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Trump Still Wants to Keep Syria’s "Beautiful Babies" Out of the US

by DenishaKintore Posted on April 7, 2017

Mother Jones

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The graphic images of the youngest victims of the recent sarin attack on Khan Sheikoun, Syria, apparently prompted President Donald Trump to have a change of heart about the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. “I will tell you that attack on children yesterday had a big impact on me—big impact,” Trump said in the White House Rose Garden on Thursday. “My attitude toward Syria and Assad has changed very much.” In a statement last night, after he gave orders to strike the Syrian air base from which the chemical weapon attack originated, Trump said, “Assad choked out the lives of helpless men, women, and children. It was a slow and brutal death for so many. Even beautiful babies were cruelly murdered in this very barbaric attack.”

Yet the Trump who fired 59 Tomahawk missiles into Syria out of professed humanitarian concerns is the same one who not so long ago insisted he could look Syrian children “in the face and say, ‘You can’t come here.'” A week into his presidency, he signed an executive order that would indefinitely ban Syrians, even beautiful babies, from seeking refuge in the United States.

The irony of Trump’s sudden flare-up of compassion is not lost on the human rights advocates who have been pushing back against Trump’s attempt to shut out Syrians. “This would be a great opportunity for the president to reconsider his previous statements and to think about the fact that these refugees are fleeing precisely the type of violence we are seeing this week in Syria,” says Jennifer Sime, a senior vice president of the International Rescue Committee‘s United States programs. Trump’s newfound humanitarian concerns, Sime says, provides an opportunity “to reconsider the travel ban, to reconsider the cap on the total number of refugees who can enter this country, to reconsider the suspension on refugee resettlement in the United States, and to make our country again a welcoming country for refugees.”

A statement from the International Refugee Assistance Project following the missile strikes took a similar tone. “Rather than pay lip service to the plight of innocent Syrian children, President Trump should provide actual solutions for the children who have been languishing in refugee camps for years,” it reads. “Many refugee children have been left in life or death situations following the President’s executive order, which suspends and severely curtails the U.S. resettlement program.”

Trump has repeatedly called for the “extreme vetting” of refugees and has suggested that some, including a Syrian family with young children, might be ISIS sleepers. Kirk W. Johnson, a former United States Agency for International Development worker who has led an effort to resettle Iraqis in the United States, told Mother Jones in January that Trump’s refugee ban “reads as though 9/11 happened yesterday, and that 9/11 was carried out by refugees, which it wasn’t, and it creates a series of policy prescriptions to solve a problem that doesn’t exist, as if the stringent measures that have been put in place over the past 15 years to screen refugees don’t exist.”

After the 2013 attack in eastern Ghouta, in which the Syrian government killed more than 1,000 people with chemical weapons, Trump penned dozens of tweets imploring President Barack Obama to do nothing. “President Obama, do not attack Syria. There is no upside and tremendous downside,” read one. “Save your ‘powder’ for another (and more important) day!” Despite the fact that the Assad government has been responsible for the overwhelming majority of civilian casualties in the Syrian civil war, Trump previously excused its brutality by arguing that while it was bad, it was also “killing ISIS.”

If Trump’s strike on Syria was intended to curtail Assad’s ability to launch more attacks on civilians, it does not seem to have worked. An American official told ABC News that 20 Syrian aircraft were destroyed in Thursday’s strike on the Shaayrat airbase, but the runway was left untouched. Syrian warplanes have already resumed using the base to launch air strikes on rebel-held areas.

More than six years since the conflict in Syria began, nearly a half million people are dead, 6.3 million are displaced inside the country, and 4.8 million refugees have sought safety in neighboring countries. “These people didn’t flee because they wanted a change in scenery,” says Sime. “They fled because of the extreme violence, and the United States, along with other countries in the international community, should open their doors to provide refuge to these people who have been through these terrible circumstances.”

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Trump Still Wants to Keep Syria’s "Beautiful Babies" Out of the US

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25+ Beneficial Plants That Ward Off Pests and Protect Your Garden

by Vicky0634cc Posted on March 4, 2017

Everybody agrees that good neighbors are so much better than bad ones. This is true not only at home and at work, but also in the garden.

There are good plants — companion plants — that do a lot for their plant neighbors and your garden overall. They help each other grow, they can increase the yield that each neighbor produces, and some even provide added nutrients to the soil.

One of the things that make companion plants great neighbors is that they offer pest control benefits. They mask or hide a crop from pests, produce odors that confuse pests, and act like trap crops that draw pests away from other plants.

Not all plant visitors are bad. In fact, some are so good that we actually want to encourage them to come into our gardens. Unfortunately, we tend to think that any bug we see is bad; when we focus so much on removing any and all pests, we can wind up killing off the “good” guys in the process.

That’s why companion plants are so great.

While they discourage “bad” garden pests, companion plants also help to attract beneficial insects by providing them with breeding grounds and creating a habitat for them.

Some beneficial insects feed on weeds, some feed on insects and mites like aphids, and some attack insect pests by sterilizing or debilitating them. Good pests you want to invite to your garden include: lacewings, parasitic wasps, lady beetles, spiders and predatory mites. And, of course,bees andbutterflies are considered good guys, and we need to attract them to our gardens for pollination.

