Gardening Secrets
This is really a wonderful time of year. All the beds are looking really good--the annuals are popping, edibles ripening and everything is a vibrant color. All good things come to a slow end, though....like all those perennials that are going for it that need to be trimmed back to make their second-coming or the oriental poppies that aren't such a pretty orange and green anymore. This time of year is when the spring wildflowers and bulbs are no longer producing blooms rather they are dying off (ie the dead foliage and buds) and they are storing energy in the bulbs that is harvested by this dying foliage. Annuals are just starting out, looking a little thin and short but showing promise. And your edibles! Sugar snap peas, cherries, strawberries, lettuce (not for long!), squashes, tomatoes, herbs, etc. All of these are just loving life and growing and getting tastier and tastier.
But....what about those perennials that are dying back? Or the lilac bush that has all the dead buds on it (they have no viable seed so they dead bloom serves no purpose)? And what are you really supposed to do with roses? And how is it that plants like Nigella (common name Love In The Mist) that are annuals produce viable seed heads and go to seed, coming back next year? Lots of random things to know...so here are some of the ones I've been mindful of lately...
1. There are some perennials that send-up a beautiful bloom and then they die back and they will never bloom again until next year. However, there are others, like Valerian , that--if you trim them back--will continue to send-up new blooms. Cut the flower (once it has died) back to the next healthy, large set of leaves which might also be the point where new growth stalks are generating. This will give Valerian the energy it needs to send-up new blooms. Another plant to do this on is Basket of Gold. Take the dead, yellowed-bloom all the way down to the base. The plant might look sparse, but it will bloom again. Dead head salvia, too!
2. Re-seed your plants! Scatter seed heads of your plants....lots of plants have seed heads that will produce another plant. If you scatter your CALIFORNIA or various other varities of poppies (oriental poppies generally don't re-seed well, but try them!), love in the mist, daisy, Nautia, lupine, etc. all over the garden. With lupine seeds, take the entire stalk of seed-heads and cut it into sections and throw in the bed.
3. Lilac bushes are done blooming. If you want to get a strong bloom next year, you should thin the stalks on your bush by removing the oldest stalks (which are hte thickest) thus allowing for new growth. Also, dead-head it to stimulate strong blooms next year.
4. If you have weeds in your grass....sadly, you're never going to have weed-free beds no matter how hard you try. Splurge and spend the money to get your lawn treated 2 times (thats all it takes!) by an organic lawn-care company.
5. Trim you dead poppies all the way down to the base. Speaking of trimming.....MINT. Goodness, mint can take over beds...well, ornamental mint can atleast. And now is the time to trim it back to some of the first sets of news leaves...this will promote new growth and it will soon be back to full power and needing to be trimmed again.
6. Annuals re-seeding? Kinda sounds like a perennial....well, some annuals (like love in the mist and snaps) die and then their dead flower forms a seed-head. This seed-head then produces a new snap and the parent plant dies. Annuals are defined as plants that complete their life cycle in one season, thus since hte parent plant dies every season it is an annual.
7. It is too late for Clematis now, but remember for next year....plant it DEEP. It really likes to have its roots cold.
8. All your spring bulbs (ie tulips, daffodils) are done and their foliage is trashed. The bulb has stored enough energy which means that you can tear up the foliage because you no longer need it to harness energy. Clip all the foliage.
9. Remember to take the dead out of your shrubs. Do you have a Spirea? I gurantee you it has some dead branches, so clip it off!
10. Remove your suckers from trees.
11. If you have a flag-stone patio and can't get rid of the weeds in the cracks, try using WHITE vinegar and squirting it on the weeds. It must be white vinegar and it must be sunny and hot (over 80 degrees) in order for it to be effective. There is a photovoltaic reaction when the vinegar is on the foliage which essentially burns the plant.
Thats all I got for now....I'll be back with more.
