Glossary

ACCENT PLANT - This could be a focal point plant. A plant to catch attention. Could also be called an anchor plant.

ACHEVE - A one seeded fruit which does not split open to release it's seed, ie. the "seeds" on a strawberry.

ACID RAIN - Rainwater that contains sulfur dioxide and other pollutants from industrial plants. There has been considerable damage done to the forests of the US and Canada.

ACID SOIL - Soil that is lower than 7.0 ph (higher would be alkaline). Acidity is measured by the amount of calcium in the soil, as is alkaline soil.

ADVENTITIOUS - Having growth from places where normally growth does not occur (i.e. if a stem is buried and a plant will grow.)

ADVENTITIOUS PLANT - A young plant that develops in an asexual manner on the leaves or stems of the mother plant. (Kolanchoe are good examples of this.)

AERATION - The loosening of soil by digging or other mechanical means to allow air to pass freely, usually done on lawns.

AERIAL ROOT - A root which grows out from the stem above ground level. Aerial roots are commonly seen on mature specimens of Monstera deliciosa.

BACKYARD WILDLIFE HABITAT - A dreamy situation where native plant materials are providing food and shelter for protection and reproduction for birds, insects, and mammals in ones own backyard.

BALE - The area of the trunk between the base of a tree and the lowest branch.

BARE ROOT - Plants that have been dug out of the ground when dormant. The soil is shaken free, washed and stored until shipment. Roses and daylilies commonly come this way, as well as smaller shrubs and bushes, sold in their dormancy.

BEDDING PLANT - Usually an annual plant temporarily in a garden display. Some interstates have "smiley faces" that are done in a bedding plant display. Sometimes called carpet bedding.

BELL JAR - An old term and glass container which is bell shaped. On the top is a knob for the use of protection of a delicate plant. From the Victorian Era and now days known as a cloche.

BENEFICIAL INSECT - These are insects that will improve and work in our gardens. By improving the soil, going after harmful insects, and will pollinate plants. Ladybeetles, earthworms, and bees are well known.

BERM - A landscaping technique that is used to create interest, privacy, or screening. It may also divert water runoff. It is made by creating a mound of earth or a hill.

BICOLOUR - A flower with petals which bear two distinctly different colors.

CLAY AGGERATE - A product that is manufactured exclusively in high tech kilns in Germany and used as a soil replacement on hydroponics. It once was very popular in the late '70's - '80's. Now making a comeback.

CLIMBERS - Those gardeners who are willing to hike for distances to see an alpine specimen.

CLOCHE - This is a cover for protecting plants from the cold. In the early 19th century it was more popular, being bell shaped. Now, more conventional models are in all the catalogs.

CLONE - A genetically identical group of plants, created from one individual by vegetative propagation.

CLUB ROOT - A disease of cabbages and some related vegetables caused by the slime mold fungus.

COLD COMPOST - A method by which organic material just rots on its own. It may take months or years to naturally decompose. There may be a significant amount of weed seeds. And, there may be the danger of some disease organisms still in the compost.

DAY LENGTH - This merely is the number of hours from sunrise to sunset. Sometimes used interchangeably with photo period.

DAY NEUTRAL - A plant whose blooming period is not affected by the length of day.

DEADHEADING - Pinch here, snip there, removing spent flowers that have already bloomed. This is done for the benefit of the plant to prevent disease, prevent seed development and will encourage more vigorous blooming and a bushier plant.

DECIDUOUS - These are plants that loose their leaves at the end of the growing season. Maple trees are a good example.

DETHATCH - The process of taking up dead grass and plant material that builds up under the grass making the soil easier to absorb nutrients.

ESCAPE - A plant that is on its way to becoming naturalized in an area. Just exactly as it reads, it has escaped from cultivation.

ESPALIER - The method of training a tree or shrub as to grow in a pattern. Often pear trees, apple trees, or ornamentals.