One of the best ways to attract beneficial insects is to provide a diversity of plants that takes into account seasonality and the different feeding requirements they have at the different stages of development. Make sure to use plants that are rich in pollen and nectar at different times of the year.

To get you started, here are some of the most common beneficial companion plants:

In general, plants with many small flowers work better than those with a large single flower because small insects may drown in large blooms with too much nectar. Small flowers include:

asters
alyssum
lobelia
small sunflowers and
yarrow.

Umbelliferae plants also make great beneficial plants. These include:

angelica
clovers
coriander (cilantro)
dill
fennel
parsley
Queen Anne’s Lace and
rue.

Herbs help repel certain pests like the cabbage moth and the carrot fly. These include:

basil
borage
chamomile
lavender
mints (spearmint, peppermint)
rosemary
thyme and
sage (Salvia) family plants.

Annuals or perennials in the sunflower/aster family (many small flowers/petals around a central disk) also make great companion plants. These include:

cosmos
zinnia
daisy and
coneflower.

Do you have favorite companion plants you’d like to recommend? Share them in the comments section.

Related:
DIY Pesticide Recipe is Safe Enough to Eat
5 Ways to Save Water in the Garden

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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25+ Beneficial Plants That Ward Off Pests and Protect Your Garden

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How to Compost at Home

by MarcusKnudsen Posted on December 9, 2016

In the old Brothers Grimm tale Rumpelstiltskin, a miller swears to the king that his daughter can spin straw into golda bold-faced lie.With the help of the eponymous imp and his magical powers, the daughter was eventually able to spew gold from her very fingers. But, she had to promise her firstborn child to him in order to receive the special talent.

In the real world there is one way to turn straw into gold, so to speak, that doesnt require any special powers or bargaining with a frightful creatureits known as composting. Creating organic fertilizer from food scraps happens to be much easier than most people think. Heres everything you need to know:

Photo Credit: Paul Delmont

WHAT IS COMPOSTING?

In basic terms, composting means recycling plant scraps from the kitchenincluding carrot tops, potato peels, herb stems, celery fronds, eggshells, coffee grounds, used tea bagsall in the effort to minimize waste and to make garden fertilizer. The process transforms such food scraps, which would have normally ended up in the garbage, into a nutrient-rich mulch that can be added to soil and help you grow even more fruits and vegetables, thereby perpetuating the cycle. Now thatssustainability at its finest.

How it works

As organic materials decompose, they break down into nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassiumthe same compounds plants need to thrive. Brown matter, like dead leaves and branches, provide carbon while green matter, like vegetables and fruits, provide nitrogen. Compost piles and bins ideally consist ofthree parts brown matter to one part green matter.

When these organic materials are exposed to air and water, microorganisms likebacteria, actinobacteria, fungi, protozoa, and earthwormsstart to break them down into compost. Carbon gives these microbes energy, and nitrogen facilitatesprotein synthesisa biological process where individual cells build up their specific proteins..

After these microorganisms break down the plant matter, what youre left with is a substance calledhumus(no, not hummus) which basically looks, smells, and feels like dark, moist soil. Spread a thick layer of it on top of the soil in your garden and watch your plants flourish! (Well get to more specifics below.)

COMPOSTING BENEFITS

Reduces and recycles kitchen and yard waste

One of the greatest benefits of composting is giving food scraps and yard waste another life. Instead of going straight to a landfillwhere40 percent of all food produced in the U.S. ends uptheyll serve a new purpose and nourish your garden naturally and even help you to cultivate more food.

Good for the environment

Compost can serve as a natural alternative to chemical fertilizers, which oftenseep into groundwater and end up polluting waterways.

Conditions and fertilizes soil

Compost helps give soil a softer, looser texture, which allows water and nutrients to reach the plants roots more efficiently. Its all thanks to those beneficial microorganisms, which can evenkill pathogensand prevent plant disease, according to theEnvironmental Protection Agency.

Photo Credit: Paul Delmont

WHAT TO COMPOST

Heres what can (and cant) go into your compost heap,according to the EPAandRodales Organic Life.

Brown matter

These are generally dry ingredients that are rich in carbon:

Cardboard
Corn husks
Cotton
Dead leaves
Hay
Nutshells
Paper
Pine needles
Sawdust
Shredded newspaper
Straw
Twigs
Wood ashes
Wood chips
Wool

Green matter

These tend to be wet and are rich in nitrogen:

Algae
Bread
Coffee grounds and filters
Dead plants
Eggshells
Freshwater aquarium water
Fruits
Fur
Grains (cooked, plain)
Grass clippings
Hair
Seaweed
Tea bags
Vegetables

WHATNOTTO COMPOST

These materials may be harmful to the health of your compost:

Black walnut tree leaves and twigs
Charcoal
Dairy products
Diseased plants
Dryer or vacuum lint from synthetic fabrics
Fats or oils
Glossy paper (especially with color printing)
Meat or fish scraps or bones
Pet waste

HOW TO COMPOST

Its easy to start composting at home. Whether you have a big backyard or live in an apartment with minimal outdoor space, heres how to do it.

Composting in a backyard

1. Pick a spot

The first step is to pick a dry, sunlit area outdoors and near a water source (like a garden hose). Since compost tends to be smelly, be mindful and choose a spot where the appearance or smell wont bother your neighbors. Its best to keep it far away from anywhere you eat or entertain, too. You should also avoid placing it near the house or any other wooden structures, as the decomposing materials can rot wood.

