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Fall is a great
time to plant trees, shrubs, or to split up your overgrown
perennials or to plant new.
Choosing your annuals
If you plan to buy your flowers from a nursery or a home store,
choose your plants carefully. Looking for deep green healthy
plants. Trying to fine plants not to tall & spindly or to
compact. Annuals tend to do better if not blooming when planted.
Keep your plants in a shady spot & watered until you can plant
them.
When to plant
Your young annuals shouldn’t be planted until after the danger
of frost and the ground temp has warmed from the winter months.
Hardier plants may be planted in early spring as soon as the
ground can be worked up.
How to plant your annuals
Before Planting keep your plants watered. Remove plants from the
pots gently trying not to disturb the root system. If the roots
are compacted loosen them, but gently. Dig your plant hole
approximately twice the size of the root ball itself. Carefully
tamping the soil back around the plants, watering well until
plants have established themselves.
Fertilizing
Annuals bloom better when fertilized. In general you should
fertilize once every 3-4 weeks during the growing season, using
a liquid plant fertilizer. But over fertilizing could cause a
build up of salts in the soil and result in damage to your
plants.
Watering
Watering approximately 1 inch per week should be sufficient.
Hanging basket plants will need more water sometimes once a day
during hot summer days. Watering deeply into the root system is
the key. Short shallow waterings again promote shallow root
grow.
Sun or shade
Most annuals like 6 hours of sun a day. Most like a
partial shade of a filtered sun setting.
Mulching
Mulching 3 to 4 inches deep will reduce weeds, keeping soil
moisture in the ground and making your landscaping more
attractive. Mulch will however deteriorate over the year. New
mulch will need to be added each year, usually in the spring to
keep your landscaping more attractive.
Pruning
Most annuals perform better and are healthier when the faded
flowers are pinched back and removed- this is called
Deadheading. This will keep your plants more attractive and
actually promotes new growth.
Planning for
fall
Cut back your Perennials & Annuals when they begin to loose
their fullness. Old blooms can pinched off and yellowing or
browning leaves trimmed back.
Bulbs
Plan now for where you want to plant them. Most bulbs arrive in
late August to September in stores to be planted in the fall. |
