Potting Plants

Growing inside an alpine house in a three inch pot this “Leucogenes Leontopodium” is also called the New Zealand Edelweiss. It is a herby plant similar to its European Edelweiss cousins. In the Northern Hemisphere I expect this plant will produce white flowers around June.

Leucogenes Leontopodium is a small perennial herb with a woody base. The leaves are densely covered in silky hairs giving it a grey appearance. Clusters of flowers are surrounded by woolly bracts in summer.

Leucogenes grandiceps is a similar plant from the South Island of New Zealalnd

Leontopodium alpinum or Edelweiss grows amongst the rocky limestone mountains of Europe. The plants can be grown from seed but are protected when in the wild.

Outdoor containers made from terracotta or pottery need to be frost proof to avoid cracking. It is also advisable to lift them off the ground so they do not freeze to the path. A hard frost can see the base left behind when the pot is moved. To prevent this you can buy small pot feet, put the container up on bricks or stand it on some gravel or bubble wrap.

Winter Container Care Tips
Keep winter containers out of cold drying wind for the best results. Any shelter will be appreciated by plants that have to do battle with winter conditions.
Winter can often have dry spells so keep an eye on pots that may need some watering. This is also true of pots under roofs and eaves.
I like to use a woooden tub or half barrel and start by lining the container with a few bits of broken flowerpot or polystyrene for drainage.
Plant pre-grown bulbs before adding the other plants with trailing plants at the edge of the container. You can bury small pots in a larger container and change them as necessary.
Plants grow more slowly in winter so pack them in fairly close together to get a quick effect.
If you have special plants that do not like their crowns to get wet put a glass cover over the pot.

Even red leaved plants will photosynthesize. Pigments such as the red anthocyanins will mask the green chlorophyll pigments of some plants. Usually it is is the chlorophyll which is the stronger colour hence the green which predominates but not in these cases. Later in the season chlorophyll breaks down which then allows the other colours to show through. This provides one reason for the Autumn colours in many trees and shrubs.

This Begonia Rex is grown for its strongly coloured foliage and the spikes of light blue/white flowers are inconsequential. They can be propagated by leaf cutting, rooting in water or perlite. As house plants begonias like high humidity. There are many interesting Hybrid Begonias with red leaves and they do look a bit different when massed in the garden or grown indoors as a house plant.

We are covered in snow and the small local roads are blocked. At least the snow is providing a blanket for the early spring bulbs to continue developing. One of my favouirite blooms is that of the Iris in this case grown from a bulb. Later on the rhizomas varieties will also add colour to the garden but in the meantime I eagerly anticipate the arrival of my Iris.

The outer petals are called the falls and on some varieties the ‘beard’ shows here with small hairs. The upright part are the ‘Standard’ which are most striking on Flag Iris.

Since Jackson already has a boggling array of presents under the tree from friends and family we decided to make him a present this year (well sort of). A cafe in town has a cute little train set that has been glued to a table top to make a train set. He loves it!

So I thought I would replicate it and make one for him for Christmas. I started to search for a suitable table and found this 70s coffee table at the farmers market for £9 (with free delivery I might add!). Perfect.

Then we painted it. Red for the base (because that’s what colour his room is) and green for the top because our train will be travelling through the countryside! Next we found a basic wooden train set. This John Crane set was perfect because it had houses and people and animals as well as track and a complete train. That was £20. Then we stuck it all down with wood glue.

It works like a dream.

Not that we’ve been playing with it or anything. I think he’ll like it. And the best part about it? It’s not plastic, we had a great time working on it and when he’s bored with it we can freecycle it. It’s a veritable eco-toy.

We’ve had some snow at mtp (hooray!). Not a whole lot but enough to get me worried about my Broccoli. So last night I threw a fleece over them. This morning it was like waking up to the three spirits out of A Christmas Carol. A bit spooky!

Underneath their blanket though they’re bearing it well. A little droopy but nothing some winter sun won’t fix. Come on Broccoli!

There are many opinions as to what is the right kind of indoor herb garden light that you should use for a garden inside the house. Basically, you have two choices which to be most effective in assisting the growth of herb garden plants.

1. Fluorescent Grow Lights:

It is one of the most recognizable of indoor herb garden lighting. Fluorescent lamps help to promote herb growth by providing white lights that is similar to sun light. White light promotes photosynthesis allowing indoor plants to grow in outdoor conditions.

Fluorescent lamps are mostly used in seedling of herbs because the intensity of fluorescent light is low. However, low intensity light is also best for indoor herbs which are usually low growing herbs.

Another reason why fluorescent grow light is a popular indoor herb garden light is because of their better energy efficiency. They also have longer life span compared to other grow lights.

2. HPS or High Pressure Sodium Lamps:

High pressure sodium lamps have incredible efficiency in light output and high durability. Because high pressure sodium lamps are capable of providing blue lights that plants require to grow naturally, they are often the preferred indoor herb garden light.

Herbs grown under HPS are know to produce larger harvest and higher quality herbs. High pressure sodium herb garden light helps plants grow more quickly.

Although HPS grow lights are the preferred indoor herb garden light by many gardeners, there are also some disadvantages to using it.

High pressure sodium lamps produce more heat as compared to other indoor grow lights. And because of this herbs tends to grow taller and leggier. Herb grown under HPS lamps when not taken proper care can look pale and unhealthy. This can be taken of by using reflectors.

Plants require light as well as darkness for optimum growth and good health. For indoor herb gardening, the amount of lighting depends on what types of herbs you grow. To determine the right indoor herb garden light for your plants, it is necessary to understand your helps. Period.