2. Dig a hole or buy a compost bin

If you dont mind letting your compost heap sit exposed, its a good idea to dig a hole in the ground to make it easier to manage. Make sure the hole measures at least 3 x 3 x 3.

You can buy a holding unit or bin at Thrive Market, likethis one here. Or you can get crafty and check out how tomake a DIY version. A closed bin with a lid also worksjust drill holes into the lid to allow air in, and add your own worms (you can pick those up at home and garden stores, too).

3. Start adding organic materials

Add compostable materials in alternating layers, starting with brown matter, then green matter, and some brown again. Try to maintain a ratio of three parts carbon (brown) to one part nitrogen (green). Too much carbon can slow down the decomposition, while too much nitrogen can make the pile slimy, smelly, and difficult to aerate.

4. Turn and add water

If you arent continually adding new matter, let it sit for five weeks. Then, turn it with a pitchfork or rake to oxygenate the mixture, and add enough water to dampen the pile. (Excess moisture hinders airflow, and too little prevents the microorganisms you need to start decomposition from thriving.) Leave it for three or four months longeritll turn into dark, moist soil, which is your key to know its ready to use.

Most people, however, tend to add new materials throughout the year. In this case, whenever you add new food waste or kitchen scraps, bury it to incorporate. Turn and moisten the pile at least every four to five weeks, but keep in mind that turning more often can really speed up the decomposition process.

Composting indoors or in an apartment

No backyard? No problem. You can make your own small-scale composting system indoorsand you dont even need worms. Heres how:

What you need

Small trash bin with a lid
Tray that fits underneath trash bin
Soil
Newspaper

Instructions

Choose a space to keep your compost bin. (Under the sink works well.)
Poke or drill a few holes on the bottom and around the rim of the bin.
Cover tray with newspaper and place the bin in the tray.
Add a layer of soil, a few inches deep, into the bin.
Add a layer of shredded newspaper into the bin.
Start adding your food scraps (green matter as listed above), along with a handful of newspaper or other brown matter as you go. (If it starts to smell bad, add more brown matter.)
Once a week, mix the pile and add a handful of fresh soil.

Youll know the compost is ready when its broken down into dark, moist soil. Use it as a top layer for potted plants or donate whatever you cant use to a neighborhood garden.

Photo Credit: Paul Delmont

TOP COMPOSTING TIPS

Here are some important things to know before getting started to make your composting a success.

Start your compost in summer:The process works best in heata compost pile that maintains an internal temperature of 130 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit breaks down faster.
Keep a small compost bin in the kitchen:Its a convenient way to collect food scraps without having to run out to the compost pile every time you have something to add. Once your indoor bin is filled, you can throw it all into the pile at once.
Always keep a healthy balance of of carbon to nitrogen (brown to green):Remember its three parts brown to one part green. Too much or too little of either can slow things down.
The smaller the materials, the better:Before adding things into the compost, cut them down to smaller chunks to help them decompose faster.
Dont pack too much waste in:The pile needs air to breathe.
The more green matter you use, the less water you need:Remember that too much water keeps the air from flowing freely through the mixture.
Do not compost pet waste:It can contain parasites.
Do not compost meat, meat scraps, fats or oils:Otherwise pests will come crawling and potentially spread disease through the compost.
Wormsare your friends:When these guys show up, leave them be and let them do their thing. Theyll feed on your food waste and help turn it into the beautiful compost youve been waiting for.
You can compost weeds:Just make sure they dont have seeds, or else you may get some pesky plants cropping up in your garden.
Turn your pile frequently:Aerating the compost as often as every two weeks can really speed up the process.
Keep two separate compost piles:Got a lot of organic material and extra space? Starting a second pile is handy so you can let the original one break down faster while continuing your composting habit.
Add compost to the garden two to four weeks before planting:This allows time for it to meld with the soil. Once youve got it all ready to go, its time to plant theseeds. When beautiful, bright-orange carrots grow in, youll be pretty happy you didnt trash those old peels.

Written by Emily Murphy, and reposted with permission fromThrive Market.

More From Thrive Market
Avocado Oil Vs. Olive Oil
The Benefits of Raw Garlic
How to Cook Salmon

Photo Credit: Lindsay/Flickr

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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Weeds That Are Good for Your Garden

by MeridithShade5 Posted on July 6, 2016

While some weeds are invasive and steal nutrients from intentionally planted flowers or edibles, there are other “weeds” that may actually helpyour garden or lawn. Before declaring war on those dandelions, read on to learn aboutsome of the beneficial volunteer plants.You might find some new helpers and save yourself some work.

1. Nitrogen Fixers

Plants require nitrogen to survive. The problem is most nitrogen naturally occurs as a gas in our atmosphere and is unavailable to plants.

Nitrogen fixing plants solve this issue with specialized root nodules that can take nitrogen from the air and store it in their roots. The nitrogen becomes available to other plants once the nitrogen fixers die and the roots start to decompose.

The legume family of plants are excellent nitrogen fixers, including clover, vetch, peas, beans, lupines, false indigo, and alfalfa. Leave these plants to die at the end of the season or till in perennial varieties to allow the nitrogen to be released.

Even some potentially weedy trees and shrubs are great for fixing nitrogen, such as sea buckthorn, broom, alder, locust trees, and Russian olives. The older roots that die off naturally will release nitrogen into the surrounding soil.

