Choosing a soil amendment

yet another great site I chanced upon
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/Pubs/Garden/07235.html

Table 1: Decomposition rate of various amendments.
Amendment	Decomposition rate
Grass clippings, manures	Rapid decomposition (days to weeks)
Composts	Moderate decomposition (about six months)
Wood chips (redwood, cedar), hardwood bark, peat	Slow decomposition (possibly years)

Soil Texture

Soil texture, or the way a soil feels, reflects the size of the soil particles. Sandy soils have large soil particles and feel gritty. Clay soils have small soil particles and feel sticky. Both sandy soils and clay soils are a challenge for Gardeners. Loam soils have the ideal mixture of different size soil particles.

When amending sandy soils, the goal is to increase the soil's ability to hold moisture and store nutrients. To achieve this, use organic amendments that are well decomposed, like composts or aged manures.

With clay soils, the goal is to improve soil aggregation, increase porosity and permeability, and improve aeration and drainage. Fibrous amendments like peat, wood chips, tree bark or straw are most effective in this situation.

Table 2: Permeability and water retention of various soil types.
Soil Texture	Permeability	Water Retention
Sand	high	low
Loam	medium	medium
Silt	low	high
Clay	low	high

Table 3: Permeability and water retention of various soil amendments.
Amendment	Permeability	Water Retention
Fibrous Peat Wood chips Hardwood bark	low-medium high high	very high low-medium low-medium
Humus Compost Aged manure	low-medium low-medium	medium-high medium
Inorganic Vermiculite Perlite	high high	high low

Zinnia Elegans (Zinnia violacea)

I think I've finally nailed the name of the plant my mother got in Malaysia. It's color is brilliantly bright red/orange to the extend that it's almost neon O.o

Really pretty...
Pics soon :)

What happens when USD goes down?

another seed buffet~! :P

Summer Savory
Sage (Broad Leaf)
Basil Licorice
Basil Purple Ruffles
Basil Cinnamon
Basil Dwarf Bouquet Spicy
Fennel Sweet Florence
Oregano Greek
Parsley Italian plain leaf
Thyme French Summer
Flax

all for $11.50 usd! yummyyy....

updates on my other plants:

Re-potted my upright rosemary as it was root bound. Before the re-potting, some leaf tips turned brown and the lower leafs look a tint yellowish. Hopefully it'll recover.

Only 2 of my prostrate cuttings survived. The main plant itself has some leaves browning but overall still looking healthy.

Sweet basil doing ok... it really needs lots of sunlight and I have to blast it with a fluorescent lamp at night.

Mints doing EXCELLENTLY. As to be expected they're super hardy. I cut a thin stem off and stuck it directly into soil expecting it to die, but it actually rooted and grew well. Already got 4 spearmints rooted and gave 1 away. The common mints shriveled due to lack of water but bounced back after feeding it, yet another testament to its hardiness.

Thyme grew too bushy and the center part of the main plant became baldy, and stems near the surface of the soil were leggy without leaves. So I re-potted it also, root-dividing it into 2 pots. It was much harder than I thought! It seems there was 1 big solid stem probably from a previous cutting. Anyway hopefully they do well. Did some stem cuttings and stuck them directly into soil. We'll see if they root.

Sweet Marjoram sowing success rate == 0%. Complete failure. Is it just me or the seeds? lol

Dill seeds sprouted but as usual most fell as they were so thin and long. Only 1 left standing... >_<" I'll sow them in office next time so that there's no wind...

Todo:
air layer rosemary, adenium, lime and pomegranate

Rosemary cutting sadness 2

out of 5 prostrate rosemary cuttings, 1 has leaf tips turning black, another has the base stem turning black.

I'm wondering if the soil is too wet... I'll try air layering next before attempting more cuttings... haiz...

Well at least my mints cuttings are rooting well in water, and the holland spearmint's stolon seems to be rooting in the soil as well.

Great site on growing herbs at home

http://www.savvygardener.com/Features/herbs.html

Growth characteristics of common herbs.

