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Life and Landscaping

November 18, 2014 By Ahmed Hassan 3 Comments

When I began thinking about this week’s blog “Everything in moderation” is what was floating around in my mind. It was Waldo Emerson who said “Moderation in all things”.  Another of my most beloved quotes is by Thomas Jefferson: Focus being on the word “equal”. My friend and author, Marie Rhoades, knows that I really enjoy blending quotes.

I like taking Jefferson’s prose and adding another quote like this one from Malcolm X. It primarily resonates with me because it gives a call to action at the end when he states “By any means necessary.”

The duality in both of these speeches brings balance to my own understanding. Of course because I’m Ahmed Hassan Celebrity Landscaper I typically enjoy sharing information and analogies related to landscape and gardening. Yes I’m very much a philosopher, but let’s talk duality and focus on one of my favorite subjects, compost.

Compost is basically life filled, dead plant material. There’s microbial life, processing, eating, and consuming plant material that we consider dead. In actuality there’s no such thing as dead, what there is would better be termed as a shifting of energy. Death is merely the culmination of life. So a dead plant is not really dead at all. Plants are as complex, and in some respects, more complex than people.

Celebrity Landscaper Ahmed Hassan - Compost Cycle

composting as a balanced, organic cycle, transfers energy at each stage

While I could say that all plants worship the sun in order to live, there are those plants that dwell in caves and survive in low lit conditions too. Now I’m not talking about survival though. Survival is what we’re doing here in Sacramento right now as we press through our extended drought. I’m talking about growing and developing. My point is that without the right conditions plants will not grow.
Any mother will tell you that if her hormones were out of whack, she would not have gotten pregnant. Plants are very much the same. Everything in nature is about balance. Whether you’re in the business of growing plants or developing as a person, balance is essential everywhere.

Yesterday I was discussing compost with a lovely neighbor of mine here in Northern California. The day before I was having a phone conversation on the same with one of the #WinMonroviaPlants winners in North Dakota. Talk about extreme differences in weather conditions… Yet regardless of your location, there’s one thing I know that is absolutely essential to growing healthy plants everywhere.

Do you know what this is? If you guessed compost you’d be correct. It is the world wide essential ingredient used to grow healthy plants. Why? Well, it feeds the soil with microorganisms and recycled nutrients. This creates the environment that plants need in order to grow.

I’ve been taught that healthy compost develops in a numeric Ph range between 6 – 8. Since 7 is considered neutral, compost is well balanced organic matter. Here’s an article from Cornell that offers a bit more detail on the matter. Of course there are variances. For example plants such as Azaleas, Camellia’s and Rhododendrons all do well with more acidic soil. If these are the plants you’re most interested in growing check out this link to learn a lil more. Most plants prefer soil that has a neutral (aka balanced) Ph. So I say If it’s good enough for plants, it’s good enough for me.

Celebrity Landscaper Ahmed Hassan - Truckload of Compost

A load of fresh compost replenishes nutrients in the soil

Meaning a balanced diet and lifestyle is likely best for me. This means to avoid too much of anything in excess. About 14 years ago I got on this health kick and began reading a bunch of books about health. I started with the Vegan source book. Next I began reading The McDougall Plan, and others followed after that. What I learned from all of the books was that increasing fresh vegetation is best for optimal health. I understand the raw food benefit because I understand the way compost is developed through live microorganisms. (by the way, I am no longer a vegan or vegetarian. I am an omnivore and what I like to call a conscientious eater).

My point is to say that all of life seems to be about balance. The sun rises and it sets. There’s a season that’s hot and another when it’s cold. I sleep and then I’m awake. I require both fluids and solids. If I simply seek to live a happy and healthy life, I should seek to strike a balance and also expect that happiness must be balanced with it’s opposite, which I choose to call challenges. These challenges show up in your garden just like they show up in your day to day world.
You might refer to things as good or bad, God and the Devil and right or wrong. I simply call it all a Balanced LIFE.

