“It was roses, roses all the way.”
- Robert Browning

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose; By any other name would smell as sweet.”
- William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act 2 scene 2

Roses have a long and colorful history. According to fossil evidence, the rose is 35 million years old. Today, there are over 30,000 varieties of roses and it has the most complicated family tree of any known flower species.

The cultivation of roses most likely began in Asia around 5000 years ago. They have been part of the human experience ever since and mentions of the flower are woven into a great many tales from the ancient world.

And there are so many beautiful stories that include roses through out the ages that we all can recognize.

Greek mythology tells us that it was Aphrodite who gave the rose its name, but it was the goddess of flowers, Chloris, who created it. One day while Chloris was cleaning in the forest she found the lifeless body of a beautiful nymph. To right this wrong Chloris enlisted the help of Aphrodite, the goddess of love, who gave her beauty; then called upon Dionysus, the god of wine, who added nectar to give her a sweet scent. When it was their turn the three Graces gave Chloris charm, brightness and joy. Then Zephyr, the West Wind, blew away the clouds so that Apollo, the sun god, could shine and make the flower bloom. And so the Rose was…

In another story, an ancient Hindu legend, Brahma (the creator of the world) and Vishnu (the protector of the world) argued over whether the lotus was more beautiful than the rose. Vishnu backed the rose, while Brahma supported the lotus. But Brahma had never seen a rose before and when he did he immediately recanted. As a reward Brahma created a bride for Vishnu and called her Lakshmi — she was created from 108 large and 1008 small rose petals.

Several thousands of years later, on the other side of the world in Crete , there are Frescoes which date to c. 1700BC illustrating a rose with five-pedaled pink blooms. Discoveries of tombs in Egypt have revealed wreaths made with flowers, with roses among them. The wreath in the tomb of Hawara (discovered by the English archaeologist William Flinders Petrie) dates to about AD 170, and represents the oldest preserved record of a rose species still living.

Roses later became synonymous with the worst excesses of the Roman Empire when the peasants were reduced to growing roses instead of food crops in order to satisfy the demands of their rulers. The emperors filled their swimming baths and fountains with rose-water and sat on carpets of rose petals for their feasts and orgies. Roses were used as confetti at celebrations, for medicinal purposes, and as a source of perfume. Heliogabalus used to enjoy showering his guests with rose petals which tumbled down from the ceiling during the festivities.

During the fifteenth century, the factions fighting to control England used the rose as a symbol. The white rose represented York , and the red rose symbolized Lancaster . Not surprisingly, the conflict between these factions became known as the War of the Roses.

In the seventeenth century roses were in such high demand that roses and rose water were considered as legal tender. In this capacity they were used as barter in the markets as well as for any payments the common people had to make to royalty. Napoleon’s wife Josephine loved roses so much she established an extensive collection at Chateau de Malmaison, an estate seven miles west of Paris . This garden of more than 250 rose varieties became the setting for Pierre Joseph Redoute’s work as a botanical illustrator and it was here Redoute completed his watercolor collection "Les Rose," which is still considered one of the finest records of botanical illustration.

Cultivated roses weren’t introduced into Europe until the late eighteenth century. These introductions came from China and were repeat bloomers, making them of great interest to hybridizers who no longer had to wait once a year for their roses to bloom.

From this introduction, experts today tend to divide all roses into two groups. There are “old roses” (those cultivated in Europe before 1800) and “modern roses” (those which began to be cultivated in England and France around the turn of the 19th century).

Until the beginning of the 19th century, all roses in Europe were shades of pink or white. Our romantic symbol of the red rose first came from China around 1800. Unusual green roses arrived a few decades later.

Bright yellow roses entered the palette around 1900. It was the Frenchman Joseph Permet-Ducher who is credited with the discovery. After more than 20 years of breeding roses in a search for a hardy yellow variety, he luck changed when one day he simply stumbled across a mutant yellow flower in a field. We have had yellow and orange roses ever since

The rose is a phenomenal plant and is rightly known as ‘the world’s favorite flower’. No other flower has ever experienced the same popularity that the rose has enjoyed in the last fifth years. In temperate climates, roses are more widely grown than any other ornamental plant, and as cut flowers they are forever in fashion.

It has been estimated that 150 million plants are purchased by gardeners worldwide every year, and sophisticated breeding programs have produced a plant that dominates the world’s cut flower market; the annual crop is calculated in tons. Roses have also made a tremendous contribution to the perfume industry.

Roses boast an ancient lineage, and they are intricately entwined in our history and culture.

