ARTICLES - GARDENING AND FLORAL

by Joelle Steele

These are some of my articles that appeared in a variety of gardening publications over the years. You might want to read my gardening advice column too. And, I have written a few books on gardening, some of them free. The main one is for professional interior landscapers, English & Spanish Guide to Interior Landscape Maintenance. And if you're a professional in the landscape industry, I have many customizable contract templates for those trades, only $24.95 each.

GARDENING

The Roots of Biophilia: To understand the history of this 21st century interior landscape catch-phrase, you have to go back to the 1920s-30s.

Night Lighting the Landscape: Safety and Security Come First. Learn why floodlights do NOT provide security for a home or business, and how to correctly light for security and to highlight design features of a landscape.

Landscape Retaining Walls: A few basic guidelines for building retaining walls and for regular inspection of those walls to prevent damage that results if/when they fail or collapse.

Good Neighbor Gardening: The importance of good communication, maintaining fences, trimming trees, the use of vines on fences and common areas, weeds, pests, "junkyards", and helping out.

Deer-Resistant Plants for Pacific Northwest Gardens: Before you build an electric fence, try some of these plants to repel deer.

Feng Shui Your Garden: Some tips on using Feng Shui to improve your life with plants and other garden items.

Feng Shui Your Home or Office with Plants and Flowers: A quick look at how you can improve your life with plants and the ancient art of Feng Shui.

How and When to Prune Roses in Pacific Northwest Gardens: Describes the kinds of roses you are most likely to have in your yard and how and when to prune them.

Planting and Maintaining Hedges in Pacific Northwest Gardens: Explains how to create and maintain a healthy and attractive hedge.

Plants Clean The Air We Breathe: A summary of the research studies by Dr. Bill Wolverton that found plants removed toxic chemicals from our indoor environments.

A Brief History of the Use of Poisonous Plants: For centuries, people have been using poisonous plants to commit murder.

Poisonous Plants - Common Species: A short encyclopedia of poisonous plants.

Poisonous Plants - Physiology: Describes the alkaloids, glycosides, and other toxic compounds found in poisonous plants.

Basics of Foliage Diseases: Descriptions of some of the most common diseases of tropical plants.

Plant Consciousness - Do Plants Think?: For thousands of years people have been trying to determine whether or not plants can think or react to various stimuli. Here's a quick history of that subject.

Fertilizers-A Feast for Foliage: A quick look at fertilizers as used in the interior landscape. How to select and apply.

Carnivorous Plants: A brief description of the characteristics and growing conditions of insectivorous plants.

Indoor Dracaenas: A brief plant profile of these larger species of the lily and other plant families.

The Sweet Smell and Healing Effects of Herbs and Flowers: A brief article on the use of herbs and flowers for their fragrance and healing effects.

Magical Plants: Plants have been used for casting spells and bringing good luck and love since ancient times. Here is a collection of those plants and some of their common magical applications that are still in use to this day.

Third Day Creations - Biblical Herbs: Information regarding the herbs mentioned in the Bible, problems with some of their Biblical translations, and finding suitable substitutes.

A Brief History of the Interior Landscape & Floral Industries: An overview of the industries from the dawn of time until the early years of the 21st century.

Bromeliads: A brief plant profile of these epiphytic plants.

Indoor Ferns: A brief profile of ferns used as houseplants.

Indoor Prayer Plants -Marantas and Calatheas: A brief profile of some of these colorful plants.

Myths Behind Plant Names: The myths and legends that led to the names of some of our common garden plants.

Indoor Ivies: A brief plant profile of some of the most common ivies used in the interior landscape.

Winter Gardening Indoors: How to overwinter your garden plants indoors, and water and feed them correctly until spring comes back.

Streamlining the Design Process: Breaking down the design process into manageable steps, including examining the space and the client's needs, the design details, and appropriate design format. Also some basic design terminology.

What's In A Name?: The basics of plant taxonomy (classification) and how to pronounce all those Latin and Greek names.

Indoor Orchids: A brief profile of some popular orchids used in the interior landscape.

Indoor Ficus Trees: A brief profile of these popular houseplant trees.

FLORAL-FLORISTRY

Wedding Flowers and Arrangements: Some of the common bouquets, corsages, and arrangements used in weddings.

Floral Tools, Supplies and Working Safely: A brief look at the tools and supplies used in flower arranging and working safely.

Floral Arrangements: An explanation of some of the basic arrangement styles used in flower arranging.

Floral Design: A look at the design basics as they apply to flower arranging.

Ikebana: A brief description of the styles of Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arranging.

Floral Preparation and Maintenance: How to cut and prepare flowers and maintain flower arrangements.