Posts Tagged ‘diseases’

Earwig/Perce-oreille/Tijereta

Biofloris is pleased to use today’s blog to announce that its Pest Insect section has been translated into Spanish and is now a permanent part of our Spanish blog page. 

Photo: Wikipedia

 http://www.biofloris.com/blog_es/insectos-daninos/ 

White Grub/Ver blanc/Gusano Blanco

The page presents a series of pest insects and diseases (with pictures), the damage they can do along with suggestions on how to control and even eliminate them.

http://www.biofloris.com/pests/?___store=default&SID=e31a9fc3dcfb610780db2bb3ce77f624 

Our many readers know our blog is in three languages, English, French and Spanish.  Our store is in English and French.  Our Facebook friends are from all over the world (check us out http://www.facebook.com/pages/biofloris-organic-gardening-jardinage-biologique-jardineria-ecologica/233231454061) and a great number of them are Spanish-speaking.

Mildew/Mildiou/Mildiu

Biofloris’ passion is organic gardening and we thought it important to communicate efficiently with our Spanish-speaking followers. With the Spanish Pest Insect section, many more people around the world will be able to fully understand the different pest-insect problems we address in our blogs and the solutions we recommend.

Many thanks to our Spanish translator for doing such a terrific job!

By the way, do you know of a pest insect, and a solution to get rid of it organically, that is not in our Pest Insect section? Please write to us (in the “Leave a reply” section below) and we will add it in!

Rust/Rouille/Moho

Terrie Greco, B.A.; HLT Dip.

Hope all our Canadian readers had a lovely Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving most definitely means fall and fall means winter is next. Alas, it’s time to clean up the garden and tuck it in for the winter, for those of you living in colder climate zones like me.

Did you know that it’s better to prepare roses for the winter after a bit of frost? Read the list below carefully.

8 Important things to remember when putting the garden to bed for winter:

1. A clean garden is a garden with fewer pests & diseases
2. Compost as much as possible; it’s an environmentally friendly practice
3. Cut down those perennials. Cut back stems of herbaceous plants to about 3 inches. Remove annuals
4. Top dress the garden with some compost or manure; this will protect root systems and provide a boost of energy to newly emerging plants when the spring rains come (Top dressing simply means adding a layer of  2 to 3 inches of fresh compost or composted manure on top of your garden bed)
5. Don’t cut back your ornamental grasses until spring; enjoy them throughout the winter (they provide food for wildlife and visual design interest)
6. It’s too early to put the roses to bed right now-wait until the ground has a little frost! Just trim them a bit and continue to enjoy any blooms
7. Mew the lawn one more time before storing the lawn mower
8. It is better to cover your plants with winter protection a tad later than sooner! Overheating causes humidity and thus mould. Better wait until cold weather is here to stay

Once the work is all done, why not take advantage of this time of year to read books about gardening and perhaps even take a course in horticulture to perfect your skills? It is also a good time to pay more attention to your indoor plants.

Here are some pictures I like to share at this time of year:

Cleaning decorative pots and containers in the fall

Empty any decorative containers, clean thoroughly with soap and warm water (only plastics – do not use soap on clay containers) and store over the winter.

Roses

It’s still a little early to put your roses to bed – they’ll bloom right up until the end of October!  Enjoy…

Ornamental grasses

Ornamental Grasses will provide much needed interest in the winter…don’t cut them back until spring!

October leaves on the ground

Foliage on the ground.  Good for composting.

Leaves of a Japanese Lilac in the fall

Leaves of a Japanese Lilac in the fall. Such a nice scent in the spring! 

Hydrangea in October

Hydrangea (in the wind).  Wait to cut, simply because they are so beautiful. On the other hand, you can cut a few to make for a beautiful indoor bouquet.

Hydrangea in a vase

Hydrangea in a vase

Read the rest of this entry »

Terrie Greco, B.A.; HLT Dip.

“Plant Health Care” is a pro-active or best practices approach to developing and maintaining a healthy and productive garden.

The basic concepts of Plant Health Care are: 

1)                 Selecting the right plant for the right location. Choose plant material that is a ‘good fit’ for your garden. All plants have specific light, soil and water requirements.  Getting your plants off to a good start will prevent future headaches.   

2)                 Water deeply once a week. One to two inches of water per week is recommended if there is no rainfall.  Frequent and shallow watering is detrimental to the root system. Roots have ‘memory’ and will remain shallow unless you force them to search for water in the deeper layers of the soil.

3)                 Garden sanitation. Weed and remove spent flower heads regularly. Decaying plant tissue is a perfect medium for fungal spores, and weeds will compete for available water and nutrients.

4)                 Provide good air circulation.  Pests and diseases can spread like wildfire if plants are crowded together – allow your plants the space they deserve.

5)                 Correct Pruning. The removal of diseased, damaged or dead wood does not just improve the architectural form of the plant. Fungal diseases can establish themselves very easily in damaged wood, while wounds in bark and ragged branch cuts are prime real estate for insects to lay eggs.

6)                 Amend your soil. Add organic matter every season to your soil.  This will prevent compaction, regulate soil temperature and retain moisture in the root zone.