As a motif, the rose has been and still is depicted in many national emblems. It has been adopted by countless political factions, and even by businesses and several international events.

THE ORIGINS OF CULTIVATED ROSES

Rose’s species have a natural distribution through out most parts of the Northern Hemisphere. Paleontologists inform us that they become established in the Tertiary Period, which began 70 million years ago. This means that the ancestors of the rose predate the evolution of humans

Europe and the Middle East - The Dawn of Rose Breeding

Well before the Christian Era, the transportation of useful plants had played an essential part in the expansion of civilizations. The sprawling Roman Empire together with the excursions of Alexander the Great in Asia introduced many species never seen before in the Middle East and Europe . The dog rose ( Rosa canina), for example, was long thought to be a native of Britain , but was in fact brought there by the Romans.

By about AD 1200 the first five groups of domesticated roses had already begun to evolve in cultivation: Albas, Centifolias, Damasks, Gallicas and Scots Roses.

The Far East - the Birthplace of the Modern Garden Rose

Although rose growing enjoured high popularity in the gardens of Europe for many hundreds of years, it was not until the end of the eighteenth century, with the discovery of R. chinensis in China , that a major step forward was achieved. The revolutionary characteristic of this rose is its ability to flower repeatedly from early summer to late autumn.

Some commentators have used the term ‘perpetual flowering’ but this can be misinterpreted and used too literally. ‘Parson’s Pink China’, ‘Slater’s Crimson China’’, Hume’s Blush Tea-scented China’ and Parks’ Yellow Tea-scented China’ – the first cultivated varieties – opened up a new vista of roses with a modern classical shape, a true crimson color with a very pale hint of the early yellows and a repeat –flowering performance. The Far East became the birthplace of the Modern Garden Rose, and the rest is history.

East Meets West

The introduction of roses from the Far East coincided rather neatly with the advent of modern breeding techniques. Although the sexual function of the flower, in particular the function of the anthers and stigma had been revealed in the seventeenth century, this discovery was not used in practical plant breeding for another two hundred years before this time, ‘primitive’ rose breeders would place two distinct varieties in pots together when both were in full bloom; they knew that there was a reasonable chance that the plants would cross-breed and produce seedlings with shared characteristics of the two parents.

In the early part of the nineteenth century, hybridists, primarily French amateurs, began a planned breeding program with very gratifying results. This was quickly followed up with some enthusiasm by rose-growing devotees all around the world. Soon, rose breeding without first planning the parentage became unthinkable.

The subsequent g=progeny produced were identified by groups usually names after their town or country of origin, the hybridist and, in some cases, a wealthy patron. Thus, collective terms such as Bourbons, Noisettes, Hybrid Perpetuals and Portlands came into existence with varying degrees of success. Eventually, the collective term Hybrid Teas was coined; 1867 is the date usually quoted when this modern group became a recognizable entity. Since that time, Hybrid Teas (also known as Large-flowered Roses), have progressed from strength to strength.

The Last Fifty Years

The early 1950s was a decisive time in the history of the rose. Gardening for leisure, rather than for food, became increasingly popular, and this coincided with the release of a new rose variety called ‘Peace’. It is difficult to convey the impact this rose had on gardeners-simply put, everybody was growing it! ‘Peace’ almost single-handedly advanced the popularity of the rose out of all proportion to any other garden plant.

In the last decade there have been many new schools of thought on the role of the rose in the garden. No longer are we subjected to endless formal flowerbeds solely devoted to this single genus. It is not that gardeners have lost their appreciation of these superb blooms, rather it is that they have discovered how wonderful roses can look when grown informally among other plants such as clematis, honeysuckles, delphiniums, lavender, spring bulbs and geraniums.

Although disease still rears its ugly head on certain occasion, the rose has become a much more adaptable plant; varieties are available that can be grown as shrubs, climbers, ground covers or in pots. Nowadays, the rose has a place in every garden, even the smallest back yard, and it is telling that the Patio Rose ‘Sweet Dream’ is one of the best-selling roses today.

THE ROSE IN HISTORY

As with most plants that have long been closely associated with the history of people, the rose has become deeply ingrained in our culture and beliefs. The Romans, who originally cultivated the rose as a medicinal plant, also used the blooms to enhance their festivities.

The Greeks, however, accepted the rose as a complement to the progress of their culture. Whenever a secret meeting was held, the Greeks used roses to decorate the ceilings of their conference rooms. This indicated that everything discussed was confidential, which is the origin of the phrase sub rosa.

