Skyfarming High In The Sky And Bee Nest Boxes

hughe — Wed, 11 May 2011 09:29:24 +0000

“Why garden high in the sky?” asks Linnea Due writing in the East Bay Express. The obvious answer is to increase the growing area by making maximum use of the space. Mind you to describe it as “high in the sky” is somewhat of an exaggeration when what the article goes on to discuss is using a trellis or other form of support on a wall or fence. But the author has a good point when she suggests that your crops will be easier to inspect when they are at eye level. They will also be less likely to suffer from pests when growing up in the air and not lying on the ground.

For Linnea Due the reasons are not just practical: “But to me, the best excuse for going up is aesthetic. Trellises, arches, hanging baskets, and the like add texture, varying focal points, and hidden nooks to an otherwise flat-as-a-pancake landscape. Once you try vertical gardening in your yard (it’s a must on a balcony, where space is premium), I guarantee you’ll never go back to ground level”. Read more..

For a real “high in the sky” experience you will have to visit the Chelsea Flower Show later this month. Skyfarming is the description given to this nine meter tall tower growing system. One wall is covered with plants while the others support solar panels which provide electricity to power the water pumps that push water from a borehole round the hydroponic growing system. Inside the tower, along with the stairs are greenhouse areas for propagation, and a compost chute. There is even an insect hotel with ninety bedrooms. Read more..

Bee nest boxes are a waste of time according to a recent study carried out by the University of Stirling. In the UK bumblebee nest boxes have become the must-have accessory for gardeners keen to help wildlife. But over a four year study not a single commercial nest box “became occupied or showed any sign of inhabitation” according to the report. The study involved the placing of 736 nest boxes in gardens and farms in southern England and central Scotland. Over the period of the study an average of only 23 nest boxes were used by bees, just over 3 per cent of the total. Read more..

Vertical Gardening, Garden Designers And Giant Veggies

hughe — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 11:51:00 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

Vertical gardening is not a new idea. Garden writers have for many years suggested that people with small courtyard gardens should make the most of the space by growing climbing plants up the walls and fences bounding their property. But new forms of vertical gardening are emerging. Some like the “green wall” covered with ferns are dramatic, but not really practical for the average home garden. Others can be both creative and highly practical serving both as a feature and useful to cover items that you wish to hide like unsightly sheds, air-conditioning units, utility poles, and fences. In her piece in the Philadephia Enquirer, Virginia A. Smith describes how “Vertical plants and props also earn their keep as architectural statements and problem-solvers. They offer what designers call “exclamation points” in otherwise flat landscapes”. Read more..

If you have suffered from the brown marmorated stink bug, help may be at hand. Research at at a laboratory in Newark is developing a possible biological control. A tiny parasitic wasp may be able to nip the stink bug explosion in the bud by preying on stink bug eggs. Read more..

I always enjoy reading about garden designers and I found these two articles about two very different characters. Lancelot Capability Brown the sixteenth century landscape designer revolutionised the landscapes of the great English estates. He removed flowerbeds surrounded by box hedging and what he considered fussy objects that restricted the view. He invented the ha-ha as a replacement for the wall so that you could have an uninterrupted view of the landscape. Read more..

Diarmuid Gavin, a 46 year old from Dublin hates neatly clipped lawns, clusters of pretty roses and a few bumpy rockeries thrown in for good measure. He has built a reputation on his experimental gardening style – and the forceful personality that’s seen him clash with colleagues in the gardening world. “To be honest, a lot of people in the business tend to get along better with their plants and flowers than they do with other people” he says. Read more..

And finally two giant veg stories. First 9-year-old Austin Davis from Charleston, W Virginia and his twenty-one pound cabbage and Panhandle man Sam Pittman with his 8-pound turnip. No picture for this one and it was too tough to eat!

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Skyfarming High In The Sky And Bee Nest Boxes

Vertical Gardening, Garden Designers And Giant Veggies