Interesting Facts about Fruit

We all know that the fruit is very healthy. With regular consumption of fruit our body absorb important vitamins. Here is the list of some interesting facts about fruit that you might don`t know:

APPLES

- There are over 7500 different types of apples
- If you eat an apple, this is more reliable way to stay awake than drink a cup of coffee. The natural sugar in an apple is stronger than caffeine in coffee.
- Apples are great source of fiber and vitamin C
- Apples help prevent cancer, heart disease, asthma and diabetes type II

 BANANAS

- Bananas are actually herbs and not fruit. They are the world`s largest herb related to the family of Orchids and Lilies. Banana-as fruit is actually considered as giant strawberry of this large herb.
- Due to the presence of natural sugars Banana provide an immediate increase in energy
- Bananas contain a lot of potassium, which helps regulate blood pressure
- Banana contain a lot of magnesium, which helps build bone strenght

BLUEBERRY

- Blueberries contain more antioxidants than any other fruit
- Antioxidants in blueberries help fight age diseases
- It is the only natural kind of food that`s blue

 

 

 

 

GRAPE

- Red Grapes are rich in antioxidants and fiber
- Grape is excellent for promoting heart health and prevent the possibility of a heart attack

 

 

PLUMS

- Plums contain a lot of vitamin C, which helps the body to absorb iron
- They also contain a lot of antioxidants, because of their purple pigment

STRAWBERRIES

- Strawberries are a great snack because they contain only few calories
- They contain a lot of vitamin C, fiber, folic acid and potassium
- This is the only fruit that has seeds on the outside

WATERMELON

- It is an ideal snack because it contain only few calories - like Strawberries
- Watermelons contain a lot of fiber and vitamins A and C
- Any part of Watermelon is  edible - even seeds and bark
- Watermelons are actually vegetables, not fruit. They are in the same family as Cucumbers and Squash
- Watermelon contains 92% of water


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Strawberries

Moreover, Strawberries are extremely delicious they are also very healthy, because they contain iron, sodium, calcium, potassium and phosphorus, vitamin A, B1, B2 and vitamin C. Those, who do not have your own bed of Strawberries, make sure (before you buy them) that they do not contain any pesticides.

Tasty Strawberry Snack

Strawberries are a great afternoon "snack". As we already mentioned, they are very healthy, but they contain only few calories. You can also use them in the kitchen for different kinds of dishes from pies, cakes, rolls to home made Strawberry ice cream. Of course you can also use it as fill for your pancakes or prepare refreshing Strawberry smoothie.

These delicious fruits in addition to good taste they are also refreshing and they clean our blog and skin. They are suitable for home made mask for your skin and have also a great effect on our teeth.

Beautiful fruits

Strawberries are 15 cm high perennial plants. The fruits are juicy and very tasty.

Strawberries Habitat

Strawberries prefer clay soil, but they grow well in other soils too. We should plant them in the sunny area of our garden.

Care for Strawberries

We should clean (cut off the dry leaves) them and fertilize with manure (one wheelbarrow of manure for every 7 square meters). In hot and dry weather we have to supply them with water especially in the flowering time. When the fruits begin to turn red we stop with watering.

Transplantation

We plant them in August-September or April-May. Make sure you buy healthy plants. While planting we have to be careful that we do not bury in the ground the growing buds. We have to water them after planting. We can reproduce Strawberries ourselves. The most appropriate time for this is August. We stop the relationship between parent plant and the young one. We plant new plants on desired location.

Collection

Picking time depends on the type. Strawberries and the plants will be less damaging if we pick the fruits with a floral cup and a bit of stalk.


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Deciduous Shrubs - undemanding

Since this blog is designed for beginners and for those who want organic garden and beautiful surrounding with as little work as possible, I will now give you some nice examples of undemanding deciduous ornamental shrubs. The shrubs are listed according to habitat.

Forsitia

Forsitia blooms in early spring with yellow blossoms. In the summer it does not attract special attention with its long green leaves. Forsitia is undemanding according to soil. We trim it after flowering, but not to much because it blooms on last year`s shoots.