In fifteenth century England , roses were chosen to represent the two rival royal factions: the white rose of the House of York and the red rose of the House of Lancaster. The heraldic Tudor Rose emerged as the emblem of royalty. More recently, roses have been used as motifs to further the aspirations of political parties and national sporting teams.

Evolution of the Rose

Throughout the history of civilization, no other flower has been so immortalized and integrated into daily life as the rose. From poetry to music, from festivities to wars, Mother’s Day to St Valentine’s Day, and birth to death, the rose has held a unique role. There are over 4000 roses listed in this monograph, and they are testimony enough to convince even the ultimate skeptic that roses have a rich tapestry of evolution stretching way back in time. Just how the genus Rosa managed to, and continues to, evolve into one of the world’s favorite flowers is an interesting horticultural puzzle. To fully appreciate the development of roses up to the present day, a brief exploration of the early history of roses before 1800 is needed.

Roses in Antiquity

Fossil remains found on a slate deposit in Colorado indicates that roses estimated 40 million years ago in North America . Other important fossil findings through the Northern Hemisphere have confirmed the very ancient existence of roses growing as far north as Alaska and Norway and as far south as Mexico . No Wild Roses have been found to grow below the equator, although roses now thrive in the Southern Hemisphere thanks to the deliberate intervention of civilization.

Where or when the genus Rosa originated is unknown in spite of the wealth of fossil studies. In theory, the early Wild Roses were most likely cultivated for their hips, which have some nutritional properties, as were their close relatives, the cherries, plums and apples. Most of these early species roses were five-petalled, pink or white with some yellows from China . As civilizations developed trade, accidental crosses of there early species started the evolutionary process as they were grown along side each other.

Mention of roses appeared frequently in the written records of early civilizations, such as those of the Chinese, Egyptians, Greeks, Phoenicians and Romans. In 500 BC, Confucius wrote about the roses growing in the Imperial Rose Garden of the Chinese Emperor, Who also had an extensive library of books about roses. It is from such writings that we can glean a picture of rose distribution and cultivation.

The oldest rose we can identify today is Rosa gallica , which gives very fragrant flowers of deep pink to crimson followed by brick red, sub-globose or turbine hops. The exact geographical origin of R. gallica is unknown, but there are references to it by the Persians in the twelfth century BC; they regarded it as a strong symbol of love and commitment. The next identifiable rose was the very fragrant R. damasccena, which appeared in descriptive texts around 900 BC. In 50 BC a northern African variant called R. damascena semperflorens, the’Autumn Damask’. Captivated the Romans for its ability to give two bloom cycles instead of just one. Traced back to the fifth century BC, it is believed to have resulted from a cross between R. gallica and T. moschata (the musk rose). Until the discovery and importation of China roses from the Orient in the late eighteenth century, R damascena semperflorens was the only repeat-bloomers known to the Western world.

Another rose of great historical importance was the Alba Rose, ‘White Rose of York’, the emblem of the great House of York during the fifteenth century Wars of the Roses. R. alba is probably a lot older, dating back to as early as the second century AD.

In early European times, the evolution of the rose had reached a well-defined, simple family tree, which had five distinctive Old Garden Rose classiciations: Gallica, Alba, Damask, Centifolia and Moss.

Roses in the New World

Of the 200 species of Wild Roses know worlkdwide, about 35 are considered indigenous to the Unites State , which makes the rose a American as apple pie. The first American species mentioned in European texts was R. virginiana; notable other species are R. Carolina, the ‘Pasture Rose’, R. setigera, the ‘Praire Rose’, R. California, R woodsii and R. palustris, the ‘Swamp Rose’. Several of these are named after their naturally selected habitat. Captain John Smith wrote about the Indians of the James River Valley who planted Wild Roses to adorn their village surroundings. In 1621, Edward Winslow, a founder of the Plymouth Colony, planted lots of fragrant white, red and Damask Roses.

Modern Roses

In 1867, the French breeder Guillot introduced a medium pink variety called ‘La France’. This variety was considered unique in that it possessed the general habit of a Hygrid Perpetual (Mme Victor Verdier, its seed parent) as well as the elegantly shaped buds and free-flowering character of a Tea Rose (Mme Bravy, the pollen parent). Recognition that ‘La France’ demonstrated a new group was delayed for almost thirty years of acrimonious discussion in the popular horticultural magazine of the era. Gardener’s Chronicle. Nevertheless, the first Hybrid Tea had been born! Although technical difficulties hindered the direct mimicking of Guillot’s work, practical experience over the following twenty years finally resolved the problems and rapid expansion of the Hybrid Tea class with different colors and foliage took place. Hybrid Teas, now known as Large-flowered Roses, quickly replaced Hybrid Perpetuals in popularity in gardens all over Europe and America . Planned breeding has now developed over 10,000 Hybrid Teas that demonstrate a wide range of color and blends and even stripes!

