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Zinnias still a hot flower in 2007

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Just like the world of fashion, the gardening world has it’s stars and it’s hasbeens. I’m not sure which plants are old news for 2007 but I do know that Zinnias are still going to be quite popular.

profusionzinia.jpg New Profusion Zinnias are making heads turn. Profusion Fire and Profusion Apricot (which is now going to be called Profusion Deep Apricot) are two popular Zinnias that you might want to try to get your hands on this spring.

The Profusion Deep Apricot Zinnia has a richer apricot color that will sizzle in the summer garden.

Other new profusion Zinnias that will be coming out this spring are the Profusion Coral Pink. It’s more pink than coral but it’s name suits it.

Profusion Double Cherry is a double petaled cherry red.

The profusion knee high zinnias are available in red and white and they’ll knock your socks off. They’re close to 20 inches in height, with a more open look to the flower. These knee high Zinnias should look fantastic with Salvias and verbenas or even ornamental grasses such as Hameln dwarf fountain or Purple fountain.

Profusion Zinnias are easy care. Just select a sunny well draining site. They are apparently quite drought tolerant. Give them a light dose of fertilizer every four to six weeks throughout the growing season.

Learn more about growing Zinnias and other plants with this Master Gardeners Guide

Heirloom Vegetable Gardening: A Master Gardener’s Guide to Planting, Seed Saving, and Cultural History






Bamboo clothing line

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I don’t believe that I’ve ever heard of bamboo clothing before but I just visited a site that sells clothing made of spun bamboo.

The clothing looks very much like any product made of cotton. What’s more – it’s similar to cotton in many ways in that it’s naturally organic, sustainable, and eco friendly ans well as absorbent and breathable.

I enjoy buy products that are eco friendly and I hope that many of my readers are also interested in conserving materials that we use to make products and clothing too. If you are interested in learning more please visit the site and read their bamboo clothing information. I’m sure once you visit the site and see their line of products you’ll end up wanting to shop for bamboo clothing. I know that I’m going to be browsing the site to see what I might buy.

Helpful gardening tips

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Here’s a a few handy gardening tips that you might find useful, particularly if you are new to gardening:

1. Do your homework. Visit public gardens, read magazines and books.

2. Amend the soil for success. Lighten clay loam soil with compost.

3. Design for surprise: place some curves in your design or interesting nooks that visitors to your garden have to enter to see what magically beautiful plant you have growing there.

4. If you inherit a garden: Wait a season to see what comes up. You may destroy something you want to save. We were lucky to have purchased our house in June. I was able to watch what grew that year and used the following winter to plan out my new garden.

5. Smart plant picks. Purchase plants that are drought tolerant or said to be easy to care for if you don’t want to spend too much time in the garden watering and pruning.

The Well-Designed Mixed Garden: Building Beds and Borders with Trees, Shrubs, Perennials, Annuals, and Bulbs

6. Mass appeal. Plant large areas with one flower in one color, such as purple phlox. You can always tell who’s a beginning gardener because they plant one of each plant. masses of three to five or more plants planted together in the garden bed make a much more satisfying display.

7. A wild prairie garden can be work until it gets established. If you want a natural looking garden find out what plants are native to your area and use them abundantly.

8. Japanese-style garden do’s. For dimension, build hills and cover them with moss.

9. Time-saving trick. Plant hosta around the base of trees and you won’t have to trim around them.

10. Get the kids to help. Most kids like helping in the garden. You may still end up doing more work than they do, but it’s a way to spend some quality time with them and also a way to get them outside.

11. Sure-fire critter repeller – build a fence with a gate if you want to keep out skunks, who don’t climb but can dig just fine) and other pets that might frequent your garden. Gates and fences don’t stop all critters but a fence might deter a few of them.

The Organic Gardener’s Handbook of Natural Insect and Disease Control: A Complete Problem-Solving Guide to Keeping Your Garden and Yard Healthy Without Chemicals

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