You asked and we answered. Check out the complete collection of your most asked gardening questions below:
1) What Is A Biennial, Perennial, and Annual?
Perennials are plants that will last for more than two years. Flowering perennials grow and bloom over the spring, summer or even fall, die back every autumn and winter and return again from their root-stock. Annuals are plants that complete their life cycle within a year and die. Winter annuals germinate during the fall months, maturing in the spring and summer of the next year. Summer annuals germinate in spring and summer, and mature in the fall of the same year. The Biennial is right between the Annual and Perennial. Generally the Biennial takes two years to complete its life cycle. During its first year, the plant grows its roots, stems and leaves. After a period of dormancy in the colder months, the plant will “bolt” and flower in the next spring or summer.
To learn more about biennials, perennials, and annuals, check out the full blog posthere.
2) How Do I Get Weeds Out of My Garden?
I do not know what I dislike more, pulling weeds in my garden, the weeds themselves, or that I am convinced those little green monsters come out each year just to irritate me. It has taken me many seasons and even more tactics to de-weed my garden and although nothing banishes weeds all together, I do have some suggestions to make this endeavor easier on us and hopefully deliver satisfying. Mulching not only looks good, but helps prevent weeds. A two inch layer of mulch will block light from reaching the weed seeds and prevent growth. I have had best results when I place a layer of newspaper, landscape fabric or biodegradable cloth down first, then the mulch on top. This serves as a double-duty shield against any sunlight being able to reach the wanna-be weeds. And at the same time, wood or bark mulch will hold moisture for your plants and as it decomposes, and it provides nutrients into the soil.
To learn more about weeding, check out the full blog post here.
3) What Blooms in Winter?
Hellebores flower in the cold weather months and give life and abundant color to the garden when very few plants are in bloom or even green. And more pluses, Hellebores are disease, deer and bug resistant.
To learn more about winter plants, check out the full blog post here.
4) What Is Deadheading?
Deadheading is the simple task of removing spent flowers either by pinching with fingers, using scissors or pruners. The reason for deadheading is to deter your plant from going to seed (a natural instinct when it thinks it is dying – to reproduce), but rather have it focus its energy on its growth. I find that many of my window box and container plants need this for continuous blooming and strength
To learn more about deadheading, check out the full blog post here.
5) What Plants Are Easy and Fool-Proof?
As my friend Philip Watson says “There are good reasons these plants flourish along the highways.” and he is talking about four plants that are determined to exist with or without you: peonies, butterfly bushes, daylilies, and Rose of Sharon.
To learn more about fool-proof plants, check out the full blog post here.
6) When Do I Fertilize My Perennials?
Fertilizing your perennials before they bloom in spring is key. A reminder I use is “April showers bring May flowers.” It makes sense that by fertilizing now, the seasonal rain we get will help dissolve the fertilizer and also pull it down deeper in the soil right to its roots.
To learn more about fertilizing, check out the full blog post here.
7) When and How Do I Water My Garden and Potted Plants?
There are some basic rules of thumb (“green thumb” that is) I use as a guide for my container/potted plants:
How much to water potted plants - Drainage is the key to healthy roots and flourishing plants. If your container allows, drainage holes on the sides as well as on the bottom is ideal. Dry surface soil is an obvious signal to water and you may want to water your container plants more than once a day.
How to water potted plants– Focus on the root base of each plant, not the foliage. When watering, direct spout to the base of the plant, do not water from above through the leaves down to the soil.
When to water– In warm weather, mornings are the ideal time to water outdoor plants. This gives plants a chance to drink before the hot sun of late morning. I strongly advise against watering in the evening because if the foliage stays wet all night long this will create a base for disease.
To learn more about watering, check out the full blog post here.
8) Why Are The Leaves On My Plants Turning Yellow?
The good news is your plant just may be going through its natural growth process by yellowing its leaves and shedding them. The other good news is your plant is telling you something is wrong by yellowing. And more times than not, diagnosing your plant like a doctor with a patient’s symptoms can be clear-cut. Possibilities could be: change of location, limited light, cold conditions, nutrient deficiency, over watering, lack of watering, or insects.
To learn more about preventing yellowing, check out the full blog post here.
9) How Can I Stop Deer From Eating Everything?
Honestly, there truly is no full-proof way to prevent deer from having a bite (if there were, surely we would all own stock in it) but there are some ways to discourage these majestic but destructive animals.
Here I go again, (my blog post “It’s True – It’s Time To Prune”) about pruning and cleaning up your garden is a great place to start. I trim the lower branches on my trees regularly because unless deer are extremely desperate, they will go find “low hanging fruit” on someone else’s property. A yard clean of leaves, acorns and rotting fruit is like a store with empty shelves and again, the deer will move on. Over the years so many friends and fellow gardeners have given me “solutions” to try like spreading cat litter around your property borders, placing bars of deodorant or strong smelling soap around your property and hanging them from garden gates. And who knew that deer do not like any “melodic” noise whether it’s wind chimes or the radio? A great excuse to have music playing from your patio speakers all of the time!
To learn more about deer-proofing, check out the full blog post here.
10) How Do I Prune Hydrangeas?
Even experienced gardeners have questions on when to prune hydrangeas. And no wonder with four different species of hydrangea and hundreds of varieties! With these mind-numbing numbers, let’s focus on two of the most popular; the Mophead (Macrophylla) and PeeGee (Paniculatas). Mophead and Lacecap Hydrangeas - You really don’t ever have to prune a Mophead hydrangea. But for the health of the plant, you can remove dead stems at any time of year. Pee Gee bloom on old wood and can be pruned any time of year except summer when they are preparing to bloom. Some of my colleagues prune back these varieties regularly right after the blooming period, yet I do not even touch these beauties until the fall.
To learn more about pruning hydrangeas, check out the full blog post here.
Be sure to check out the Gardening Guide for top garden items, tips/tricks, and more throughout the year!