Tips for Choosing a Chiminea for Your Backyard or Patio-Gardening
Tips for Choosing a Chiminea for Your Backyard or Patio
Imagine that you want to stay warm in your backyard on a cool, starry night. One of the ways you can do so is to invest in a clay or cast iron chiminea. A chiminea is nothing more than the modern version of a traditional Mexican outdoor fireplace. This type of outdoor fireplace was used for hundreds of years as a source of warmth and a place to cook. Nowadays you see them in many backyards as sources of warmth and as accent pieces adding charm to a patio or garden.You can find chimineas made of clay, aluminum and cast iron. Which one you choose depends on what style fits your patio or backyard and how much money you are willing to invest. (Note: There are several accepted spellings for a Mexican fireplace. The common spellings are: chiminea, chimenea, chiminia, chimenia.)Choosing a Clay ChimineaWhen choosing a clay chiminea, you should look to see if the fireplace was air-dried or kiln-dried. In general, an air-dried fireplace is usually "untreated." This means you would need to paint it and seal it before use. Kiln-dried versions are typically prepainted and sealed.Clay chimineas are constructed in two pieces. The bottom piece, called the "bowl" is the largest piece, and looks like a potbelly stove. The smokestack, or "neck" is attached separately on top of the bowl. The joint where the two pieces come together is usually rather weak, so you should never lift a clay chiminea from the neck.In general, clay chimineas are not designed to handle large fires for extended periods of time. They are also more likely to crack and break than a cast iron or aluminum model.Finally, remember that a clay chiminea is nothing but a combination of water and dirt. If you let it sit in water long enough, it will turn back into mud. Therefore, cover it during rainstorms and never let your clay fireplace sit in a pool of water!Cast Iron and Aluminum ChimineasIn general, a cast iron or aluminum chiminea is more durable and sturdy than a clay version. Although they tend to be heavier than clay models, they won't crack or break as easily. However, they will need occasional maintenance.For example, if you leave a cast iron chiminea outside long enough, it will rust. Rust is a normal occurrence, so if you sand out the rust spots and paint them as they appear, your fireplace should give you many years of enjoyment.Cast aluminum models are relatively low maintenance, lighter in weight than cast iron, and also rust-resistant. Therefore, painting and sanding is not necessary.What to Look for in All ChimineasAs you shop for a Mexican fireplace, pay close attention to the size of the fire bowl area. This is where you will be placing the wood to burn, so be sure it is large enough to accommodate adequately large pieces of wood. The size of the fire bowl is more important than the height of the neck.You might also consider purchasing a spark arrestor for your chiminea. A spark arrestor is a mesh screen that you place over the chimney hole to prevent sparks from escaping. You might also consider a spark arrestor for the front of the fire bowl, too.A modern Mexican chiminea is a great addition to any backyard, both as a source of heat and as a decorating accent piece. Make your choice between clay, cast iron, and cast aluminum models. With a little yearly care, you will have a wonderful conversation piece for your patio or backyard. Plus, you will have a romantic and charming way to stay warm as you gaze into the sky on a cool and starry night.David Caban is a successful author and publisher of outdoor fireplace and patio furniture advice. His website, http://www.best-in-patio-furniture.com is a one-stop source of free information on patio furniture and outdoor d
Pruning the Backyard Grapevine-Gardening
Pruning the Backyard Grapevine
Proper pruning of your backyard grapevines is essential to maintain vine size, shape, and yield of the grapes. If you don't prune your vines, they will become unruly, tangled messes. Fruit ripeness will suffer. Overproduction of the vine may lead to premature death. It is also one of the harder things to visualize but one of the easier things to accomplish for the home gardener.Pruning is performed in the early spring while the vine is still dormant. This is done in February, March, or early April depending upon when the grapevines generally come out of dormancy and bud out.Pruning the grapevine and training the vine go hand-in-hand. You must decide the way you want to train the vine in order to prune it correctly. Vines that "droop" should be trained to a top wire of about 6 feet. Canes are then pruned and trained outward from the middle on each side of the trunk. As the new shoots grow, they droop on each side of this high pruned wire, naturally, taking in account of their habit of growth. Concord, and other native American varieties are typical of those varieties that droop downward naturally.Varieties that grow upright are trained to a low wire of about 3 feet and allowed to grow upward according to their natural growth habit. These varieties need several wires above the trained canes in order that the upright growing shoots have something to attach to. Often, you will need to tie the growing shoots to these wires to keep the grown going up and to prevent wind damage. European grapes, V. vinifera, and many hybrid varieties (crosses between the European grape and American species) fall into this category.Whether trained to a high wire or to a low wire, the pruning techniques are the same. The amount of one-year old, fruitful wood to be left after pruning is dependent upon the amount of vegetation produced during the previous growing season. Usually, around 90-95% of last year's growth is pruned off. The wood left is dependent upon the variety, how vigorous last years growth was, whether the variety over produces or under produces, and how old the vine is all enter into how you will prune it.Grapes bear fruit on one