Eric is a friend to the growers of fine roses at Rosefarm.com, an online fresh cut rose delivery serivce.

Flower bulbs need a good, long, winters sleep. Like some people we know, if they wake up before they are fully rested, they get kind of cranky, and then they don’t bloom well at all.

Actually what happens is during a mild winter, the soil stays too warm, and the bulbs begin to come out of dormancy early. They start to grow, and once the tips emerge above the soil line, they are subject to freezing if the temperatures dip back down below freezing. And that’s usually what happens. After the bulbs have emerged, they freeze and then don’t bloom at all, or if they do it’s a very sad display.

Another reason this happens is because the bulbs are not planted deep enough. They may have been deep enough when you planted them, but as the soil goes through the freezing and thawing process, the bulbs can actually work their way up in the ground.

One way to keep your flower bulbs sleeping longer, which will protect them from freezing, is to mulch the bed. In the fall just apply a 3-4” layer of well composted mulch. This layer of mulch will do a couple of things. It will maintain a higher moisture content in the soil, which is good, as long as the soil isn’t too soggy. Well composted mulch also adds valuable organic matter to the planting bed. Organic matter makes a great natural fertilizer.

A 3-4” layer of mulch also acts as an insulator. It will keep the soil from freezing for a while, which is good because you don’t want the bulbs going through a series of short cycles of freezing and thawing. Then when the temperatures drop below freezing and stay there for a while, the soil does eventually freeze. Then the mulch actually works in reverse and keeps the soil from thawing out too early. Keeping it in a frozen state is actually good because the bulbs remain dormant for a longer period of time.

When they finally do wake up it is spring time, and hopefully by the time they emerge from the ground the danger of a hard freeze is past and they will not be damaged. If you can keep them from freezing, they will flower beautifully. The extra organic matter will help to nourish the bulbs when they are done blooming, and the cycle starts all over again.

We also plant annual flowers in the same beds with our spring bulbs. By the time the danger of frost is past and it’s time to plant the annuals, the top of the bulbs have died back and are ready to be removed. The mulch that is added in the fall also helps to nourish the annual flowers, as well as improve the soil permanently.

Anytime you add well composted organic matter to your planting beds, you are bound to realize multiple benefits. The key words here are "well composted". Fresh material is not good.

About The Author

Michael J. McGroarty is the author of the popular gardening book "Free Landscape Plants!" as well as the owner and author of the gardening website http://www.freeplants.com Visit the website and sign up for his free gardening newsletter, and learn how to start your own money making backyard nursery on 1/20 acre or less.

The Henry Doubleday Research Association is a UK charity that promotes organic gardening. The charity was established in 1954 by a man named Lawrence D Hills because of his fascination with one particular plant, namely Russian Comfrey (Symphytum uplandicum).

But what was so special about this plant, and why did Lawrence Hills find it so interesting, and what was the connection with Henry Doubleday? These are some of the questions that this article willl attempt to answer.

Henry Doubleday who was born in 1813, was a member of the family whose ancestors sailed with William Penn to Pennsylvania and founded Doubleday & Company Inc. Henry was a great experimenter but not much of a business man. He patented a glue that was used on the first postage stamps, and it was the possibility that comfrey might provide a gum that first drew his attention to the plant.

Henry ordered some plants from Russia and the seedlings he received were a rare cross between the common white-flowered comfrey and the Caucasian variety which has sky-blue flowers. This strain proved to be very vigorous and he achieved the then unheard of yield of 100 tons an acre. Comfrey was promoted as a forage crop and Henry spent the last thirty years of his life engaged in research on the plant that it was his dream would feed a hungry world.

After Henry’s death in 1902 his relations disposed of his belongings and all his records were destroyed. Following changes in farming practices, comfrey fell out of favour and was only grown by a few enthusiasts.

It was in the autumn of 1948 that Lawrence Hills claims to have seen his first comfrey plant. There followed a lifelong love affair with the plant and its use both for organic gardeners and as a high protein crop for feeding stock. In one of his many books on the subject he confessed "From that day to this I have never lived further away from a comfrey plant than a hundred feet and, more than any woman has, this crop has changed my life".