Dandelion

2. Deeply-Rooted Weeds

Plants with deep root systems, like docks, dandelion, pigweed, or thistles, will draw hidden nutrients to the soil surface. This often includes trace minerals that many of your shallow-rooted ornamental plants would have a hard time accessing. The deep roots also break up compacted soil to improve water permeability and texture.

These weeds are excellent to add to your compost. Try leaving some in place throughout the growing season to harvest and compost the leaves regularly before they start to flower or seed.

You can also dig up the roots at the end of the season. But make sure they dont survive in your finished compost. Try putting the harvested roots in the sun for at least a week to thoroughly dry out. Soaking the roots in a bucket of water until they ferment will also finish them off before adding to your compost.

3. Ground Covers

Ground cover plants in any form, including weeds, can help your garden in many ways.

Their roots will stabilize soil, preventing erosion and the loss of nutrient-rich top soil. The stems and leaves will provide shade to keep your ground moist and reduce irrigation needs.

Although it may sound contradictory, a good ground cover of weeds will also help with weed control. Weeds that make a tight mat of vegetation over the ground, such as purslane or dead-nettle, will prevent more invasive weeds from taking hold.

Chickweed

4. Edible Weeds

Many of our modern-day weeds were once sought-after food crops. The flavor of wild greens is often stronger than our cultivated varieties, but this is no reason to disregard them.

In fact, weeds such as lambs quarters, yellow dock, dandelion leaves, purslane, chickweed, and sorrel have two or three times the nutritional value of spinach or Swiss chard.

If you steam or saut the greens, it will remove any bitter aftertaste they may have when raw. Then you can use them as you would any other green vegetable in soups, stews, sauces, or as a simple side dish.

These are some tasty edible weeds you can try:

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) eat the fresh leaves or dry the roots in small pieces and use in tea.
Clover (Trifolium pretense) leaves and blossoms are good fresh, blossoms can be steeped in tea.
Plantain (Plantago major) leaves are excellent steamed.
Sorrel (Rumex acetosella) lemon-flavored leaves are tasty raw when young, or steamed when older.
Watercress (Nasturtium officinale) tangy leaves are good fresh or steamed.
Chickweed (Stellaria media) fresh leaves are great in salad.
Lambs quarters (Chenopodium album) young leaves are good raw or steamed, and the seeds are also very nutritious.

5. Cover Crops

The main purpose of a cover crop is to provide more nutrients and organic matter for your soil. Many farmers and gardeners will purposely sow certain plants as cover crops, but you can also use your existing weed species.

Its recommended to regularly cut off the greens of a cover crop and leave them as a mulch to decompose on the soil, or take them to your compost. The plants can be tilled into the ground at the end of the season.

You can leave lush weeds you already have in place, such as clover, burdock, thistles, chickweed, or pigweed. Just make sure to keep cutting them down before they flower and make seeds.

Ladybug on Burdock

6. Insect Attractants and Repellants

You can help support pollinating insects by keeping some wild, flowering weeds around to provide food. Some of their favorites include dandelions, clover, thistles, evening primrose, borage, and Queen Annes lace. Allowing weedy shrubs, such as wild cherries or roses, to grow in unused corners of your yard is also useful.

These weeds can attract beneficial predatory insects to your garden as well, such as ladybugs, parasitic wasps and lacewings, which control your bad bugs.

On the other hand, some weeds can keep unwanted bugs away. A study in Florida found there was less armyworm damage in cornfields with weeds like dandelion, cockleburs and goldenrod. Plants like pennyroyal, feverfew and peppermint are known to repel mosquitos.

Weeds can also lure harmful insects away from your desired plants. For example, lambs quarters often attracts leafminers, which could attack your spinach or other greens instead.

7. Soil Indicators

Certain weeds grow best under specific soil and climate conditions. If you see them growing in an area, youll have a good idea of whats going on in that soil.

For instance, knotweed, sow thistle and plantain are all indicators of an acidic soil. Whereas sheep sorrel and yellow toadflax will often grow in poor soils low in organic matter.

If you see a lot of one or two types of weeds in a location, look into what theyre telling you before you make any further plans for the area.

Related
Homemade Pepper Spray: To Deter Garden Critters Naturally
7 Phenomenal Companion Planting Pairs
How Much Do You Actually Have to Water Your Plants?

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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Weeds That Are Good for Your Garden

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9 Easy Garden Plants for Hardworking People

by RemonaNecaise Posted on June 30, 2016

It’s a common dilemma you love the looks of a flourishing garden, but don’t have a lot of time or energy to put into keeping it up. You’re too busy with the demands of job, caretaking, and just plain living. The good news is that gardening can be a lot simpler than you think. It’s mainly a question of choosing the right type of plants. Here are 9 shrubs, flowers, and vegetables that will require minimal care.

Green Plants

Image credit: katerha via Flickr

Shrubs

Busy peopletend to be impatient people, so you may wonder why we mention shrubs. Truth be told, you can find some very fast-growing varieties. Buy small potted shrubs from your local nursery or online to transplant at home. Then the bulk of your work is already done. These plants need little watering once they’re established in their new location, and they deliver so much! In addition to good looks, they double as a green privacy fence. A hedge will also shelter your house from the elements, reducing your need for heating and cooling.

