Bulb Planning Season

I know I know it’s scary to think but Autumn is almost here. But Autumn is the time to plant many of the most popular spring blooming bulbs. Start planning and ordering now so you have your bulbs in time to plant and before everyone else scoops up the most unique ones. Don’t forget Tulips are a favorite to pests including deer, groundhog and rabbits. Great options to avoid pest disaster are Daffodils and Alliums (flowering onions).

Not sure whats the best option for your property. Send us an email with your address and we will make a few recommendations to the first few who respond!!!

       

Holly Holidays

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Winter is here and with it comes the bleak landscape of so many homes. This is not done purposely but because those outside of the design field usually make their plant decisions based on flowers. Flowers are beautiful and can be an essential part of the landscape but so is winter interest. The best thing you can do for your landscape is plant in layers and a great backdrop layer to add winter flare are Hollies.

The best Hollies for this are the evergreen varieties with sharp leaves. There are many different cultivars but I recommend the ones with the blueish leaves as the bright red berries really stand out, making quite the show. Plant a row of hydrangea in front of them and they make a stunning backdrop in the Spring-Fall months as well. Just remember only the females get the berries so you will need to plant a male somewhere on your property to pollinate the females. Deer will often browse on Hollies so if they are popular on your property plant the Ilex Opaca (American Holly) as these are rarely browsed upon.  If you do plant Hollies expect to see some beautiful Blue Jays, Robins and Cardinals attracted as they feed upon the nutritious berries when they need them most.

5 Coastal Planting Design Tips

1- Plant salt spray resistant varieties. The picture below is a great example with Ruby Ribbon switch grass, drift rose and Black Eyed Susan.

2- Plan for summer blooms since most of your time will be spent outside on the water during these months. Roses, certain hardy hydrangea, Shasta daisy, Russian sage, Hibiscus, Salvia and Catmint are all great options.

3- Amend the planting soil with lots of organic matter to help plants establish faster and be more resilient come the extremes of winter weather.

4- Remember to mulch. Mulching will help stop soil heaving in the winter and reduce moisture loss during the hot summer months among many other benefits.

5- Enjoy and maintain. There is no such thing as a maintenance free garden. The more you deadhead and tend to your plants the more you can reap the benefits of a beautiful coastal garden.

Finally send us an email if you have any questions or need some help. Our knowledgeable staff are here to consult you on all of your garden needs!!

BEACH PLANTING

Landscape Thoughts, Tips, and Quotes To Live By!

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Designing for multi season interest- It is always important to design and plant in combination for prolonged interest. Unless it is just your summer home you should have color year round. This planting has Purple Leaved Actea which adds a beautiful foliage color spring through fall but also adds blooms of white in the early summer. As those blooms fade this beautiful pink phlox variety takes over throughout much of July until it is paired with the Black Eyed Susan. As these will both fade soon the Cranberry Viburnum as the backdrop steals the show with its gorgeous bright red berries that cover the entire plant sometimes (remember to plant males for better berry set). Finally as the cool of fall takes over the Viburnum will turn all the fires of fall with reds and oranges creating a great stage for the many colorful birds that come to devour the many red berries and dried seeds of the Black Eyed Susan.

“A collection of plants is not a landscape, any more than a list of choice words is a poem. The merit is in the design, not the material it is expressed in, and the best designs, like the best poems, make ordinary material significant by its arrangement.”

— Nan Fairbrother