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Algae presents one of the greatest potential problems for the gardener with a pond. There are many different species of algae, but from a practical pond management point of view they can be conveniently divided into two groups: suspended and filamentous. Suspended algae are mostly primitive minute single-celled species that cause a green algal bloom in the water, turning it like pea soup. Filamentous algae includes species variously referred to as Spirogyra, Silkweed, Blanketweed and Mermaid’s Hair.

Although not an indication of an unhealthy pond, algae can cause the water gardener considerable distress, totally ruining the overall visual effect. Suspended algae that create an unpleasant bloom are usually seen during the spring, especially in temperate districts where the growth of higher forms of plant life during the winter has become virtually non-existent. There is a sudden greening of the water as it warms up. The primitive unicellular algae appearing almost immediately and continuing to proliferate until the higher and more evolutionarily developed plants take over.

Once growth starts and the submerged plants begin to utilize the nutrients in the water, thereby competing with the more primitive algae, they rapidly go into decline and the water becomes clear. However, at any time during the year a green algal bloom may appear if the natural balance of the pond is disturbed. In new ponds, where the aquatic plants have had little time to establish, suspended algae can be particularly troublesome. It is important to be patient and to allow them to become established. Providing that the formula for creating a balance of plants and fish has been adhered to, the pond will eventually clear.

Whatever happens resist the temptation to empty the pond of water and refill with fresh. This will temporarily alleviate the problem, but within a few days the water will return to its green state. Fresh tap water is rich in mineral salts, and so to some extent the water will have been fertilized. Never change pond water just because it is green if the plant balance in the pond is correct. Just be patient. However, a flocculating product which will temporarily sink the algae out of suspension and allow light to pass through the water, thereby accelerating the growth of submerged plants, is very useful.

Filamentous algae can be very persistent and troublesome. In the most severe cases, where the algae forms large floating mats or colonies, the lower parts of the algal mass begins to decompose through lack of light and creates an unpleasant smelling brown or black mess. One of the most annoying aspects of blanketweed is that it often grows freely in a pond that otherwise has completely clear water. Filamentous algae rarely accompanies suspended algae in the same pond.

When looking at the overall control of algae by natural means, it is the submerged aquatics that provide much of the solution. Their main task is to mop up nutrients in the water and to release oxygen during the day to sustain fish and other aquatic life. By removing excess nutrients from the water, they deprive green water-discolouring algae of the opportunity of becoming established. When planting a garden pond allow one bunch of submerged plants for every square foot of water surface area.

Green algae-laden water can also be controlled by the amount of light that is permitted to fall into the pond. Algae, like most other aquatic plants, must have full uninterrupted sunlight in order to prosper. Planting trees and shrubs to shade the pond is ill-advised as this will prevent the desirable plants like waterlilies and marginal aquatics from growing properly and will have an adverse effect upon their floral display. The solution is to provide shade on the surface of the water by means of floating plants and waterlily pads. These should not cover the entire pond, for cutting out the light completely beneath the water will cause the submerged plants to perish. No more than one third of the surface area of open water should be covered with foliage if green suspended algae is to be controlled successfully and submerged plants permitted to grow freely.

Philip Swindells has over 40 years gardening experience. A former botanical garden curator and an international horticultural consultant, he has worked extensively in the UK, North America, the Middle East and Australia. The Author of more than 50 gardening books, he has been awarded a Quill and Trowel Award by the Garden Writers’ Association of America. He is also a former UK Garden Writer of the Year. He is currently editor of http://www.internationalwatergardener.com.

Make Space

Clear out excess furniture and accessories from the interior of your home as much as possible. If a piece of furniture is too big for the room, or is crowding the room, put it in storage, have a garage sale, or give it to a deserving charity.

This also goes for decorations, oversized stuffed animals, and other items that you may have collected over the years. Anything that takes up space should be considered, and if it’s not necessary, you’ll want to clear it out.

Nothing is more effective at opening up a house than getting rid of clutter. It will look immeasurably more spacious without all of your extra things in the way.

