Like the poor man who had a pea growing in his lung (true!) most of us are growing a seedling of green conscience these days. We are being encouraged to recycle so many items that the ones that do make their way into the regular bin tend to stick in our minds. If you compost or otherwise dispose of organic waste youll probably end up with a bin bag full of plastic packaging. If you own a pet cat or dog the warm parcels of their waste will make strange accompaniments to all that inert plastic.
Toxoplasmosis & Toxocara
How can it be that something as natural, green and organic as your cat, can be contributing to landfill in this way? Almost anywhere you look the advice will be to keep your pet waste away from your compost heap despite a growing number of biodegradable litters appearing on the market. The advice is based on the danger of Toxoplasma gondii, a parasitic protozoa (not a virus as is often thought) present in cat faeces. This can cause toxoplasmosis, a potentially fatal disease especially for pregnant women and small children with their still-developing immune systems. Toxocara catis (roundworms) are also likely to be found and can infect humans as well as cats.
Hot compost kills germs
Good reasons to keep cat poo out of your compost then. Well, yes, but there are ways to cope with these pathogens if you know how to compost correctly and with due care. Composts can get to temperatures in excess of 130C at which point very little living matter can survive. At much lower temperatures in the range of 65-70C, pathogens will still die in a matter of seconds. The British Standard PAS100 ensure that green waste compost reaches 65C for a minimum of 7 days, twice, which is erring on the side of paranoia but they cant afford to take any risks. Whats amazing is that compost generates these temperatures on its own given the right materials.
Biodegradable litter
With cats, unlike dogs, its not just the poo that has to be disposed of but the litter as well. Litter made from clay or silica will not breakdown (in our lifetime anyway) and will get stuck in landfill. There are compostable litters available made from wood chips, sawdust, newspapers and plant derivatives such as wheat or corn residues and wood chips but composting them means removing the poo first, unless you can be sure of getting your compost heap hot enough to kill the germs. This is perhaps ironic as the faeces are rich in nitrogen (which heats the compost) and the litter in carbon (which has a cooling effect) a match made in heaven from a composting point of view. Remove the nitrogen and the carboniferous material will take an age to disappear. Together they would be much more likely to reach the elusive hot temperatures required to make the compost sanitary. Even if you choose not to try composting the excrement, the litter will have soaked up urine, rich in phosphorus and nitrogen and be a valuable addition.
Cat Poo Wormery
Dog poo wormeries are being found to successfully deal with doggie do but cat poo wormeries arent as straightforward because of the amount of litter that accompanies the faeces. The worms seem not to enjoy the quantity or the mix. Removing the poos for the wormery and having a traditional composter for the litter, kept separate from the compost bin youll be using for any edibles, might be one solution but if it sounds a palaver having three systems on the go, then read on.
NatureMill composter
One composter that has yet to reach the British market is the NatureMill. Designed by scientist and inventor Russ Cohn, the NatureMill has started to solve the pet poo problems of San Francisco and is spreading across the United States.
The composter automatically grinds the input waste so it acts like a digester where shredding is part of the process. It is normal for digesters to need additional carbon-rich materials such as sawdust or wood pellets to keep the contents at the correct moisture levels and NatureMill is no different. This makes it perfect for the constituents of kitty litter.
NatureMill also maintains an internal temperature of up to 60C (140F) as a small current is used to heat the bin and it is well-insulated. The total electricity used is said to be 5 kWh per month, the same as for a night light. It has a carbon filter to absorb unwanted smells and can be operated indoors or outdoors. The bin costs $299 but a further $82.50 to ship it to Europe, but it really does solve the problem and keep your cats waste out of landfill. Compost for the garden is ready in an incredible two weeks. For any cat lovers with no or limited outside space this clever little disposal machine could be the answer. The only problem then is what to do with the compost when the houseplants are well-fed and blooming! How about a spot of guerilla gardening – feed a tree.
Compost alchemy
A fear of germs permeates our culture to the point where stories of sterile homes being responsible for childhood complaints like asthma have spread in the press and the dreadful O.C.D. can lead to compulsive cleaning (not in my house). Yet our understanding of hygiene has saved us from cholera and typhoid epidemics so is there a balance to be aimed for? Perhaps the next stage of understanding germs will come from ecology and knowing how microorganisms interact and keep each others’ populations under control. The compost process is certainly a complex set of interactions of millions of these microbes, their numbers swelling and ebbing according to the conditions in the surrounding environment. And somehow, at the end of it, a clean, sweet smelling earth is produced that feeds our plants and stores potential greenhouse gas carbon in a stable form. Perhaps we can trust Nature after all.
