Luxury Housing Trends & Home Improvement Ideas

Already thinking about next summer? Then start planning your summer plants now, so you know exactly how your garden will look and what you will need to budget toward it. Below are some flowered plants that do well during the summer evenings.

The Brugmansia is a flowering tree. Its large flowers hang from the tree and bloom only for a week at a time. The tree’s blooms follow the moon’s cycle. The flowers would be something to look forward to, and you can enjoy them after you come home from work.

Some annuals include the Moonflower, Night phlox, Nicotiana and Four o’clocks. Perennials you might consider include Japanese wisteria, Night-blooming jasmine and Datura. If you’re in love with the Brugmansia but don’t have room in your yard for a tree, the Datura is quite similar, but it’s a shrub that you can incorporate in your front yard or backyard landscaping.

Do you want your garden to be greener? Maybe you want to save money by canning food and freezing vegetables. If so, try making your garden more eco-friendly. Below are some tips on how to make your garden more rewarding.

• Grow it yourself by planting seeds instead of buying the smaller, immature plants for your garden. Buying the seeds is cheaper than buying the plant. Plus, you are able to take part in the raising of the plant. Nothing is more rewarding than when you have to work hard for something.
• Plant fruit-bearing shrubs such as blueberries, raspberries, blackberries and elderberries, because they are nutritious and ornamental.
• Setup rain barrels around your home, so you can use rain water to hydrate your garden. This will help recycle the water and preserve your drinking water.
• Start a compost bin so that you can use the refuse as fertilizer. Homemade fertilizer is nutrient rich, and you are fully aware of what is in your fertilizer.
• Use gardening tools that are made from recycled metals and plastic.

Gas prices go up and down, and you can never tell how cheap or expensive it will get. If you have a gas powered mower, you might want to consider a more economic option: a battery-powered mower.

The Neuton Battery-Powered Mower does the same job a gas powered mower does, but you don’t have to use gasoline and pollute the environment. Plus, it’s even easier to use. All you have to do is grasp the handlebars and it will start, so it’s much easier than having to pull that cord over and over again. If you have neighbors, you no longer have to worry about disturbing them with your mower, because the Neuton is quite.

The original Neuton mower weighs 48 pounds, which is about half the weight of a traditional mower. Or there is a 19”-cut 750-watt model, which is best for use on lawns that are 1/3 acre or more.

Neighborhood cats are sometimes not so neighborly around your newly laid grass. If you have cats that are using your yard as a giant litter box, it’s not going to be pleasant smelling and your new grass will most likely be affected. Cats can be relentless creatures when it comes to marking their territory, but you can try to deter them with natural remedies.

A loud noise or spray of water can help cats learn quickly that your yard isn’t a toilet. Try installing motion activated sprinklers or set out toys that make loud sounds. This might be enough to teach the cat that this isn’t a good spot for doing its business.

Most cats also dislike strong odors including citrus fruits. Try putting out orange, lemon or grapefruit peels. Or spray your lawn with a fine mist of vinegar. You can also add a few drops of lemon, orange or lime essential oil to a liter of water and spray it over your lawn.

Organic fertilizers should be made of natural decomposition, because these materials are easier for the plant to digest. As you will see from the list below, organic fertilizers are simple and natural ingredients. However, they contain essential macro- and micronutrients such as nitrogen, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, iron, organic matter and trace minerals.

Here are some organic fertilizers that you might want to try: alfalfa meal, bat and bird guano, bloodmeal, bonemeal, chicken manure, cottonseed meal, Epsom salts, feather meal, fish emulsion, fish meal, greensand, humic acids, kelp meal, oyster shells, seaweed (liquid), soft Rock Phosphate and worm castings/Vermicompost.

When you’re reading the labels on fertilizers, look for the basic elements that you learned from the periodic table. For example, avoid super triple phosphate, because this is a manmade form of phosphorous. If you’re not sure where to start, begin with the basics. Liquid seaweed is a supplement that provides trace elements. Also, adding humic acid can improve the soil health.

