| Garden Work is Never Done
Here are a few tips that Donna Andesen find helpful in keeping our clients garden lush and healthy all year.
WAKE UP! ITS SPRING! -- Mid April to early May
1. Remove winter mulch from your perennial gardens one layer at a time to improve air circulation. As the danger of snow and heavy frost passes, take off the rest and clean up the plant debris.
2. Remove winter protection from roses. Prune out any dead or cross canes and cut back to new growth. Spray with dormant oil to subdue fungus, start your once-a-month fertilizer program with Rose Tone.
3. Weed, fertilize, cultivate, and re-edge. This is the best time to get a jump on weeding and amend the soil with cow manure or compost. A 40# bag of Moo Doo covers 25 sq. ft. Fertilize perennial areas with an organic blend of fertilizer, Pro Gro or Garden Tone.
4. Divide or move summer and fall blooming perennials (e.g., Phlox, Daylily, Sedum, Rudbeckia, Coreopsis, Echinacea, and Asters) when they are 2-3 inches high. Be careful not to cut into new shoots while you're transplanting and dividing.
5. Mulch all beds after soil has warmed up to approximately 55 degrees, using buckwheat, cocoa hulls or pine bark.
6. Put peony rings on peonies.
7. Deadhead and fertilize spring flowering bulbs with Bulb Tone.
8. In late May, set out water plants in the water garden, plant tender bulbs and annuals in gardens and containers.
9. Protect your lilies, Hosta and Phlox from animals eating them with an animal repellent.
10. Install soaker hoses.
SUMMER CHORES -- June through August
1. Weeding and cultivating the soil (get ahead of the weeds and get those roots, if not they will come back).
2. Deadhead spent blooms; this saves the plants energy, prevents seed production, and promotes re-blooming and continued plant growth. Lupine, Foxglove, Forget-me-nots, Mallow, and Hollyhocks all self-sow so watch for new buds and deadhead to control spreading.
3. Water once a week if it doesn’t rain and your garden will love you. Bottom watering is the best way to get water to the roots. Don't spray the foliage. When watering annuals, don't forget to feed them once a week with a liquid fertilizer such as 20-20-20. Periodically use a blossom booster to promote longer flowering.
4. Keeping your plants healthy is the best way to prevent disease and insect infestation. Remove any infected stems or foliage routinely and clean up all debris to keep areas clean and disease free.
5. Control tall plants by staking them in May or early June. If stakes and rings are in place early, your plants will have time to grow straight and tall.
6. Pinch late summer flowering perennials such as Phlox, Mums (Clara Curtis), Asters, Heliopsis, and Sedum in June to create a shorter and fuller plant.
7. Cutback and deadhead tired-looking perennials such as Salvia, Shasta Daisy, Delphinium, Coreopsis, Veronica, Geranium, and or Nepeta as needed. Fertilize perennials again in July to promote new growth and flower buds.
8. Fertilize roses with Rose Tone once a month stopping after August 5th to allow growth to slow and the plant to prepare for winter. Spray with fungicide every 7 to 10 days to prevent the spreading of black spot.
9. Watch for slugs on Hosta.
10. Divide Peonies and Iris in August.
THE FALL FINISH -- September to November
1. Divide or move spring-blooming perennials in early September, so they will have ample time to re-establish before the cold weather comes.
2. Do a soil test at home if your garden is not flourishing or as an alternative send a sample to your local Extension Service.
3. From mid-September on, cut back perennials and start cleaning up debris to prevent over-wintering of disease and insects. Cut back one-third of your rose bush. Using the one-third rule; cut back one-third, leave one-third, and mulch one-third.
4. Remember not to cut back evergreen perennials. They will be interesting even in winter.
5.Cut plants back to four inches.
6. Amend the soil with compost or manure.
7. Add lime to sweeten the soil (raise the Ph) or aluminum sulfate to lower the Ph.
8. After the first frost, dig up the tender bulbs and store in a cool place.
9.Cover the base of your roses, mulching with soil or chips 12 inches deep. Remember the one-third rule.
10. Clean and sharpen your tools and put them away for the winter.
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