Disclaimer: Composters of cat poo do so at their own risk.
The best Echinacea cultivars for sale today are the E. purpurea cultivars. There are too many to list in a single article so this article series breaks them up alphabetically. E. purpurea are the hardiest and most adaptable of all of the Echinacea, and they are great-as long as you like purple.
Echinacea purpurea ‘Alba’: White flowered form of the purple coneflower (Sun to light shade, Zone 3-8)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Avalanche’ PP 18,597: The best compact, single white-flowered coneflower in our trials. This Arie Bloom hybrid makes a tight clump, adorned in summer with 20″ spikes of large, white, horizontally-held petals…quite nice! (Zone 4-9)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Bright Star’ (syn: Echinacea purpurea ‘Leuchstern’): This superb seed strain of our native coneflower is a bit taller than most (to 3-4′) and has a slightly larger and more horizontally held rosy purple petals. The small winter rosettes give rise in mid summer to see thru spikes of large pinkish daisies…great for naturalizing! (Zone 3-8)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Cotton Candy’ PPAF: Large, pink, pompon flowers.
Echinacea purpurea ‘Crimson Star’: Crimson-lavender petals.
Echinacea purpurea ‘Cygnet White’: This is a new and outstanding dwarf, white flowered selection of the 1998 Perennial Plant of the Year. In midsummer, the small rosettes of foliage send up flowering stems that are topped with stunning white coneflowers… best when used in a mass planting or blended into a perennial border. (Sun to light shade, Zone 3-8)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Fatal Attraction’ PP 18,429: This new selection of our US native Echinacea purpurea is from Piet Oudolf’s famed garden in Holland. Echinacea ‘Fatal Attraction’ is unique because of the 26″ tall sturdy wine black stems that hold the intense pink flowers…a favorite of garden visitors. Flowering begins in late June…be patient. (Zone 3-9)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Fragrant Angel’ PP 16,054, PVR: This sturdy new coneflower from Terra Nova Nurseries is the white counterpart of Echinacea ‘Ruby Giant’ and the best white coneflower we have ever grown. The giant 4-5″ heads of pure white petals, around a contrasting orange cone, are also deliciously fragrant. Since these are clonally reproduced, each plant is identical for a more uniform planting. (Zone 3-9)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Green Envy’: When Mark Veeder first showed me a photo of his new Echinacea purpurea seedling, I thought for sure this was an April Fool’s Photoshop TM creation. Only after growing and photographing the plant myself, can I say for sure, it is truly this unique. The 20″ tall stems are topped, starting in mid-June, with large 4.5″ wide flowers composed of a dark cone with a green center. Surrounding the cone, are long petals that are pink toward the cone changing to lime-green toward the downward recurving tips. Echinacea ‘Green Envy’ is so weird, gardeners will either love or hate it…we love it! (Zone 4-9)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Kim’s Knee High’ PP 12,242: From Tony’s college classmate Kim Hawks, former owner of Niche Gardens, comes a new dwarf selection of the wonderful native purple coneflower. This compact selection is the first coneflower to be vegetatively propagated, ensuring that every plant is identical…no seed-grown variation as long as you remove the old seed heads. Starting in mid-June (NC), each flower head has rigidly reflexed, rosy-pink petals that give a truly unique look to this selection. Purple coneflower is extremely drought-tolerant, although it does favor improved garden conditions. Plant a drift, sit back with drink in hand, and wait for the butterflies! (Zone 3-9)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Kim’s Mop Head’ PP 13,560: We are delighted to be able to offer the wonderful white flowered companion to Echinacea ‘Kim’s Knee High’. This mutation of Echinacea ‘Kim’s Knee High’, discovered at Sunny Border Nursery in Connecticut, has the same wonderful compact habit with perfectly symmetrical downward arching heads of fringed-white petals…what a great garden plant. Echinacea ‘Kim’s Mop Head’ looks great when planted in a mass in a flower bed or border. (Zone 3-9)
Echinacea purpurea ‘Kim’s Red Knee High’ PP 20,411: A mutation of Echinacea ‘Kim’s Knee High’, discovered at Connecticut’s Sunny Border Nursery in 2005. Echinacea ‘Kim’s Red Knee High’ has the same vigorous growth, short habit and attractively reflexed petals of its parent. The name red, however, is problematic…another example of male color-blindness and why you never ask men to describe a color. The color is actually a richer, darker pink than the parent, but nothing close to red. (Zone 4-9)
Although they are not the latest and greatest cultivars, Echinacea purpurea cultivars are still the best.
