avocado yellow
Not too hot, not too cold are the weather hallmarks for June in Southern California. The moderate weather is just what most plants and trees need for rapid growth.
Planting Window For Tropicals: June is the time to plant or transplant tropicals such as palms, banana trees, ferns, ginger, hibiscus, orchids and bougainvillea. Don't wait until the hot summer months. Mild weather reduces the stress of planting or transplanting.
Transplant Trees: Properly transplanting a tree is often the key to its future health. First, dig a hole at least twice a large as the tree's root system. Set the tree in the hole and position it properly. Fill the hole with a mixture of soil conditioner and soil. Press firmly on the soil and water deeply and thoroughly. The soil should be moist at all times for the first three to four weeks following transplanting. Apply a two to three inch layer of mulch around the trunk (but not touching the trunk) to keep in moisture and the soil cool.
Caring for Avocado Trees: Although avocado trees are hearty once established, they are susceptible to overwatering during their early years. Plant your avocado trees in well-draining, loose soil. If the avocado tree is in a pot, make sure the pot contains plenty of drainage holes. Overwatering can produce root rot--the single most common reason young avocado trees fail. Let the soil around the tree become somewhat dry before watering. Expect leaves to drop all year. Keep the leaves around the tree or use mulch to retain soil moisture. The leaves will naturally compost and introduce nutrients into the soil. Flowers bloom in spring, but don't be disappointed when most of the flowers fall. This is normal. If all goes right, expect fruit two to three years after planting.
Plant Pumpkins: Halloween may seem far off, but now is the time to plant pumpkin plants so pumpkins will be ready for harvest and carving in October. If planting from seed, plants will begin to sprout seven to 10 days after planting. The plants need lots of warmth and moisture to thrive. Leave plenty of room for the plants' vines to spread and develop. Yellow flowers will start to appear about three weeks after plant growth begins. The flowers will develop into pumpkins after they are pollinated. Pumpkins will be ready for picking in three to four months.
About the Author:
Bill Camarillo is CEO of Agromin, an Oxnard, California-based manufacturer of premium soil products for the agriculture and horticulture trades and for consumer use. Each month, Agromin receives and processes hundreds of thousands of tons of urban wood and green waste. Agromin then uses a safe, organic and scientific system to formulate its soil products from the processed recycled green materials. www.agromin.com.
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Cool June Mornings and Warm Afternoons Make The Ideal Combination for Vigorous Garden Growth
Vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and fiber—the good guys in the food we eat. They make our bodies strong to help us fight disease and slow the natural aging process. So how do you know if you are getting enough of these food superheroes? Think color!
White
Bananas are well-known to be an excellent source of potassium. They are also high in vitamin C, vitamin B6, magnesium and manganese. One large banana contains 15% of the recommended daily allowance of fiber.
At just over 6 calories one-quarter cup of raw cauliflower provides almost 20% of the daily recommendation of vitamin C and is high in fiber. Cauliflower is also an important source of folate. A member of the cruciferous family of vegetables, it is recognized as possessing cancer-fighting properties.
Adding onions and garlic to your meals can boost calcium intake, and provide chromium, a trace mineral important in maintaining blood sugar levels. Regular consumption of onions and garlic has been shown to significantly lower cholesterol levels and blood pressure.
America’s favorite white vegetable, the potato, is an excellent source of vitamin C, potassium, Vitamin B6, niacin and thiamin. (Don’t think that makes it okay to pig-out on fast-food fries, or bury your baked potato under butter and sour cream! You know better.)
Yellow/Orange
Yellow fruits such as pineapple and papaya contain large amounts of both vitamin C and vitamin A giving a generous boost to your immune system. One half cup of pineapple delivers almost half the daily recommendation of manganese yet weighs in at only 40 calories.
Think yellow bell peppers for vitamin C. A one-half cup serving provides 300% the daily recommendation of vitamin C. That’s a lot of antioxidant power.
Most of us associate beta-carotene, one of the earliest identified anti-oxidants, with carrots. But you can also find beta-carotene in oranges, apricots, squash and other orange fruits and vegetables.
Not just candied yams at Thanksgiving anymore, sweet potatoes are an amazing package of vitamins and minerals as well as being high in fiber. One baked sweet potato with provide significant amounts of phosphorus, vitamin E, thiamin, iron, copper, magnesium, pantothenic acid, potassium, vitamin B6, manganese, vitamin C and vitamin A (over 1,000% RDA).
Green
Avocados have gotten a bad reputation as being high in fat. But they are also high in fiber, folate, potassium, pantothenic acid, vitamin C and vitamin B6.
Go green, like honeydew melons, green peas, spinach, and collards to supply important carotenoids that reduce the risk of cataracts and macular degeneration.
Also included in the green group of vegetables are broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage, which are, like cauliflower, cruciferous vegetables and contain powerful carcinogen blockers.
Red
Add tomatoes to your diet to provide lycopene, an antioxidant associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer and cardiovascular disease. Surprisingly, cooked tomato products are richer in lycopene than uncooked tomatoes.
You can also get the benefits of lycopene from watermelon and pink grapefruit, plus vitamins A and C.
Don’t peel your apples! The skin of a Red Delicious is packed with two very powerful phytochemicals called epicatechin and procyanidin. Apples are also rich in pectin, a fiber that has a high capacity to absorb water and improve regularity.
Purple/Blue
Eat purple grapes or drink Concord grape juice to provide quercetin in your diet. Quercetin has been identified as an important phytochemical in the prevention of blood clots.
Blueberries, plums, purple cabbage, eggplant and purple onion provide another phytochemical group prevalent in purple food, anthocyanins. These anti-oxidant phytochemicals have been linked with preserved memory and brain function during the aging process.
Add color to your plate. Your eyes will enjoy the sight and your body will be receiving important nutrients vital for optimum health.
About the Author:
Jean Fisher is a former elementary school teacher. Her website What’s For Dinner? provides a dinner suggestion for each day of the week, a customizable grocery shopping list, table topics and quality time activities.
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Are You Getting Enough Color in Your Diet?