Flowering time: March - April
Height of growth: 1 - 2,5 meters (depending on type)
Habitat: Sunny

Japanese Quince

It is really undemanding deciduous shrub that grows in any soil. We shouldn`t trim it in the spring, because they bloom on the old wood.

Flowering time: March - April
Height of growth: 1 - 2 meters (depending on type)
Habitat: Sunny, half shadow

Lilac

It is regarded primarily because of its colorful and fragrant flowers. It is good to cut off the withered flowers. We trim Lilac after flowering, because they are forming on the newly grown shoots flower buds for the next year.

Flowering time: May
Height of growth: 1 - 4 meters (depending on type)
Habitat: sunny, half shadow

Snowball

This beautiful shrub is named after its great white, round flowers. It is undemanding. It is developing the best if we do not trim it. It grows about 2 meters in height and 2 meters in width. It blooms richly in the spring.

Flowering time: May
Height of growth: 2 - 3 meters
Habitat: sunny, half shadow

Spirea

Spirea is very beautiful, richly flowering ornamental shrub. We can plant it in any soil, but it prefer humus, moist an permeable soil. We can trim it after flowering, so it will bloom richly next spring.

Flowering time: May
Height of growth: 0,5 - 2 meters
Habitat: sunny, half shadow

Deutzia

Deutzia is beautiful shrub that thrives in any soil. In flowering time it requires a bit more moisture - so we have to make sure it is not "thirsty".

Flowering time: June - July
Height of growth: 1 - 4 meters
Habitat: sunny, half shadow

Kolkwitzia

It is an excellent undemanding bush. It grows in light soil. It blooms most richly in a sunny position, but it also thrives in the shade. We trim it after flowering.

Flowering time: May, June
Height of growth: 2 meters
Habitat: Sunny, half shade, shadow

 

 

Kerria

The most popular type of Kerria is "Pleniflora", wich has full, buttercup-like flowers. The plant is very narrow and also thrives in the shade.

Flowering time: May - July
Height of growth: 2,5 meters
Habitat: Sunny, moderate shadow, shadow

 

 

Hydrangeas

Hydrangea is very beautiful, long flowering shrub. Humus, fresh soil suits it the most. It has to have water supply in the summer. Hydrangea is sensitive to frost. This undemanding srubs especially like sunny and half shadow places.

Flowering time: July - September
Height of growth: up to 1,5 meters
Habitat: Sunny, half shadow, shadow




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Outdoor Potted Plants

Lets say something about the outdoor potted plants that I have at home and they work very well and I think that are great for beginners.

GERANIUM

Geraniums are outdoor potted plants great for balconies that are on the south side. Geranium with single blossoms grow up to about 80 cm in length. Geranium with double blooms are fuller but they grow few cm less. Geranium are richly flowering and undemanding potted plants.

 

 

SWEET ALYSSUM (Lobularia)

Like Geraniums - the Sweet Alyssum is also great balcony plant suitable for sunny positions. Sweet Alyssum is very gentle, rich white blooming outdoor pot plant It is very thirsty, so we have to make sure it has enough water all the time.

 

SURFINIA

It is the most suitable outdoor potted plant for half sunny location. Surfinias are hanging potted plants that bloom in the most beautiful colors. They need good soil, regular fertilizing and watering (1 - 2 times per day). It is best to have planter with water reserve. However we have to pay attention on how we watering them - mind you do not water the leaves, because they can turn yellow.

 

PELARGONIUMS

They are suitable for sunny locations. Pelargoiums are strong, upright outdoor pot plants with large flowers. The plant should be in the shelter if it is raining for several days, because it does not like overly wet soil. It does not tolerate temperatures below 5°C.

 

 

FUCHSIAS

Fuchsias are suitable for half sunny places. They bloom from early Juno to late autumn. You can cut them in any form you like. In the winter we place them in cold rooms, safe from frost.