Common name	Scientific name	Type	Light	Soil	Height (in.)	Propagation	Hardiness	Comments
Angelica	Angelica archangelica	B	LS	M	72	SF	H	Best in cool climates.
Anise	Pimpinella anisum	A	B	WD	18-24	SS	HH	Alkaline soils.
Basil, sweet	Ocimum basilicum	A	B	M	18	SS	T	Excellent for pots.
Bay, sweet	Laurus nobilis	WP	LS	WD	48+	C	T	For containers. Topiary.
Borage	Borago officinalis	A	B	D	24-36	SS	HA	Often self-seeds.
Caraway	Carum carvi	B	B	WD	30	SS, F	H	Thin seedlings to 8 inches.
Catnip	Nepeta cataria	P	B, LS	WD	36	SS, D, C	H	Cut back in autumn.
Chervil	Anthriscus cerefolium	A	LS	WD	24	SS	HA	Sow early, will self-seed.
Chives	Allium schoenoprasum	P	S, LS	D	10	SS, D	H	Can be grown indoors.
Cicely, sweet	Myrrhis odorata	P	LS	R	36-48	SF	H	Space 2 feet apart.
Comfrey	Symphytum officinale	P	B	R	36-48	D	H	Neutral pH, high fertility.
Coriander	Coriander sativum	A	B	R, WD	24	SS	HA	Space plants 8 inches apart.
Dill	Anethum graveolens	A	B	R, WD	24-36	SS	HA	Do not plant with fennel.
Fennel, sweet	Foeniculum dulce	P	B	WD	48-72	SS, D	H	Less vigor in clay soils.
Horehound	Marrubium vulgare	P	B	D	24	SS, D, C	H	Alkaline soils.
Hyssop	Hyssopus officinalis	P	B	D	24	SS, D, C	H	Cut back in spring.
Lavender	Lavandula angustifolia	P	B	D	18-24	SF, C	H	Evergreen. May winter-kill.
Lemon Balm	Melissa officinalis	P	B, LS	M	18-24	SS, D, C	H	Can be grown indoors. Weedy.
Lemon Verbena	Aloysia Triphylla	WP	B, LS	WD	48+	SS, C	HH	Rarely survives winter. Good indoors.
Lovage	Levisticum officinale	P	B, LS	R, M	36-60	SF	H	Self-seeds.
Marjoram, sweet	Origanum majorana	P	B, LS	R, WD	8-12	SS, C	HH	Grow in pots. Sow seeds as annual.
Myrtle	Myrtus communis	WP	B	WD	60+	C	T	Evergreen, for large containers.
Oregano	Origanum vulgare	P	B, LS	WD	18-24	SS, D, C	H	Cut back in late fall.
Parsley	Petroselinum crispum	B	B, LS	R, M	6-10	SS	HH	Often self-seeds.
Peppermint	Mentha piperita	P	B, LS	M	12-24	D, C	H	Spreads easily. Good indoors.
Rosemary	Rosemarinus officinalis	WP	B	D, WD	36	C	T	Alkaline soils. Good in pots.
Sage	Salvia officinalis	WP	B	D, WD	24-36	SS, C	H	Replace plants every 5 years.
Sage, pineapple	Salvia elegans	P	B	WD	24-48	SS, C	HH	Good indoors.
Savory, summer	Satureja hortensis	A	B	R	18	SS	HH	Trim back during season.
Savory, winter	Satureja montana	WP	B	WD	24	SF, D, C	H	Alkaline soil.
Spearmint	Mentha spicata	P	B, LS	M	18	D, C	H	Spreads easily. Good indoors.
Tarragon	Artemisia dracunculus	P	B	R, D	24	D, C	H	Needs winter protection.
Thyme	Thymus vulgaris	WP	B	D	6-10	SS, C, D	H	Evergreen. Grows indoors.
Woodruff, sweet	Asperula odorata	P	S, LS	M	6-8	D, C	H	Good groundcover.
Growth category: A = annual, B = biennial, P = perennial, WP = woody perennial Light: B = bright, LS = light shade, S = shade Soil: D = dry soil, M = moist soil, R = rich, WD = well drained Propagation: C = cuttings, D = division, SF = seed (fall), SS = seed (spring) Hardiness: H = hardy, HA = hardy annual, HH = half hardy, T = tender

Copyright 1999 University of Missouri.

