Archive for Март, 2009
Март
29
Posted under
General by ruola
Keukenhof is a beautiful park in the western part of Netherlands close to Lisse city. This park is known for an enormous quantity of flowers on its huge territory (32 ha). They say it is the most photographed place in the world. The park is open from March till May and attracts thousands of visitors.
It was a little bit too early to visit this park in March because flowers just started to grow and those that were blooming already are mostly crocuses and narcissus. The advantages of this visiting time are less people and quietness. So if you’re lucky with the weather you will surely have most enjoyable walk around this park. At the same time you can see enough blooming plants inside the spacious green-houses.
Keukenhof has several green-houses which are:
- Oranje Nassau
- William Alexander
- Beatrix
- Wilhelmina
- Jualiana
Oranje Nassau, William Alexander and Beatrix are best places to see all types of flowers cultivated by highly skilled gardeners. Here you will find various plants like tulips, amaryllises, cyclamens and many others in all imaginable containers. You can buy any sample you like. Most prices are around 15-40 euros. Another remarkable thing about these green-houses is that it shows also plant compositions – it can be a column decorated with huge amaryllis flowers, lots of tulips and some fabulous leaves. Or it even can be a birdcage where instead of a bird you will see a nice composition of flowers. Isn’t it a nice idea for decoration in your garden or any room in the house? You will certainly see the modern trend – plants in high glass containers. A little bit of decoration in the container – a figure of a rabbit or small candles and it makes the plant look very special. After your eyes will be tired from diversity of all those colors go outside and enjoy a nice view of fountains which are numerous in the park. The largest is perhaps the one along the path from Oranje Nassau. For your comfort there are plenty of chairs in front of the fountain and it is a nice place for relaxation on a hot day.
Beatrix has a rich collection of orchids. Which color do you like better? Pink, orange, white, violet? They are all here!
Outside there’s also much too see – fields of flowers, all organized in a fanciful way. It is better to see them a little bit from the top and you can notice that a mass of yellow and pink flowers make a shape of a huge tulip from the top.
Keukenhof is also a good place to pip some design solutions for your garden. As you walk to Julian house you will see a small suspension bridge with a waterfall behind. Or you can enjoy the babble of the brook in a picturesque place. Certainly there are a lot of places to be admired.
So if you are fond of flowers and nature you will never regret your trip to Keukenhof – the most beautiful and unforgettable garden in Europe.
Март
07
Posted under
Blooming plants by ruola
So it is spring now and it’s time to look around and check which of your plants needs a new pot or fresh soil. Spring is time for renovation! My eyes caught the view of young Amaryllis which appeared in my house about a year ago. I could see that some of its leaves are growing not from the main bulb itself but from somewhere underneath. There’s an opinion that Amaryllis won’t bloom if it has bulbils attached because otherwise they will take a big part of nutrients from soil. Probably that was the reason why it didn’t bloom during last year unlike the second amarallys in my house.
Having chosen the correct soil for my Amaryllis which should include humus, peat mould and sand i carefully took the plant out from the pot. Then i shook it carefully to remove the rest of the soil from the roots and could see that the bulb has 3 bulbils. All of the bulbils has its own leaves — from one to three and its own roots. So they were independant enough to leave its parent bulb. I decided to put all the bulbs in one pot because they are very small yet — about ½ in (1cm) in diameter and thus they will look more decorative.
As for the parent bulb i removed the top dry layer and old rotten roots, refreshed it soil and put it back into the pot.
During a year young bulbs will grow the half of the size of its parent bulb. And in 2-3 years time they will delight my eyes with first flowers.
Март
01
Posted under
Cactuses by ruola
Watering is probably the most important thing in a cactus life. In this post i will try to collect the most important information on this question.
There are certain factors that should be considered: time of the year, age of cactus, type of cactus and even the weather.
Probably the first factor to think of before watering your cactus is time of the year. Every cactus has its year cycle: in a warm period it is time for active growing and blooming and winter is a time for rest. During dornant period the temperature should be lower than in spring and march — normally about 10º. At this time no watering is needed otherwise the cactus won’t «understand» that the year is over. At this period necessary vegetal processes take place that will ensure good blooming in summer. If you proceed watering your cactus in winter it will grow further which can cause a loss of decorative qualities or even death of the plant.
In summer when the cactus has best conditions for growth and blooming, water the cactus moderately and as often as the soil gets dry. Also pay attention to the soil condition — it should be friable so that water can go through easily. Some species of cactuses ( Notocactus, Rebutia, Lobivia) get still during the hottest days and therefore need no watering at that period.
When temperatures grow higher in spring it will be good to spray water on the cactus but still no watering. Exception for spraying are cactuses with floss. Check your cactus every now and then for signs of activation — point of growth gets green, buds appear and others. This is exactly the time to start slightly watering the plant. As soon as temperatures are hot enough and regular you can start to water the plant normally — see the summer period. Keep in mind that in rainy weather you need to reduce watering.
In autumn when days get shorter and temperatures go down - reduce amount of water. In the last bright days of the year water the cactus 3-4 times a month. As a rule in October-Novermber watering should be stopped at all and the plant should be moved to a cool place.
All the recommendations above are ment for «adult» cactuses older than 3 years. For young cactuses the conditions in winter can be milder. If you see that your cactus is drying out take it back into a warm place with enough of light and start watering. In one-two weeks it should look better and you can put into «adult» conditions again.
And a few words about the process of watering itself. Make sure water is NOT poured onto the cactus stem as it can lead to a cactus rot. Remove all excessive water from the bottom container for the same reason.
There are also other situations that may influence the frequency of watering. If the plant was stressed somehow stop watering it for some time. Stop watering the plant if you see it gets soft and «fades» as it is a sign of overwatering. Remember that the worst thing for cactus is cold overwatered soil.
I hope following these simple rules you will achieve succes in making your cactuses healthy and beautiful.
Red Amarillys
A perfect sample of Amarillys