Flowering Plants

Who doesn’t enjoy brightly colored flowers indoors, especially during the cold, barren winter? Some flowering plants that will add color and perfume to your home include various begonias, wax plant and jasmines. Similar to the vines and climbers, these plants also need sufficient lighting in order to bloom.

Succulents and Cactus

If you want a Southwestern flair to your home, invest in some cacti. Try the jade, snake plant, aloe vera, barrel cactus, Christmas cactus, Easter cactus, hens and chicks, oldman cactus and rat-tail cactus. These thrive well indoors.

Edible Indoor Plants

Herbs can be easily grown indoors, because they can thrive in small spaces. However, you can also grow some varieties of citrus such as the Meyer lemon and calamondin orange. Some herbs you might try growing include chervil, chives, marjoram, mint, oregano, parsley, sage and thyme.

Foliage Plants

These types of plants can provide a striking backdrop to your indoor garden. These are the plants that have foliage in bright colors and even patterns (blotches, speckles, strips and swirls). An excellent example is the peacock plant, because it has deep green olive-striped leaves with touches of yellow-green and purple similar to a peacock’s tail. The croton is a staple to any indoor garden, because its leaves have colors of yellow, green and red and you might find ones with pink and white.

Vines and Climbers

Creeping vines that cascade down create some vertical visual interest. Some common houseplants with these features include the wandering Jew and the spider plant. However, vines and climbers require substantial lighting. If your plants look weak and have dead leaves dropping consistently, they’re not getting enough light. On the other hand, if your vines have burned or scorched leaves, it’s getting too much light.

Opening your windows and letting the breeze filter through your home is refreshing, but it can also give ants, flies and other bugs an easy entry. Anymore it’s scary when you get bit by bugs, because you never know how concerned to be about a bump on your skin. You could get viruses and diseases but more than likely you survive and the itchy, red bump on your skin goes away.

To combat these pesky insects, handle them in a more natural way without using chemicals: grow a water garden full of carnivorous plants! A great option is the bladderwort, which is a carnivorous plant that feeds off of mosquitoes and other small insects. In addition to exterminating insects, the bladderwort will also bloom a yellow or purple flower. Other plants to consider include the Aldrovanda vesiculosa and the Drosera Intermedia. If you prefer an indoor insect eater, a pitcher plants such as the Nepenthes rafflesiana can work wonders.

In September, the following are some gardening tasks that you should have on your checklist.

• Plant Bulbs – Dig over the soil and add some fertilizer. Then you can plant your bulbs in bold groups. If you plant them in a line, you’re taking a risk because one or more of the bulbs can break or fail to sprout. Make sure you plant the bulbs at the appropriate depth.
• Save Half-hardy Plants – It’s best to take geranium cuttings now as well as any other half-hardy plants. Choose the healthy shoots, cut off the lower leaves, trim the base, dust the base with root hormones, re-plant in a pot and cover with polythene to keep moist.
• Harvest Seeds - Collect seeds that have recently been shed. Then you can separate the chaff and store the seeds in a dry place.
• Trim Your Hedges – A power trimmer makes hedge trimming simple. The more often you trim the neater your hedges will look.

Even if you don’t have a green thumb, it’s easy to find out what plants are best for what seasons or even months. The autumn is full of colorful options that can make your patio come alive with flowers in bright shades of yellow, orange and plum.

Some of the best plants for September are the Korean chrysanthemum, golden grass, nerine, Michaelmas daisy and the red hot poker.

The chrysanthemum is a half-hardy herbaceous perennial, which is best in beds or large containers (perfect near benches or sitting areas). The nerine takes at least a year to become full, but once it matures, it will be a hardy plant. Many autumn-flowering asters become victims of mildew, but the Michaelmas daisy is immune to this. However, these daisies require a sunny and well-drained spot. The red hot poker has slender stems with a creamy yellow top, and it’s foliage looks similar to grass. This flower is best in the front of a bed or border where there is sun or semi-shade.