Plants

How to Grow and Care for Oregano in Containers

Greek oregano

Intro: The variety of oregano used for cooking and flavoring dishes is Greek oregano. There are many varieties of oregano, and while others may be more beautiful to look at, make sure to purchase Greek oregano if you want to grow it in your kitchen garden so you can eat it. Greek oregano’s delicate purple flowers grow on spikes, but if you want to harvest your oregano for cooking, pinch these pretty flowers to promote more leaf growth that you will be able to harvest.

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How to Grow and Care for the Hosta Plant in Containers

Hosta plant

Intro: Hosta plants are grown for their luxurious and compact foliage, and for their delicate but scentless flowers that form on top of tall stems. The hosta’s lilylike flowers bloom in summer and can be white or purple. Some hosta varieties can have up to 75 blooms on each flower scape. Hosta’s leaves grow in a large round mound and are yellow or green, often variegated with gold or white.

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How to Grow and Care for Cabbage in Containers

Growing Cabbage

Intro: Cabbage, which can grow from 2 to 4 feet tall, is a large plant that does well in containers. It is grown for its juvenile inner leaves that can be eaten raw or cooked. It is a low-calorie food and a good source of riboflavin and vitamin C. It needs a large container, especially if you want to include other plants in the pot. Cabbage is a good companion plant with celery, dill, garlic, mint, rosemary, onions, peas, potatoes and thyme.

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All About Dahlia Flowers

Dahlia Flower Purple and WhiteDahlia flowers are native primarily to Mexico, and they belong to the Asteraceae family, the same family that contains daisies and sunflowers. The genus Dahlia is named after a Swedish botanist named Anders Dahl. Europeans imported the species they found in the new world and hybridized them to create the flowers we see today.

These showy flowers are hybrids between the 36 species of Dahlia flowers, bred for specific traits, such as the robust double petal bloom (the wild forms have a single row of petals). According to the American Dahlia Society, there are 20 different dahlia flower forms, including formal decorative, semi-cactus, lacinated, ball, stellar, waterlily, peony, collarette, single, orchid flowering, novelty open center and novelty double center.

Planting Dahlia Flowers

Staked Dahlia Flowers

Plant Dahlias in mid-April through may or when ground temperatures reach 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Plant one tubers horizontally at least 4 to 6 inches deep in a plant container that is at least 1 foot wide and 1 foot deep. Stake dahlias that grow taller than 3 feet.

Watering Dahlia Flowers

Formal Decorative Yellow DahliaDo not water the tubers until you see sprouts, but water your dahlias regularly once it has sprouted.

Dahlia Flower Sun Requirements
Place your dahlia flower in a spot where it will receive at least 8 hours of direct sun each day (morning sun and afternoon shade is best).

Fertilizing Dahlia Flowers
Worm castings from a vermicompost bin and other low-nitrogen organic fertilizers will help your dahlias bloom. High-nitrogen fertilizers, remember, promote

Overwintering Dahlia Flowers
Overwintering your dahlia plants is easy. Store tubers in the cold winter months until you are ready to plant dahlias again in the spring. Remove tubers from the soil in mid-November and store them in damp peat in a cardboard box in a cool, dry place.

How to Grow and Care for Bell Peppers in Containers

Bell pepper Capiscum annuum

Intro: Bell peppers, or sweet peppers, have a delicious thick skin and seeds, and come in gorgeous bright colors: red, yellow, orange and green. There are differences in taste and content when it comes to the color of the bell pepper: Green peppers are more bitter, and red peppers have more vitamins and nutrients (they contain lycopene, more carotene and twice the amount of vitamin C than green). These beautiful pepper plants are easy to care for and do well in small plant containers in urban kitchen gardens. Bell pepper plants will add vibrant color to your balcony garden.

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