So much for the "Sale"

I went down to Far East Flora again to look for some small pots and saw that there are still some rosemary for sale. Yes at $9.90 still. So much for the limited time anniversary sale :P

Bottom line. Know the prices, any day can be a sale.

Btw I got 7 small-medium-ish flimsy (I like flimsy) pots for seed starting at 80cents each. I must have overpaid but couldn't find anything else.

Next time I'll just recycle those disposable food containers...

Rosemary sadness

Just yesterday I mentioned 2 of my upright rosemary cuttings were looking ok... but on closer inspection it seems the stem is shriveling and turning brown, instead of the usual light green freshness...

First time using 50% perlite 50% compost... it does drain well and retain moisture nicely... but I think daily watering killed the cuttings... my basil cutting probably drowned from watering twice a day...

I'll do the finger test before I water next time... actually... I'm gonna attempt layering the upright rosemary instead hohoho...

Seeds seeds and more seeds!

Last weekend I went to NTUC to get stuff for cooking oxtail stew. Couldn't resist getting a pack of lemon balm and mint seeds.

Now... these are the usual pink herb packets from Singapore Horti Flora. I bought the mint only because it read (mentha x piperita) aka Peppermint! But a few days later I came across forums and even wiki stating: "Being a hybrid, it is usually sterile, producing no seeds and reproducing only vegetatively". Like OMG @#%$#^#$^@#. Luckily it's only $1.50 for the pack. I'm guessing it'll be the same as the mint I bought from Far East Flora as per my previous post. I'll just sow it anyway and time will tell.

Also having failed 2 times in Basil life sustenance and 0 success in stem cuttings... I decided to peek around for seeds and ended up with a herb seed buffet:

Sage
Thyme (Old English)
Fennel
Coriander Confetti
Oregano
Basil Sweet Genovese
Basil Lime
Basil Lemon

each pack about $2++ from ebay

I've gotta clear out the pots .... lol!

Far East Flora anniversary sale!

It seems Far East Flora has a sale every year around September. I only learned about it this year though :P Guess what I bought?

1 $4.40 Mint (not sure exactly which)
1 $18.90 Spearmint from Holland
1 $9.90 "Upright" Rosemary
1 $9.90 Prostrate Rosemary
1 $9.90 Thyme (again not sure which) (price not sure either lol)
1 $4.40 Sweet Basil

There were at least 4 different species of Thyme on sale. Some were upright, some dangled or flowed over the pot. Their leaves also differed in color and size. I eventually settled for the cutest one which was like a hanging ball with over-overflowing thin stems and small leaves with a rich green color. Yesterday I thought it was wilting as it looked so lifeless and somewhat shriveled. Luckily all it needed was some water and it perked back to health. And I thought I read somewhere it needed very little water...

The mint unfortunately attracted spider mites a few weeks later. I used a shower head to spray the underside of the leaves in hope to rid of them, and did some stem cuttings. Fortunately at least 2 of the stem cuttings are already rooting :)

As for the sweet Basil, it's my 3rd attempt hohoho... at first it didn't seem too happy with the base of the stem browning and the bottom leaves turning pale. Now with nightly blasts of fluorescent lighting it seems pretty healthy but I'm still worried about the browning. My 2 stem cuttings of it failed miserably in soil though... will try water next time.

The Prostrate Rosemary is one of my favourite. It smells soooooo fragrant, even more so than the usual upright Rosemary, though it's not as leafy. Did 5 cuttings from it and stuck them into 50% compost 50% perlite mix and they still look healthy after a week.

The upright Rosemary on the other hand came with a few white flies which fortunately seem to have disappeared. 2 out of 4 cuttings from it have leaves turning black, but at least the other 2 looks ok. Keeping my fingers crossed :)

Last but not least is the Holland Spearmint. It was flowering so I cut back some stems and made tea out of them. It tasted really good! It has a few stolons (runners) so I've just stuck one into the pot (that was a failed attempt for the basil). Maybe tonight I'll find another pot and sterilize it for layering the other long stolon.