Summer Chores For Continued Blooms

The July 4th holiday here in the US is a date on my calendar to get summer chores started in the garden.  Now is the time to ensure blooms continue on perennials and shrubs.  To do this I get out the hedge trimmers and pruners. 
Here are some of the plants I give a summer haircut.  By cutting them back now, the plants do not produce seeds.  Setting seeds indicates to the plants that the season is over.  I want the season to continue well into the coming months. 

This catmint still had blooms and the bees were active.  It was getting straggly and covering up another aster. The catmint, as any plant in the mint family, can become aggressive and spread into the garden.  I have planted this in a gallon container with the bottom removed.  The roots still have garden soil to get nutrients, but the roots are more contained and cannot spread. 

Typical of any plant in the mint family, the stem is square.  Kinda cool!



I have asters in this bed. And I have said before, that I prefer asters to mums because they are more hardy and reliable.  Mums are considered to be ‘tender perennials’ in my Zone 6 garden.  The reason I cut back the asters  by at least a third at this time is to have the plant produce more tips and become more compact.  The more tips, the more buds will be produced for the fall bloom time. 
The Moonbeam coreopsis also shown here gets a haircut too.  Trimming the spent blooms tidies up the plant and, it too, will rebloom in a very short time. 


This stingy mass is a native plant called spiderwort,  Tradescantia. I have several varieties of spiderwort.  Some have gold foliage with deep blue blooms, (Sweet Kate), and some have a pale purple bloom, or a pure white bloom, or a true blue blossom.


At this mid-summer time however, spiderwort get really leggy and blooms are spent.  Cutting them back to 6” allows for the plant to produce fresh foliage will rebloom.


Some herbs that I should have cut back sooner like this lemon thyme and lemon balm have already bloomed and unfortunately have set seed.  That will ensure an invasion of new plants where I least expect them. 


These shrubs, the ninebark and forsythia will not rebloom this season, but they can be pruned at this time with little loss of blooms for next season.  Spring blooming shrubs should be pruned just after the blossoms fade to allow the shrub to grow new stems and set buds. 
The spirea also go a sever cutback. The spent blossoms are brown and the shrub is over grown. I do expect the spirea to rebloom later in the early fall.

As you can see, the overgrown spirea were hiding lungwort and hosta. 
Now with the garden all tidy, I can smile and know that my job as caretaker is under control. 
Enjoy your summer, and with just a few chores, the garden will continue to bloom.
What reblooming plants do you enjoy in your garden?

Shrubs, Vines, Fences for Privacy

Hide a View - Or Need Privacy? 

Pick one that is right for your space.



 
Whether it is a view of the neighbors….


or a view of utility gauges….



or to limit a view from the street…..

there are many options available.


Artistic shapes give unique character.

Some options require more maintenance that others.



Blooms add to the screen – a thing of beauty.

Gates can enclose your gardens, yet be inviting.

Overhead screens of vines can offer much needed shade, and a free standing planter can break up a boring wall, as well as extending the vertical garden.



Panels can be classic or funky! 
Make your space private and cozy. Screen just a corner, or the whole garden.  Enjoy.

Maintenance Free Gardening (and I have a Bridge!)

Gardening Ideas for Low Maintenance Gardens

I've heard this so much.  "I want a yard that I don't have to do anything."  Impossible - certainly, unless you have a gardener on the payroll!  But  I do have some ideas to make your weekends less 'yard chores' and more 'sit back and enjoy'.

Naturescaping with native plants is the next best thing to 'maintenance free' gardening.

Most 'traditional' landscaping consists of 1) lawn, 2) shrubs, and 3) maintenance.  The lawn needs to be cut, trimmed, and have products like fertilizer and pesticides applied.  The shrubs need to be manicured to keep their boxy shape.  This 'standard' is what we grew up with, and what we feel we need to perpetuate.  The nursery industry encourages us to follow these practices because they have grown lots of these plants and want us to buy them. 

Native plants are quite different.  They have not been cloned.  They have survived the weather. They have adapted to the water availability in the region. Native plants have an immunity or resistance to insects that keeps them healthy.

Incorporating a naturescape into you landscape requires a new way of thinking. 

And that is the idea that 'nature' can take care of our plants so we don't have to'. 

Initially this means we need to choose plants that grow naturally in the area.  There are many gorgeous varieties from which to pick.   So don't feel that you have to settle for a mediocre garden.

This false indigo, Baptisia and Turtlehead are just some of the gorgeous blooms you can look for.  The Baptisia blooms in the early summer  and has been chosen as Perennial Plant of the Year. The Turtlehead blooms in my yard around Labor Day.  Paired with the Sedum, Autumn Joy, which blooms about the same time, this is spectacular.

Naturescaping with native plants offers other benefits.  Besides using less water, once established, these plants need little supplemental fertilizer.  No need for pesticides or fungicides means less dollars from your wallet.
These plants do not require manicureing, leaving your weekends free from yard duty.  Sounds like a win- win for all of us. 

Critters will take advantage of your generosity too.  Seeds, berries, and shelter will draw songbirds.  Populations of songbirds have dropped steadily in the past several decades - up to 5-10%, per year due mostly from the loss of habitat. Pollinator's like bees and butterflies will visit also. 

The naturescape is the best option to a  low maintenance landscape.  Less lawn care, less watering, less pruning, less fertilizing, less spraying for pests. Native plants, trees, shrubs, and perennials, are available in the marketplace.  A comprehensive list is available through the OSU website: ohioline.osu.edu/b865/index.html. 

Naturescape - low maintenance.   Lawn - high maintenance. Just nature scaping a portion of your yard will free up your time and money.  Do you need your yard to mirror the neighbors, or are you ready to step out of your comfort zone and truly be comfortable?  Enjoy.