At that time Lawrence was working for his uncle on an estate in Norfolk, and it was here that his first experiments with the crop were carried out. Following a breakdown in his health, he left the estate and developed his career as a freelance writer for farming and gardening magazines.

The publicity gained from his writing prompted a request from a Canadian seed company for 5000 plants which he was unable to supply as he had none. However he was able to persuade a friend to fulfill the order, and he helped with the digging and packing of the plants. The goodwill generated by this transaction provided Lawrence with sufficient funds to acquire some land to start his trials.

In December 1954 Lawrence moved to Bocking in Essex and leased three-quarters of an acre of land which was to become his first trial ground. He needed a name for the informal organisation that was growing out of the fan-mail from his book and articles on comfrey, and so the Henry Doubleday Research Association was born.

Hugh Harris-Evans is the owner of The Garden Supplies Advisor where you will find further articles, gardening tips and product reviews. http://www.garden-supplies-advisor.com

I have a love for funky, fun and unique garden plants. Here’s one to try. It’s called Sea Holly, and it’s actually in the thistle family.

Sea Holly is a perennial garden plant, which means you plant it once and it comes up year after year, somewhat depending on your climate.

This plant never did fail to bring attention and comments from people seeing my garden. It grows about 3-4 feet high, very branchy and the branches are a brilliant electric blue color. It’s stunning!

The only drawback to this lovely plant, in the fall you must cut it to the ground and burn or compost the plant. Do not let it go longer than that, casting it seeds or you’ll soon discover it’s family trait of being in the thistle family, if you know what I mean. The following spring, it’ll come back again to it’s beauty.

It is an easy plant to grow and does best with full sun, or as much sun as is available to you. I live in the Pacific Northwest, U.S.A. so we get a lot of rain and fairly mild summers and yet it seems to be enough for this plant.

You can search for Sea Holly seeds in seed catalogs or sometimes you can find it in some nurserys. An internet search would surely find you a source for this lovely plant.

I thought I’d let you know about one of the coolest, funky plants for outdoors I’ve ever run across. It’s called Evening Scented Stock, it is NOT the common stock, however.

This is an annual plant, that needs to be sown early spring, directly into the soil where it is to bloom and grow. I recommend planting it nearby windows and doors, porches, etc. This plant really doesn’t look like much in and of itself, it’s not a pretty plant per se..but when about 5:00 PM rolls around watch it do its stuff! This plant has a VERY powerful fragrance similar to hyacynths or lilacs. At the gentlest breeze it sends a waft of fragrance to die for. This is why it’s so excellent to plant near a window, door or pathway. When you open up your screen in the evening, this will scent your entire house.

One place that I have found the seeds for this rare plant is at Fragrant Path, PO Box 328, Fort Calhoun, NE 68023 They were about $1. a packet but the price may have gone up. Please write and ask them. Enjoy!

Here’s another one to try. This one is called Autumn Crocus.

In this case you can tell a lot by it’s name. You generally purchase it as a bulb, which are usually quite large. It does return year after year without needing to re-plant it.

In the spring it shoots up a lot of foliage, this is preparing the plant for it’s autumn blooms, be sure to just leave this alone. Come about June or so, this foliage starts looking like it’s dying, again just leave it be.

In late August/early September, when most of the flowers are past their prime and the garden is starting to look sparse, out comes the Autumn Crocus, with their beautiful lilac colored blooms. They bloom for quite a long time when few things are blooming. A fun plant, give it a try!

This one is an annual (only lives 1 growing season) plant called Love Lies Bleeding. It’s as strange as it’s name.

It is very easy to grow. You just simply direct seed it in the soil (full sun preferably) where it is to grow in the spring. It’s height seems to vary greatly. I’ve seen it be as small as about 2 feet high, and reach up to 6 or 7 feet high. It’s "flowers" are long, burgandy colored ropes that hang. It is simply stunning. Always gets attention! It will usually re-seed itself so you’ll get new plants the following year without doing anything.

It’s best to try to find this seed in an unusual type seed catalog. It is in the amaranth family.

Here’s the last one. Ever tried the hellebore family? There are many varieties. They are perennial which means they come back year after year. These are best planted in shady areas, but where they will get sun in the winter, like under leafed trees or something of that nature.

What is so unusual about hellebores is that they bloom somewhere between Dec. and March. There are very few plants that do that! One variety is called a Christmas Rose. It’s quite striking to see flowers in the midst sometimes of snow.

These plants usually must be puchased at a nursery. Check out your local nursery for this wonderful family of plants.

