I never use my Chiminea



Back in the day, we bought a Chiminea....it was all the rage at the time, everyone had one!  Contained campfire in your back yard!  Fast forward a few (or 5 or more) years and we have used it all of twice. I wanted to up cycle it and do something with it because it does look nice in the back yard.  We came up with the idea of making it a shade planter.

 We took out the large pieces of old wood in the bottom of the pan and left some of the ashes (they are good for the soil).  We added some good quality soil and planted some partial shade plants and voila! This spring we just used some wave petunias and a few other common plants to see how it would work but I think next year we will add some ivy and different types of plants.  You could even use fire colours yellow, reds and oranges with the plants and then put a small solar LED in the bottom and make it look "firey" at night. Crap- I wish I had of thought of that before I planted mine.... Next year!



So many mosquitoes!

Given the damp spring the North East had, and with it looking like the trend will continue for most of the summer, we seem to have a big mosquito season this year.   We have been invaded by a mass of mosquitoes (or whatever you call a large gathering of mosquitoes... gaggle, pride, town hall meeting...).  Mosquitoes are annoying, the bites they leave behind are super annoying and commercial bug spray isn't that great for you either.  So to help keep the town hall meeting size gathering of mosquitoes away, we have complied a list of 5 easy to grow plants for your patio that help repel them....

1. Citronella

Citronella is the most common natural ingredient used in mosquito repellents. The distinctive citronella aroma is a strong smell which masks other attractants to mosquitoes, making it harder for them to find you. Although citronella is used in many forms, such as candles, torches and citronella ‘scented’ plants, the living plant is more effective because it has a stronger smell.

Citronella is a perennial which can grow to a height of 5 – 6 feet. It can be grown directly in the ground in climate zones where frost does not occur. If grown in the garden or near the patio, it should be planted in the ‘background’, behind small decorative flowers and shrubs. In northern climate zones citronella can be grown in a large pot, ideally with casters, so it can be rolled indoors during winter.
Gardening centers usually sell citronella as small plants in pots, ready to transplant to a larger pot or into on the ground.Citronella plants are considered low maintenance, and they do best in full sun and well-drained locations.  When purchasing citronella, look for the true varieties, other plants may be sold as ‘citronella scented’, but these do not have the mosquito repelling qualities of true citronella.

2. Horsemint

Also known as Beebalm, Horsemint is an adaptable perennial plant which repels mosquitoes much the same as citronella. It gives off a strong incense-like odor which confuses mosquitoes by masking the smell of its usual hosts.
Horsemint is a fast growing, shade-tolerant and drought-resistant plant which reaches a height and width of 2 – 3 feet. It does well in dry, sandy soil and can tolerate salty conditions, which is why it is often found in coastal and beach areas. Horsemint seeds can be sown indoors in trays for later transplanting, or sown directly into the ground in late summer in colder climate zones.

 

3. Marigolds

Commonly grown as ornamental border plants, marigolds are hardy annual plants which have a distinctive smell which mosquitoes, and some gardeners, find particularly offensive. Marigolds contain Pyrethrum, a compound used in many insect repellents.
Marigolds prefer full sunlight and reasonably fertile soil. Although marigolds can be planted from seed, starter plants are inexpensive and readily available at most garden centers. Although an annual, marigold will often reseed itself in favorable conditions, or the gardener can easily collect seeds for future germination. Established plants should be dead-headed to promote additional blooms.
Potted marigolds can be positioned near entrances to your home and any common mosquito entry points, such as open windows. The smell may deter mosquitoes from going past this barrier.
Besides repelling mosquitoes, marigolds repel insects which prey on tomato plants, so you may want to plant a few marigolds in your tomato bed for added protection, bunnies also tent to stay away from areas with marigolds.

4. Ageratum

Also known as Flossflowers, Ageratum emits a smell which mosquitoes find particularly offensive. Ageratum secretes coumarin, which is widely used in commercial mosquito repellents.
Ageratum is a low-lying annual ornamental plant which reaches heights of 8 – 18”, and is easily recognized by its blue flowers, although there are varieties with pink, white and violet blooms. This plant will thrive in full or partial sun and does not require rich soil. It is often displayed in rock gardens.