Go through your house and clear off all of the horizontal surfaces, kitchen counters, and bathroom countertops.

This means that you won’t be leaving any magazines, knick-knacks, or other various items to add to a cluttered appearance in your home. Either pack them or get rid of them in some other way.

Pay special attention to keeping hallways and doorways clear. Not only will this make people feel that you have a spacious home, if you’re considering selling, they can easier imagine their own things inside of it.

About The Author

Bill Sault is a life long do-it-yourselfer and webmaster at www.easyhometips.com.

info@easyhometips.com

Recently I posted a couple of articles on my blog that discussed the new products that were being introduced at February’s International Homebuilder’s Tradeshow in Orlando, and how they will ultimately change the way new homes are built in the future. (See: http://www.stlagent.com for these articles).

Some of the products are novelty items (like a magnetic chalkboard door), some are trendy (like a built-in coffee machine), but some will truly change the landscape of new home construction for years to come by addressing issues like environmental changes (such as the plethora of recycled products designed to reduce builder’s consumption of wood).

But to really understand many of these new products and why their development is important, you have to look at the underlying changes in our society and culture that drives their inventions.

Steel, for example, was invented to build skyscrapers which could house the hordes of people cramming into America’s cities during the industrial revolution of the 19th century. Cookie-cutter subdivisions and timesaving construction materials like drywall came into play during the post-war housing boom of the 1950’s which demanded homes be built cheap and quick. And what of the past few years? I wrote earlier about the many recycled products that are coming to market, but another cultural change that is shaping the design and construction of homes from luxury to low end is our cultural desire to be WIRED.

Today’s new homes feature a dizzying array of cabling, wiring, and jacks. As recently as 30 years ago, the average new construction home would have only been wired for one or two rotary-dial telephones, a mast antenna for picking up the local TV channels, and perhaps an intercom system in the occasional luxury home. Today cable TV and telephone jacks are a virtual requirement in every room of the house and many homes are coming standard with high-speed Ethernet connectivity for the Internet. Add to that wiring for built-in stereo speakers, intercom systems, and video security cameras that even a modest homeowner can afford to buy, and the typical new construction home can have as much wiring as NASA’s Mission Control!

“Our customer’s demands for technology has changed the way we build homes,” says Jack Cavanagh, owner of St. Louis based Highland Homes. “If you had told me 10 years ago I was going to be including a TV and a computer router with every home I made, I would have told you that you were nuts. Yet that’s exactly what we are doing today. A 42-inch Plasma TV comes standard hanging on the wall of our living rooms connected to a datacenter in the basement that supports everything out there– from multiple phone lines to high speed internet, satellite and cable TV, security cameras and alarms, wireless networking, and built-in stereo speakers.”

“A few years ago,” Cavanagh adds, “you didn’t sweat running a couple of phone lines– it was an afterthought. Today, it’s an important part of the design and construction phase just like running plumbing or electricity. We also have to stay up on what’s new out there because you can find yourself setting on a house that people don’t want because it’s missing wireless or some other new thing.”

Fourteen million households now have high-definition televisions. Products like TiVo, which records TV shows on a hard drive, and PC’s with high speed network capabilities to download and play audio and video files will replace the VCR and DVD players of today– blurring the lines between technologies and putting an even greater demand on our home network. The only thing that appears to limit the needs for greater wiring solutions in future new home construction is the rampant advancement of wireless networking.

Nation’s Building News Online (http://www.nbnnews.com), reports in an article titled, “Structured Wiring Among Technological Advances Transforming the American Home,” that home connectivity is, “one of the fastest growing trends in home technology.”

So, what does the wired home of tomorrow have in store for you? For every gimmicky refrigerator with a built-in TV, there are real innovations that will change the homeownership experience. Computer controlled water heaters and furnaces that send out e-mail alerts over your home network when there is a malfunction or filter that needs changed may sound trivial until you are setting in a freezing home on a cold January with a broken furnace.

