Each year we get one more thing done that makes our backyard our backyard. It’s a lot of hard work for us but worth the aching muscles. This year I will tackle the mess in the south-east corner of our yard so that we can put a nice flower bed there. Here’s what it looks like right now.

South-East Corner of Our Backyard Yard

Last year I cleaned up a section of our property fence that had suffered ice kill from a couple of rain storms that turned to ice. The ice was thick and then the snow turned back to heavy snow and the weight was just too much for most of the bushes.

It was a painful job as there are so many thorny bushes. Getting bundled up so no open skin shows helped but then the thorns grab your clothing as if they were trying to drag you into to some freaky alternate world.

We didn’t buy a chainsaw like I was going to, instead I will borrow Geoff’s chainsaw as he told me all I have to do is ask. It will make the job much easier and faster.

We are not sure what we will put there so I think for this year we will do a bit of container gardening in that spot just to try some plants to see what pleases us.

I was out walking a couple of days ago and noticed that the leaves are starting to turn brilliant colours again which usually means I can kiss summer goodbye for this year.

I was even chilly enough that at a couple of points, when the breeze picked up, I wished I had a pair of gloves and it was still a couple of degrees above freezing.

Well this morning it was minus 1 degree.

It’s a gorgeous morning and the air is clear of everything but sunshine, very bright out.

I will wait a few more hours I guess before heading out for my walk as it’s suppose to go up to 17 today, so later it will be just perfect for walking. The sun will be high enough in the sky not to blind me on my walk and the temp will be high enough I won’t need gloves today.

We have a few vines growing along our property fence so that we can see which vines we like the most before ripping out the things we don’t like. Well there is a vine growing that I see all over Moncton and when they fall colours come out they win my vote for a property fence.

Then there are snowball trees and hydiranges that change from bright white to pink when the temperature drops and they can stay like that for most of the winter if they don’t get blasted with too much high winds.

We don’t have any in our yard yet but we will have a couple of these beauties by next spring so that we can eventually enjoy their beauty without leaving home to see them.

Pretty much any type of organic matter will eventually decompose if it has sufficient time and the right conditions. But, even with that said, you don’t want to toss any old organic materials on your compost pile. The main components that make up a good compost heap will come right from your yard and can included grass clippings and leaves. Small twigs and wood products that have been ground up into sawdust are acceptable as well.

In most backyard composting, the largest single contributor is the huge amount of leaves that rain down each autumn season. In addition, grass clippings can be added to the compost if they are not mulched and left to nurture the lawn itself. When lawn clippings are used in the compost mix they should be used together with other yard waste elements. The site Fall Gardening will give you further functional material.

If you have twigs, branches or logs that are bigger than a quarter of an inch in diameter, then those need to be put through a shredder or grinder before going onto the compost pile. Another option, if you don’t have a shredder available, is to use a corn knife to cut those items into pieces that are small enough to easily decompose.

Many types of kitchen waste items are also appropriate to be included in a compost pile. Fruit rinds, vegetable peelings and scraps, coffee grounds and eggshells that have been crushed are all perfectly acceptable to use in composting and this is a very effective way to recycle these kinds of materials.

There are some organic materials that need to be avoided and which should not be added because of potential health hazards or nuisances that can be created. No type of pet feces should be included in a compost heap because of potential diseases that can be transmitted. Any kind of meat, whole eggs, dairy products and grease should also be excluded because they will attract rodents and other vermin.

In most instances, diseased organisms that are common to plants and weed seeds are destroyed through the process of composting, as long as these components are in the center of the heap and the temperature in the center reaches at least 140 degree F. But, experts caution that it is difficult to assure that such waste will be brought to the center during the composting process. As a result, putting large amounts of diseased plants or weeds with seeds into your compost heap could end up causing problems and should be avoided.

A good compost pile needs a balance of materials that will enhance the decomposition process. In general, keeping the mix to a ration of about one-to-one of brown material with green material works well. Brown material includes items such as manure, decaying leaves, and newspaper and cardboard. Green material would include the hedge and grass clippings, coffee grounds, and fruit and vegetable peelings.

In order to help speed up the decomposition of the organic elements, it is best to have your compost pile contained in some type of structure. In addition, this also helps to make better use of space and minimizes the amount of area needed for your project. Compost bins are a good way to start and they provide the structure to manage the compost and also helps to keep the appearance neat and clean.

Below are some of the most frequently asked questions for composting.

Each year in the spring individuals go outside to begin planting their gardens and flower beds. The allure of warm, gentle days appears to call out the winter hermits in an act of reseeding the world with beauty as well as sublime fragrances. One thing that does not make sense is the quantity of money expended on commercial fertilizers and compost. Composting yourself is without cost and makes some of the best fertilizer in the world. For Sure, it does take some time just if you begin work on it early you can have rich, dark soil when planting season begins. Composting is friendly to the environment and once you have an idea what can be composted and what cannot, you will be on your way to being eco-friendly. In this article the fundamentals of composting will be covered for example what it actually is technically and in what way you can start your own compost pile in your own backyard.

What is composting?

Composting is the process of getting organic material and breaking it down by way of a variety of chemical and animal processes to become fertilizer as well as plant building material that is both low-priced as well as extremely efficacious. It is really friendly to the envrionment as well as is a wonderful way to fend off paying those high costs for bags of fertilizer. You can utilize those leftover food wastes, animal wastes, grass clippings, branches and other types of organic materials to make a loamy material which will assist your plants to develop to their maximum potential like no other commercial grade fertilizer possibly can. The best part is that it is without cost!

What should I use to assist the material break down?