Want more tips???
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Filed Under: Aesthetics & Gardening, Philosophical Rants & Analogies Tagged With: Ahmed Hassan, balance, balanced living, Celebrity Landscaper, compost, eco-friendly, environmentally friendly, Landscape, Landscaping, Organic

Caring for Indoor Plants

October 28, 2014 By Ahmed Hassan

10 Tips From Ahmed Hassan That He Thinks You’ll Really Wanna Know

What we typically grow as indoor plant species are actually tropical plants. These are plants accustomed to growing in hot, humid areas; similar to the hot, and sometimes humid, areas of your home. We humans tend to appreciate temps ranging from about 65 to 70 degrees, maybe a lil warmer if we want to snuggle. Many of the plants that you’ll find at your local nursery or garden center grow outside in places like Hawaii and South America. Heck, I’m from California and I often travel back east and find many of our western “houseplants” growing as annual foliage because the outside weather conditions are warmer and there is more humidity in the air.

What’s interesting is that it doesn’t matter where people live their lives. Plants are everywhere. They’re something we just can’t, and don’t want to live without. Today’s tips are going to hopefully help you better understand how to care for and co-exist with your foliage friends.

Tip # 1 Read up and do a bit of research on your houseplant.
When you buy your plant at the nursery or garden center, bust out your lil smart phone and use Google! Type in “How to care for…” whatever the specific plant name is. We live in the “Information Age”. This means that the information is literally at your finger tips. Use it! You’re paying for all that data on your phone anyway.

Tip # 2 Start w/kitchens and bathrooms.
The humidity in kitchens and bathrooms create just the right amount of humidity that houseplants need and rely on. These rooms have sinks nearby so it’s convenient to water them when you see the plant wilt. Be careful, however, of bathrooms that don’t have windows. Even houseplants need some indirect light in order to thrive. Some need more than others or they’ll start to decline. Again, do your research but these rooms are a great start since they usually have moisture present.

Tip #3 Do not water your houseplants on a regular schedule.
Instead check the plants regularly and water them only when they want to be watered. Most indoor plants die from people trying to hard. We somehow believe that plants will benefit from routine feeding. This is actually a farce. Imagine if everyday at 8 am, noon, and 6pm, I showed up to cram food and water down your throat? No matter where you were, what you were doing, there I was, “Boom! Blam!” water and feeding time! Forget your stress level, never mind if you’ve just had a snack or not. Sleepy? Tired? It doesn’t matter, I just crammed food and water down your throat. How good would you look?

All plants go through what’s called the Temporary Wilting Point, or TWP, where their leaves become flaccid and wilt. They’re showing you that they need water. Water your plants during the TWP. Within hours the leaves will be turgid, lush, and healthy looking.

Celebrity Landscaper Ahmed Hassan - Watering Houseplant

Pay attention to your plant. It will let you know when the next watering is due.

Tip #4 Saturate, but allow the soil to dry between waterings.
While some houseplants will tolerate being consistently wet, many need to dry out between waterings. The Tropics, because of their frequent persisting rainfall, have soil that contains less clay particles. This means that the soil’s ability to hold onto water, remaining wet and soggy, is greatly diminished. There’s no compacted clay to hold onto water. This is the reason houseplants are typically grown in extremely light and airy soil medium.  You are trying to mimic their natural environment. So saturate, then allow the houseplant to wilt before saturating again. If mobility isn’t possible, try using a turkey baster to remove waste water from saucers. Waste water doesn’t allow the soil to drain and will surely be the demise of your indoor friend.

Tip #5 Rotate plants so that leaves can develop in a more balanced manner.
Leaves grow toward the sun. Indoors we simply use light or nearby windows to give a plant it’s illumination needs. A simple spinning of the pot or container every so often works fine.

Be aware that when you spin the plant, you’ll likely lose other leaves that are no longer getting the light they were accustomed to. Remember what I mentioned earlier about bathrooms without windows. “No light, no leaves.”

Celebrity Landscaper Ahmed Hassan - Houseplants in Window

Rotate plants periodically for balanced growth.

 

Tip #6 Plants don’t need nearly as much food as you think they do!
If you have it, use it but sparingly. Egg shells offer calcium, used coffee grounds, however, are superior.

You won’t need much though. Think of fertilizer as Red Bull, it’s got vitamins and gives you “wings” but too much of it and you will rot your gut. Also, never feed a plant without proper watering and removal of the waste water.

