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Flowers And Foliage

November 19th, 2009 Keith Markensen No comments

When putting together a flower design you want to display them to the their best advantage. Face it, flowers look best when they are combined with green foliage, get real that is the way they grow.

What do you do when a florist’s dozen arrive unexpectedly – try one of the following combinations: juniper with carnations; pieris (Pieris japonica) with roses; leucothoe or hybrid rhododendron with gladiolus. Any of these will look well with chrysanthemums. Since they are notable for their keeping qualities, it makes good sense to try them together, for such an arrangement should last several weeks. Not to be overlooked are ivy, pachysandra and large violet leaves. These all provide dark green color masses.

All of the hostas combine well with lilies. Perhaps this seems like too much stress on the addition of foliage, but it results in better contrast of color, texture and form. It can also be the starting point of a design pattern without which no arrangement will stand scrutiny, for the very word arrangement presupposes the word design.

There is little more to say about working with florists’ flowers that does not also pertain to garden flowers like the false aralia plant, especially with regard to arranging them. In both instances we deal with the same problems of suiting the arrangement to its surroundings, color wise and style wise. Scale and proportion of flowers to vase and the inter-relationship of flower sizes themselves must be carefully considered.

When we buy flowers we usually have a definite purpose in mind for them and select those which will complement a color scheme, provide exciting beauty or give the best effect for the least money. Six stems of chrysanthemums or four gladiolus stalks combined with foliage and presented dramatically will prove to be economical and pleasing to the eye. Three coral pink anthuriums, possibly in combination with a few ti leaves, will present an exotic appearance and keep longer than any other combination. For sheer beauty of form and color, lilies are my choice. Most of them are wonderfully fragrant and all have reasonably good keeping quality.

Roses, of course, are perennial favorites. A point to remember, however, is that they never do well in low containers since they prefer at least one-third of their stems in water. Usually, they arrive from the florist in a uniform stage of development. I sometimes keep half of them in a cool, dark place overnight, leaving the others under a light in a warmer spot. This coaxes some into opening and provides a variety of shapes for arranging.

Today’s carnations are grown in a great variety of color. They can hardly be called seasonal flowers for they are in the market at least 10 months of the year. Consequently, they remain in the medium price range, except for the red ones of Christmas. It is always with the greatest regret that I instinctively smell them and all too frequently find no scent!

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Landscape Design Plan

November 8th, 2009 Kent Higgins No comments

The final decision as to what type of garden you will want is not reached at the snap of a finger, but can be achieved in one of two ways. The first, and most businesslike, is to write down all pertinent facts and figures concerning yourself, your family, the size of your property, the size of your house, its exposure, etc. The other, which is just as workable but perhaps a little more confusing and likely to cause you undue worry, is simply to carry your ideas around in your head and finally try to put them on paper in the form of a plan. These are not solutions of your problem but rather helpful guides.

The more orderly method is to make a check list and to give our thought reality we shall consider the requirements of a family living in a development of identical houses in Central New Jersey. Their check list should be used as a guide in making your own.

Topography – Fairly level Exposure – South ( that is, front of house faces south) Location – Central New Jersey Design of garden – Informal Existing vegetation ( trees and shrubs ) – None Garage – Single, attached Soil – Sandy loam, well drained Neighboring properties – Houses on both sides Age of owners – early 30’s Family – Father, mother, and three young children Parents like to work in garden Parents also like to relax in and enjoy the garden, and plan to entertain extensively out-of-doors. Size of property-75 x 125 feet Budget – calls for an expenditure of $750 a year for 6 years.

Analyzing the List

It is obvious that since this family intends to spend a great deal of time relaxing and entertaining their friends out-of-doors they will need a larger than average private area. The rough sketch will include ovals on the basic plot plan the majority of space in the area behind the house is labeled private.

Since the majority of space is devoted to this area, it is obvious that the service area must necessarily be small, perhaps just large enough to provide a few fresh vegetables and flowers that do not require too much care. The completed plan of a garden should serve our hypothetical family well. It provides them with a vast outdoor living room that will be excellent for entertaining and just enough service area to provide tomatoes, string beans, radishes, and flowers.

Now let us consider a neighboring family in similar circumstances who do not plan extensive outdoor entertainment. In their case the service area could be greatly expanded at the expense of the private area.The service area may occupy better than half the space behind the house is sufficiently large to provide all sorts of fresh vegetables and cut and specimen flowers, while the private area, though small, remains large enough to meet the relaxation needs of the family.

Give a great deal of thought and attention to compiling your own check list. Never fail to consider your future as well as your present requirements; plan your garden in such a way that it will mature to fit all your needs with a, minimum expenditure of time, effort, and money. Just like caring for spider mites on plants.

Since our list has shown us how to determine the relative sizes of the public, private, and service areas, we are now ready to begin developing the individual areas. Your next step is to consider each particular area and proceed to mold it into actuality.

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