Once the network is in place, connecting the “odd-ball” appliances like the furnace and water heater becomes a minor expense. Computer automation of heating, cooling, and lighting-controls can produce dramatic energy savings by using the home PC we already own- which makes putting a solution in place easy and affordable.

About The Author

Darin “Sid” Cameron currently works for the STLagent Team of Real Estate Consultants in St Louis, MO. His website is http://www.stlagent.com, where he co-publishes the St Louis Real Estate Blog. He also moderates the St Louis Community Forum Message Board at: http://www.stlagent.com/forum.

© STLagent.com 2005

Artificial grass has recently become a prominent talking point within the landscaping world. The reason? This time it has a memory! The latest generation artificial grass is said to have no need for sand in fill, and will continuously spring right back to its original up right position as soon as there is no weight on it.

Artificial grass has become a higher profile product in the landscaping world over the last few years mainly as an option for the shaded garden or lawn or a lawn which is prone to flooding.

Previous attempts at realistic artificial grass have fallen short, but that is about to change. The latest generation product has a fibre surface that is a mixture of different greens; and this makes it far more like a newly cut lawn.

In the past, particularly with a small sample, artificial grass always looked unrealistic. The fitter would explain that sand must go on top of the surface and this is what would help the grass to stand up and mirror the look of natural grass.

Other benefits gained from not having to fill the artificial surface with sand will be the time saved by not having to spread the sand and re- spread it at various times of the year when the lawn starts to look flat. The price of the overall job when the cost of the sand is included, can soon mount up too, as well as the fact that the lawn is far quicker to lay if you do not have to spread the sand as well.

Artificial grass has applications such as in children’s play areas which might otherwise get very muddy and where wear and tear will be high because of frequent use. Other applications will include commercial developments where maintenance of ‘real ‘grass is an issue, because of cost implications. In the domestic environment it can also be useful in roof top gardens and terraces, for example. If you are planning on re-turfing your garden, you might want to to check out the artificial grass solutions offered by QGrass Ltd first, it looks great, it’s far easier to look after, and will save a fortune in the long run.

Of course, artificial grass also comes into its own where grass is difficult to maintain in good condition because of climate. Ideal applications of artificial grass is on particular areas of golf courses, for example, where continual watering is needed to keep real grass in good condition. So golf courses in countries such as Spain, Portugal and Dubai would also no doubt benefit from using the latest quality artificial grass.

Artificial grass also absorbs water as part of the drying process and allows the water to drain into the soil underneath, so there is no significant water ‘run off’ from the grass.

In other words, your lawn will end up perfect - not muddy and not a barren desert, and all with virtually zero maintenance.

It doesn’t get any better than that in my book.

Spring time comes and with it comes the time to plant your garden. Garden tips range from the type of soil to plant in to ways to water your plants in order to get a full yield.However, when planting grape tomato seeds, the main garden tip is to plant them in a container inside. This will help keep them warm and give them a safe growing environment.

The best garden tip for planting sweet grape tomatoes is to prepare the soil properly. Using a good soil is essential and it doesn’t hurt to beef it up a bit. Depending upon where you live, soil can range anywhere from very fertile to don’t plant here dirt. When living in an area that has dirt that is not ideal for planting, go to a garden store and ask what type of soil they advise. The more fertile the soil, the better the plants will grow. If organic grape tomatoes are what you seek, using ordinary potting soil and an indoor container will keep the insects away and will make the tomatoes pesticide free.

Container gardening will help those who live in apartments or houses without large yards grow tomatoes indoors. These containers range from the average flower pot to multi-plant containers that can hold up to a dozen small plants. Another form of container gardening is to rent or buy a hydroponics system to grow your tomatoes in water. Growing grape tomatoes in a hydroponics system guarantees a completely organic, juicy, and super sweet grape tomatoes. The only problem with using a hydroponics system is finding a way to prop growing tomato plants up while they scale to new heights.

