Showing all posts in January 2020

Dwelling in a rural area means lots of space for a backyard garden, but also you share your property with little animal pests that love to feed on your own garden. Many crops, including legumes, are susceptible to feasting insects. Beans contain a huge selection of beans, many who are grown in the home garden, such as green beans and broad beans. When planting beans, it is possible to help control animal pests by fencing in the developing area or using traps and repellents to help keep away the insects.

Groundhogs

Groundhogs, also called woodchucks and whistle pigs, produce burrows in grassy strips of territory and often make dens beneath porches and decks. These herbivorous insects come out to feed in midsummer and eat a host of garden vegetation, including legumes, peas and carrot tops. Groundhogs are about 20 to 25 inches in length weigh between 4 and 11 pounds. They have brown fur, small ears and eyes and strong front legs for digging. Signs that a groundhog is eating your beans include a smooth cut at a diagonal plane on the bit ends of this vegetation.

Rabbits

Rabbits are cute, furry creatures. Cottontails and the jackrabbits are two types of bunnies that feed on garden vegetation. Cottontails live among brush and might live under slightly raised constructions around your yard. Cottontail rabbits generally weigh between 1 1/2 and 2 3/4 pounds, are between 12 and 15 inches long, and have pale gray coat and smaller ears than the jackrabbit. Jackrabbits weigh between 3 and 7 pounds, grow 17 to 21 inches long and are grayish-brown in colour with black tips in their ears. A bunny’s bite also smoothly cuts the vegetation.

Deer

You often spot deer near wooded areas and close rural farmlandnonetheless, some deer do live in suburban locations. Deer are herbivores and generally feed on leaves and twigs, but when they live close farmland or have access to some vegetable garden, deer do eat soybeans, corn and other garden vegetables. Deer are big in contrast to other animal pests. They weigh between 100 and 300 pounds with a short tan fur in summer and large ears; male deer have antlers. Deer droppings and ripped or nibbled foliage are signs deer are eating your beans.

Other Pests

Voles, chipmunks and squirrels are known to eat the leaves of plants that are young. Vole damage is often confounded with cutworm damage since these creatures eat the stems and leaves as they work via a row of crops. Birds can also hurt recently sprouted seedlings of corn, peas and beans by pulling them from the ground. For birds, you can use row covers to protect young plants.

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Mosquitoes are not only pesky, but they can carry disease, too. If mosquitoes are a problem in your yard, you might consider foggers. These products have their own benefits and costs. Before using a mosquito misting system installed or employing an outside fogger, consider the types of chemicals used, their safety and effectiveness. For many, a mosquito home fogger is a good alternative, but others may get better results using more conventional approaches or avoiding mosquito bites.

Setup

Foggers or misting systems frequently require elaborate equipment installations. Professional installation of these systems, which includes tubing and nozzles organized around your yard’s perimeter, is required. The tubes are fed by a reservoir of insecticide that’s meant to kill adult mosquitoes that fly during your yard. A timer turns on the program to publish the insecticide at regular intervals.

Best Use

The North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension support notes that outdoor fogging system don’t keep mosquitoes at bay for more than a few hours. In case the wind picks up or it rains, the insecticide in the atmosphere can dissipate in less time. Once the insecticide is gone, the mosquitoes will likely come back to your yard. For the best results via an outside fogger, the University of California, Davis, Integrated Pest Management Program recommends using the fogger a couple of hours before an outside event but relying on other choices for long-term mosquito management.

Problems

The American Mosquito Control Association (AMCA) takes issue with home mosquito misting systems for many reasons. The organization notes that the use of insecticides could be excessive because the systems are often on timers and don’t come on in reaction to elevated numbers of mosquitoes. This excessive use of insecticides can promote resistance to these chemicals in insects. The AMCA also notes that there does not seem to be decent scientific evidence that these systems function.

Special Precautions

In case you have a butterfly garden, an outdoor mosquito fogger isn’t a good notions. The chemicals used not only kill mosquitoes, but they could also harm butterflies. The insecticides sprayed out by outside mosquito foggers can also harm other beneficial insects in your garden.

Alternatives

Before you have a fogging system installed, make alterations to your yard to eliminate breeding sites for mosquitoes. In case you have any standing water in your yard, like bird baths or low spots, remove the water. In case you have a bird bath or gutters, make sure to wash them frequently to eliminate any mosquito eggs that might have been laid in the water. Preventing mosquitoes from laying eggs by removing stagnant water resources have become the most effective way of preventing mosquitoes in your yard for a long-term foundation, according to the North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension.