EVAPOTRANSPIRATION - Known as ET, it is the amount of water that transpires through a plants leaves combined with the amount that evaporates from the soil in which it is growing.

EVERBLOOMING - Those flowers that will bloom all season.

FERTILIZE(RS) - The act of or the actual substance added to soil to provide additional nutrients for plants. May also be used to describe the pollination process flowers undergo with the help of bees and other insects. There are organic and chemical fertilizers.

FIELD GROWN - Grown in the field, as opposed to root cuttings which are grown in pots in greenhouses.

FLAT - A shallow wooden box or plastic tray used to start cuttings or seedlings. Annuals may be purchased in a flat.

GROWING HABIT - A direction or shape a plant takes as it grows.

GROWING POINT - The area where the new growth occurs. When a plant is pinched and the new shoots then develop, this is the growing point.

HEADING BACK - The process of cutting an older branch or stem to a twig or stub.

HEART ROT - most commonly heard of in reference to trees. The center merely has rotted out. Can also happen in root vegetables.

HEAVING - When there is a climate change from frost to warming of the soil, it often causes the soil to buckle upward. Sometimes called frost heaves.

INFERTILE - Soil that has no nutrients.

INFLORESCENCE - The arrangement of flowers on the stem. Basically, a flower head.

INORGANIC - A chemical or fertilizer which is not obtained from a source which is or has been alive.

MOON GARDENING - A very romantic night garden created by using white night flowering plants or light variegated leaf varieties of plants. Really a pretty effect.

MOWING STRIP - Sometimes known as an edging strip. The six to eight inches of space between the lawn and the flower or vegetable bed. The flat area decoratively made with cement or brick.

NEMATODE - A microscopic roundworm that lives in the soil. There are both harmful and beneficial nematodes. Harmful ones take their toll on the roots of a plant.

NEUTRAL - This is neither acid nor alkaline; pH 6.5 - 7.5.

ORNAMENTAL - A plant that is grown strictly for its foliage or flower rather than for food or any other economic use (i.e. saucer magnolia.)

OVER POTTING - Repotting a plant into a pot which is too large to allow successful establishment. The roots may die from too much moisture.

PEAT - The preserved and compressed remains of dead bog plants. Often known as peat moss because it is from sphagnum or sedge peat.

RADICUMS - These plants are special in that their stems have roots that will cling as they grow vertically or grow over the ground. Ivy is a good example.

RAISED BED - Any ornamental or vegetable bed that has soil higher than the surrounding immediate area. Sometimes it is bordered by boards, stone, brick or any material to hold in the soil. Created to make a supreme growing area.

SAP - the fluid in plants . Most know is the collecting of maple sap made into syrup.

SAPLING - A very young tree.

TERRA COTTA - An Italian term that means "baked earth". These clay pots are unglazed and excellent for growing most plant material. They do dry out quickly and salts will bleed through the porous surfaces. Emily Compost's most favorite growing container.

TERRARIUMS - Any transparent container with a cover so plants may grow. Sometimes called a bottle garden and in the early 1900's Victorian era called Wardian Cases.

TERRESTRIAL - A plant which grows in the soil as opposed to aquatic or perched on trees.

UNDERPLANTING - Growing short plants such as a ground cover under taller plants. Under taller trees, some shrubs would be used as an underplanting.

UNDERSTORY - The smaller trees that grow below the major forest.

UNDER GLASS - A term in older books referring to "growing under glass", essentially growing in a greenhouse.

VARIEGATED LEAF - A green leaf design which is blotched, edged, or spotted with yellow, white, or cream color.

VARIETY - One of possibly many closely-related plat species. The variety name is usually in Latin.

WEED - An uninvited guest in gardens.

WET FEET - A condition when the roots of plants are in standing water. They will eventually rot if they don't normally grow in wet conditions like aquatic plants.

XERISCAPE - This is a patented name that stands for a landscaping method that is based on low water volume and drought adaptable plants.

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