Vines

Vines are another choice which will provide you with both privacyandbeauty. Species such as ivy or clematis grow rapidly and need very little upkeep. They do need something to climb on, but that can actually be one of their virtues, especially if you’re looking to disguise an unattractive chain link fence or brick wall.

Succulents

Succulents are beloved of busy indoor gardeners, due to their appealing appearance, low maintenance, and limited need for water. Now try them outside as well. If you live inHardiness Zone8 or warmer, you can overwinter succulents in your garden. Otherwise, plant them in containers which you can easily bring into the house before the first frost comes along.

Flowers

Image credit: botheredbybees via Flickr

Bulbs

Plant bulbs in the fall and fugeddabout ‘em. Then get ready to enjoy the sweet surprise of blooms early next spring. Daffodils, tulips, iris, or my personal fave, delightfully scented hyacinth (pictured above), are generous plants which take very little care, yet put on a great colorful show. One note: Bulbs used to be replantable but newer varieties should be treated as annuals. Even if they do sprout for another year, they are likely to produce frail and scraggly results.

Perennials(Day Lilies)

If you’re looking for a hardy perennial, the day lily is for you. Unlike true lilies, day lilies grow from roots rather than bulbs. Available in a wide range of charming colors as well as the traditional orange — they thrive almost anywhere in the US (Zones 3-11). Wet soil, dry soil, even the salty soil in your beach house garden not much fazes the vibrant day lily. Another plus: Many varieties are a favorite perch forhummingbirdsand butterflies.

Annuals (Marigolds)

Growing marigolds is child’s play literally. These bright and cheerful quick-growing annuals are a perfect choice for your kids’ early experiments in gardening. Marigolds offer bright yellow, copper, and russet blossoms, and can reach a height of anywhere from 6 inches to an impressive 5 feet tall in a single season.

Edibles

Image credit: blurdom via Flickr

Herbs

Whether you have substantial yard space or 2 or 3 little pots perched on your balcony rail, herbs are simple to grow, yet very rewarding. Snip a few leaves to add zest to that super speedy 15-minute dinner recipe. You’ll save time (and money) on shopping for seasonings, and your homegrown herbs are guaranteedorganic.

Garlic

Garlic is a snap to grow. You don’t even need to shop for seeds. Just break off a few healthy, good-sized cloves and pop them in the ground. Cut the scapes (garlic shoots) in the spring to steam as a delicately flavored vegetable, and leave the garlic bulbs to pick in July and August.

Related: How to Grow and Harvest Garlic

Zucchini

Zucchini has a well-deserved rep as the easiest vegetable ever. In fact, your main problem will be figuring out what to do with your bumper harvest. Maybe send out invites for a zucchini-picking block party?

By Laura Firszt,Networx.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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9 Easy Garden Plants for Hardworking People

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Best Annual Flowers that Bloom All Season

by Georgia2808 Posted on May 11, 2016

The bright and diverse colors of annual flowers are a main attraction in a summer garden. You can get the most out of their showy blooms by planting the right varieties and giving them the care they need.

Annuals are plants that grow for one season and die over winter. You can buy annuals as bedding plants in the spring. Many of them will also do well grown directly from seed. A fertile soil rich in organic matter is the best for annual flowers. Keep them evenly moist throughout the growing season for consistent flowering.

Try some of these long-lasting annual flowers for an abundant display throughout the summer.

Geranium (Pelargonium x hortorum)

Many different types of geraniums exist, although the easiest to care for are known as zonal geraniums. They grow 12 to 30 inches tall and make attractive clusters of flowers in a variety of colors, including white, pink, salmon, red and orange. Trim off the long blossom heads once theyre finished to encourage more buds.

Geraniums are more drought-tolerant than some annual flowers and prefer full sun. They can also be taken indoors in winter and kept as houseplants.

Pink Geranium

Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritima)

Sweet alyssum earns its name for a reason. Patches of alyssum will fill your garden with a gentle perfume. It grows 3 to 6 inches tall and creates a dense groundcover of small flower spikes. The colors range in shades of white, pink, salmon and purple. Plant in a sunny or partially shaded location.

They can be seeded directly in the ground in spring after the risk of frost, or bought as seedlings. They will also often self-seed and come up again the following year, so make sure you have them in an area you like.

Marigold (Tagetes spp.)

Marigolds come in a variety of sizes, from 4 inch tall plants up to 5 foot giants. Their single or double flowers are bright orange, yellow or bicolored. If the flowers are kept wet for too long, they may start to rot. Its best to grow them in hot areas with full sun to prevent standing water on the blossoms.

The flowers are eatable and can be used as a spicy addition to salads or other dishes. When cooked with rice, the petals provide a nice color.

Marigolds

Petunia (Petunia x hybrida)

Petunias are started easily from seed, or stores carry a wide selection of seedlings. Their distinctive trumpet-shaped flowers are available in almost any color from yellow to red to black, with many multicolored varieties. You can also find different growth habits and sizes for petunias, including small, upright plants and well as assorted trailing types for hanging baskets.

Petunias are fairly drought-tolerant and can handle full sun to partial shade. Due to the profuse blooms, they benefit from deadheading and removing the spent blossoms to encourage new buds. Pruning the foliage back in mid-summer can help keep them compact.

Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)

Zinnias bloom in an array of colors, including red, yellow, orange, pink, white and multicolored. Their large blossoms are carried on upright stems from 6 to 30 inches tall and make a great cut flower. Plant in a sunny location. You can buy seedlings from a store, although zinnias dislike being transplanted. They will often grow better if you seed them directly in the soil.

Zinnia

Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus)

The large, daisy-like flowers of cosmos come in shades of white, pink and orange. They also have a delicate scent, which is often stronger in the evening. Plants reach 18 to 60 inches tall, so they can be used in the middle or back of a flower bed to provide height. Cosmos is a good cut flower and the blossoms often attract birds, bees and butterflies.

Fuchsia (Fuchsia hybrida)

Fuchsia is a showy, trailing annual thats great for hanging baskets. Their exotic flowers come in multiple combinations of white, red, pink and purple. Fuchsias do best in shady conditions and will produce fewer flowers when overheated. Deadhead the older blooms to promote new buds.

Fuchsia Hanging Basket

Lobelia (Lobelia erinus)

Lobelia has delicate white, blue or pink blossoms that can start early in the summer and last until frost. Most varieties grow from 4 to 8 inches tall. Lobelia prefers sunny areas, but will tolerate partial shade. The plants stay nicely compact and do well in containers and window boxes as well as in flower beds.

Impatiens (Impatiens spp.)

Impatiens are one of the best annuals for shade. Their unique flowers and foliage can give your garden a tropical look. Two main types are available. Impatiens walleriana is a shorter variety, growing from 6 to 16 inches high. Impatiens hawkeri is also known as the New Guinea impatiens, which can grow up to 4 feet.

The New Guinea types are more resistant to impatiens downy mildew than the walleriana species. If you have a particularly damp location that may promote mildew, the New Guinea impatiens will be a better choice.

Impatiens

Begonia

You have many different types of begonias to choose from, although some of them are better known for their foliage color rather than their flowers. All begonias prefer partial or full shade.

The two showiest blooming varieties of begonia are:

Wax Begonia (Begonia semperflorens) A shorter variety, 8 to 12 inches tall. These look especially good in large plantings where you can appreciate their shiny, succulent-like leaves and long-lived flowers. Bloom in white, pink and dark red. Good companions for impatiens.
Tuberous Begonia (Begonia tuberhybridacultorum) Grow up to 24 inches tall. The blossoms are much larger than the wax begonia, coming in a rainbow of bright colors. Trailing tuberous begonias are also available and make gorgeous additions to hanging baskets.

Tuberous Begonias

Related:
How to Create a Wildflower Garden
Flowers to Plant Now for Great Tea Later
How to Pick the Perfect Home for Your Bird Friends

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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Best Annual Flowers that Bloom All Season

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What to Plant, Weed and Prune in May

by MaximilianDiehl Posted on May 4, 2016

If youre a gardener in the Northern Hemisphere, the month of May is an excellent time to refresh your garden after its winter sleep. Dont know where to start? Try some of these simple steps to prepare your garden for a smooth growing season ahead.

Planting

Whether youve been stockpiling packages of seeds or have trays of young seedlings waiting around, May is the perfect month for getting the majority of your plants in the ground.

1. Vegetables and Annuals

At the beginning of May, start hardening off any seedlings and potted plants youve kept in the house. Put them outside during the day so they get used to direct sun and cooler temperatures. Always bring them back inside at night if the temperatures are below freezing.
Young vegetable and ornamental annual seedlings can be planted out as soon as the risk of frost has passed in your area. This includes onion sets and seed potatoes.
Sow cold-tolerant vegetable seeds directly in the soil in early May or late April. Examples are green peas, lettuce, mustard greens, kale, arugula, spinach and root vegetables like carrots, parsnips, beets and radishes.
After your frost-free date later in May, you can direct seed warm season veggies like cucumbers, beans, squash, melons, pumpkins and herbs including basil, dill, parsley, marjoram and oregano.
Direct-sow ornamental annual seeds after the risk of frost has passed. Annuals like alyssum, lobelia, poppies, sunflowers, cosmos, marigolds and nasturtiums all grow well from direct seeding.

2. Perennials, Shrubs and Trees

Select what types and varieties you want in your yard, and pay close attention to the maximum size they will reach when mature. Trees and shrubs in particular can outgrow their space quickly if youre not careful.
If youve been storing any potted perennials inside, harden them off the same as annual seedlings.
Prepare your planting site by digging a hole about twice as large as your pot. Mix some compost in around the edges and make sure the soil level comes up to the bottom of your plants pot. Remove the plants pot and brush your hand lightly against the outside of the root ball to loosen it, taking apart any circling roots. Place it in the prepared hole, fill in with soil, tamp down with your hand or foot, and water it in well. Cover the soil surface with mulch for better moisture retention.
If you bought any bareroot perennials, shrubs or trees from mail-order catalogues, plant these as soon as they arrive in a similar way.
May is also a good time to plant summer-flowering bulbs, such as lilies, dahlias, alliums, canna lilies and gladiolas. You can buy fresh bags of bulbs and plant them directly in the ground. Or plant out any non-hardy bulbs youve overwintered and stored from last year.
Planting perennial vegetables are another option this time of year. Try experimenting with eatable plants such as asparagus, rhubarb, horseradish, or herbs like oregano, thyme, sage or lovage.