The greatest garden tip that you’ll ever receive is to water your plants. The more water that a tomato contains, the more watering it will need. Tomatoes are approximately ninety percent water and if they are not watered enough they will end up being shriveled and sour. No one likes a sour grape tomato, so keep your tomatoes warm and the soil wet and you’ll have super sweet grape tomatoes growing in no time.

Mark Kessler is a contributing editor to Debbys Garden Tips offering Gardening Tips Information, Links & Advice, Design Tips & Techniques, How to Plant & Grow Guide, Annual Flowers, Perennials, Specialty Gardening Tips, Tuberose, Growing Flowers and Planting Bulbs in your state.

There are few things more exciting for gardeners at this time of year than dreaming of new plants. I’ll focus on a few of the better plants in the next few weeks but let’s start with the best example of new breeding.

Our old North American native friend Echinacea or purple coneflower is really letting loose this coming spring. The work of several major plant-breeding houses is coming to the market and while the plants will be expensive, they are wonderful. The double flowering ‘Razzmatazz’ with its double pink flowers are quite hardy as well as gorgeous. It will be complemented by ‘Doppelganger’ a coneflower that puts one blossom right on top of the first, resembling an apartment of flowers rather than a single bloom. Note that this double-decker flower usually comes into its own in the second year. This one has caught the imagination of the nursery trade almost as much as ‘Sparkler’ a variegated leaf coneflower. The variegation in ‘Sparkler’ is flecked throughout the leaf while the variegation in the equally new ‘Prairie Frost’ is a broad band of cream around each leaf.

I’m also looking forward to having ‘Fragrant Angel’ in my garden as its large white blooms are extremely fragrant. Add the ‘Rocky Top Hybrids’ to this list of coneflowers (mauve flowers and compact growth) and you have an entire menu of new Echinacea to find this coming summer. Two dwarf plants ‘Kim’s Mophead’ and ‘Kim’s Knee High’ will find themselves in my clay pots along with the ‘Rocky Top Hybrids’.

Echinacea ‘Big Sky Sunrise’ has soft lemon-yellow blooms and is a knock out plant in my garden while its cousin ‘Big Sky Sunset’ has wide, very bright orange petals. These are both plants to watch for and pay the price. Hardy in my zone 4 garden.

Plant all these in full sun in well-drained soils and you’ll enjoy them for years. They’re trouble free and easy to grow plants!

Doug Green, award winning garden author with 7 books published, answers gardening questions in his free newsletter at http://www.gardening-tips-perennials.com

There are a wide variety of comforters to choose from. In
choosing a comforter or comforter set that’s right for your
sleeping quarters and you, there are things to consider.

Silk Comforters - are whats considered a luxury comforter.
Today being more health conscious, many people are choosing silk
comforters because there soft and luxurious. Silk duvets are
also hypoallergenic and not attractive to dust mites. So those
that are allergic or chemically sensitive, the silk comforter is
an excellent choice.

Down Comforter - usually filled with duck or goose feathers in
a cotton shell. The down comforter is warm in the winter but hot
in the summer. The higher the fill count the softer and warmer
the comforter. Goose feathers provide a softer feeling than duck
feathers. Make sure you check to make sure that the thread count
on the shell is high to prevent feathers from protruding through
the shell.

Synthetic Down Comforters - are also hypoallergenic and
simulate the feel and softness of real down. The benefit to
synthetic down is laundering unlike real down it is low
maintenance and easy to wash.

Cotton Comforter - is a 100% cotton fill and shell. Cotton
does not provide a light feeling. If you like something heavy on
top then this is an excellent choice. A cotton comforter breaths
so they are best used in warm weather. Insulating properties are
not like the down and silk comforters.

Please keep in mind that the right comforter might just keep you
in bed all day.

Any flower or plant will require a good amount of looking after, none more so then the orchid. The orchid is a tender flower that must be carefully looked after for maximum growth potential. The orchid must be planted correctly, with the right feed, the lights must be correct, and temps must also be accurate. After all that you must know when and how to water the orchid. All of this is worth it for the simple beauty an Orchid can provide.

