Gardening

accents Gardening

General

Plants that function in a design for a garden. These plants attract attention with their exciting colors and foliage.

acidic soil Gardening

General

Soil containing a pH value under 7.0

alkaline soil Gardening

General
Soil containing a pH value over 7.0

annuals Gardening

General
Plants that grow and live only 1 growing season or 1 year.

basal leaves Gardening

General
The name of leaves growing from the bottom of the plant.

beneficial insects Gardening

General
Insects that help along a plant by parasitize or eat the insects that destroy plants. Examples of such insects include lacewings, dragonflies and ladybugs.

biennials Gardening

General
Plants that grow and live up to 2 years.

bract Gardening

General
A leafy or scalelike part of a plant that may be small, exotic or be very colorful. It resides under a flower or flower stalk.

broadcast Gardening

Technical
To toss around fertilizer or seeds on the ground by hand.

bud Gardening

General
The origin of a flower; buds turn into flowers. A bud positioned on the end or side of a stem will create a new growth for the plant.

bulb Gardening

General
A food storage plant member that resides underground. It contains a stem that roots expand from.

clay soil Gardening

General
A kind of soil that contains tiny soil particles.

complete fertilizer Gardening

Product
Plant food that contains the nutrient elements of potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen.

compost Gardening

General
Organic material that is decomposed and mixed into soil to enhance its chemical balance and fertility.

corm Gardening

General
An underground stem that is firm and bulb-like in appearance; it is not divided into scales.

corymb Gardening

General
A term used to describe flowers that are flat-topped or rounded in shape.

cotyledon Gardening

General
Seed leaves that one may see once a seed has been germinated. They store nutrients to assist in the growth and life of the plant.

cultivar Gardening

General
A kind of plant that is chosen not from the wild, but from cultivation. When it is multiplied, it keeps its specific identity.

cultivate Gardening

Technical
Breaking the soil surface to get rid of weeds and aerate the ground.

cultivation Gardening

General
Areas of the ground that are not wild, but inhabited by humans.

cutting Gardening

Technical
A section of a plant that is removed and planted to make a new plant.

deadhead Gardening

Technical
Taking away decaying or dead flowers to encourage more flowers to blossom, enhance the plant's appearance and stop seeding from occurring.

deciduous Gardening

General
Plants that shed their leaves during the late fall and winter months. Their leaves return in the spring.

direct sow Gardening

Technical
Inserting seeds into the soil directly so they will germinate and grow from that location.

diseases Gardening

General
Organisms that destroy plants and stop their growth. Rusts, rots and mildews are a few of the things that diseases cause in plants.

divide Gardening

Technical
A method of multiplying perennials in order to produce more plants and maintain their strength.

dormancy Gardening

General
A time of low activity in a plant's members (such as bulbs and buds).

dwarf Gardening

General
A plant variation that grows slowly and is small in size.

evergreen Gardening

General
A tree or plant that retains its leaves throughout the year.

family Gardening

General
A botanical separation in the plant kingdom that is made up of genera.

fertilizer Gardening

Product
An organic or synthetic material that provides nutrients for plants.

foliage plants Gardening

General
Plants placed in gardens on account of their eye-catching foliage, instead of their flowers.

genus Gardening

General
A category that sits below a family and above a species. It involves a group of species that contain similar characteristics.

germination Gardening

General
The initial plant growth from a seed.

ground cover Gardening

General
A plant that covers the surface of the ground.

habit Gardening

General
The patterns of growth of a plant; also, the visual look of a plant.

harden off Gardening

Technical
The method of slowly exposing a plant to outside temperatures to prevent the shock of temperature change for when the plant is finally moved outside.

hardiness zone Gardening

General
The climate that a perennial is said to be hardy; the zone is determined by a plant's strength to survive in different climates. North America is divided into eleven hardiness zones based on the USDA plant hardiness map.

hardy Gardening

General
A word referring to a plant's ability to tolerate freezing temperatures. A hardy plant is able to survive the freezing temperatures of the winter months until spring comes.

heavy soil Gardening

General
Also known as clay soil. The term refers to soil that is made from tightly packed tiny particles. Heavy soil can be sticky and is often hard to work with.

herbaceous Gardening

General
A word relating to plants containing nonwoody stems.

hip Gardening

General
A rose receptacle containing high amounts of vitamin C.

hummus Gardening

General
The name of the organic matter in the last period of a plant's decay.

hybrid Gardening

General
A plant made from cross-pollinating various plants with the aim of designing a new plant that is different from or better than its parents.

inflorescence Gardening

General
A framework structure that supports plants. Some of these supports include items such as racemes, umbels and spikes.

invasive Gardening

General
Relating to a plant that grows and spreads rapidly. Frequently these plants need to be cut often or otherwise inhibited to prevent excessive spreading.

island bed Gardening

General
The name for a garden bed that is arranged within a yard or lawn. It may take any shape.

leggy Gardening

General
Relating to plants that are weak and thin as a result of fighting with other plants for nutrients and/or lack of sun exposure.