 

 

BEGONIAS

Potted plants that thrive on the sun, half shade or in the shade - depending on the type. They grow up from tubers. Begonias bloom rich from early summer to late autumn. They grow approximately 30 cm. We do not plant them too early, because the cold can damage them. When in the autumn leaves turn yellow, we dig up the tubers and try them well, so we can remove the soil together with the remains of the stems. We store them in the dark, try and cold place, where they wait until next spring.

 

ORNAMENTAL NETTLE

Ornamental nettle are outdoor potted plants which grow in the shade. We can found them in different colors. They are suitable for different combinations. They are beautiful among with sweet potatoes, which has bright green leaves, begonias, ornamental grasses,..

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Yellow sticky traps

Some of you probably have beside your garden also few fruit trees - a small orchard. When they start to fade, we have to hang a yellow sticky traps on them. I would like to especially point out that we shouldn`t put those traps on the flowering trees, since this is the most common mistake that does more harm than good. During flowering we can catch, not only pests but also the bees that do benefit to our plants.

After flowering, the yellow sticky traps will catch various pests and flies.

We wrap sticky tape around the steams (about 15cm above the floor), which catch ants and other pests that crawl on the tree.

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Protection against Powdery mildew

Powdery mildew is a very common disease that can affect plants such as Rose, Tomato, Peppers, Cucumbers,.. If you want to prevent the disease it is ideally to spray the plants with chamomile and sage tea if the weather is cold and wet. Use the tea spray every 5 days.

We can strength the immunity of the plants with Nettles extract. We soak the Nettles into the water (we put the Nettle in the dish and cover them with water), leave it 24 hours and then strain them. With this formulation we spray the plants in early morning or late evening. With this preparation we strength the immunity of the plants. The preparation also repel the louse.

However, if the plant is already attacked by powdery mildew (brown spots and patches on the leaves), we have to carefully cut off all the affected leaves and spray the plant with cooled, strong chamomile and saga tea.

It also helps to spray the plants with milk. When the tomato begin to ripe, it is recommended to water the plant with a mixture of milk and water (50:50 ratio) to supply the plant with the needed calcium.

We spray plants in the early morning (until 8 am) or at late evening, so the sun does not scorch the wet leaves.

If we want immune plants we have to make sure that they do not suffer the drought. The plants also shouldn`t be lacking in nutrients. We can remove various other pests manually. If there are too many pests it is the best to get more powerful products.

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Climbing plants care

We have to regularly tie them to the support. If the weather is dry, we have to water them and fertilize them if needed. Plants can be tied on supports with a variety of snaps, rings or strips. We just have to ensure that we don`t tie them too strong.


It is recommended that we shadow the lower parts of plants. For shadowing you can also plant smaller plants in front of our climbing plants which will work as a shade.


We do not wrap the young shots of Chinese Wisteria, we just tie them straight.

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The May`s Shrubs Cut

In May we can already prune some early flowering shrubs (Forsythia, Flowering Quince, Flowering Almond, Viburnum opulus,..). But not before they start to fade. This will allow them to have a sufficient time to produce new shoot for next spring.

 

Forsythia is an exception. If you with to maintain it in the desired form, you have to cut off a long, young shoots through the whole growing season. 

We can also start to pruning hedges and shapes formed from evergreen shrubs such as Boxwood.

Ensure that you cut them early enough, because the hot sun can scorch new leaves.

After the pruning we cursorily dig up the soil around the Shrubs and water them. We can put the compost around the shrubs or we can also use slow-acting fertilizer and place the mulch.

If the summer is dry we have to water the shrubs once a week.




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Potted plants and Plants in Buckets - In May

In the May we can still transplant them or remove the top layer of soil and replace it with new one.

We can put all the potted plants and plants in buckets when the temperature is higher than __ (preferably against the wall and into the shade). If is comes to cooling we have to put the plants inside or cover then with fleece.

Since the plants need some time to get used to the external environment we have to protect them not only against cold but also from the strong sun. Of course, you don`t need to shade plants all year long, but it is recommended to shade them at least the first week. You can use the fleece or we can also use the net dedicated for shading, which can be found in garden centres.

To avoid shadowing we can also put the plants in the shade of the trees so they are light up only by the early morning and late afternoon sun.