Weeding

Unfortunately, the explosive May growth you see in your garden also applies to weeds. An important first step is to never let weeds go to seed. Deal with them as soon as they start. These are some of the worst types of weeds to watch out for and how to keep them under control.

Weeds with tap roots. Some of the hardiest weeds fall into this category, including dandelions, thistles and docks. Their strength lies in the nutrients and energy stored in the tap root. Repeatedly digging up the tap roots by hand will weaken the weeds over time until they eventually die. You can also spray the plants individually with an organic herbicide or treatment such as vinegar, boiling water or a small flame thrower.
Annual weeds. These often come up in large groups of fresh seedlings in May. They can be hand-weeded if there arent too many. Smothering is an option for larger areas. This involves covering the weeds with newspaper, cardboard or other organic mulch in a thick enough layer to block out all light reaching the ground. Keep the covering layer moist and leave it in place to decompose during the growing season. Plant what you want around it.
Creepers. Weeds that spread through underground roots can be especially invasive, such as grasses and bindweed. Hand-dig any smaller patches that have started, taking care to remove shoots that have grown sideways. You can solarize an affected area by covering it with a heavy plastic sheet and leaving this in place for a few weeks until the weeds underneath have all died from the heat.
Other Intruders. Keep an eye out for unwanted tree or shrub seedlings that might have drifted into your yard from invasive neighbors. You might also have to remove perennials you planted previously, but have since shown their ugly sides.

Pruning

Its best to prune trees and shrubs at the end of the dormant season just before they start to grow their first leaves. This is often in April or May, depending on your location and the individual plants. Keep these tips in mind as you plan your spring pruning.

Early spring-flowering shrubs should be pruned immediately after flowering because the shrub will start to set flower buds for the next year. This includes shrubs like forsythia, lilacs, magnolias, ornamental cherries and apricots, and azaleas.
Berry bushes like raspberries and blackberries should be pruned as early as possible to remove any old, non-productive branches. This will encourage new fruiting growth.
Prune hedges as they start to grow in the spring and a second time in mid-summer to keep the growth even and compact.
For multi-stemmed shrubs, such as forsythia or hazelnuts, you can remove one-third of the main stems in spring to control growth and improve the shape.
If you havent already, make sure to cut the dead growth from last year off any herbaceous perennial plants. These include perennials like daisies or ornamental grasses that die down to the ground each year. You can also divide and move around any perennials that need it.
Fruit trees are typically pruned during late winter or summer. Spring weather conditions can promote the spread of bacteria, so avoid pruning trees like apples, peaches, cherries or pears.
Avoid pruning hardwood trees in May for the same reason, such as oaks, maples, walnuts or birch.
You can prune off dead, diseased or insect-infested branches at any time of year.

Related
How to Create a Wildflower Garden
Yoga for Gardeners: Recover from the Garden on the Mat
8 of the Best Spring Flowering Shrubs

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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What to Plant, Weed and Prune in May

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Hydroponics kit takes the dirty work out of kitchen gardening

by MackenzTAVY Posted on March 16, 2016

Hydroponics kit takes the dirty work out of kitchen gardening

By on 16 Mar 2016commentsShare

Here’s a new project to join the ranks of your Shiitake log, sourdough starter, and alfalfa sprout operation: an indoor hydroponics kit.

The practice of hydroponics — a fancy term for growing plants in water and nutrients instead of soil — dates back centuries, according to Fast Company. Now, IKEA is jumping on the bandwagon in the hopes of starting an in-the-home hydroponics revolution. Its indoor gardening kit is scheduled for release in April.

IKEA’s ad above shows the process of starting a soilless garden operation on your kitchen table, from seed to majestic lettuce leaf. The time-lapse video, set to a big band tune, offers a peek into just how much labor it takes to grow a salad. The starring actress provides her plants with TLC: watering them, turning on grow lights, and even playing the recorder to encourage the little sprouts to grow.

Sure, the grow lights use more energy to produce salad greens than the sun’s free, ever-giving rays. But with winter weather or lack of space soiling many of our garden plans, countertop hydroponics — and soil-based projects like growing herbs on your windowsill — provide us with ways to grow our own food no matter where we live. (IKEA’s Swedish homeland, for one, relies on imported food due to its short growing season.)

After all, there might be only one thing better than farm-to-table: table-to-table.

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16 Surprising Uses for Green Tea

by ElviraX973 Posted on February 26, 2016

Green tea has been around for thousands of years. Its no wonder the stuff sure is tasty, and is shown to have a number of great health benefits. But there are plenty of other reasons to keep green tea around. From cleaning carpets to giving your feet a much needing pampering, read on for some surprising ways to use green tea.

Quick Tip: Store your used green tea bags in the fridge so they dont spoil.

Beauty and Health

1. Reduce Eye Puffiness. The tannins and caffeine in green tea helps reduce both puffiness and dark circles under the eyes. Brew two bags of green tea. Take the bags out of the water and, with your fingers, squeeze out as much liquid as you can and let them cool to room temperature. Put one tea bag over each eye and wait 10 minutes before removing.

2. DIY Facial Toner. Green tea is found in a number of commercial skincare products but you can make some at home, too! Its also ridiculously easy: just brew some green tea, let it come to room temperature and transfer it to a clean spray bottle. Store in the fridge. Twice a day, spritz some on your face before using moisturizer. Its that simple!

