In 2007, Virginia will mark the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, the first English settlement in the Americas. The 18-month-long commemoration begins in May 2006 and will feature educational programs, cultural events, fairs, and various live and broadcast entertainments sponsored by Virginia and cities and towns across the commonwealth. See the America's 400th Anniversary website at www.americasanniversary.com for information about this salute to America's birthplace.

In 2007, Virginia will mark the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, the first English settlement in the Americas. The 18-month-long commemoration began in May 2006 and features educational programs, cultural events, fairs, and various live and broadcast entertainments sponsored by the Commonwealth of Virginia and many of its cities and towns. See the America's 400th Anniversary website at www.americasanniversary.com for information about this salute to America's birthplace. Communities and citizens also will be improving their streets, parks, schools, businesses, and gardens to celebrate this event.

In 2007, Virginia will mark the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. The 18-monthlong commemoration began in May 2006 and features educational programs, cultural events, fairs, and various live and broadcast entertainment sponsored by the Commonwealth of Virginia and many of its cities and towns. See the America’s 400th Anniversary website at www.americasanniversary.com for information about this salute to America’s birthplace.

Winter winds increase the rate of air exchange between the interior and exterior of a house, lowering the house’s interior temperature and thereby increasing the heating demand. In a windy site, a windbreak planting (also called a shelterbelt) can account for up to a 50-percent wind reduction and up to a 25-percent reduction in heating fuel consumption. A windbreak is a single or multiple rows of trees or shrubs in a linear configuration.

Container gardening allows you to have and enjoy many ornamental and food supplying plants that, for whatever reason, you do not want to grow in ground beds. You can use containergrown plants in entryways, patios, decks, rooftops, gardens, indoors, or anywhere you have a need to add a living component to enhance the appeal of an area. Each planted container will have its own personality; you can create container scenes. They can range from dramatic to subtle, and from grand to petite. Plants and containers offer limitless combinations of size, color, form, and texture that can give your inside and outside environments a more aesthetically pleasing appearance.

The purpose of gardening intensively is to harvest the most produce possible from a given space. More traditional gardens consist of long, single rows of vegetables spaced widely apart. Much of the garden area is taken by the space between the rows. An intensive garden minimizes wasted space. The practice of intensive gardening is not just for those with limited garden space; rather, an intensive garden concentrates your work efforts to create an ideal plant environment, giving better yields.

Any Virginian who has ever been smitten by palm trees and tropical landscapes while on vacation can build a similar oasis in their own backyard. A number of tropical plants, including palms, are cold-hardy and worthwhile perennial additions to the home landscape, providing texture, whimsy and even evergreen winter interest.

Virginia is rapidly running out of landfill space. Fifteen to twenty percent of solid waste sent to landfills is comprised of leaves, grass clippings, and other yard wastes. Gardeners can plan their landscapes to produce less yard waste and use what is produced around their homes to enhance yards, gardens, and soil.

Home gardeners often use more pesticides per square foot in their gardens than farmers do in the fields, thinking that if a little is good, more will be better. This is a serious mistake, and a misuse of pesticides. Over-use of pesticides has a number of adverse effects: it makes your food less safe to eat, especially if there are residues at harvest time; it makes handling the plants more dangerous; beneficial insects, earthworms, birds, even pets may be harmed or killed along with the "bad guys;" each time the gardener sprays, she or he is exposed to the dangers of inhalation or absorption of the toxin; pesticides used near water may contaminate the water supply; continuous use of certain pesticides may induce resistance in the pests, thus requiring the gardener to switch to more toxic substances; some pesticides do not break down easily and can remain in the environment for years.

Much of the excitement of creating an herbaceous border lies in its great flexibility of design. In form, placement, and selection of plants, the contemporary border follows few rigid rules and allows fullest expression of the gardener's taste.

In 2007, Virginia will mark the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. The 18-month-long commemoration begins in May 2006 and will feature educational programs, cultural events, fairs, and various live and broadcast entertainments sponsored by Virginia and cities and towns across the commonwealth. See the America's 400th Anniversary website at www.americasanniversary.com for information about this salute to America's birthplace. Communities and citizens also will be improving their streets, parks, schools, businesses, and gardens as part of the commemoration.

Perhaps the most entertaining answer to the question 'What should I plant over a septic system's leach field?' is 'Something fragrant.' Although the question arises often, there are few hard and fast answers as to what can be planted, because every drain field is unique. You can decide what will work best in each situation, however, by following a few simple guidelines.

Aquatic plants are essential for a healthy and environmentally balanced water garden. Whether you are installing a new water feature or renovating an existing one, proper plant selection is critical. Plants compliment water features, soften hard edges, and add color, texture, and form. They also provide shelter and food for fish and other aquatic wildlife. The following steps will help you select and purchase aquatic plants.

A rain garden is a landscaped area specially designed to collect rainfall and storm-water runoff. The plants and soil in the rain garden clean pollutants from the water as it seeps into the ground and evaporates back into the atmosphere. For a rain garden to work, plants must be selected, installed, and maintained properly.