Fall in the Garden

Fall in the Garden
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Fall Planting for Spring Gardens
by Carrie Paulk

Ask someone what their favorite time of year is, and you'll most likely hear them wax eloquently about Spring, with it's colorful spring gardens heralding the end of Winter. Ahh, if only your garden gave you that feeling when Spring rolls around. But alas, you do not even know where to begin in your landscape.

Fear not, achieving that gorgeous spring garden is not as hard as it seems; all you have to do is get your plans in gear and tackle them one by one. This way, you won't be caught by surprise when Spring rolls around. One of those plans that you can do now is bulb planting. Many of the flowers that you connect with springtime are actually bulb flowers, planted back in fall. Planting these bulbs now will help you to achieve that colorful spring array of flowers that you so want.

The first place to start when you're planning a spring bulb garden is your local garden center or other establishment that has spring-flowering bulbs for sale. To get the best quality bulb, try to stay away from the packaged bulbs in netting, and go to a place where you can pick out the bulbs individually. This way, you can check the bulb's quality. The old saying, "The bigger, the better," applies when you're looking for a good bulb. You also want to check for any soft or squishy spots, and look for any sort of pests or disease. A good quality bulb should feel solid and slightly heavy.

So exactly when in Autumn should you plant flower bulbs? Some bulbous flowers, like crocus (Crocus spp.), baby gladiolus (Gladiolus colvillei.), and ornamental allium (Allium spp.), can be planted at any time during the Autumn season. Other flowers are more finicky with their planting times. Daffodils (Narcissus spp.) should be planted as early as you can get them. Tulip bulbs (Tulipa spp.) should be planted in mid to late October in this region. Hyacinth flowers (Hyacinthus spp.) do their best when planted from October to December. Spring-flowering lilies (Lilium spp.) should be planted as soon as you receive them. As for Iris species (Iris spp.), they depend on whether they are a bulbous iris or a rhizomatous iris. Bulbous irises should be planted between October and November, and rhizomatous irises can be planted from July to October. Even though all these flowers can be planted in Fall, many are specific about exactly when they should be planted.

Planting depth of bulbous flowers are specific as well. Generally, the larger the bulb, the deeper it should be planted. However, there are exceptions to every rule, so the following is a list of common bulbs and the depth that they should be planted:

-Daffodils: 5-6" (large), 3-4" (small); planted 8" apart
-Tulips: plant three times as wide as the bulb width, 4-8" apart
-Bulbous Irises: 4" deep, 3-4" apart
-Rhizomatous Irises: just below the soil surface, 1-2' apart
-Baby Gladiolus: 3-5" deep, 4-6" apart
-Crocus: 2-3" deep, 3-4" apart
-Lily: 2-3" (small), 3-4" (medium), 4-6" (large), 4-8" apart

Bulbous flowers are more finicky than most when it comes to how and when they should be planted, but that shouldn't deter you from having a garden filled with their noticeable presence come springtime. Once you educate yourself and formulate a plan for your garden, you will be well on your way to having that springtime burst of color and shapes to welcome you back from the bleak winter. Click here for $20 off
at Henry Fields Seed and Nursery!

Click here to
visit Gurney's,
Seed and Nursery
Company

Carrie Paulk is the author of "Fall Planting For Spring Gardens," which is part of the Tip of the Week program with Turf Tamer, Inc. She has written many informative landscaping articles. To learn more about landscaping tips and tricks, you can find the rest of her articles at http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm . She can be reached at carrie@turftamerinc.com .

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Good Night, Sweet Perennial
By Carrie Paulk

Now that the landscape is strongly suggesting the occasion of fall, you know it's only a matter of time before your garden perennials will decide to pack up and call it a growing season. However, some perennials tend to pack haphazardly, casting off dried leaves here and spent seed pods there, leaving your garden looking more like a compost pile than a flower bed. Many of us just raise up our arms in frustration and accept the fact that our gardens will just be a bare mess for the winter; after all, spring is only four to five months away, right?

Don't give up on your winter garden just yet; there are ways to avoid the Post-Modern Compost Style in your landscape. All you need is a free day and some essential gardening tools to clean up your perennial beds and keep them looking manicured throughout the off-season. By knowing which perennials to cut back, which ones to leave alone, and which ones that can still add winter interest, you can help your perennials survive the winter, and perform remarkably the next year.

Now, let's go over your garden tool checklist for your fall perennial cleanup. Bypass pruners? Check. Rake? Check. Garden gloves? Check. Shovel and spade? Check and check. You're all ready to hack back your perennials now, right? No! Before you take a pruner to anything, first you need to know what you've got. Each perennial plant is different; some should be cut off all the way to the ground, others should not be cut at all, and yet others should be cut some, and then cut differently come early spring. Once you know which is which, you can selectively prune your plants effectively.

