If you havent heard about edible gardens yet, you soon will. Edible gardens are expected to be one of the biggest gardening trends of 2010. According to The National Gardening Association, the number of edible gardens in the country has risen 20% in the past year.

According to The Garden Media Group’s trends report for 2010, edible gardens are expected to be an even greater hit in 2010. Economic worries, according to experts, have some people turning to edible gardens to trim grocery costs. As well, increasing concerns over healthy eating have many turning to organic foods, and edible gardens are a great way to get organic food for less.

Edible gardens vary from large raised beds of vegetables to full orchards to small pots of herbs on the kitchen counter. A great middle-of-the-road idea is a green wall or wall garden filled with edible plants. Living walls let you plant more edible foods and larger edible foods than a small herb potager or flowerpot.

With green walls, you can plant tomatoes, herbs, strawberries, fruits, vegetables, and more. You can grow enough to have a real meal. Unlike other types of edible gardens, edible green walls also dont take up much space. If you can find an empty wall in your home, you can grow a wall garden.

There are a few ways to develop green wall gardens. You can invite a carpenter into your home to build a complex system of containers along a wall. You can also purchase a product such as Woolly Wallys. Woolly Wallys are pouches which hold your plants and soil. These pouches can be hung up on a wall to form a large green wall full of edible plants or anything you like.

Woolly Wallys are a very cost-effective way of creating a wall garden in your home and they make growing herbs, fruits, and vegetables simpler, since the pockets expand as your plants grow, so you dont have to worry about repotting. Breathable fabric also makes Woolly Wallys unique and ensures that your foods wont experience root rot as easily.

If youre excited about starting green walls or modular living walls of edible foods in your home, start by looking for spaces where you can create green walls. If you are using Woolly Wallys, your options are fairly flexible, since you can choose to plant a few pockets or several, depending on the space you have available.

When looking for areas for your green walls, consider where you get the most sunlight. Walls with plenty of sunlight are often best for green walls and edible gardens, since your food will grow great with more sunshine. Take a close look at your kitchen as a site for a green wall or two. If you place your edible wall garden in your kitchen, your ingredients will literally be just a quick reach away when youre cooking up dinner.

Last week I posted an article about seasonal home maintenance : spring & summer. Now is the part 2 for the season : autumn & winter.

Autumn

* Leaves, leaves and more leaves. The trees turning golden may be a beautiful sight but when the leaves fall, they fill up gutters, go into stormwater pits and drains in your garage. Any external drains are at risk from leaves and other organic matter, particularly when the rain starts. They can cause blockages in pipes causing water to back up and do potentially a lot of damage inside your home.

* Autumn is a dormant period in the garden and it’s a good time to look at re-doing the mulch on your garden beds.

* In early autumn, when the temperatures can still be quite mild, it’s a good time to clean the ducts in your ducted heating system to get ready for the first chilly night. Consult your instruction manual for the frequency of service required. This is routine maintenance that can avoid nasty clouds of dust blowing into your home after a prolonged period of disuse. It’s also a good idea to clean out your window tracks and ledges of dust.

* If you’re moving in now, it’s probably not the best time to be looking at your garden beds. The key is to make sure no water puddles next to the home. This can be achieved by grading the soil away from the home. Don’t try to stockpile soil for the spring – weeds will grow in it. It’s best to buy fresh topsoil from a nursery when you’re ready to start planting.

* This is the time when you should install weather seals to external doors, to keep out draughts and water during the wetter months. Homes that were built under five star energy provisions will have these as standard features.

* If you’ve had light curtains up during the summer, swapping them for a heavier weight fabric, will give you a greater insulation benefit.

Winter

* Everyone hates doing work around the home in winter, so you’ll be very sorry now if you haven’t followed our tips for the other seasons. Winter brings its share of hazards and the last thing you want is a blocked pipe. It’s a messy job to clear leaves and other matter, especially during winter rains.

* If you haven’t serviced your heater you could find it is not as efficient as it could be, resulting in higher energy bills.

* All those weather seals now come into their own. Draughts are not only bad for your health, but your pocket as well, with all that lovely heat literally flowing out of your home. Make a quick check in your ceiling to see if any duct work has come loose or fallen.

* If you are using open fire places, always use a fireguard to protect your kids and stop embers popping out to scorch your floors. Any flames need your constant vigilance, especially around children.

* If you’re moving into a home in winter and don’t have your driveway finished, there is help to stop you dragging mud into your pristine new home. A couple of metres of crushed rock, sourced from your local nursery, makes an effectively and inexpensive temporary path.

* In the garden, check for weeds and keep lawns under control. Look for areas in the garden that seem “over wet”. This could be because of a blocked pipe, sprinkler fittings that are leaking or just a low spot that may require an agricultural drain to be fitted.

