Monday, March 12, 2012

Gardening The Easy Way In News Stands Now

This magazine couldn't come at a better time. Every year we plan a garden, and every year we wait too long or have something go wrong. We have sat for the past two weeks with this magazine making notes, highlighting and planning our garden which we will be starting indoors next weekend.

Gardening the Easy Way
A new Hearst Special, on newsstands nationwide March 6, 2012 - June 6, 2012

GET SET FOR SPRING!

Make this the year you succeed in the garden with expert advice and inspiring photographs harvested from Good Housekeeping, Redbook, Country Living and Woman’s Day.  Whether you’ve never picked up a garden spade or you’ve been digging in the dirt forever, you’ll find useful tips and breathtaking pictures (full of ideas to steal).  Find out:

*which always-reliable plants the pros go to first
*the best way to start an organic vegetable garden
*how to raise old-fashioned favorites like peonies, dahlias, and climbing roses

Plus fresh ideas for window boxes and container gardens, insider tips from gardeners across the country, and so much more.

Get this special edition for only $6.99, available at your supermarket or bookstore, or as a digital version at Zinio.com or Nook.bn.com.

A sneak peak at the issue:

The 1-Hour Herb Garden
These aromatic plants are perfect for growing in containers, making this project ideal for apartment-dwellers and experienced gardeners alike. Keep them near the kitchen door, and you’ll have a steady supply all summer long.
Step 1: Cover the pot’s drainage hole with a terracotta shard or a coffee filter. No drainage hole? Drill one in the bottom of the pot. (For smaller pots, the hole should be a half inch in diameter; for larger pots, 1 inch.) Fill the container about two-thirds full with your potting mix.
Step 2: Map the layout of your herbs by arranging the still-potted plants in the container. First place trailing herbs (which will grow over the pot’s side), such as thyme, oregano, and chives, around the edge. Medium-height herbs such as tarragon, sage, and marjoram fill in the next section. The tallest herbs (lavender, fennel, rosemary) go in the center. Lave 3 to 4 inches between plants. Five to eight herbs will fit in a larger pot; three to five in a smaller one.
Step 3: Remove herbs from their original pots and place them in the soil. If the roots are tightly bound, use your hands or a fork to gently loosen them so they can spread out and make themselves at home in the new soil.
Step 4: Use a spoon or your hands to fill in the soil around the seedlings, leaving 2 inches to the top of your container so there’s enough room to water. Herbs shouldn’t be planted too far beneath the surface—where the soil gets compacted—or their roots will suffocate.
Step 5: Pack the soil very firmly around the plants. You want your herbs to feel secure, so the tighter you pack in the soil around them, the better.
Step 6: Water immediately. Herbs do best outside (and love full sun), so don’t start your garden until the daytime temperature is consistently 65ºF.
***
Climbing Roses
Problem: Unsightly, spindly shrubs left behind after roses fade in mid-summer.
Solution: Climbing roses—many varieties bloom repeatedly through summer until the first frost. They also scramble up and soften fences, arbors, and walls.
How to Plant: Find a place in your garden with full sun, well-drained soil, and something—a post, fence, trellis, or arbor—for your roses to clamber over. Plant in spring or autumn, spacing roses approximately 6 feet apart. During the first season, expect lots of canes (branches) but few flowers. Using twine, tie the canes horizontally to your structure to promote growth.
How to Cut: Choose canes that have some unopened buds, rather than those that are completely open. Cut each stem 12 to 15 inches below the roses, remove leaves that will be below water level, and cut the stem at a 45-degree angle.

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