Most perennials are of the herbaceous kind, that is, they die back to the ground every year. Some well-known herbaceous perennials are daylilies, hostas, and astilbes. During your fall cleanup, you want to prune the dead leaves and stems back to the ground level, and then tuck them into their beds with a layer of mulch. As a general rule of thumb, mulch shade perennials more and sun-loving perennials less, as the sun perennials are more prone to rot. The mulch layer will also keep the root system from drying out during the winter.

Another group of perennials are the semi-herbaceous bunch. These include plants like black-eyed Susans, shasta daisies, and goldenrod. These perennials shoot up long flowering stems that die back after blooming, but the crown of basal leaves at the bottom of the plant are evergreen. To winterize these plants, cut back the dead and dying flowering stalks and leave the green leaves. The plants use these leaves to photosynthesize throughout the winter, and they also help add some much-needed color to the winter garden.

The last group of perennials are the evergreen and subshrub perennials. Some evergreen perennials are candytuft and moss phlox, and some subshrubs are plants like butterfly bush, Russian sage, and artemesias. The only pruning you want to do to these plants in fall is the removal of dead plant material and leggy growth from evergreen perennials. You do not need to prune the subshrubs at all. Doing so might end up being harmful to the plant.

Some other perennials that you might want to consider leaving alone are plants that provide structural interest or seeds for birds. Many people leave ornamental grass to provide interest, and perennials like purple coneflower and sunflower provide food for birds through the winter. Leaving these perennials be will be much more rewarding than cutting them back to the ground.

All right, now you know the different types of perennials out there, and how to properly care for them during this transitional season. You can now know the difference between an herbaceous and semi-herbaceous perennial. You can now use that knowledge to properly identify your plants, and correctly prepare them for the winter. You now know when to mulch more or mulch less, and why. Now, you can clean up your landscape while still keeping your perennials healthy for next spring, and make your yard the envy of the neighbors. Now . . . now you're ready.

Click here
for premium Lilies from Brecks

Click here
for $20 off
your first order at
Spring Hill Nursery!

Carrie Paulk is the author of "Good Night, Sweet Perennial," which is part of the Tip of the Week program with Turf Tamer, Inc. She has written many informative landscaping articles. To learn more about landscaping tips and tricks, you can find the rest of her articles at http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm . She can be reached at carrie@turftamerinc.com .

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Tulip Mixed
The Darwin Hybrids were developed as a result of crossing the Single Late and the Early Fosteriana tulips. They are the most weather resistant and have the largest heads. Exceptional tulips for the perennial garden!

Daffodils Mixed
Vibrant mixed colorful display guaranteed to please even the most discerning taste.

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©2003-2005crazycatmaninorangehat

Fall Planting for Spring Gardens by Carrie Paulk
Ask someone what their favorite time of year is, and you'll most likely hear them wax eloquently about Spring, with it's colorful spring gardens heralding the end of Winter. Ahh, if only your garden gave you that feeling when Spring rolls around. But alas, you do not even know where to begin in your landscape. Fear not, achieving that gorgeous spring garden is not as hard as it seems; all you have to do is get your plans in gear and tackle them one by one. This way, you won't be caught by surprise when Spring rolls around. One of those plans that you can do now is bulb planting. Many of the flowers that you connect with springtime are actually bulb flowers, planted back in fall. Planting these bulbs now will help you to achieve that colorful spring array of flowers that you so want. The first place to start when you're planning a spring bulb garden is your local garden center or other establishment that has spring-flowering bulbs for sale. To get the best quality bulb, try to stay away from the packaged bulbs in netting, and go to a place where you can pick out the bulbs individually. This way, you can check the bulb's quality. The old saying, "The bigger, the better," applies when you're looking for a good bulb. You also want to check for any soft or squishy spots, and look for any sort of pests or disease. A good quality bulb should feel solid and slightly heavy. So exactly when in Autumn should you plant flower bulbs? Some bulbous flowers, like crocus (Crocus spp.), baby gladiolus (Gladiolus colvillei.), and ornamental allium (Allium spp.), can be planted at any time during the Autumn season. Other flowers are more finicky with their planting times. Daffodils (Narcissus spp.) should be planted as early as you can get them. Tulip bulbs (Tulipa spp.) should be planted in mid to late October in this region. Hyacinth flowers (Hyacinthus spp.) do their best when planted from October to December. Spring-flowering lilies (Lilium spp.) should be planted as soon as you receive them. As for Iris species (Iris spp.), they depend on whether they are a bulbous iris or a rhizomatous iris. Bulbous irises should be planted between October and November, and rhizomatous irises can be planted from July to October. Even though all these flowers can be planted in Fall, many are specific about exactly when they should be planted. Planting depth of bulbous flowers are specific as well. Generally, the larger the bulb, the deeper it should be planted. However, there are exceptions to every rule, so the following is a list of common bulbs and the depth that they should be planted: -Daffodils: 5-6" (large), 3-4" (small); planted 8" apart -Tulips: plant three times as wide as the bulb width, 4-8" apart -Bulbous Irises: 4" deep, 3-4" apart -Rhizomatous Irises: just below the soil surface, 1-2' apart -Baby Gladiolus: 3-5" deep, 4-6" apart -Crocus: 2-3" deep, 3-4" apart -Lily: 2-3" (small), 3-4" (medium), 4-6" (large), 4-8" apart Bulbous flowers are more finicky than most when it comes to how and when they should be planted, but that shouldn't deter you from having a garden filled with their noticeable presence come springtime. Once you educate yourself and formulate a plan for your garden, you will be well on your way to having that springtime burst of color and shapes to welcome you back from the bleak winter.	Click here for $20 off at Henry Fields Seed and Nursery!