5. Catnip

Catnip is a natural mosquito repellent. It has been reported that catnip is ten times more effective than DEET, the chemical found in most commercial insect repellents. According to Iowa State researcher Chris Peterson, the reason for its effectiveness is still unknown. “It might simply be acting as an irritant or they don’t like the smell. But nobody really knows why insect repellents work.”
In the laboratory, Peterson put groups of 20 mosquitoes in a two-foot glass tube, half of which was treated with nepetalactone, a biologically active characteristic constituent of catnip. After 10 minutes, only an average of 20 percent – about four mosquitoes – remained on the side of the tube treated with a high dose (1.0%) of the oil. In the low dose test (0.1%) an average of 25% – five mosquitoes – stayed on the treated side. When the same tests were conducted using DEET (diethyl-meta-toluamide), approximately 40 to 45% – eight to nine mosquitoes – remained on the treated side. A ten-fold higher concentration of DEET was required to obtain results similar to those of the Catnip.
Catnip, Nepeta cateria, is very easy to grow. This perennial herb is related to mint, and grows readily both as a weed and a commercially cultivated plant in most areas.
While catnip will repel mosquitoes in close proximity to the plant, some people apply crushed catnip leaves or catnip oil for more robust protection. Bear in mind, however, that cats will respond to you similarly as they would respond to the plant itself  (ie, they may act a little nuts for a while). Cat owners may want to choose an alternative plant for repelling mosquitoes.


All of the listed plants are pretty good at keeping away those pesky mosquitoes- but we can't guarantee it will work 100%, there may be a black sheep of the mosquito group that is the "I don't follow the rules" member or has no sense of smell... but generally speaking these should help.
 All of the plants are pretty easy to find at your local nursery or you can always look for them on our TradeMyFlowers.com marketplace.

So not over the Rainbow

As a kid when we saw rainbows, all we wanted to do is find the end of it.  It wasn't so much because of the old tale that promised a pot of gold (although that could buy a lot of candy) - we wanted to see the leprechaun!  That little green suited dancing guy seemed like he would be a fun playmate for an afternoon.  Just think of the shenanigans we could get in to with a leprechaun!  And so as a child, every time we were lucky enough to see a rainbow- we wanted to find the end of it!
As we grew older the thought and excitement of the possibility of a leprechaun grew less.... let's say feasible, and the pot of gold- granted handy- also became a childhood day dream.  But even without the hope of a small fortune and a small green dancing man; we as adults are still fascinated by rainbows.  Rainbows are still a cool sight to see, they are rare enough that when we see one we must take a picture or in the case of a double rainbow a video!  I have to admit, I have never seen a rainbow form, I usually just catch a glimpse of one off in the distance... that is until this week.  We were unlucky enough to be in the middle of a fierce storm with funnel clouds and all this week.  But just at the end of the storm we were lucky enough to catch a rainbow form very close by.  Check out the video below, we were close enough to see the end of the rainbow very clearly, sadly no pot of gold to pay off our credit cards and no dancing leprechaun to take us away from work for the afternoon... but it was quite a cool thing to see!

mmm.... Red Currant Jelly

Currants are one of those under used berries you can very easily grow in your garden.  Currant bushes are very easy to grow and yield lots of berries.  Red currants are small bright red berries with a juicy pulp and they are very rich in antioxidants.  The most common use for red currants is jelly, we use this yummy recipe here http://allrecipes.com/recipe/red-currant-jelly/.

4 pounds fresh red currants
1 Cup Water
7 cups white sugar
4 fluid ounces liquid fruit pectin
makes 8 - 1/2 pint jars

Directions

1. Place the currants into a large pot, and crush with a potato masher or berry crusher if you have one. Pour in 1 cup of water, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the fruit through a jelly cloth or cheese cloth, and measure out 5 cups of the juice.
2. Pour the juice into a large saucepan, and stir in the sugar. Bring to a rapid boil over high heat, and stir in the liquid pectin immediately. Return to a full rolling boil, and allow to boil for 30 seconds.
3. Remove from heat and skim off foam from the top. Ladle or pour into sterile 1/2 pint jars, filling to within 1/2 inch of the top. Wipe the rims with a clean damp cloth. Cover with new sterile lids and rings. Process covered in a bath of simmering water for 10 minutes or the time recommended by your local extension for your area 

Be careful when mashing the berries, the red uncooked juice can stain... so no wearing your best whites or your wedding dress or anything like that.

