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Articles from Francis Rosenfeld | Selfgrowth.com
- August lily - by Submitted on May 26, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldI often mention that the garden has a will of its own and bends the intent of landscape design to seasonal whimsy. Last year it decided to take on a cool look in white and green right at the end of August when flower beds traditionally boast bright oranges, yellows and fiery reds. The ...
Views: 778 - Garden in the making - by Submitted on May 21, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldThe new light shade flower beds are quickly coming to life with plants from all over the yard, a constant reminder that a perennial patch is the gift that keeps on giving. My garden of hellebores is actually happening. If there is anything I learned from many trial and error gardening ...
Views: 685 - Fruit compote - by Submitted on May 14, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldI don't know how many people grew up with fruit compote as a staple of their diet. My grandparents made it throughout the summer to preserve fruit for the cold months. My grandmother's apricot compote was so good I still dream about it on occasion. Unfortunately, like most of my grandmother's ...
Views: 725 - How to make zacusca - by Submitted on May 04, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldNot sure what to do with your harvest? This is a traditional recipe from the Balkans that is usually made in large quantities to keep over the winter. The small batch below is for sampling, to test whether you would like to try it on a larger scale. It is served cold as a dip or as a sandwich ...
Views: 881 - Creepy Crawlies - by Submitted on Apr 29, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldHave you noticed how many beautiful ground covers fall into the creepy category: creeping phlox, creeping veronicas, creeping Jenny? These plants usually spread by runners, hence their name, and once adjusted to their location they will keep running indefinitely, growing more substantial with ...
Views: 654 - Bulb gardens - by Submitted on Apr 20, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldBulbs are to gardening what frozen puff pastry is to baking: a versatile ingredient that can be planned into the menu or used as a quick fix for large still undefined settings. You set a mass planting of layered bulbs in the fall and get a work free garden the next year. People usually ...
Views: 642 - Gardening with hostas - by Submitted on Apr 13, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldAfter a few years of gardening I realized how much I take hostas for granted. They are ever present in the shade and will grow where no plant has grown before. Their relative worth of thriving in the shade tends to underscore their absolute value as ornamental plants, but hostas can hold their ...
Views: 684 - Charming blues - by Submitted on Apr 06, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldGardens have personalities, just like people. You can plant your garden, but it will decide what stays and what goes. Mine decided it likes blue flowers. Maybe it is the clay soil that gives the plants the alkaline mix they need, maybe it's the dappled shade that promotes the growth of woodland ...
Views: 638 - What's in a name - by Submitted on Mar 31, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldBeing vague in gardening often yields hilarious results. I will apply myself to relearning horticulture basics next season, and heed the experts' advice to be specific about what I'm planning to plant. Here are a few lessons I learned this year. Paying attention to the correct Latin ...
Views: 560 - Twenty things not to do when growing a garden - by Submitted on Mar 23, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldGrowing a thriving garden is as much a result of the things you do as it is of the things you don’t do. Here is a list of what NOT to do in order to have a thriving garden. These are all things I learned from personal experience, and they set me back a few years: 1. Planting roses in the ...
Views: 603 - Keeping roses healthy - by Submitted on Mar 09, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldHaving healthy roses is more about prevention than it is about cure. Give the shrubs plenty of space to prevent moisture from sticking to their leaves, make sure they have at least six, preferably eight hours of full sun a day, plant them in well draining soil with plenty of organic matter and ...
Views: 635 - Roses for landscaping - by Submitted on Mar 02, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldIt is amazing what special status roses have in gardens! A gardener will move a tree, completely restructure a flower bed and change the location of a patio before they decide to touch an established rose. New homeowners who inherit roses plan their entire gardens in ways that feature and ...
Views: 610 - Planting fruit trees - by Submitted on Feb 24, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldI gingerly stepped out the door and a blast of cold air threw me back in. It's February. So much for my gardening enthusiasm, I guess I can stick to potpourri and fragrant sachets for now but since late winter is a good time for tree planting, let's talk about fruit trees. Children are ...
Views: 949 - Salves and creams - by Submitted on Feb 16, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldThe difference between a cream and a salve is that salves always contain beeswax and they are a lot firmer (think lip balm). A salve is a blend of oil and beeswax in proportion of five to one more or less. Salves are often made with infused oils that extract the medicinal qualities of herbs ...
Views: 1619 - Enjoy radiant skin - by Submitted on Feb 16, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldThree major factors contribute to the health of your skin: good nutrition and general wellbeing, good conditioning and removing dead cells and impurities. Good nutrition and general well-being Food that is good for the whole body will make your complexion glow too, however, hair and skin ...
Views: 1503 - Create a garden for children - by Submitted on Feb 02, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldThere are few things that match the joy of watching children take charge of little projects, and gardening projects are no exception. Set aside a little patch of dirt for your kids to plant seeds and watch things grow. Make sure it is reasonably fertile and in full sun, you don't want to make a ...
Views: 730 - How to grow vanilla orchids - by Submitted on Jan 26, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldHave you ever wondered what it takes to bring the sophisticated and aristocratic vanilla bean to you? I thought about it many times and figured if I ever had a greenhouse this would be the first plant I'd like to grow, so I wanted to learn more about it and this is what I found out. Vanilla ...
Views: 791 - Herb Gardens - by Submitted on Jan 20, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldAs a child I used to watch with fascination as my grandfather's hands gently teased apart leaves and flowers and spread them over paper towels to dry in the hot still air of the attic. That attic looked much like an apothecary's shop with dried hot pepper bunches, hanging herbs, long braids of ...
Views: 816 - How to prune roses - by Submitted on Jan 12, 2015 from Francis RosenfeldPruning is a simple and necessary part of keeping a rose healthy, strong and blooming. If you prune the rose wrong, you may not get a lot of flowers the following year, or none at all, but there is no wrong way to prune that will kill an established rose. If anything, if you can live with a ...
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