	Click here to visit Gurney's, Seed and Nursery Company


Carrie Paulk is the author of "Fall Planting For Spring Gardens," which is part of the Tip of the Week program with Turf Tamer, Inc. She has written many informative landscaping articles. To learn more about landscaping tips and tricks, you can find the rest of her articles at http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm . She can be reached at carrie@turftamerinc.com .

[ go to top of page ]


Good Night, Sweet Perennial By Carrie Paulk
Now that the landscape is strongly suggesting the occasion of fall, you know it's only a matter of time before your garden perennials will decide to pack up and call it a growing season. However, some perennials tend to pack haphazardly, casting off dried leaves here and spent seed pods there, leaving your garden looking more like a compost pile than a flower bed. Many of us just raise up our arms in frustration and accept the fact that our gardens will just be a bare mess for the winter; after all, spring is only four to five months away, right? Don't give up on your winter garden just yet; there are ways to avoid the Post-Modern Compost Style in your landscape. All you need is a free day and some essential gardening tools to clean up your perennial beds and keep them looking manicured throughout the off-season. By knowing which perennials to cut back, which ones to leave alone, and which ones that can still add winter interest, you can help your perennials survive the winter, and perform remarkably the next year. Now, let's go over your garden tool checklist for your fall perennial cleanup. Bypass pruners? Check. Rake? Check. Garden gloves? Check. Shovel and spade? Check and check. You're all ready to hack back your perennials now, right? No! Before you take a pruner to anything, first you need to know what you've got. Each perennial plant is different; some should be cut off all the way to the ground, others should not be cut at all, and yet others should be cut some, and then cut differently come early spring. Once you know which is which, you can selectively prune your plants effectively. Most perennials are of the herbaceous kind, that is, they die back to the ground every year. Some well-known herbaceous perennials are daylilies, hostas, and astilbes. During your fall cleanup, you want to prune the dead leaves and stems back to the ground level, and then tuck them into their beds with a layer of mulch. As a general rule of thumb, mulch shade perennials more and sun-loving perennials less, as the sun perennials are more prone to rot. The mulch layer will also keep the root system from drying out during the winter. Another group of perennials are the semi-herbaceous bunch. These include plants like black-eyed Susans, shasta daisies, and goldenrod. These perennials shoot up long flowering stems that die back after blooming, but the crown of basal leaves at the bottom of the plant are evergreen. To winterize these plants, cut back the dead and dying flowering stalks and leave the green leaves. The plants use these leaves to photosynthesize throughout the winter, and they also help add some much-needed color to the winter garden. The last group of perennials are the evergreen and subshrub perennials. Some evergreen perennials are candytuft and moss phlox, and some subshrubs are plants like butterfly bush, Russian sage, and artemesias. The only pruning you want to do to these plants in fall is the removal of dead plant material and leggy growth from evergreen perennials. You do not need to prune the subshrubs at all. Doing so might end up being harmful to the plant. Some other perennials that you might want to consider leaving alone are plants that provide structural interest or seeds for birds. Many people leave ornamental grass to provide interest, and perennials like purple coneflower and sunflower provide food for birds through the winter. Leaving these perennials be will be much more rewarding than cutting them back to the ground. All right, now you know the different types of perennials out there, and how to properly care for them during this transitional season. You can now know the difference between an herbaceous and semi-herbaceous perennial. You can now use that knowledge to properly identify your plants, and correctly prepare them for the winter. You now know when to mulch more or mulch less, and why. Now, you can clean up your landscape while still keeping your perennials healthy for next spring, and make your yard the envy of the neighbors. Now . . . now you're ready.
	Click here for premium Lilies from Brecks

	Click here for $20 off your first order at Spring Hill Nursery!

Carrie Paulk is the author of "Good Night, Sweet Perennial," which is part of the Tip of the Week program with Turf Tamer, Inc. She has written many informative landscaping articles. To learn more about landscaping tips and tricks, you can find the rest of her articles at http://www.turftamerinc.com/tip.shtm . She can be reached at carrie@turftamerinc.com .
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