Ornamentals
• ALWAYS READ THE LABEL – Taking a fresh look at the label is important whenever using garden pesticides – whether chemical or organic. Labels will tell you what diseases, insects or weeds should be controlled and where the product may be used. It will also tell you the mixing or application rate and safety precautions that should be taken when handling. Continue reading
Category Archives: monthly tips
June
Ornamentals
• Fertilize your late-spring flowering bulbs as soon as they finish blooming – use 5-10-5 or 5-10-10 fertilizer or a water-soluble fertilizer according to directions. Continue reading
May
Planting Out
• Pull weeds before applying a fresh layer of mulch on landscape beds.
• Water-in all transplants. Planting on a cloudy day will minimize the shock to new plants. Continue reading
April
• First of all–patience! April is early in our gardening year. As soon as we get a taste of the warm weather to come, we gardeners get itchy to garden! Remember that the “early risers” are first to wake. Don’t assume that plant you bought last summer didn’t survive because it’s not rising with the bleeding hearts. Many plants won’t break dormancy until the end of April, early May. Don’t make rash decisions. Continue reading
November
Ornamentals
Clean up the flower garden. Remove dead annuals, cut back dead tops on perennials, thin out groundcovers, trim a few unruly shrub branches, stash stakes and pull weeds. Leave some tops on heavy seeder perennials for the birds. Continue reading
October
Ornamentals
- Finish planting in early October. Most perennials can be divided now. All divisions and transplanting should be finished by the middle of October. Note: some perennials resent division, such as butterfly weed, euphorbia, Oriental poppy, and gas plants (Dictamnus albus). Continue reading
September
Ornamentals
• Now is the time to divide and transplant many spring and summer-flowering perennials. Some to divide now include iris, yarrow, oriental poppies, Rudbeckia, and peonies. Care should be taken to replant them as soon as possible to prevent them from drying out. Try to finish this by the end of the month so that plants can be established before winter. Daylilies are more flexible and can wait until spring. Phlox should wait until spring. Continue reading