{"id":19793,"date":"2023-03-06T09:32:21","date_gmt":"2023-03-06T14:32:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.meadowsfarms.com\/great-big-greenhouse-gardening-blog\/?p=19793"},"modified":"2023-03-06T09:32:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-06T14:32:21","slug":"garden-terms-you-need-to-know-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.meadowsfarms.com\/great-big-greenhouse-gardening-blog\/garden-terms-you-need-to-know-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Garden Terms You Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"

Annual<\/strong><\/em>\u2014An annual is a plant that grows and blooms in one season, then dies with the frost. Yes, you\u2019ll have to plant it again next year\u2014but it makes up for it by usually blooming the entire summer, all the way to frost.<\/p>\n

Acidic<\/strong><\/em>\u2014When applied to soil, the soil has a pH between 0 and 7. This is important because some plants (azaleas, rhododendrons, etc.) prefer acidic soil. Soil pH can also determine the color of the flowers of certain hydrangeas.<\/p>\n

Alkaline<\/strong><\/em>\u2014When \u201calkaline\u201d applies to the soil, the soil has a pH between 7 and 14. Most plants prefer \u201cneutral\u201d soil (pH of 7). Lilacs, clematis, and a few other plants prefer slightly alkaline soil.<\/p>\n

Beneficial Insect<\/strong><\/em>\u2014Insects that keep down other insects by eating their eggs or larvae or the insect itself\u2014or insects that pollinate\u2014bees, butterflies, ladybugs, hoverflies, praying mantises, and dragonflies. If we plant things that the beneficial insects like, they\u2019ll hang around and help take care of the bad guys for us. We should also plant things to attract the beneficial insects that pollinate.<\/p>\n

Biennial<\/strong><\/em>\u2014A biennial is a plant that goes through its life cycle in two years. They usually grow the first year, bloom, and set seed the second. It often dies or deteriorates at the end of the second year. Many biennials will reseed. Hollyhocks, Sweet William, and pansies are biennials.<\/p>\n

Bolting<\/strong><\/em>\u2014Bolting is when a plant goes straight to blooming and dying\u2014usually because it\u2019s too warm. Many cool-season veggies are known for this\u2014broccoli, cabbage, kale, spinach, etc. don\u2019t like warm weather, so as it gets warmer in the spring, they will suddenly produce a flower spike and stop growing.<\/p>\n

Botanical name<\/strong><\/em>\u2014This is the \u201cofficial\u201d name of the plant\u2014the \u201cscientific\u201d or Latin name\u2014Ficus, for example. There are many different cultivars of Ficus\u2014benjamina, elastica, lyrata\u2014the \u201ccommon\u201d names for the above are Weeping Fig, Rubber Tree, and Fiddleleaf Fig. When looking for a specific plant, it can help us to have the \u201cLatin\u201d or Botanical name as common names can vary from region to region.<\/p>\n

Cool Season Plant<\/strong><\/em>\u2014Sometimes called Cole Crops (although this is correctly applied only to cabbage family members). A cool-season plant grows well during cooler weather. Many cool-season vegetables include broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, spinach, turnips, beets, and lettuce. Hot weather often makes them \u201cbolt\u201d or go to seed and die. There are also cool-season annuals\u2014flowers that bloom best in spring and fall rather than in the heat of summer.<\/p>\n

Deadheading<\/strong><\/em>\u2014Deadheading is simply removing flowers once they have begun to deteriorate. Many plants\u2014particularly annuals\u2014will bloom again if you remove dead blossoms.<\/p>\n

Deciduous<\/strong><\/em>\u2014A deciduous plant drops its leaves in the fall and grows again in the spring\u2014maple trees, oaks, willows, lilacs, etc., are all deciduous. Evergreen is a plant that does not lose its leaves all at once; rather, it loses a few here and there over the year.<\/p>\n

Determinate\/Indeterminate<\/strong><\/em>\u2014These terms refer to tomatoes. A tomato that grows to a certain height\u2014usually two to four feet, then blooms is Determinate. It\u2019s commonly referred to as a \u201cbush\u201d tomato. They produce a big crop all at once, which is particularly good for canning. They do NOT produce all summer, however. An Indeterminate tomato will grow and produce all summer\u2014most tomatoes are Indeterminate. Indeterminate tomatoes can get 8 feet or taller.<\/p>\n

Ephemeral<\/strong><\/em>\u2014An Ephemeral is a short-lived perennial that dies soon after blooming\u2014Virginia Bluebells, Bleeding Hearts, Rue Anemones, etc.<\/p>\n

Evergreen<\/strong><\/em>\u2014A plant that retains most leaves (or needles), only shedding a few at a time\u2014after the next season\u2019s leaves form. Most azaleas, spruces, pines, etc., are evergreens.<\/p>\n

Exposure<\/strong><\/em>\u2014Full Sun, Part-Sun, Shade<\/p>\n