Tag Archives: transplant

May17

Getting a Head start

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Hello All,

Well I have a special event for you next week. Yep it’s a secret until the end of this article in which I will reveal my master plan.

For this article it will be short and sweet. Actually I should have been teaching this about 4 weeks ago. Long story short I had a mix up in my order and I am now just getting my seeds but I am sticking with the plan regardless.

I wanted to show you that you can start your own seeds and grow your own plants instead of buying them from a nursery. That is if you enjoy and have the time to do this. I love my little babies and find it a blessing that I can start them by seed and transplant them afte the danger of frost.

Most people put seeds right in the garden memorial day weekend. That the old golden rule and it works but I like to give mine a bit of a head start. Usually 6-8 weeks.

I have invested in the these containers that I use year after year, they only cost approx. 3 dollars at Kmart and plants 72 plants!

You can gift some of the little guys to your friends! How fun is that?!

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First you want to partially fill them with this media. It is Miracle grow and it expands to be about twice of what it looks like. It is a bit pricier but it has a lot of benefits.

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It holds up to 50 % more moisture than regular dirt and it also feeds the plant up to 6 months. It special media also provides more air for the roots to grow quickly and establish a good foundation.

Add water to get the media to expand! 1 to 1 ratio.

Start putting in the seeds of choice. Usually I will put 2-3 seeds in a container because not all of them will grow and if they all do grow you can split them a part very easily. If they are larger seed like pumpkin or zucchini then I just put one seed in each compartment.

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Once you have them all in place then I go to work and spread them over with potting soil, pack them down. Or as I say “Tuck them into bed”.

 Water them again to get them started. Then I put the cover over. Perfect for holding moisture in while they germinate. I use a grow light when it is still too cold to put them out doors. You can purchase them pretty inexpensively but if you have a good window that gets at least 6 hours of sunlight that is efficient enough.

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 Voila! After a few weeks you will have this to plant in the next project! Garden boxes! I live in Clay. CLAY I tell ya…makes for a great foundation for the house but to grow anything in; it is near impossible!

So I have decided to make a Raised Garden this year. I plan to plant a wonderful vegetable garden. Our next project will be how to build a Raised garden bed! Hopefully in video form for the very first time. So everyone say a prayer for me; I am going to need it because I am just not the best with this fancy Media stuff. I am so excited to try this!

Who knows, maybe canning in the fall with Maria our expert in the kitchen. The sky is the limit with God’s Girls!

Have fun and Praise Him while you are planting.

 Have a wonderful weekend and blessings to all.

Girl Firday- Mischele Makhlouf

May10

How to Split Perrenials

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Hello Everyone! Now is a good time to get in the gardens and split some perennials. I took this picture of the flowers on my friends Magnolia tree. It is simply gorgeous. Don’t you just love spring when everything is beginning to look green and spring flowers are everywhere. It is a very beautiful world we live in!

We decided to move some Lilly’s they tend to multiple quite quickly. First we got the area we are transplanting them in prepped so the little guys won’t be out of the environment too long.

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We have a huge are of day Lilly that we are going to thin out. First of all you are going to need a Garden pitch fork, Shovel and gloves (see pictures below)

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Isn’t my girlfriends garden beautiful?!

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Pitch fork! Using 2 of them back to back is the best way to split the roots without breaking them. 

Yep this is me playing in the dirt!

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First you want to shove your fork in underneath the plant and try to loosen the clump from all sides then you want to gently pop it out of the ground.

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Once it is out of the ground, you can either pull it gently apart or use the forks to separate them into 2 or 3 individual plants. For Hosta’s that don’t separate as easily I use a spade shove and just cut them in half or thirds. It is actually healthy for the plant because then they don’t get deceased or root bound and die.

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Lilly’s do not require a very deep hole, dig a nice deep hole so you have some nice loose dirt in the bottom for the roots to take. 

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Place your plant in the hole and start covering it with dirt. If it is really hot you may want to water it at the base to help it along.

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Voila! you are all set!  Of course they won’t be the only things we add in here. These lilies get pretty tall and will provide a beautiful back drop for the lower plants we will be adding in the front. As you are transplanting keep in mind the amount of sun the need. Splitting perennials is best done in the spring before the plant flowers and fall after the plant flowers (if they flower). For fun, I will try to update you in a future article just to show you how beautiful this area will be by the time we get it all planted and mulched. Speaking of much, it is a pretty in expensive way to keep the weeds down as well as keeping moisture in over the plant. It looks great too! 

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I also wanted to share this beautiful plant with you it is a Crown plant she had in her garden and I was amazed with the color and how large the flower is and how tall it stands. I have never seen one before so it was exciting to learn about something new. It looks like something from the tropics. I find it really cool that it is a perennial that can reside here in Michigan. 

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Hope you guys enjoy the weather and have fun in the garden. God blessed us with all these beautiful flowers, try to take time out to enjoy. If you have the opportunity this summer take a garden tour. You will be amazed and what you can learn by just participating. I used to volunteer for the Libraries annual garden tour and really help me get started on my own gardens. 

Have a great week! Happy Mothers Day to all the gals out there!

Girl Friday

Mischele Makhlouf