If you want your compost heap as well as material to decompose faster you are going to have to to maintain it in an aerated way, and moist as well as broken into small-scale pieces. You can additionally help break down the material by way of supplying worms as well as additional small-scale insects into the pile that will help eat the organic material. Their waste products are filled with wonderful nutrients for the soil and before you know it you will have a compost heap that is available to hit the garden to begin the cycle yet again. It is a life cycle that is a excellent instance of Mother Nature at her purest as well as shows what recycling have the potential to do for the environment.

How can I stop it from smelling so bad?

If you don’t wish to have your compost pile to smell awful you will want to avoid putting in food scraps and animal wastes such as manure and pet droppings. Besides the self-evident smell as they decay, they will attract other animals and you will wind up finding out your compost pile spread over the grounds. If you happen to live in a suburban area you will want to try to keep the smell as low as possible hence keep those foods as well as waste products away from your compost heap as well as keep just yard trimmings and tree clippings within the pile.

Is it necessary to turn my compost heap over and do I need to water it?

Compositing works best when the leaves as well as other materials stay moist. You do not want the material pile soaking wet but you do desire it humid enough to assist the decomposition process. Once you wet the top layers, choose a pitch fork as well as begin turning the pile over. Every time you get to a dry layer make sure and spray the region with water prior to turning over a new layer.

Go to this link for more information: Gardening Tips as well as Raised Bed Gardening

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Vegetable gardening is certainly on the rise here in Canada and it’s really not much wonder that vegetable gardening is on the rise when you look at the economy these days. Anything that will make the trip to the grocery store less costly is a good thing isn’t it?

My wife and I didn’t start our vegetable garden to save money but when the economy started to slide we didn’t feel the pinch like some of our friends did. We are so happy we start gardening as a hobby.

The really cool part of vegetable gardening is that you can make mistakes and still save yourself money. Jen and I have a lot to learn but we are saving more than we are spending so imagine how much we will save once we learn all the little tips and tricks to a great and productive vegetable garden.

BTW: We share the tips we learn with our readers here at Backyard Gardening tips and we share what we grow with our neighbours if there is more than we can eat.

NOTE: Your first year of vegetable gardening can cost you more than later years as you will need a few tools that will help you get the job done without breaking your back.

Gardening tools do make your life easier so you get more done with less effort and that makes the investment well worth it.

To be even more efficient we chose to go with square foot gardening and with raised beds so we did have a few extra things to get but the resulting vegetable garden produces much more produce per square foot that using rows and to make a long sentence even longer using raised beds saved us a huge amount of time and energy preparing the clay soil we have.

What’s really cool to see are all the people that have started up their own backyard vegetable gardens to help keep expenses down. Then it turns into a hobby and then there’s no stopping us.

Since I have been walking around the neighbourhood we moved into three years, ooops four years ago, how time flies when you’re having fun, I have seen backyards converted from wasted space into fine looking veggie gardens. I know I am stretching the truth a bit here but it seems like half the people in our city have turned to backyard vegetable gardening.

So vegetable gardening is on the rise and you should take a crack at it. Start small, we started with tomatoes in containers, so that you are not overwhelmed and see how fast you get hooked on the great taste of garden fresh vegetables.

Image by ~ Hypatia ~ via Flickr

Beekeeping Supplies For Be Hobbyists And Professionals

Beekeeping supplies include hive essentials, beekeeping tools, processing equipment, honey containers and labels.Many people run commercial apiaries today and keep a stock of all the beekeeping supplies that you need for beekeeping. There are several new products, both for people who are doing beekeeping as a hobby or as a business.

Hive Essentials

Hive Essentials are the first things that you need, when you are starting off with beekeeping. The bees and the queens are the most important beekeeping supplies along with the Beginner’s and Hive Increase Kits. There are small hive frames and big ones, as well as polystyrene hives.

Select your equipment , Choose a hive where your bees will reside. You will need to find a hive that can support the number of colonies that you will support. Additionally, you will need to select protective equipment to manage your beekeeping efforts. Protective equipment includes equipment like veils and gloves that will protect you from bee stings. Hive wraps, gadgets and tools are some of the beekeeping tools along with galvanized hardware cloth and pollen traps. For the beekeeper, protective clothing is essential, and so are smokers.

Processing Honey And Wax

You will need a queen bee and worker bees to get started with. Consider purchasing a packaged set of bees and a mated queen bee. For the honey containers it is important to have bulk, glass and plastic containers for the liquid honey. Closures are vital and there should be labels for the various types of honey.

Honey Handling Equipment is also sold in various sizes in the stores which supply beekeeping supplies. Point the smoker at the entrance of the hive, squeeze the bellows and smoke is forced in. Honey tanks and strainers which are suitable for various size buckets and honey warming cabinets are also available. A honey creaming machine and a hive clamp with strap is used for transportation.

Equipment for beeswax and foundation wax is some of the latest products of beekeeping supplies. There are many wood products, medications and treatment for bees and lots of beekeeping books and educational aids can be bought on websites.

Bee Keeping Kits

Several kits are available as beekeeping supplies like the Bee-Ginners Kit or the Hive Starter Kit. The Bee-Ginners Kit provides the beginner with the basics of beekeeping supplies and it is only sold as a unit. The Hive Starter Kit is an assembled English Garden Hive which has eight frames. It includes a copper top, and two medium blocks with frames.

Buying Supplies

The hives do not need too long a time on a daily basis for maintenance. If the season is good the beekeeper can get around 60 to 100 pounds of honey. The taste of the honey depends on the flowers that the bees have been pollinating.

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