There are many things that go into planning and planting a summer garden. Far too often would be gardeners do not consider the time and energy that should be spent maintaining the summer garden in order to keep your summer garden looking beauty and healthy throughout the long dog days of summer and well, in many cases, into the first frosts of fall. If prolonging the life and beauty of your summer garden is a priority then there are things that must be done in order to keep everything ship shape and in good working order.
Mini gardening goals should be mapped out and you should make all attempts to achieve and follow them as closely as environmental changes permit. Make sure this list allows for upsets such as a week of rain or a week of no rain as well as time to adjust for these inconsistencies and an inability to work in the garden when temperatures are well over the mark on the thermometer that reads uncomfortably hot. You should place a copy of these task or goals in a highly visible spot that you can notice each and every day and more likely make them happen.
Do what you have must to keep the weeds out, and provide proper nourishment to each specific plant you are growing. Check for leaves that are turning yellow and any pruning that needs to occur on a weekly basis. Get rid of the leaves as well as execute necessary cutting as required and take away every weeds when ever the ability or demand comes up. When you feel that weeds are taking over your garden area, you should simply add more mulch to kill them off.
Keep a garden perfectly trimmed so the grass and also flower garden seem properly blended and totally incorporated together. You do not want to ignore the best thing about a garden because your lawn looks unkept and ungroomed. Invest some time to grass maintenance in order to keep your grass and garden over a regular balance together throughout the summer time gardening season.
You must make sure that you are ready to fulfill the specific necessities of the numerous plants and flowers that you are growing inside your flowerbed. Should your plants and flowers that require less sunlit areas or even added liquid happen to be possibly getting too much sun rays or not really enough water you need to come up with attempts to incorporate cover from the sun to them and obtain a lot more h2o to them during the entire outstanding months or else you face the loss of an investment of your time and cash you will have currently made in acquiring and raising these kinds of crops.
Implementing proper care of your garden during the summertime might make the fall gathering operation go far more effortlessly whilst assisting get ready for the actual preparing that should happen in the winter months ahead of you. Learn from the maintenance of your garden and plan the next garden with the needs you became aware of this season in mind. Always take time to learn from both your successes and your summer gardening failures for the best possible results. Understanding how to take care of your flowerbed is the best strategy to see whether or not you would like to chance a pretty much driven flower garden in the future growing months.
Variety is the centerpiece of the joy of a beautiful landscape. You can make your landscape more captivating by using dwarf weeping willow trees to emphasize scale and form of your yard.
A dwarf weeping willow tree or Kilmarnock is a perfect ornamental tree especially for small gardens. The tree grows up to 5-6 feet tall.
Due to its magnificent appearance and size, dwarf weeping willow trees make magnificent focal points in gardens and frame front entrances. They also look great near a pond or water feature because their weeping form is evocative of falling water. The tree derives its attractiveness and beauty from the canopy that tends to drop and sweep gracefully on a neatly balanced set of branches. The overall symmetry of the tree gives it a dramatic look that is bound to win the heart of every garden adventurer.
Planting and managing a weeping dwarf willow tree
Begin by selecting a healthy willow to make your cutting from. The spot on the branch where you make the cutting should be two inches in diameter and up to six feet in length. You will need to use a handsaw for a cutting of this size.
Place the cutting, bottom end down, in a bucket of clear water and leave it until you are ready to put it in the ground.
Select a moist site with adequate drainage for your tree. Avoid selecting sites that are too close to buried pipes or side walks as the weeping willow’s roots grow quickly pushing up against them.
Dig a square hole about 18 inches by 18 inches wide on all four sides.
Fill the hole with up to two inches of water and allow it to drain into the ground.
Place the branch cutting into the center of the hole, with the bottom touching the bottom soil. Fill the soil back into the hole while tapping it down to ensure that the soil securely grips the cutting. Fill the hole until the top of it levels with the ground.
Water your willow every two days until it shows signs of growth. You might want to water it daily if your area is experiencing a dry spell. The appearance of new growth on the cutting is a sure sign that it is developing a healthy root system.
Pruning a weeping dwarf willow tree
Prune and trim weeping willow trees annually to keep them in peak health and form. Prune dead branches at any time of the year as they use up nutrients and water that are better put to use in new growth.
Remove branches that cross each other using pruning shears. Thin the weaker upper branches in order to allow sun light to penetrate inner areas of the tree. Trim the branches that touch the ground at around a third of the tree’s height to create a visually well balanced look.