Fall Gardening Tips
By admin | November 21, 2008
Fall is a great time to be outdoors in the garden, the temperatures are perfect and the colors can be amazing. If you’re looking for projects which will extend the gardening season and give you a reason to be outside, fear not, there’s still plenty to do.
As the season moves along, perennials and annuals should be deadheaded, even right though the early fall months. Further along, towards late fall, these plants need to be cut back to the ground as they begin to die back. Though this can wait until spring I like to do it in the late fall, there are too many other projects to worry about in the spring. Late fall is the ideal time to cut back your perennial garden as some perennials, though finished blooming, have great fall colors. Let them stand until the end of the season. Some, such as Balloon Flower and Astilbe turn beautiful shades of yellow and gold. Others retain their striking form and develop interesting seed heads, such as black eyed Susan and Sedum “Autumn Joy”.
As the annuals die or begin to look a bit spent, remove them and add them to your compost pile. There a few fall blooming plants that you can replace them with . Aster and chrysanthemum are the most common. They can add vibrant color to your garden up until late November.
Avoid pruning shrubs too late into the season, this can often encourage new growth which may be susceptible to winter kill if it did not have tine harden off. After deciduous shrubs become dormant in the winter pruning is fine for general shaping.
Examine your garden, are there any shrubs which are outgrowing their allotted space? Fall is a great time for transplanting shrubs. The cooler weather results in less stress for a newly transplanted shrub. There’s generally more rain in the fall as well which also helps reduce stress. Plant new shrubs during the fall for the same reasons. Especially since you may be able to find great deals during late season sales at your local nursery. Be sure to stake new trees and shrubs which may vulnerable during winter snows.
Plant bulbs before the ground freezes, they’re are a great way to add early spring color to the garden. Bulbs are also great way to naturalize your landscape. Daffodils, scilla, and bluebells are wonderful when planted beneath a large shade tree. Tulips and hyacinths are better suited to for formal settings such as a perennial border.
After the ground is frozen, cover plants which require winter protection with hay or evergreen branches, especially in areas that are cold but have little snow. Perennials will benefit from winter protection.
Though things seem to be winding down as the winter approaches, a quick walk through the garden will reveal a number of project still to be done.
R Birch is the publisher of http://www.gardenlistings.com For information on all kinds of garden projects visit http://www.gardenlistings.com/Resources.htm
Tags: garden design, Garden Guides, gardening, landscapingPerennial Garden Basics
By admin | October 30, 2008
Perennials are any plants which live for more than two seasons and produce stems which die back to the ground each fall. They’re at the heart of most flower gardens and offer wide ranging benefits to the landscape gardener. Perennials are treasured for their ability to flower, spread and multiply year after year. They’re also noted for their form, texture, vibrant color and their ability to attract birds and other wildlife to the garden. Perennials can stand on their own in the landscape but can be complimented by a few well placed annuals. While perennials are easy to grow, there are a few basic maintenance guidelines to follow which will help your garden flourish.
In the spring, the first task is an obvious one; remove any debris which has collected over the winter. After that, cut back to the ground any plants which were left standing the previous fall. When cleaning out the garden tread lightly and rake lightly. You don’t want to disturb any new shoots. Once the garden is cleaned out, look around the garden to see if there are any empty spaces. If there are, you may want to add a few new plants. Ideally, the perennial bed should bloom from spring through the fall so if the garden in September seems a bit sparse add late season bloomers such as autumn sedum joy, chrysanthemums or asters. Another way to add color in the garden is to plant annuals in the spring. Though they last only one year, annuals bloom all season long.
Fertilizing with a general slow release garden fertilizer and adding lime to the garden early in the season will get the plants off to a healthy start and feed them throughout the entire season. Each spring spread compost throughout the perennial garden to improve soil consistency.
In the summer the main task is deadheading, the process of clipping off spent blooms. This won’t encourage continuous blooms in perennials but will keep the garden looking fresh all season. With annuals, however, deadheading will encourage continuous blooms all season. Cultivating the garden soil is another task which should occasionally be through the summer. Cultivating keeps weeds from taking hold in the garden and it loosens up the soil allowing water and nutrients to reach the plant’s deepest roots.
Towards mid-summer the taller plants may begin to lean or fall as they become top heavy. This often occurs most noticeably after a rain shower. Staking the plants is important and keeps them from falling into one another thus reducing the chances of mold and disease.
Continuing with the above tasks is important though the fall months as well. Late in the season, however, perennials will begin fade and eventually their foliage dies back to the ground. The roots are still alive but the above ground part of the plant is done for the season. Cutting back the plants that have gone by is generally done for aesthetic reasons. It can be done in the spring but I recommend this task for the fall as there are alot of other things to do in the spring.
Dividing perennials is easily the best way to increase your plant stock. A few years after you’ve planted a perennial you’ll probably notice that it begins to outgrow its allotted spot. Dividing large perennials into smaller plants will solve the problem of over crowding in the garden while giving you new plants to add to other gardens. In the fall when the plants are beginning to die back prepare new planting areas somewhere on your property. If you don’t have any space for new plants, give some away to your friends. Simply dig the perennial you intend to divide out of the ground making sure to preserve as much of the root system as possible. Take a spade or a garden edger and chop or divide the plant in half. Remove any foliage which may have been severed. Replace the perennial back in the ground and back fill with a mix of compost and existing soil. You’ll need some extra soil to fill in properly. Some of the easiest perennials to divide are daylilies, hosta, iris and sedum.