* If you bring your washing indoors, make sure your dryer is adequately vented. Wipe down any condensation from the inside of windows or in your laundry. This is an issue with new homes in particular, where moisture is still coming out of the natural products that make up your home.

I will share some useful seasonal home maintenance tips. In this first part, I will write down about what to do for your home maintenance in spring and summer.

Spring

* It’s planting season and this could be your first chance to get into your garden. You should consult a nursery first because what starts out as a small tree will grow! The height of a mature tree is the distance it should be planted from your home.

* Make sure your drainage is right. Grade your garden soil away from the home by at least a 50mm drop over the first metre. Don’t let water flood anywhere near your home’s exterior.

* If you have agricultural drains it’s a good time to flush them. Just use a garden hose down the inspection pipe to get rid of any sediment.

* Dust and dirt will settle on window sills, so make sure drain holes are cleaned and window tracks are occasionally lubricated.

* Collect leaves from your gutters rather than hose them into stormwater drains. Consider installing a leaf guard.

* Check waste pipes inside cupboards for leaks. A simple tighten by hand is enough. Don’t use a spanner to tighten as you may crack the pipes. Replace any leaking tap washers but remember to turn off the mains water first. If you’re unsure, contact a licensed plumber.

* If you have a pest control system for termites, contact the pest control company for an annual check. If they uncover any problems, it makes sense to follow their recommendations. Termites are not to be trifled with.

* When the clocks change for daylight saving, change your smoke alarm battery. Even though they are hard-wired into your home, a battery is required as a back-up.

Summer

* It’s time to organise your end of season service on evaporative coolers. Regular servicing may extend the life of the unit, saving you a lot of money.

* Check with your manufacturer for their recommendations. Also, a cover for the winter will keep birds from nesting in the unit!

* If you have a coloured concrete or paved driveway, look at whether it needs resealing. These materials fade in the sun and keeping them in good condition maintains the value of your home.

* A lot of people have touch-up paints left from construction. Keep them out of harm’s way in a cool, dry place. Stored correctly, they’ll last for a couple of years at least.

* For brand new homes please don’t stand on window sills while you fit curtains. They’re not designed to bear that sort of weight.

* If you’ve noticed any leaks, take action straight away to minimise damage. ‘Leave it until the winter rains and you’ll be very sorry!

* Dust and dirt are a big factor over the drier months so don’t forget to clean drain holes and lubricate window tracks.

* Outside ledges, vertical planes, mouldings and sills also need a good dusting.

* Rainfall is always an issue so be smart about using water around the home. It’s not only good for our water storages, but good for your pocket. Remember, if you get a pool or spa for your deck, you need permission from the relevant authorities to fill it. Don’t water the garden, even by hand, during the day. You’ll lose most of the benefit through evaporation. Early morning or in the cool of the evening is by far the best time. If you make one New Year’s Resolution to keep, commit to using water wisely.

Here are some gardening know how that has been proved by the experts :

1. If you don’t have very much time for gardening, hold fast plants in containers, such as tubs, boxes and baskets. They’re lighter to feed and incline if you’ve a busy lifestyle.

2. Whenever you’re not sure what you want the layout of your garden to be, plant in pots so you are able to move plants around until you’re pleased.

3. Whenever you’re purchasing ready-potted plants of flowers, be sure that they’ve already begun to flower; differently there’s a risk that they may never flower at entirely.

4. These flowering plants are known to survive and thrive in most cities with extremely hot temperatures and high pollution: Madagascar periwinkle, lantana, impatiens, cosmos, cleome (spider flower) and canna (Indian flag).

5. Add up compost to your garden soil two to 4 weeks before you plant. This way, the compost will be integrated within your garden soil.

6. Don’t place houseplants in direct sunlight. Even though houseplants need some light, their leaves will wilt if directly exposed to the sun.

7. Make your garden more fragrant by planting more lightly colored or white flowers. You can also give your garden a rich fragrant smell by adding thick-textured flowers such as gardenia, citrus and magnolia, which have very distinctive and intense scents.

8. Water features in the garden should be kept fresh. Install plants like water violet to keep the water oxygenated.

9. Do not plant too many plants in one area. Competition for resources will cause growth of poor-quality plants.

10. Never plant anything under conifers because those particular trees cause the soil to become acidic. Plants around conifers would not grow.

11. Glossy leaves reflect light so it is better to place plants with glossy leaves in shadowy corners to make your garden look bigger. They will thrive there too.

12. Soak eggshells in water overnight and then use the solution as a fertilizer. The solution will be full of nutrients from the eggshells.

13. Use a pitchfork to aerate the lawn regularly. This helps natural drainage and also encourages movement of insects beneath the ground.

14. Open the greenhouse via the door or windows for at least two hours a day. It recycles the air and gets rid of any excess heat.

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