One of the best things about gardening is felling warm, moist dirt in your bare hands, but you will often end up with blistered, chapped, and scraped skin. The solution to this problem is gardening gloves. The more time you spend getting down and dirty in the garden, the more you need gardening gloves. Gardening gloves will be able to ease some of the pain you would otherwise be subject to, letting you spend even more time playing in the dirt.
There are hundreds of different types of gloves on the market, and the kind of gardening glove you buy depends on the way you garden. Some gloves offer protection against specific substances or things, for example, leather gloves are not the best for working with chemicals or water. Many gardening gloves are specialized for pruning thorns, refilling gasoline tanks, or using a chain saw, while others are for general tasks such as raking, digging, and weeding.
After choosing the type of gardening glove you need, you must make sure and pick out the perfect fit. Gloves that are too big have a tendency to slip off while gloves that are too small could cause aches and cramps. Any glove that doesn’t fit could defeat the whole purpose of wearing gloves and cause blistering. To find a glove with the best fit possible, try the gloves on both hands, make a fist, and imitate the movements you make when gardening. If there is no pinching or slipping and the glove is comfortable then you have found your match.
Gardening gloves can be bought in many places and are produced by many companies, causing them all to have a different quality and price. Most gloves can be washed in cool water and then air dried. There are many different types of gloves you can purchase to satisfy your varying needs, such as cotton and cotton-polyester for general-purpose chores. These are among the most popular gloves and are perfect for light chores in cool and dry weather. Leather gloves can also be used for general chores but are heavier than cotton and polyester. Chemical resistant gloves will help protect your hands against oils, acids, herbicides, pesticides, and many other chemicals. Grip enhancing gloves are designed with rubber dots for extra gripping power. Cut and puncture resistant gloves are designed to offer extra protection against sharp edges
If you are the type person that only wears gloves as an optional luxury for various tasks, you should think seriously for using specialized gardening gloves for many of the activities you will be doing outside. There is really no reason not to wear gardening gloves; they protect your hands from the elements and don’t ever cost all that much.
Filed under Bulbs, Butterfly Garden, Composting, Flowers, General, Landscaping, Lawn Care, Plants, Vegetables by 
The world would be a much different place, without the beauty of flowers. Children can contribute to the beauty of nature, while learning at the same time, by planting their own container garden of flowers.
There are many, many kinds of container gardens. They can be as unique as each child who creates them. Large planting areas are not necessary. In fact, a container garden can consist of just one container. They are not expensive to create.
There are several interesting variations of container gardens besides planting in an ordinary container, which sits on the ground. Allow children to use their imagination and come up with their own ideas. They can use hanging baskets, trellises or other types of vertical support (along with the actual container) and window boxes.
Vertical container gardening is a wonderful option for children living in urban areas or apartments. They can grow their gardens ‘up’ instead of ‘out’, in a very small space. This works best for vining flowers, such as passion flowers, morning glories and star jasmine.
There are many edible flowers, which are well suited for container gardens. They include: violas, pansies, carnations and nasturtium. Consult your library or local bookstore, for an extensive list of other edible flowers. There are many wonderful books, on the market, in regard to this subject. Most include colorful pictures, which makes edible flower identification very easy.
Flower petals are wonderful as part of a salad or when used as a cake decoration. . Obviously, no pesticides of any kind should be used on flowers, which will later be eaten.
Some children might enjoy planting a container garden, which includes their favorite color combinations. Whether they choose colors that complement each other or colors that are very different, it’s sure to be an eye pleasing display.
To make their gardening experience even more enjoyable children may want to plant a container garden, which attracts butterflies or hummingbirds. This way, not only will they learn about gardening they will learn about insects or birds, as well.
Hummingbirds are truly amazing to watch. Because they consume more food than their weight, each day, they must visit many gardens. Hanging baskets are an excellent container for this type of garden because they can be place near a window, making it much easier for these tiny birds to be observed.
Hummingbirds are attracted to bright flowers, especially reds, bright pinks and oranges. Other colors can be added in once the hummingbird has become accustomed to visiting its garden. It is recommended that flowers with an extended blooming period, be used.
The prefer tube shaped or trumpet like blossoms. Wonderful choices for a hummingbird garden include: day lilies, fuchsia, geraniums, honeysuckle and zinnias.
Almost any type of container can be used, for a container garden. Everything from ceramic pots, small barrels, old wagons, tire stacks, terrariums, baskets, wooden crates, old shoes and toy dump trucks have been used for this purpose.
Some creative gardeners have even gone as far as using an old bath tub or even the kitchen sink.
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Care of the Flower Garden
Knowing how to care for your flower garden can make a big difference in the look and over-all health of your plants. Here are some simple hints to make your garden bloom with health
1. The essentials must always be given major consideration.
Your flower garden must have an adequate supply of water, sunlight, and fertile soil. Any lack of these basic necessities will greatly affect the health of plants. Water the flower garden more frequently during dry spells.
When planting bulbs, make sure they go at the correct depth. When planting out shrubs and perennials, make sure that you don't heap soil or mulch up around the stem. If you do, water will drain off instead of sinking in, and the stem could develop rot through overheating.
2. Mix and match perennials with annuals.
Perennial flower bulbs need not to be replanted since they grow and bloom for several years while annuals grow and bloom for only one season. Mixing a few perennials with annuals ensures that you will always have blooms coming on.
3. Deadhead to encourage more blossoms.
Deadheading is simply snipping off the flower head after it wilts. This will make the plant produce more flowers. Just make sure that you don't discard the deadhead on the garden or mildew and other plant disease will attack your plants.
4. Know the good from the bad bugs.
Most garden insects do more good than harm. Butterflies, beetles and bees are known pollinators. They fertilize plants through unintentional transfer of pollen from one plant to another. 80% of flowering plants rely on insects for survival.
Sowbugs and dung beetles together with fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms are necessary to help in the decomposition of dead plant material, thus enriching the soil and making more nutrients available to growing plants.
Other insects like lacewings and dragonflies are natural predators of those insects that do the real damage, like aphis.
An occasional application of liquid fertilizer when plants are flowering will keep them blooming for longer.
Always prune any dead or damaged branches. Fuchsias are particularly prone to snapping when you brush against them. The broken branch can be potted up to give you a new plant, so it won't be wasted.
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