Letterforms Gardening

General

Letterforms refer to the character shapes used in typography.

light soil Gardening

General
Large-particled non-sticky soil that drains well. It is also known as sandy soil.

loam Gardening

General
The best quality type of soil; a loam is a balanced mixture of sand and silt as well as a smaller amount of clay.

manure Gardening

General
Dung from livestock that is used as a soil conditioner and organic fertilizer because of its high nutrient content.

mulch Gardening

Product
Organic or synthetic material that is applied on the ground with the purpose of guarding plants from harsh weather changes, prevent the expansion of growing weeds and maintain moisture in the soil. It may also be used for the visual appearance of a garden's design.

native plant Gardening

General
A plant that originates from a certain area. Plants often grow best in their original habitats because they are well-adapted to the area's environment.

naturalize Gardening

Technical
To plant seeds in an unorganized manner with the aim of making it appear as though the plants grew there naturally. Some plants, after the first planting, will continue to grow and spread their roots year after year.

neutral soil Gardening

General
Soil that contains a pH level of 7.0. This type of soil is a balance of acidic levels and alkaline levels.

nitrogen Gardening

General
One of the three essential nutrients a plant must have in order to grow. Stems and leaves are assisted in growth by nitrogen.

organic matter Gardening

General
Material that originated from living matter.

pedicel Gardening

General
The single stalk of a bunch of fruit or a single flower stalk.

peduncle Gardening

General
The single stalk of an individual flower or bunch of flowers.

perennials Gardening

General
Plants that live more than two years.

pests Gardening

General
A number of animals and insects that destroy plants. Examples include slugs, rabbits, and mites.

pH Gardening

General
The amount of alkalinity or acidity of soil on the scale range of 0 - 14. Soil is neutral at 7.0 and most acidic at 0.

phosphorus Gardening

General
One of the three essential nutrients a plant must have in order to grow. Seeds, roots and flowers are assisted by the prescence of phosphorus.

pinching Gardening

Technical
A method of pruning plants using scissors or one's forefingers) in order to make a plant grow hardy and sturdy.

potassium Gardening

General
One of the three essential nutrients a plant must have in order to grow. It is needed in the general growth of the plant.

potbound Gardening

General
A plant that is grown in a container that contains roots that are massed together.

raceme Gardening

General
A flower cluster without branches that contains several flowers originating from the main axis.

rhizome Gardening

General
A stem underground that stores food and is the origination of stems for new plants and spring true roots.

root ball Gardening

General
A plant's root system underground.

runner Gardening

General
Also known as a stolon. It is a stem that expands over the soil which has the capacity to root along the way. Weeds are able to grow and expand by means of runners.

sandy soil Gardening

General
A kind of soil that contains big soil particles.

seedling Gardening

General
A new plant originating from seed rather from cuttings.

self-sowing Gardening

General
Plants that are sown to the ground by their own propagation.

shrub Gardening

General
A plant that contains multiple stems of woody branches.

slug Gardening

General
A mammal from the mollusk family. It prefers to live under stones and boards and eat leaves. Leaves that are chewed are often evidence of slug activity.

soil test Gardening

Technical
Soil analysis to figure out its pH level as well as the prescence of nutrients.

species Gardening

General
A plant classification under a genus.

specimen plant Gardening

General
Also known as an accent plant. Plants that function in a design for a garden. These plants attract attention with their exciting colors and foliage.

stake Gardening

General
A framework that plants use to hang on so they do not fall over.

stolon Gardening

General
Also known as a stolon. It is a stem that expands over the soil which has the capacity to root along the way. Weeds are able to grow and expand by means of runners.

succulent Gardening

General
A plant with stems or leaves that store an ample supply of water.

suckers Gardening

General
Secondary shoots that originate from buds.

taproot Gardening

General
The primary root of a plant that grows straight down into the ground.

tender Gardening

General
Not hardy. A plant that is easily damaged by the cold and freezing temperatures.

thinning out Gardening

Technical
Removing plants so those that remain may continue to grow healthfully.

till Gardening

Technical
To cultivate soil for future plant growth.

transplant Gardening

General
A plant that has been recently transferred to a new spot in the ground or to a pot.

tree Gardening

General
A plant displaying a trunk and covered at its top with extending branches.

true leaves Gardening

General
Leaves that originate from a seedling at some point after the cotyledon leaves. The initial leaves of a tree are not true to the plant's type, which is why the second batch of leaves are termed "true" leaves.

tuber Gardening

General
Similar to a bulb. It contains a swollen stem or branch with buds that is often under the soil. A dahlia is an example of a tuber.

umbel Gardening

General
A flower cluster that is a flat-topped or rounded shape. The stalks originate from a main point.

variegated foliage Gardening

General
Foliage containing multiple colors.

variety Gardening

General
Variations within species that occur naturally.

vermiculite Gardening

General
A mica-type rock that becomes larger once applied with heat. It absorbs readily and is lightweight. It assists in helping seeds start to grow and keep other plants growing.

volunteer Gardening

General
A plant that was a seedling of a mother plant which has sown its own roots into the soil.

weed Gardening

General
Any plant that is not desired within a garden. Weed removal is important to allow for space for other desired plants to grow.

wilt Gardening

General
A disease that causes a plant's leaves to become brown. The disease frequently kills a plant.