About The Author

Valerie Garner - Get a series of no cost traffic builders that work to get traffic to your website, plus a few ideas for earning income too. Many unique resources you’ll love! Mailto:Moredetails@quicktell.com

Novice gardeners often regard the period between October and March as a time of the year when the garden should be ignored until the warmth of Spring returns. After all the flowers have faded and trees and shrubs have shed their leaves so what is the point? With experience comes the realisation that the garden in winter has a character and beauty all of its own.

Because most trees and shrubs lose their leaves in the fall, the most important element in planning a garden that is attractive in both winter and summer is to get the basic structure right. Paths, hedges, trees and shrubs should be arranged so that the view from the house reveals something of interest at each season of the year.

Just because all your annual and herbaceous flowers are over and now a mass of frosted stems does not mean that there can be nothing to enjoy in the garden. Even without leaves and flowers many shrubs can provide a colorful display through the winter months. Dogwood (cornus alba) has bright red stems throughout the winter. Yellow stems are found on several varieties of willow. Many garden trees exhibit colorful trunks and branches which are only clearly revealed once they have lost their leaves.

With all this talk of bare stems you should remember that there are many shrubs that keep their leaves and do produce flowers during the winter. The Winter Jasmine (jasminum nudiflorum) is a sturdy shrub which will grow almost anywhere whose bright yellow flowers light up any dull winter’s day. Mahonia (M. japonica) is another shrub with yellow flowers which has the added benefit of a fragrant scent. Rose pink blooms are borne from December to February by one of the Viburnums (V. x bodnantense).

Another group that can provide interest in winter are those that have finished flowering but then produce colorful berries. Cotoneaster, Pyracanthus and Skimmia all have bright red berries which make a striking display and also attract wild birds into your garden in their search food.

So far we have been concentrating on shrubs. But what about smaller plants? Does your flowerbed have to remain bare all winter? Not at all, there are plenty of hardy plants that can survive the winter frosts and snow. The Christmas Rose is one of the several varieties of hellebores that flower at this time of year.

Other plants that flower later but are useful for ground cover include Bergenia, Pulmoniaria, Saxifrage and Lamium, the Dead Nettle. Ivies and Vincas also make good ground cover but need to be pruned regularly to keep them under control.

If you are one of those people who have tended to forget about your garden in the winter, I hope that this article may have given you a few ideas on how you can plan your backyard so that it gives you pleasure throughout the year.

Hugh Harris-Evans is the owner of The Garden Supplies Advisor where you will find further articles, gardening tips and product reviews. http://www.garden-supplies-advisor.com

Materials Needed
1 decorative clay or metal planter
1 package of clay pellets (approx. 30 pellets)
3 packets of organic tea leaves seeds (YOUR CHOICE)
Grow-rich or nutrient-rich potting soil (ASK YOUR NURSERY FOR THE BEST RECOMMENDATION FOR YOUR AREA)

Directions
1. Spread the clay pellets evenly along bottom of planter. These will absorb water and promote healthy root development of the tea plants.

2. Moisten potting soil in a large plastic bag and then spread mix over clay pellets in planter, leaving 1/2 inch at top of planter.

3. Sprinkle seeds on soil, leaving about 2 or so inches between different varieties.

4. Lightly cover the seeds with dry soil, and then moisten slightly with a spray bottle or a few drops of water.

5. Label the varieties of tea on the bottom or side of planter, or create popsicle-stick signs to place in the soil.

6. Move planter to a warm place in indirect sunlight until germination takes place. After germination, relocate planter to a warm area with natural sunlight.

7. When tea leaves reach a height of about two inches, thin out seedlings across the total planter surface to provide adequate space for future growth.

8. Water periodically, only when the soil is moderately dry.
DO NOT OVERWATER!!)

9. Pick tea leaves sparingly and brew in a hot pot of water. Sit back, sip and enjoy!

Courtesy: Cedar Creek Woodshop; http://www.cedarcreekwoodshop.com

The traditional gardening methods that we have learned from our parents or older gardening books are the best, or are they? Modern commercial growers have often proved that this is not always true.

Take the common practice of digging over your beds in late fall so that they will look tidy for the winter. While this will improve the appearance of the beds, disturbing the soil will tend to bring to the surface annual weed seeds and also encourage the spread of existing perennial weeds.

When it comes to sowing seeds tradition dictates: "One for the rook, one for the crow, one to rot and one to grow". These days with all the competition from slugs, snails, marauding cats and unpredictable spring weather it is often better to sow seeds indoors in seed trays where they will be free from these problems.