For listings of Currant Bushes for sale on Trade My Flowers click here

Contest Winner!

Congratulations to Tammy Murphy, our winner of the $50 home depot gift card! We hope you enjoy!!

Stay tuned for another contest coming soon, keep watching here or at www.trademyflowers.com

HAPPY LISTING!

A Jostaberry... say what?

We saw a listing on the site the other day for a Jostaberry bush.... we got asking around our office, and no one really new much about the Jostaberry, so we decided to look in to it.

The Jostaberry is a cross fruit bush involving three original species; the black currant the North American coastal black gooseberry and the European gooseberry.  The tangy-sweet flavor of a Jostaberry (pronounced yust-a-berry) is a mix of grape, blueberry, and kiwi-fruit.  Jostaberries are great in jams, jellies, and pies.  The shiny, nearly black berry, which is smaller than a gooseberry and a bit larger than a blackcurrant, is edible both raw and cooked. The ripe fruit will hang on the bush in good condition through late summer.  Like blackcurrants the fruit freezes well, and like many other members of the Ribes genus it is rich in vitamin C.  They're a little harder to pluck than blackcurrants are, however, an advantage they have against the gooseberry is that the plant is thorn-less.
The plant itself grows to a maximum height of about 2 m, flowering in mid-spring, with fruit setting and ripening on a similar timetable to the blackcurrant. The plant grows and produces fruit well and is generally resistant to a number of common diseases afflicting other Ribes. Flowers are hermaphrodite and the plant is self-fertile following insect pollination. Propagation is usually by cuttings, rather than by seeds.  Space bushes about 6 feet apart in well-drained, slightly acid soil. Grow in full to part sun; in hotter regions, afternoon shade is best.
Maintenance is simple. Prune in late winter, cutting out broken or drooping branches. To encourage the growth of fewer, larger berries and new replacement shoots, cut the oldest one or two canes to the ground.

So now that we are well educated on the Jostaberry (maybe more than you wanted to know) we thought we would leave you with a recipe to get the Jostaberry juices flowing.... and if you want to get a Jostaberry bush check out the listing here



Jostaberry Ice Cream (courtesy of Icy Creek Blog )

2 cups of jostaberries.
1  1/2 cups of cream
3/4 of a cup of sugar (go up to a cup if you like your ice cream really sweet).
Combine jostaberries and sugar and heat until the sugar is dissolved and simmer for no more than five minutes. Blend the jostaberries but do not put them through a sieve. Cool, and then churn with the cream in an ice cream maker.


Enjoy!

The "it" plant for 2013

I came in from the garden just long enough to write about this years "hot" plant for planters.... The Canna.  We have seen cannas in lots of spring magazines this year and all of them seem to be pictured in planters. 

 

The consensus here at Trade My Flowers is we love it!  The canna lends a tropical feel to the planters that you can get even if you aren't anywhere near the tropics.  Not to mention the very grand statement these suckers make.  Some of these can grow to be 6+ feet tall, you will most certainly be the talk of the neighbourhood with these in your planted pots!

Be sure to pick a large pot to use when planting, you don't want it to A- tip or B- look out of proportion with the large height and leaves of the canna.  We planted the bulbs in our pots today to get a head start and hopefully by mid may we will have them sprouting and then we will add all of the filler plants.  Have fun with it, add some more tropicals, maybe some colour or some cascading vines.  The plus side of planting the cannas first, you get a few weeks to plan it out!

If you are lucky enough to have an awesome aunt with a cold cellar full of bulbs like we did, you are in luck this year.  If not, we do have a listing or two on our Trade My Flowers Marketplace.  Just remember to dig up the bulbs before frost in the fall and save them for next year!

Okay, back to the garden, so glad spring is finally here; the house work is so going to suffer for the next couple of weeks!  Oh and don't forget we have our forum up and running, let's talk gardens!