Perennials are adaptable to a variety of landscape conditions. Most can survive a few hours of shade each day but there are those which will require full sun and those which will thrive in the shade. Study the conditions of your own garden and have a plan or list in hand before you head out to the greenhouse. Once planted, the perennials you choose will provide years of gardening enjoyment
Early Blooming perennials: Iris, poppy, aneome, primrose, lily of the valley, coral bell, Solomon’s seal, leopard’s bane, foam flower, lungwort, globe flower, epimedium, bleeding heart, speedwell
Mid Season Blooming Perennials: daisy, dianthus, hardy geranium, saliva, campanula, delphinium, coreopsis, daylily, hollyhock, yarrow, lady’s mantle, phlox, bee balm, catmint, goat’s beard, astilbe
Late Season Blooming Perennials: Aster, black eyed Susan, chrysanthemums, michaelmas daisy, lilyturf, monkshood, cardinal flower, sedum “autumn joy”, goldenrod, hosta, globe thistle
T Hallinan is a landscape designer and builder in Massachusetts. Visit his garden resource website http://www.gardenlistings.com for all kind of helpful information. For more garden guides visit http://www.gardenlistings.com/resources.htm
Tags: Garden Guides, gardening, gardening tips, Gardens, landscaping, Perennial Gardens, PerennialsPlanting Hydrangeas For Late Season Color
By admin | June 28, 2008
A common complaint among gardener is that late in the summer, before the fall foliage, there seems to be lull in garden color. There is, however, no shortage of shrubs which bloom in later in the season. Hydrangeas are one the most versatile. In fact, they are indispensable in the garden for summer color and foliage texture. No shrub border is complete without them.
Hydrangeas prefer part shade and rich organic soil. They prefer morning sun with afternoon shade; this will protect them from the hottest part of the day. If they get shade in the morning and sun in the afternoon they may look stressed due to the sudden rise in temperature. Hydrangeas need lots of water especially young plants since they tend to dry out quickly during the hot weather. After planting be sure to mulch well, this will help the soil retain moisture as well as help prevent weeds from encroaching on your garden. Fertilize the shrubs in the spring and then again in late summer. Adding compost to the soil around the base of the hydrangea each spring will keep the soil rich.
Lacecap and nikko blue hydrangeas are both cultivars of (Hydrangea macrophyllla). Lacecaps are recognized by its ring of flowers surrounding a center of florets and nikko blue by it large pom-pom like flowers. You can change the color of the blossoms of these varieties by changing the acidity of the soil. Add aluminum sulfate to make the soil acid. A pH level somewhere between 5 and 5.5 will result in blue flowers. Alternately, for pink flowers, make raise the pH level to 6.0 by adding lime, making the soil alkaline. You will need to repeat the this 2 or 3 times over the growing season and continue the process for as long as you want the change to continue.
The large (up to 15″ long) white flowers of the PeeGee hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculta) turn to a faded pink in the fall and are great for cutting and taking indoors. Because their large flowers often weigh down its stems, PeeGee hydrangeas require staking.
Oak Leaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) has a much different appearance than the other hydrangeas. Its foliage resembles that of the American oak. Its white blooms fade to pink in fall. Oakleaf hydrangeas grow to about 6′ and can tolerate more shade than other hydrangeas.
Climbing hydrangea (Hydrangea petiolaris) is a deciduous vine which clings to garden structures, walls and fences with aerial roots. Its flowers are white and have the characteristics of the lacecap hydrangea.
Though there are numerous choices when it comes to types of hydrangeas, there are some general rules of thumb to follow when planting and caring for them. When planting new hydrangeas you’ll need to add a mix of compost and peat moss to the existing soil. This will give the plant plenty of nutrients and the soil ability to retain water. Dig a hole approximately twice as wide as the root ball and just as deep. Place the hydrangea in the hole, making sure the top of the root ball matches the existing grade of the garden. Never install any plant below grade, its often detrimental to the health of the plant. Backfill about half way and water to remove air pockets. Finish filling the hole, water again and mulch. Planting in the spring or fall is best as the hot summer weather can stress hydrangeas.
In the spring prune broken branches and old flower blooms from the previous season. Don’t prune new shoots; they are where the new blooms will be. Prune in late summer, after blooming. Thinning the plant by reducing its number of stems by half will yield larger flower clusters.
Noted for their long lasting, late blooming flowers and their unique foliage, hydrangeas are one of the most versatile shrubs in the garden. Whether among a shrub border, climbing a garden structure or planted on its own as a specimen shrub hydrangeas are a wonderful addition to any garden.
T Hallinan is a landscape designer and builder in Massachusetts. Visit his garden resource website http://www.gardenlistings.com for all kind of helpful information. For more garden guides visit http://www.gardenlistings.com/resources.htm
Tags: Garden Guides, garden tips, gardening, Hydrangea, landscaping