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Paver walkways are not problem-free, especially if setup wasn’t done properly. Walkway woes can range from cosmetic to producing potentially dangerous situations for your feet or tree roots. Identifying the issues inherent with paver walkways are able to help you pay additional attention to your setup process to protect against those problems in the future.

Loose Pavers

Loose pavers are a tripping hazard, particularly if you have people in your family who have trouble with freedom. If you didn’t have a firm, stable foundation before laying the pavers, then you may observe the pavers come loose or tilted in the future. To avoid this, check the mud or gravel basis under the scoop is flat before you start laying them. Edging on either side of your walkway can also avoid the scoop from sliding to one side.

Weeds Between Pavers

Weeds can develop between pavers, making an unsightly walkway. Should you see weeds, it is possible to pull them out by hand or apply a post-emergent herbicide. Pre-emergent herbicides between pavers can stop weeds from growing in the first location. For a chemical-free solution, disperse dry polymeric mud between the pavers in the walkway. After wetting the mud and letting it set, it creates a barrier that weeds cannot grow through.

Drainage

Walkways may prevent water from reaching your soil, or it can create the water runoff in the pavers to flood parts of your lawn. The broader the walkway, the larger the problems you’ll have with water runoff and drainage. To avoid these issues, use pavers that are labeled as either permeable or have enough space between pavers for water to reach the soil.

Tree Root Damage

Constructing a walkway takes you to dig into the ground to make a foundation for those pavers, yet this digging and also the weight of the pavers on the finished pathway can damage tree roots. The California Oaks organization warns against building paved walkways close to the main zones of pine trees because the walkway can prevent air from reaching the soil, digging can physically hurt the roots and soil compaction can influence the texture of the soil around the tree. To avoid these issues, California Oaks recommends assembling raised decks or walkways near oak trees.

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Willow cuttings and reeds are attractive natural solutions to fabricated fencing materials. Willow and reed fences are relatively simple to build and preserve, but thanks to their minimally processed character, they present a few issues that are unique to fences made from these close-to-nature materials.

Decay

The most frequent problem with fences made from willow, reeds or other bare natural materials is decay. When exposed to weather, the following materials will naturally deteriorate over time if left untreated. Preservative treatments, like linseed oil-based preservatives, help control natural decay and deterioration. Willow ought to be allowed to dry thoroughly before it’s treated with a preservative. Depending on weather conditions, decent drying can take up to a year from the time that the fence is installed.

Sprouting

Willows spread extremely readily and their vigorous propagation can be a problem when willow branches or trunks act as fence posts. Given sufficient moisture, a newly cut willow post is very likely to sprout if it’s pounded into the ground as a portion of the fence structure. A remedy for this dilemma is to use just thoroughly dried willow for posts or to use commercially milled lumber posts.

Living Fence Growth

Living willow fences are a popular choice to cut willow fences. Fresh willow cuttings are shoved into the ground and then woven together to form a fence. The cuttings sprout and grow and leaves fill in the fence, providing shade and privacy. But if the divisions are not properly implanted, the growth can be irregular. Cuttings that are implanted vertically tend to sprout just at the ends, leaving gaps in the middle of the fence, so cuttings should be implanted in a 45-degree angle, which encourages them to sprout along their whole length.

Unbraiding

If not properly tied and braided, willow or reed branches tend to unbraid over time. This may be exacerbated by exposure to wind and weather. Regular maintenance of the fence, such as retying and rebraiding any divisions that have come free from their place in the fence, which will help to maintain the fence structure from substantially degrading over time.

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Winterberry (Ilex verticillata) is a deciduous native shrub that grows from 6 to 15 feet high and nearly equally broad. It’s hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 3 through 9 and thrives in sun to partial shade. Although winterberry loses its 1- to 3-inch green leaves in the autumn, it’s prized for its bright red berries that stay on the bare stems. Given the space it needs to develop, it partners well with a number of other plants.

Pollination

The most significant plant to develop having a winterberry holly is just a winterberry of their opposite sex. Berries are produced on female plants, but pollen from a nearby male plant is vital for the fruit formation procedure. Plant tags often carry information regarding great pollinators for a particular selection. For example, the male number “Southern Gentleman” is a suitable pollinator for female varieties including “Cacapon,” “Shaver” and “Sparkleberry.” “Red Sprite,” a compact, 3- to 4-foot selection, can be pollinated by the male “Jim Dandy.”

Shrub Companions

Tall varieties, such as “Winter Red” and “Jolly Red,” belong at the rear of the edge. Since winterberry is deciduous, companion plantings should incorporate some evergreens for construction. Another holly variety, “Sky Pencil” Japanese holly (Ilex crenata “Sky Pencil”) is evergreen, hardy in zones 6 through 8 and also comes with a columnar shape that makes contrast. For the front of a mixed shrub or shrub/perennial/annual border, the evergreen boxwood “Green Gem” may work. It’s hardy in zones 4 through 9, rises 1.5 to 2 feet tall with an equal spread and is easily clipped to shape.