Low light is necessary for certain orchids to grown and mature. The orchids that will need low light are called warm weather orchids. Typically they should be put in a place in the house that isn’t too sunny. Warm weather orchids are usually the Paphiopedilum or Lady Slipper, Phananelposis, and the Oncidium. These orchids should be behind the curtains, blinds, or even in a corner of the house. The leaves of the orchid should be a bright green color, if the color is different it probably means the orchid is getting either too much, or not enough light.

Another set of Orchids need larger amounts of light, these orchids are called high light orchids. The high light orchids are ones that grow best with plenty of sun light, so you most likely want to place them in direct view of the sun in your house. The high light orchids are also healthy when they have the vivid green color leaves, if the color is off it probably means they need more light. The high light orchids are called the Cattleya, Dendrobium, and Vanda.

Temperatures must fluctuate for each type of orchid in order for it to stay healthy. Static temperatures, like you would find in an incubator will hurt, and eventually kill orchids. Temperatures should range from 80 degrees during the day, to as low as 55 degrees during the evening hours. In order for the orchid to bloom it needs to store carbohydrate energy during the day, to survive the cold nights. If it is able to do this it will blossom into a robust flower full of color.

Make sure to water the orchids early in the day so they are able to dry out by night. Orchids are tender flowers when it comes to watering and must be treated carefully in order to achieve the best results possible. Orchids should be watered as early in the morning as possible to gain the best chance for dry out by evening.

The type of water used with orchids is extremely important. Orchids are best fit for rain water, because tap water typically has chemicals in it such as chlorine. Rain water will help the orchids reach its full growth potential each day, without compromising its colors, and natural beauty.

Clark Covington is a successful author who provides information for Gift of the Month Clubs. Find more on orchids and flowers in our flower of the month club and plant of the month club sections.

A beautiful garden doesn’t start with going to the garden center and purchasing plants and seeds. It starts with assessing your soil and inspecting your chosen gardening landscape before any planting ever begins.

In order to have a healthy, productive garden you need to get down to the basics - your soil. Time and effort must be spent in improving the quality of your soil conditions first or you’ll be wasting time, money and a lot of energy trying to get anything to grow well.

What Constitutes “Healthy Soil”?

There are five main components that make up any patch of soil:

• mineral particles
• organic materials
• living organisms (worms, bugs, etc.)
• air (hot, humid, arid, etc.)
• water (hard, soft, etc.)

Depending on the region that you live in, these components will vary in the proportions currently found in your soil. You will need to adjust some of these components to the proper proportions for your area zone and chosen garden plants in order to have healthy soil.

The texture of your soil also plays an important role in regards to your garden. Soil types fall into three categories:

Sandy soil - Water drains quickly through this type of soil, which means that your plants may not have enough time to absorb as much water as they really need. If your soil is sandy, it will be very light, sift through your fingers, and be easy to cultivate.

Clay soil - Many of us are familiar with this type of soil. It’s heavy and hard to work through. When you ball it up in your fist, it forms a hard lump. Water tends to pool and takes a much longer time to drain away. This can cause root rot to your plants.

Loam - This is the best soil that you want to have in your garden. Easy to work with, it also holds moisture without pooling water.

Checking Soil pH Levels

One other thing that many gardeners also fail to check on is the pH level of the soil. Depending on the types of species you intend to plant in your garden, you need to be aware that some plants have preferences for certain growing conditions. Certain plants require an alkanline soil, while others require an acidic soil. The pH of the soil needs to be compatable with the requirements of the flower, bush or tree that you are planting, otherwise they won’t receive the proper nutrients to grow well.

About The Author

Rose Smith owns GardensFromJapan.com To discover additional tips about how to improve garden soil conditions, as well as how to create your own Japanese Garden space, visit: http://www.gardensfromjapan.com/articles.shtml

In an effort to introduce a shaft of sunlight into a particularly gloomy conversation, I recently asked a gardening acquaintance of mine to explain the difference between a slug and a snail.