Tip #7 Water using recycled tepid water if you can.
Temperature does make a difference. Best selling plant book author Jack Kramer says “If you can drink the water from your tap, it’s fine for plants too. So don’t worry the plant to death; use the water from the tap, A good idea, however, is to let it stand overnight so it’s tepid rather than icy cold, to avoid shocking some of the plant roots. The quality of water is not as important.”

Standing water begins to build up algae. This algae in turn becomes a food source and fertilizer for houseplants. Plants also obtain much of their nutrients from the atmosphere. Dust and organic elements in the air, settle on the soil surface. When the soil is watered, these micro particles become micro compost that delivers nutrients to the soil.

Tip #8 Prune only what’s absolutely necessary.
Pruning actually steals food and nourishment from the houseplant. Leaves create food for the roots, so removing any leaves and branches limits the root growth and development of said plant. So limit removal of leaves to those that are dead, or mostly dead and brown. It’s normal for old leaves to die, in the same way that it’s normal for you and I to lose old hair and skin cells.

Celebrity Landscaper Ahmed Hassan- Houseplant Pruning

Prune carefully to avoid stunting growth.

Tip #9 Protect your floors and carpet.
Water seepage happens. Be sure to use double layers of floor protection whenever possible. There are plenty of floor saving products out there. I suggest you find products that look the way you want them to aesthetically; and create 2 layers of protection from water seepage. I warned you, now go and be careful with your wood floors.

Tip #10 Talk to your plants.
Folks wanna know if it really helps to talk to your houseplants. My answer is yes! Plants take in CO2 and need Carbon Dioxide to live and thrive. We humans expel this Carbon Dioxide. Plants expel oxygen. This gaseous exchange is good for us both.

Additional Information:

Here’s a link if you’d like to learn more on what benefits both plants and people.

And another on the benefits of plants and how they clean our air, as well as which houseplants are best for doing this in your indoor spaces, according to NASA.

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Filed Under: Aesthetics & Gardening Tagged With: Ahmed Hassan, Celebrity Landscaper, Home, houseplant care, houseplant maintenance, houseplants, indoor plants, Landscaping, Plants

Organic Seeds for Your Garden

February 23, 2014 By Ahmed Hassan

 

Carolyn Kenyon not only sells heirloom and organic seeds, but last year she decided to personally hand write the names on most of her seed packs.  I personally think that the hand written seed packs also keeps within the whole “Organic” feel and flavor of things.  My 2014 Landscape and garden will boast 24 or more different varieties of her heirloom and interesting plant choices.

 

Kenyon Organics - Seeds - Salt Lake City Utah

Kenyon Organics, is an urban backyard gardening business located in Salt Lake City, Utah. They offer the area’s most extensive line of heirloom plants, seeds, and amendments to the home gardener as well as the very tastiest varieties of home grown, well nurtured produce to private buyers or farmer’s market shoppers.

They are firm believers in growing wholesome food which has not been genetically modified and founded this business on organic growing principles, with a commitment to offering our gardening friends with the most diverse and pure food supply around.  No GMOs here either. Kenyon Organics has a passion for growing and SHARING heirloom and open-pollinated food options with all people and it is what prompted them to start their  “home-grown” business back in 2008.  “We too were frustrated with the lack of food diversity, not to mention veggies that tasted good, in our local grocery stores. Growing our own food was not enough. We wanted to teach our family, friends, and neighbors that there are much better, more wholesome food options than what we have become used to in our food supply, especially when kids are involved, or people who say they don’t like tomatoes. I was once that person too and now I just tell them “You haven’t tried my tomatoes, I can change your opinion!”   We focus on flavor, freshness, and nutritional value and have a passion for teaching organic, small space, season extending gardening techniques and food preserving and offer many workshops throughout the year. 

A huge part of our business is giving back to the community which we do in ways such as: donating entire gardens, plants, or seeds to senior centers, transitional homeless housing, family programs, community gardens, schools, colleges, and rehabilitation programs. We also have our own network of low income seniors that we donate fresh produce and canned goods to during the growing months.” You can purchase Kenyon Seeds by visiting Carolyn’s shop Kenyon Organics on Etsy

 

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Filed Under: Aesthetics & Gardening Tagged With: Edibles, Gardening, Home, Landscape, Landscaping, Organic, Organic Vegetables, Plants, Seeds, Yard

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