Perennial Companions

Winterberry pairs well with perennials that like the same sunny or lightly shaded conditions with somewhat moist soil. A mixed planting of daffodils (Narcissus) and daylilies (Hemerocallis) may provide long spans of attention from spring through early to midsummer. Both are usually hardy in zones 3 through 9 or 10. Garden stalwarts such as tickseed (Coreopsis), coneflower (Echinacea) and asters (Aster and Symphiotrichum) create suitable companion plants during summer and into autumn. Many tickseed and coneflower varieties are hardy in zones 4 through 9, and many asters are hardy in zones 4 through 8.

Grasses

Grasses can be companions to winterberry. Striped eulalia (Miscanthus sinensis “Variegatus”) is a tall grass, with feathery seedheads that persist throughout the winter. It’s hardy in zones 5 through 9. Purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea subsp. Arundinacea), also hardy in zones 5 through 9, features purple-green summer flowerheads and yellow fall foliage. Slightly shorter, at about 3 ft, is fountain grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides), with narrow, arching leaves and purplish, bottlebrush-like flower panicles. It’s hardy in zones 6 through 9.

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Window boxes full of trailing plants create beautiful summer displays, and there is no lack of plants to select from. Garden centers and nurseries sell packs of bedding plants that bear prolific flowers all summer, and you can sow annual flower seeds in window boxes in spring. Ensure your window boxes have drainage holes, and fill the boxes with a lightweight, soilless potting mix. Water the plants regularly so that the soil remains moist — in hot, dry weather you may want to water twice a day.

Bedding Plants

Bedding plants typically provide temporary displays in garden beds, borders, hanging baskets, containers and window boxes. Million bells (Calibrachoa spp.) Is named because of its profuse blossoms, which also come in colors of yellow. Also called trailing petunia, million bells grows 4 to 9 inches tall and 6 to 24 inches wide, and prefers full-sun websites. Even though thousand bows grows outside year-round in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 through 11, it’s generally treated as an annual. Another perennial usually grown as an annual bedding plant is hybrid tuberous begonia (Begonia tuberosa), which rises in USDA zones 9 through 11, that comes in forged, yellow-blooming varieties. Growing 12 to 18 inches tall and wide, depending on the number, hybrid tuberous begonia grows best in bright, partial shade.

Annual Flowers

Sowing annual flower seeds directly in window boxes avoids the bother of transplanting, and provides new displays each year. Nasturtium (Tropaeolum spp.) And creeping zinnia (Sanvitalia procumbens) are just two annual flowers that grow readily from seed sown in spring. Nasturtiums arrive in a range of flower colors, including yellow, and bushy or trailing forms that can grow up to 10 feet, depending on the variety. Creeping zinnia rises 3 to 6 inches tall and 9 to 18 inches wide, and contains yellowish to orange-yellow, daisylike flowers on weeping stalks. Both plants grow best in full sun.

Trailing Vines

Trailing vines create long, cascading displays from window boxes. Black-eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata), which rises in USDA zones 10 through 11, produces dark-throated, orange-yellow late-summer blossoms. Growing 3 to 8 feet long and 3 to 6 ft wide, black-eyed Susan does best in partial shade or full sun, but is deemed invasive in some places. Below USDA zone 10, treat this vine as a warm-season annual by planting seeds in spring. Yellow mandevilla (Pentalinon luteum), that rises in USDA zones 10 through 11, attributes trumpetlike, neon yellow summertime blooms on stems up to 8 feet long. Growing best in full sun, yellow mandevilla is an evergreen vine.

Cascading Perennials

Perennials develop in window boxes year old, and several are trailing plants. Creeping Jenny “Aurea” (Lysimachia nummularia “Aurea” ), which rises in USDA zones 3 through 9 is named because of its yellowish foliage and bright yellow, cup-shaped, early summer blooms. This vigorous perennial can spread aggressively and can be invasive in some places. “Aurea” rises 3 to 6 inches tall and 12 to 18 inches wide, and thrives in partial shade or full sun, though in partial shade that the leaf is lime green. “Trailing Yellow” gazania (Gazania mitsuwa “Trailing Yellow”), that rises in USDA zones 8 through 10, bears bright yellow, daisylike flowers on plants 6 to 8 inches tall and 3 to 4 feet wide. Preferring full sun, “Trailing Yellow” can also be deer-resistant.

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