For the next twelve minutes and seven seconds, this horticultural monomaniac held forth on the most minute and inconsequential differences between gastropod molluscs with rudimentary or no shells and gastropod molluscs with well developed spiral or whorled shells. When he finally ran out of breath, I swallowed hard, took three precautionary steps backwards, and told him that a slug is a snail that can’t afford a mortgage.

Instead of smiling as I had done when I had first unearthed this daft definition in a dog-eared copy of ‘The Readers Digest’ (dentist’s waiting room edition), he ground his dentures together, cracked his calloused knuckles, and growled so raucously that the button almost exploded from his collar.

He went on to catalogue in some detail the manifold acts of vandalism perpetrated by these ‘horticultural thugs’ who, he said, spend their entire daylight hours skulking plumply under stones, ruminating darkly on last night’s grim destruction and this night’s planned assaults.

He proceeded to ridicule the ‘green-wellied wimps’ who nightly sprinkle little handfuls of slug pellets around vulnerable flowers and vegetables; and the poor drunkard who meanders home each night clutching a bottle of beer with which to entice and drown the occasional slug foolish enough to mistake his little beer traps for hospitality vats.

‘I have suffered enough from the same blasted slugs over the years without starting to buy drink for them,’ he said. ‘There’s only one answer to those brutes…all out military action!’

His eyes grew incandescent with malevolent glee as he described his nightly sorties into the flowerbeds and lettuce patches where, armed with a commando style torch and a jumbo-sized barrel of table salt, he would venture forth in search of the enemy…..a lethal avalanche of sodium chloride cascading inexorably on the masticating molluscs …

‘O little slug thy hapless play my thoughtless hand has swept away.’

‘I have suffered enough from the same blasted slugs over the years without starting to buy drink for them,’ he said. ‘There’s only one answer to those brutes…all out military action!’

Grinning maliciously, he described in graphic detail a fiendish plan, which he had been working on in the privacy of his horticultural bunker. I cannot recall the preliminary tactical manoeuvres, but remember that they culminated in him leaping gymnastically from the top of a hawthorn hedge and landing squarely on an unsuspecting black slug just as it was about to devour an equally unsuspecting French marigold.

Chilled to the marrow by his demonic laugh, I suddenly remembered that I had parked on a double yellow line. So, wishing him well, I vaulted over his rustic fence and fled.

On my way home, I pictured him somersaulting and cartwheeling hysterically among the broad beans and the brassicas as he celebrated each decisive victory over those diminutive moonlight marauders.

While walking through our local market some months ago, I caught sight of a particularly ostentatious display of French marigolds. Acting on impulse, I purchased three dozen and planted them out that evening. On the following morning I went out into the garden to admire the results of my debut as Capability Brown Mark 11.

Would you believe it? My proud marigolds had vanished! Yes, totally! All except three pathetic looking survivors with broken necks and tattered stems. On closer inspection, I discovered the unmistakable, tell - tale slime trails leading triumphantly into the adjoining hedgerow. As one gardening writer described them: “The obscene graffiti of a night’s destruction… adding insult to injury.”

Apoplectic with rage, I was looking around for something to kick hard and often when suddenly, through the thick black smoke and suffocating stench of mental cordite, I conjured up the image of my gardening friend with his beaming torch and his gigantic barrel of table salt.

“Then seek your job with thankfulness and work till further orders, If it’s only netting strawberries or killing slugs on borders.”

With these inspirational words of Kipling ringing loud in my ears, that night I too joined the ranks of the horticultural storm-troopers and sallied forth armed and ready to slug it out with that ghastly gardening gastropod : The Slug.

‘Slugging It Out In The Trenches’ is taken from ‘Apples on a Sunny Shelf’. See: http://www.assignmentsplus.com/garden-pests.html

Gerard McLoughlin, Director of Assignments Plus Publications http://www.assignmentsplus.com, is the author of ‘Apples on a Sunny Shelf’,
a collection of essays first broadcast by Radio Television Eireann (Ireland’s national broadcaster) on the popular ‘Sunday Miscellany’ series.