"A woman, a dog and a walnut tree, the harder you beat them the better they be" is another traditional saying that is well past its sell by date. While there is clearly no excuse for beating a woman or a dog, what about the walnut tree? Apparently the idea was that cuts resulting from the beating would allow soil-borne bacteria to enter and cause galls which were supposed to encourage the growth of the prized burr-walnut wood. However modern arborists agree that such treatment will only cause more harm than good.

When planting a tree you were always told to support it with a stake. Sensible advice you would think, but apparently not. It seems that staking can now cause problems and that the tree is likely to become better established if left to grow on its own.

Pruning techniques have always been the subject of much debate. When removing larger branches from a tree the painting of the exposed end to prevent disease was a common practice. Research many years ago proved that a tree stands a far better chance of survival if the cut is left bare.

Pruning roses is another area where the traditional methods are complicated and rather slow. Remove all weak and crossing shoots and prune down to outward facing buds. A few years ago a quick and simple alternative was tried; all shoots and branches were cut back by the same amount across the rosebush taking no account of the position of the buds. The following year it was found that rosebushes that had been pruned by this method were flowering just as profusely as those treated in the traditional way.

While traditional wisdom is certainly not all old-fashioned nonsense, we should be open to new ideas where these can be shown to be the better option.

Hugh Harris-Evans is the owner of The Garden Supplies Advisor where you will find further articles, gardening tips and product reviews. http://www.garden-supplies-advisor.com

Have you noticed how everything looks great at the moment - in the garden and parks I mean. Everything seems in bloom, full of colour and life. This is a great time of year for biking as well but that’s another story.

Can you remember last years new development along your street that now seems a little more integrated into the landscape or street scene?

Planting….Its all about planting and using plants and trees to soften new buildings into their environment. In the seventies and eighties this was a very low priority for residential development schemes & even today, poorly landscaped developments look just that unless their new owners have had a sympathetic hand.

Landscaping normally falls into two distinct categories - hard and soft. The hard stuff is the walling, paving, steps and edges for example and the soft is the planting from mixed shrubs to exotic trees.

It is the interrelationship between these two elements that can often make or break a scheme especially at the Planning application stage. You see most Planning Authorities are now wising up to how important this aspect of urban design is & how it can have an effect on people’s future living and environment.

Look though any councils empire list of departments (Planners are the worst for this) and you are guaranteed to find terms like ‘urban design team’ for example. The old terms of parks & trees department has now virtually disappeared with all this new rebranding jargon from the States…somebody please tell me how on earth we let the good ol’e ‘personnel dept’ be reinvented for ‘human resources’? New fangled ‘management speak’ has a lot to answer for in my opinion.

Anyway, these newly invented departments are now having greater influence on what is finally approved so don’t treat them lightly. Some are even teamed up with the local crime prevention who also advice on the best type of spiky bush to grow under windows to prevent Mr. swag from entering your property.

As a guide, most residential extension schemes may not require any additional planting or landscaping to be indicated on the scheme plans to ensure approval unless you have a potentially dominant or overbearing wall due to the ground slope for example that would have its impact reduced & softened by some clever planting or adjustment to the surrounding ground levels.

Speculative residential development will most certainly benefit from a bit of thought put into a separate landscaping scheme at the Planning application stage - it also helps the drawings to look very ‘pretty’ as well. The degree of detail will vary from council to council & from scheme to scheme. Fortunately, most Planners will accept an ‘illustrative’ scheme without too much reference to exact species or surface materials as this can be reserved or conditioned for later approval.

However, many will indicate that you may wish to engage further supplementary experts to get involved such as ‘landscape architects’ even for an outline application but this really isn’t necessary unless the scheme is in a very sensitive landscaped area. Once you have your planning permission it doesn’t seem that hard to part with some extra money for these extra ‘expert?’ fees but until then just try & indicate what you feel looks nice & will enhance the drawings with the aim of softening the building into the natural environment.

Often, many councils will actually work with you & make suggestions for landscaping especially if you are Joe public rather than an Agent. For us Design Agents it can be very frustrating having to consider Planting at an early stage of the design especially if the scheme is speculative and who wants to spend time & money deciding what trees to plant for a site when there are far more important ‘first principal’ design issues to consider such as siting, scale, roof lines, window orientation and distances etc. of the main building.

In my opinion, Landscaping is very much the ‘chicken’ for most developments when the ‘egg’ is to get right the basic design of of the built structure first. Most councils urban design teams with their new army ‘jobsworth’ strips on their shoulders from the rebranding exercise from the Parks Dept. would see things differently and this is to be expected. So if you encounter this with your scheme do not be resistant and try to include for such hard and soft landscaping elements where you can otherwise the scheme may not be supported by the Councils Planning Officer.

