gardening

With so many different species of plants, flowers, and vegetables, it can be difficult arranging your garden each year. Gardens and Plants offers an unparalleled database for keeping your garden organized in the soil and on the computer. This comprehensive program isn't for the casual, weekend gardener who likes to plant a few tomatoes each year. Instead, it's geared toward the professional gardener who needs to do more than look up plants.

This program has a fairly simple layout that helps users explore the complex plant world. With a generous screen and a row of icons down the … Read more

Los Angeles-based Lehr is introducing what it says is the world's first line of lawn and garden equipment that runs entirely on propane.

The idea is to replace toxic gasoline with the cleaner fuel. However, the new product lines' eco-friendliness is limited by the fact that the propane found in stores is still fossil-fuel based.

First out is Lehr's Eco Trimmer, which has just hit major retailers. It is a big machine weighing around 15 pounds, depending on shaft type. It retails for $199. Its propane canister has the same "Twist 'n Go" fueling that's … Read more

People always used to laugh when Prince Charles talked to his plants. Now, thanks to Twitter and a software called Botanicalls, the plants can talk back.

The leading actor in the Botanicalls realm seems to be a plant called Pothos.

Please don't ask me what kind of plant Pothos is. I can barely tell an oak tree from a park bench. However, he (can a plant be a "he"?) has more than 2,600 followers and--suggesting Pothos might be a little on the self-centered side--Pothos is following no one.

Botanicalls' software is very simple. It hooks your plant to its own Twitter page and the plant feeds information straight to your cell phone. Most of the information, strangely, is about feeding.

Pothos has already offered 151 updates. Gems such as "Water me please." And "Thank you for watering me." Or even "You didn't water me enough."… Read more

Spring is almost here and stores are starting to carry herb seeds again. Every year, I plan to grow an herb garden, and every year something gets in the way of my dream. I had a parsley plant that kicked the bucket after a cat mistook the pot for a litter box; a basil plant that flowered and soon after grew some sort of white fungus; and a little pot of oregano that shriveled because of a shortage of light in the kitchen.

On my more frustrated days, I've vowed to abandon the idea of growing my own herbs, … Read more

I don't know whether to laugh or to cry when my friends tell me they just spent $7 for a package of "fresh" basil. Me, I just head to the backyard with my kitchen scissors and cut off a handful of leaves. The seeds I planted about a year ago cost me 89 cents. The pot was $1, and the soil was about $3. So for less than the cost of a single package, I've got myself a permanent supply of truly fresh herbs.

But I live in Houston, where year round gardening is no problem. … Read more

Growing a vegetable garden is hard work, but for on-the-go gardeners, the "Green Capsule" makes it easy to tote greenery around, one sprout at a time.

Created by Masaki Engineering & Consulting in Japan, the traveling miniature garden can become a necklace, earring, cell phone charm, or bag accessory.

The kit comes with seeds for peppers, cabbage, sweet basil, and cherry tomatoes, plus soil to start the portable garden.

Once the sprout grows big enough, it can be transplanted into a pot or garden bed. It's hard to say whether the little plant can hold up while … Read more

Out of Japan, here's something for plant-loving city dwellers. My Plant, a plant-rearing LED stand, is aimed at those who want to grow plants indoors but are finding it difficult due to the lack of sunlight. My Plant comes with two lamps, each made up of 10 red and 2 blue LEDs.

By placing the lamps about 4-16 inches from plants, the blue and red LED lights are effectively absorbed to promote photosynthesis. While the LEDs are said to be similar to ultraviolet rays from fluorescent lights and not harmful to humans, they will burn plants if placed closer … Read more

Curious about gardening? Check out Folia, a social network for plant enthusiasts who want to share and learn tips from the successes and failures of those around them.

Much like Ravelry, the social network for knitters, Folia's claim to fame is that it lets you share and track your gardening with others whether they're near or far. It's also been built up to help you keep an inventory on all your plants and aid you in making swaps with other growers for plants you'd normally have to go out and buy yourself. Think of it like … Read more

You know those space-age countertop gardens that you've seen on TV and in specialty in-flight magazines? They are called AeroGardens and they're popularity continues to, well, grow. According to their news release today, AeroGrow International (NASDAQ: AERO) secured a bountiful harvest of another type of green from several banks and investors. With a market capitalization just over twice the size of their new line of credit, the company seems to be betting on some big crop returns this fall when it expands its line of products.

The AeroGarden uses the dirt-free growing method called aeroponics. "Plant roots … Read more