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Saturday, August 13, 2011

Gladiolus beauty


Botanical Name: Gladiolus nanus

Description: Very pretty! Nymph produces flower stalks with loosely arranged satiny white blossoms with red lipstick markings on three of the six petals. Also very hardy. Given a little winter protection, plants will reappear next spring. Nymph grows 20 to 25 inches tall, blooms July into August. Elegant cut flowers.

Monday, May 23, 2011

Mandevilla For Gardena


How To Grow Mandevilla


Plant madevillas in full sun or partial shade in a prepared container. Full sun is best for flower production. Provide well-drained, sandy soil amended with humus. Being a climber, this vine can be trained on a trellis or frame.

Pinch the stems of small plants to produce a bushier look and water consistently for adequate moisture.

Feed with a balanced liquid fertilizer at regular intervals during the summer.

Keep the plant outside until the nights begin to cool down in the fall. At this time use a liquid fertilizer with a high phosphorus content. Wait about 3 weeks, then prune the vine to 1 foot above the soil line.

Bring inside to a sunny area and cut back on watering, letting the soil stay a little dry. Don't look for much growth during the winter. You are just trying to maintain the plant. Move it back outside in the spring after freeze danger is over.

Take cuttings in summer and dust the stems with rooting hormone to start new plants. They will root within a few weeks and be ready to grow in a container.