Our ‘Maximum Build Planning Guide’ explains further the issues on landscaping and trees and how they can affect development approval when extending your home for planning permission.

http://www.planning-approval.co.uk

If you think that decks for above ground pools are a waste of time then think again. Most people who have a pool that is above ground do so because they cannot afford the luxury of an inground pool or they are renting the home they are in. This is not there first option as they really want something that looks good but they have to compromise. Well I’m here to tell you that you can still have something that looks good and is still have the benefits of an inground pool for a much cheaper price.

By erecting a deck around your pool will not only give you the feel that you are inground but it makes your yard look 10 times better also. You will be able to sit on the edge of your pool and even have chairs and tables if you wish. You don’t have to climb over a ladder but just slip in instead. You will feel much more relaxed being able to sit and look at the water instead of only seeing the outside of the pool.

Decks for above ground pools are a fantastic idea for families because you can sit comfortably on the deck while watching your children instead of sitting outside and trying to peer in. This keeps everyone happy.

You can have someone design your deck for you and then build it yourself if you are a handy man or you can have someone else build it for you. Most hardware places will be able to sell you the materials needed to do the job. The decks are usually made from decking timber slats and can be finished in different colors to suit your needs.

If you have an interest in decks for above ground pools then it would be a very good idea to have a look around online where you will find many quality companies that can help you with not only designs but materials too. These companies will also be happy to give some all important advice on the right and wrong way to do things.

Susan Dean is the webmaster and publisher of http://discount-pool-shop.com Visit her site for discount pools & supplies.

While traveling the US and occasionally taking the back highways one might have seen an interesting trend. That is the proliferation of the Lawn Garden tractors. They are everywhere and on any weekend you can see their owners mowing the grass. Previously fewer people had garden tractors but right after 9-11 everyone decided to stay home more and so they invested in things they wanted around the house, like BBQs and garden tractors. The manager of the Wal-Mart Super Center in Witchita Falls, TX said we have about 50 garden tractors out side for sale at any one time and they turn over quickly. We checked the prices and they are very affordable. You can peruse Wal-Mart’s online catalog at Walmart.com and see the selection.

Now we took some back roads and highways on our last trip from coast to coast to see America and Home Town Americana and what did we see? We counted in TN, AL, VA, NJ, LA, MS, TX 143 people riding garden tractors, actually on them as we passed mowing the tall grass. Now these garden tractors are not free even though they are a good bargain. With the Spring bringing rain and lawns growing fast, there are many lawns which have grown tall, and they must be mowed to prevent tall grass growing and dying. If you have cattle or goats, then they can eat it down to where it needs to be, but if you want it have a manicured lawn then you must get one of these killer little units, most are made here in America. As well as many of the parts, which is good for manufacturing jobs stateside. Sales for garden tractors are strong and top out the profit margin for categories at Wal-Mart. This is an incredible plus for little towns like Statesboro, GA where Briggs and Stratton has a plant, which produces small engines. It is good for our steel industry and automotive sector parts makers, which can also build tractor parts rather than laying off people.

Why is this good for America? Why is it not? Well it is good because it prevents grass from getting too tall and becoming fire hazard. It is good because it uplifts Americans and gives them a sense of pride in their property, helps with an ownership society buy-in attitude and perhaps will help them decide to finally get rid of those average of 5 non-running cars in the backyards rusting and polluting ground and well water of our small towns. It helps people care for their homes and their families by doing something positive at home. Homes and BBQs and family has become a greater priority since the mass media hysteria striking unnecessary fear in the American Public post 9-11.

Why is it not good for America? Well we have lots of mulch and grass clippings which if set aside produces methane gas, tons of it is released into our atmosphere. If it is covered, which normally it is not, the methane gas from the dead grass could be recovered and used for biomass fuel. It is not good because push mowers are better for your health, because it gets you out and about and helps you stay fit; although with the high humidity in the Midwest and East Coast States perhaps that might cause problems with heat stroke. Either way a ride on lawn mower is not a luxury anymore, America has made it a necessity and that means jobs, that means more beautiful homesteads and happier family life and time to watch the ball game because the "Honey Do’s" just got that much easier while sitting back and driving on the grass. It saves a lot of money too, because if you think you want to cruise into town in you pickup or SUV it is going to cost you $3.00 per gallon and $20.00 round trip minimum. From the back roads of America, that is our report. Drive safe; drive a garden tractor. Think about it.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/