3. Soothe Sunburns. Green tea contains properties that help with inflammation a major thing you want to combat if youre dealing with a sunburn. Soak a clean piece of cloth in cooled green tea and apply it to the affected area.

4. Pamper Your Feet. Green tea works well on puffy eyes because it reduces swelling and the same is true for your feet. After a long day, who doesnt want to relax with a nice, aromatic foot soak. Click here for a recipe.

Odor Fighting

5. Reduce Fridge Odor. Nobody wants a stinky fridge. Combat that by placing a dry, unused green tea bag in the refrigerator to absorb moisture.

6. Reduce Trash Odor. A couple unused green tea bags will also help stop foul odors that come from the trash. Keep a few unused bags at the bottom of your garbage can.

7. Clean Greasy Dishes. A used green tea bag is a great DIY sponge for cleaning greasy and grimy dishes.

8. Keep Litter Boxes Fresh. Adding some dry green tea leaves to kitty litter will help keep odors at bay and, whats more, your cat wont mind one bit!

9. Stash In Your Underwear Drawer. Green tea infuses a nice, subtle scent to your unmentionables. Keep an unused green tea bag in your lingerie drawer.

Cleaning

10. Clean Yoga Mats. One great way to clean yoga mats is to wash them in water with diluted green tea. Itll help keep them smelling fresh.

11. Clean Carpets. No, really! Sprinkling some used (but dry) green tea leaves 10 minutes before you vacuum the carpet will help you pick up more grime AND lightly deodorize both the carpets and the vacuum cleaner.

12. Clean Glass and Mirrors. Instead of tossing your green tea bag after you use it, brew it again, and use that weakened tea to clean windows and mirrors. Transfer room temperature tea to a spray bottle and wipe with a clean, dry cloth.

13. Clean Toilets. Deodorize your toilet by tossing a few used green tea bags in and letting them sit for an hour or two. Remove the bags, scrub and flush. Easy!

More Uses

14. Toss in the Compost. Green tea bags can absolutely be composted as long as the cloth is biodegradable, which many brands are.

15. Perfect Plant Watering. The big benefit of using green tea in the garden is that it absorbs water. Placing a used and dried tea bag at the bottom of the soil will absorb excess moisture and, over time, help redistribute that moisture more efficiently.

16. Naturally Dye Paper, Easter Eggs and More. Green tea is a great way to dye things, well, green! Click here for detailed instructions.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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16 Surprising Uses for Green Tea

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5 Urban Homesteading Projects for Beginners

by LTYEarlene Posted on February 6, 2016

Urban homesteading is on the rise in cities and suburbs across the country. The practice of urban homesteading involves making your household as self-sustaining as possible by producing your goods and foods at homethink raising chickens, growing vegetables, sewing your own clothes and beekeeping.

People start homesteading for a variety of reasons. Some want to know where their food, cleaning products and clothes come from and whats in them. Others simply like the idea of minimizing environmental impact by keeping all production close to home. Still more want to transition to living off the grid completely.

Rest assured, you dont need to go all in all at once. If you want to give urban homesteading a shot but arent quite ready to jump right into raising goats, here are some great projects for beginners:

Start a Small Vegetable Garden

If you have the space, a small vegetable garden can help you start growing your own food. Dont feel as though you need to convert your entire yard into a vegetable garden right away. A small strip of land alongside your house (that gets adequate sunlight) is perfect for constructinga raised bed that runs the length of your home, and will give you plenty of space for growing veggies. Beginners should stick to the basics. Lifehacker recommends salad greens, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and green beans for those new to gardening.

Compost

Composting is really quite easy and only requires a little bit of effort each day. Once youve gotten into the swing of it, youll have ready-made compost that canact as fertilizer for your yard and vegetable garden. In order to compost successfully, your mixture will need organic matter, some moisture, warmth and oxygen, according to self-proclaimed composting guru The Compost Guy. Store your compost bin in a warm place, make sure to mix it up regularly to allow oxygen into the mixture, keep it moist and add plenty of organic matterkitchen scraps, manure, fall leaves, grass, straw, cardboard and hair are great for composting.

Collect Rainwater

This is a pretty straightforward tip. Collecting rainwater is great for water conservation as you wont have to turn on the hose in order to water your plants, wash your car, do your laundry or scrub your dishes. If you really get into it, you canpurchase a water purification system to use your rainwater for showering and bathing (though that would require quite a bit of rain). Collecting rainwater is super easy, too: Simply place a rainwater collection tank outside.

Make Your Own Cleaning Products

Cleaning products are expensive and often toxic. Making an all-natural, all-purpose cleaner at home is super easy, if you have the right ingredients. The natural homemaking blog Wellness Mama recommends combining 1 teaspoon of Borax, 0.5 teaspoons of washing soda, 1 teaspoon castile soap and a few drops of your favorite essential oil with two cups of distilled water. Put the mixture into a spray bottle and use it anywhere in your home without fear of toxins.

Hang Your Laundry to Dry

Wet clothes dont necessarily need to go into an electric dryer. Conserve energy by hanging your clothes out to dry! During the winter months, you can assemble a drying rack within your home thats quick and easy to take down once your wardrobe has driedtrust us, your clothes with dry just as efficiently and you wont use as much power.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

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5 Urban Homesteading Projects for Beginners

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