quite difficult to eliminate as repeated treatments are necessary.

Orchids are indeed one of a kind and extensive care is recommended for these exquisite plants. If you think that the pests you find infesting your garden and orchids seem to be great in number, you must consult with a pest control professional to get rid of the tiny beasts to save your beauties.

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  • Photograph by: greenfinger.
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Valerie Williams is a freelance writer specializing in gardening and natural forms of pest control in gardens. She also provides information about natural pest control methods in homes and in the garden, how pests can affect plants such as orchids and how the services of Las Vegas Ant Control professionals from help treat severe infestations.

Landscaping Tips On A Limited Budget

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Spending time in your garden is one of life’s simplest and most affirming pleasures. But there’s no denying that designing, implementing and maintaining a desirable outdoor space can become a financial drain. When belts need tightening as your bank account falls into the red, gardens can quickly fall to rack and ruin.

But there are a host of ways to spruce up even the most unloved yard that needn’t cost the earth. In face, many methods of improvement require little more investment than your time and patience. The more people you involve, the merrier – what better excuse to revive the rusty barbecue than a mass landscaping party?

Even the smallest changes can make a big difference, so try a few of these spendthrift suggestions and reclaim your garden during the recession.

1. Small but powerful

A sizeable garden may be a dream come true. But then again, it is also considerably more expensive than a medium-sized one. If you’re finding that maintaining a big garden is not within your budget, do the sensible and reduce the space for flowers and plants by covering some areas up with easy-to-maintain stones. This will also save you time when landscaping in the weekends. If you need advice on how to create a lovely stepping-stone path in our yard, absolutely free, take a look at this highly recommended article on gardening from financial website Dollarstretcher.

2. Bookkeeping for gardeners

Due to the financial obligations connected with it, a garden is less like a hobby, but more like a full-time project. For this reason alone, you should treat it with the seriousness it requires and deserves. Keep book of your expenses for your garden and think about opening up a separate account for them – this doesn’t have to be, or perhaps shouldn’t even be, a regular current account, but can be a basic bank account ideal for reducing one’s debt and expenditure.

3. Clear the decks

Trimming, tidying, deadheading and sweeping all need doing, and preferably before you take any other action. A clear space will allow you to accurately assess what you’re working with. Have a look at soil types and areas of light and shade and choose accordingly.

4. Make it work for you

Consider your lifestyle. Do you need a family-friendly space where children and animals can tumble around without creating chaos? Or do you desire a zen-like space you’re happy to tend for hours on end? Perhaps garden that takes care of itself when you’re busy is more your style? What you may initially think of as ‘the perfect garden’ will end up being anything but, if it’s not perfect for your needs.

5. Freely inspired

Draw inspiration from anywhere and everywhere- beautiful blogs, visits to local free-admission parks and gardens, period dramas and films, or even just poking around the gardens of people you know. When you’re raring to go, underpin your enthusiasm with expertise gleaned from garden centre factsheets, TV shows, free magazines, trustworthy online forums and the many books available at the local library.

6. Waste not

Poor quality soils will thank you for a good dose of quality compost, which you can create and maintain from the everyday food waste in your kitchen. Many local authorities provide counter-top containers you can use to ferry kitchen scraps out to your main pile, which, when rotted down, is a free treat for the garden.

7. Deck out your deck for free

Check out websites which list unwanted goods, such as local FreeCycle networks or Freegle , where you can pick up anything from garden furniture and water features to power tools and equipment for absolutely nothing, providing you can arrange a pick-up.

8. A lick of paint

Garden fences and furniture come in such a narrow spectrum of colours – so don’t fret too much over making it all match. Instead, create your own custom colour palette. Buy an industrial-sized container of white emulsion and browse household paint ranges for those diminutive tester pots in a full spectrum of colours. Even a few pots mixed into the white yields a surprisingly dynamic hue. You can go as pale or bold as budget allows, but be sure to mix enough to complete the job, as colour-matching is a tricky business.

9. Inject Colour

Staring at a flowerbed studded with bright blooms lifts the spirits like nothing else. Don’t worry too much about sourcing specific varieties here – just have fun with a few supermarket and garden centre specimens whose appearance brings you the most joy. Sow with abandon and watch duller growing spaces light up with spots of colour. Keep it cheap and, if a plant doesn’t take, it’s a minor disappointment. If it thrives, however, garden life will be that little bit brighter.

10. Buy hardy

When it comes to the crops that you’re investing more cash on, there’s nothing worse than watching them wither at the first sign of a frost. Research notoriously robust, hardy varieties and use these to form a solid foundation for your space, rather than more fickle specimens which would leave the garden looking barren should they fail.

11. Get green fingered with sad specimens

Don’t bypass those sagging seedlings if they’re being sold off at a serious knock-down price. Take a really good look and consider whether they might be ripe for salvaging. With some careful tending, a good drink of water and a nourishing soil, many ailing plants can spring back to life.

12. Grow to eat

Growing edible crops is a canny move, helping you cut your food spend as you improve your garden. Choose fruit and veg varieties practically – olive trees may look fetching, but will provide little sustenance. Potatoes, pumpkins, lettuces and root veggies, on the other hand, are low maintenance and high yield. Be sure to pick things you won’t mind feasting on in times of glut- tomatoes, French beans and soft fruits are all good options that also look great.

These suggestions are, naturally, merely a point of departure. For further reference, gardening magazine Better Homes and Gardens offers plenty of useful ideas on how to stun your guests while remaining in the black.

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Reporting from London, William Masters has established himself as respected journalist for topics ranging from international economics and personal finance. To Masters, finance is like gardening, both dealing with how to make the most with limited means. In terms of banking, William recommends eccount money, a leader in the field of companies specialising in helping people with debt and improving their budget.

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