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Small ponds provide a number of the very same benefits as a sizable body of water, but without taking up a great deal of room. Adding plants to the pond will create a balanced ecosystem while providing hiding places, food and nesting areas. If the small pond receives six to eight hours or more of sunlight, then pick pond plants that thrive in full sunlight. Marginal Plants Some species of grasslike aquatic plants grow best in the borders or margin of small ponds. Needle spikerush (Eleocharis acicularis) and corcksrew rush (Juncus effusus spiralis) are just two such marginal plants that won’t overtake the small pond with large leaf. Needle spikerush — sometimes called dwarf hairgrass — rises to only about 8 inches tall in shallow water or along the edge of slopes. It provides shelter and protection for tadpoles and small fish. It grows in full sunlight in U.S. Department…

Vines serve many purposes in the landscape and are often valued for their ability to add grace and beauty to a fence. A vine-covered fence provides a degree of solitude for an outdoor space or breaks the monotony of a long, unsightly fence. Typically classified by their scaling habit, vines grow up a fence by clinging, twining or tendrils. Clinging Clinging vines may require a little bit of help initially, as the vines climb by small rootlets that attach themselves to the timber. Once the vine is established, it rises a fence with no advice. Vines suitable for growing a fence comprise Armand’s clematis (Clematis armandii), a hardy perennial vine valued for its stunning blooms. Armand’s clematis, suitable for growing in U.S. Department of Agriculture zones 3 through 9, reaches heights of 15 to 20 feet at maturity. Cross vine (Bignonia capreolata) is a showy vine with trumpet-shaped blooms that…

Erosion is one of the banes of home gardening. Often thought of as a phenomenon which affects beaches and hillsides, vandalism also eliminates dirt from home gardens when conditions are appropriate. Installing shrubs, flowering plants and other plants usually helps keep dirt in place only when they have fibrous root systems. If they’ve taproot systems, your erosion-control campaigns would not have as much success — unless the taproots have extensive lateral roots. Development of Soil Erosion Soil erosion occurs when something carries away soil on a regular basis and the dirt isn’t replaced. As an instance, water may wash dirt down slopes, and wind can blow away dry dirt. The dirt within an erosion area gradually lessens over time, leaving exposed rock or such shallow layers of dirt that planting becomes hard unless topsoil is additional. When water or wind can’t be controlled, then controlling erosion requires stabilizing the dirt…

Often grown for fresh winter greens, collards (Brassica oleracea var. Acephala) can endure numerous frosts and keep producing under cold conditions which prevent other members of the Brassica familymembers. In actuality, the cool temperatures which precede frost improve the sweetness in the leaves. Collard green plants have been biennials which overwinter at U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 8 through 10, with a few varieties hardy to USDA zone 6. One Tough Vegetable With normal weather patterns, collard plants can survive temperatures down to approximately 20 degrees Fahrenheit, so long as they’re growing in well-drained soil. The exception is when a hard freeze follows a period of unusually warm weather, which does not permit the plant to acclimate gradually to lower temperatures. As the weather cools before frost, the plant converts starches in the leaves to sugars and changes the structure of their proteins. This chemical reaction gives credence…

Watching plant roots grow in transparent pots gives an intriguing look below the surface, but those clear walls do not suit all plants. Many typical potted plants grow better in nontransparent containers. For plants which naturally grow in soil, opaque pots lead to greater growth above and below ground. Sensors with light-seeking air roots, which obviously grow without soil, do nicely in containers that are clear. Soil Roots and Darkness When roots naturally grow below the soil surface, neighboring light signs they are headed the incorrect way. Like roots, roots feature growth-directing hormones known as auxins, which tell them which way to grow. In precisely the same way that upper growth on plants bends toward well-lit windows, roots naturally develop from light. They seek protective and shadow moisture rather. In transparent pots, these roots avoid light-penetrated areas of soil. Forced into high-light locations, light-sensitive roots recoil and slow or stop…

An uprooted tree, lying broken roots splayed out from the air, on its side, is a sight to get a homeowner because the root system damage spells death for the shrub. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that a direct line end of 75 to 89 miles per hour could uproot a tree, depending on the size and kind of shrub — and its own surroundings. Weather Earth is the immediate source of uprooting, called”windthrow.” Hurricanes — even severe thunderstorms contain 75-mile-plus winds. According to the new Enhanced F Scale of NOAA trees uproot in winds ranging from 73 to 112 miles, which translates into an F-0 into F-1 storm. Strip the bark or higher winds in the categories that are over and F-3 tend to snap trunks. Soil Type and illness can reduce the end requirement for windthrow significantly. Very sandy soil lets go easily than loam, and…