year old wood. Thus when you prune the vine you will be leaving one year old buds to produce the fruit clusters this year. Much of what will be removed is two year wood with attached canes from last year's growth (that won't be needed this year) and excess one year old canes. When pruning you will be trying to balance the growth of the vine based upon how it grew and bore fruit last year.Excessively vigorous vines that overbore their fruit last year will be pruned with more buds as this will de vigor the growth and balance the vine's growth this year. Low vigor vines will be left with fewer buds to invigorate their growth this year.The two methods of pruning grapevines are short "spurs" and long "canes". The idea behind spur and cane pruning is the same. They differ in which of the buds are the most fruitful on the particular variety you are pruning. Varieties where the bottom buds are fruitful are spur pruned. Varieties where the bottom buds aren't fruitful are generally cane pruned.Spur pruned vines are trained to heads and cordons. The difference here is that head trained vines are pruned to a couple to several spurs close in to the main trunk of the vine. Cordon trained vines have arms extending out from the trunk, on each side, with several spurs generated along the main frame of the arms. Either way of training has spurs of two to three buds each.Cane pruning involves leaving at least one long cane of one-year old wood on each side of the trunk. The number of buds to leave depends on the variety and how much growth of the vine occurred during the last growing season. Usually, 7-12 buds are left on each cane. But this is relative. And that's where pruning becomes an art. After several years you will gain a "feel" of how many buds to leave based upon its performance in the prior growing season.Besides the cane that is left, a small, two-bud spur is left for next year's cane and spur. That's why this method is often referred to as cane and spur pruning. The spur that is left at pruning time is known as a renewal spur. It gives rise to next year's cane and renewal spur.Each year the job of pruning will become easier. You will soon begin to understand what is happening as you watch your vine grow during the summer. Your visualization of how the vine is supposed to look each year will grow. This will make the pruning each spring go smoothly.The tools used to prune your grapevines are hand pruners, loppers, and small handsaws. Select the appropriate pruning tool to remove the wood as cleanly as possible and reduce unnecessary injury to the vine. Hand pruners are used to remove one year old wood. Older wood requires the use of loppers. Sometimes old, unfruitful trunks need to be removed. This is where the handsaw comes in.Learning the art of grapevine pruning takes time and practice. You can contact your local county Ag Extension agent or Agricultural University for bulletins on grapevine pruning. These grapevine pruning bulletins have drawings and pictures of what you are trying to accomplish and will make your pruning easier. Just make sure that you prune your grapevines every year to maintain their size and shape, and to maximize the fruit production and overall fruit quality.Jim Bruce has been growing grapes since the mid-seventies under a range of growing conditions. His Rist Canyon Vineyards is a research project to aid others in growing grapes. More information can be found at http://www.ristcanyonvineyards.com
Father?s Day Gift Idea: Do-It-Yourself Backyard Pond Kit
Father?s Day Gift Idea: Do-It-Yourself Backyard Pond Kit
This Father's Day, sit back and enjoy a nice cold drink with your father, while he's beaming with pride from ear to ear. You are both relaxing next to the sounds of trickling water emanating from the new water feature that he just installed himself. For the father who enjoys gardening, what better gift can there be to keep him occupied, than a do-it-yourself backyard gardening project?Traditionally, preformed ponds are large shells, which are extremely burdensome and difficult to transport. For example, a typical preformed pond kit would come in a box that is 60" x 48" x 24", which is too large for many car trunk sizes. Liner kits, on the other hand, present many difficulties for the beginner pond gardener. Since every liner pond shape is different, pond gardeners must customize their own pond and ensure that it is level, and that it does not have excessive wrinkling.Recently, Algreen Products Inc. has helped leverage both these problems by introducing a flexible preformed pond. The folding preformed/liner hybrid is created with a proprietary blend of materials, which allows it to hold a customized shape. Yet it is easily transportable, since a typical folding kit comes in a box one-sixth the size of a regular preformed kit.Algreen's folding preformed pond kits are easy to install, and come with all the instructions and components that are required to set up your very own backyard garden pond. The only thing that this kit does not include is a shovel, and the priceless grin on your father's face as he admires his own personal handiwork.While quantities last, GardenSM.com is now offering a free upgrade from their 72 gallon black pond kit, to their new 72 gallon granite rock pond kit. Their 72 gallon rock pond kit comes complete with:- A 36" x 44" x 18" folding preformed pond shell- A streamlet to trickle water into your pond- An Energy efficient Super Flo 306 gph pump- 3 fountain heads- A Telescopic riser and diverter- Tubing and clamps- Two 6" silk water lilies- A 20 year manufacturer's warranty on the pond and streamlet a 2 year manufacturer's warranty on the pump.At only $139.99 USD, all this can be quite an affordable gift. But that's not all- as part of an ongoing Father's Day Special, GardenSuperMart will add a FREE SuperGlo underwater light with the purchase of every preformed pond kit!Make this Father's Day a gardening escapade, with GardenSM.com!The full GardenSuperMart catalog can be viewed at buypond.com.