Perennial Plants - Care and Maintenance of Flowering Perennials
It's misleading to think that once you plant a perennial flower you are done with it. To have great looking perennials, there is a good bit of maintenance involved. This includes dividing, deadheading, staking, cutting back and other chores, depending on the perennial plant. Here are some tips.
Deadheading, Pinching and Cutting Back - Garden Maintenance
Flower gardens require constant maintenance to look their best. Common garden chores like pruning, pinching and deadheading are easy to master, as show here in this step-by-step photo tutorial.
Flower gardens require constant maintenance to look their best. Common garden chores like pruning, pinching and deadheading are easy to master, as show here in this step-by-step photo tutorial.
Dividing Bearded Iris
Bearded Iris are tall, elegant additions to the flower border, but they are also relatively high maintenance. You can help cut down on the incidence of soft rot and borer damage through regular division of the iris rhizomes, every 2-3 years. This will also keep bearded iris performing and blooming at its best. Start by carefully digging and lifting the rhizomes, as shown here.
Bearded Iris are tall, elegant additions to the flower border, but they are also relatively high maintenance. You can help cut down on the incidence of soft rot and borer damage through regular division of the iris rhizomes, every 2-3 years. This will also keep bearded iris performing and blooming at its best. Start by carefully digging and lifting the rhizomes, as shown here.
Dividing Perennial Plants
Most perennial flowers will need to be divided to remain vigorous and continue blooming season after season. Division of perennials is an easily mastered gardening technique that is good for the plants and your garden.
Most perennial flowers will need to be divided to remain vigorous and continue blooming season after season. Division of perennials is an easily mastered gardening technique that is good for the plants and your garden.
Mums. How to Make them Hardy.
Many gardeners do not realize mums are hardy perennials. Maybe you’ve purchased mums labeled ‘hardy’ only to be disappointed the following spring when they didn’t survive. The key to a truly hardy mum is selecting the right variety and giving it time to establish itself in your garden, before winter. Here’s a quick tip to helping your garden mums survive the winter.
Many gardeners do not realize mums are hardy perennials. Maybe you’ve purchased mums labeled ‘hardy’ only to be disappointed the following spring when they didn’t survive. The key to a truly hardy mum is selecting the right variety and giving it time to establish itself in your garden, before winter. Here’s a quick tip to helping your garden mums survive the winter.
Pruning: Perennial Plants to Prune in the Fall
It can be nice to leave some perennials standing for winter interest. But many perennial plants don’t survive rough weather well. Many plants have recurrent problems with pests and diseases, which will over winter in their fallen foliage and surface in the spring. The following list of perennial flowers survive and thrive better if pruned or cut down in the fall.
It can be nice to leave some perennials standing for winter interest. But many perennial plants don’t survive rough weather well. Many plants have recurrent problems with pests and diseases, which will over winter in their fallen foliage and surface in the spring. The following list of perennial flowers survive and thrive better if pruned or cut down in the fall.
Pruning: Perennial Plants to Prune in the Spring
Four season interest in the garden is nice. Dried flowers hold onto snow like frosting. Seed heads feed the birds. But some perennials don’t handle cold weather well. The following list is a recommendation of plants that are best pruned in the spring.
Four season interest in the garden is nice. Dried flowers hold onto snow like frosting. Seed heads feed the birds. But some perennials don’t handle cold weather well. The following list is a recommendation of plants that are best pruned in the spring.
Staking Perennial Flower Plants
Staking is no one's favorite thing to do in the garden, but staking early in the season can make things a whole lot easier as the plants grow.
Staking is no one's favorite thing to do in the garden, but staking early in the season can make things a whole lot easier as the plants grow.