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Geophytes - When they Wane

When the Geophytes (tulips, daffodils,..)wane, we cut off the stems so the plants don`t exhaust themselves too much by developing seeds. However, we have to be careful. We can cut leaves only if they get fully yellow, because it means that the plant has accumulated nutrients for the next year.

Daffodil bulbs should remain on the flower bed over the summer. We have to be a bit more careful when it comes to Tulips. Tulips grow better in sandy, water permeable ground. If there is a lot of rain in the summer, the bulbs can be attacked by mildew and they get destroyed. So, if the ground is not sandy and water permeable it is better to dig the bulbs up after the leaves are dry, dried them and store in the dark, dry and cold place until the autumn, when we re-plant them.

If we are deciding between Tulips and Daffodils, and we want to have as little work as possible it is better to choose Daffodils since the Mice and Vole do not like them and they are not as sensitive as Tulips. Even if they are slightly damaged they can recover, while the Tulips are more sensitive. 

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Care of the lawn

Who doesn`t want to have a beautiful lawn in front of the house ;)? If we want to have a beautiful lawn we must take care of it. We mow the lawn regularly - every 5 - 7 days. We have to remove the weed regularly because we don`t want that the weed overgrown our lawn. If we can`t remove it manually, we can use a special fertilizer for lawns that contains ingredients against weed. The lawn has to be fertilized by the membrane fertilizer each year at the beginning of growing season. Membrane lawn fertilizer is released slowly and have an effect on long-term. I recommend you to fertilize the lawn before the rain, so the rain can dissolve the fertilizer. However, if there is no rain you can also water the lawn manually.

Grass clippings can serve as mulch in the garden or they can be added to the compost. But we have to dry it a little after the mow. If we are using various herbicides for weed control or fungicidals against molds and fungi, the grass shouldn`t be added to the compost or be used as a mulch in the vegetable garden.

If there are long periods without rain at the summer we have to supply the lawn with the water.

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Good Neighbors Part 2. - Preventing diseases and pests

We have already discussed about »the good neighborly relations« between plants in post Good Neighbors Part 1. We told which plants are more or less good to be placed together in the garden. In this – second part, we will say something abut the plants which prevent diseases and pests.

When we decide to grow our own garden, we of course try to produce as healthy food as posible.  But here apears a problem: There are many pests and diseases which we are trying to get rid of with various chemicals. But with chemicals we do not make any benefit to ourselves. Our goal is healthy and natural home grown food. With chemical produts the quality of home grown food is lowered.

In the fight against pests and diseases, we can place on the garden some plants that are used to treat or prevent certain diseases and to drive away pests. In this natural way we are preserving home grown food healthy and quality.

First let`s take a look at the plants which are really needed in the garden and which garden crop need them the most:

1. NASTURTIUM: Because it drives away the leaf louse, it is good to be placed near Potatoes, Brassicas, Fruit Trees and Lettuce

2. We plant BASIL near Fruit vegetables like Tomatoes, Peppers and Rose because it prevents the powdery mildew

3. CHAMOMILE: It acts against blight. Especially appropriate place in the garden for this plant is near Tomatoes and Brassicas.

 


4. CHIVES also counteract against Powdery mildew and it is suitable for placing near Strawberries, Carrots, Tomatoes and Roses

 


5. We pland SAVORY near Legumes because it drives away leaf louse.

6. GARLIC, TAGETES, MAROGOLD! These plants are must in every garden because they make a huge benefit to your garden. You just have to make sure that you do not plant Garlic near Peas, Beans or Cabbage.   

Few very good combinations:

-          Onions near Carrots

-          Leeks near  Carrot, Parley

-          Carrot near Salad

-          Radish near Carrot

If you to not know how to tackle the entire planting, you can view the Example of plants arrangement, which includes a »Good neighbors« and the above mentioned plants. You can find the example here.

Of course there are many other pests that can invade your garden. In the table below you can see which plants to plant near crops to prevent certain diseases and pests.  You can also make a preparation to fight diseases (make a tea and use it as spray). All the plants listed below can be used as mulch or preparation exept basil. 

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