Saturday, April 6, 2013
Matching perennials to your site conditions or garden soil will help you have successful, long-lasting perennial gardens.
By Rebecca Finneran, Michigan State University Extension A wise professor once defined a perennial as “a garden plant – had it lived, would return year after year.” Loosely defined, perennials will continue growing for several or many years in the optimum environment. The gardener’s term “perennial” commonly means “hardy, herbaceous, ornamental plants.” Hardy perennials are, with a few exceptions, non-woody plants having roots that live through the winter while the tops die back to the ground, particularly in northern climates. A few perennials such as Heuchera (coral bells), Iberis (candytuft) or Bergenia (pig squeak) are semi-evergreen, sporting green or colorful leaves that will survive the winter cold. Some perennials will live almost …
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Composting instead of burning provides many benefits for you and your environment.
- PATCH'S HOUSE & HOME
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Saturday, October 27, 2012
Pumpkins are being turned into jack-o-lanterns, fall flowers are almost done blooming and the leaves on the trees are falling to the ground. Gardens are at their end and most gardeners have begun the annual ritual of clearing out dead plants. Compost bins everywhere are being enriched with fall bounty of spent plants and fall leaves. In some places, the annual burning of the leaves ritual has begun – but note that composting instead of burning prevents wildfires, protects air quality, improves soil structure, balances the soil ecosystem and nourishes plants. If you don’t have a compost bin now is a great time to begin one. If you are a composter already emptying out the finished compost from the summer onto the garden and refilling the bin…
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Watering perennials during droughty weather helps plants along, but are you really making a difference?
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Saturday, June 30, 2012
Many parts of Michigan haven’t seen significant rain in weeks. As the soil moisture ‘bank” is depleted, some plants won’t benefit from light irrigation or rainfall. Caring for perennial plants during this period of time will insure bountiful blooms for next year. If standing at the edge of the bed, squirting water on the plants is what you had in mind, think again! Most of our popular perennial plants have much deeper roots than annuals or turf. Hand watering a perennial bed may result in pockets of moisture, but it does not insure that water is where it is most needed – deep in the root zone. It may surprise you to get out a garden spade and simply turn over an 8-inch slice of soil. Usually the top 1 to 2 inches will be moist where you …
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Here are some tips for navigating through a sea of seed catalogs.
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Saturday, March 10, 2012
Consider the following description in one popular seed catalogue this year: "A wonderful heirloom, these rounded fruit have the taste of tomatoes from Grandma’s garden. They make your mouth water just thinking about them." How could you possibly resist purchasing these tomato seeds after reading that? There are almost as many seed catalogs as seed displays at your local garden centers attempting to convince you to purchase the seeds they sell. So, how do you decide what to purchase, and how many packets you will need? If you are growing a modest-sized garden, pick the crops and varieties your family enjoys most as well as those that provide the largest harvest in the available space. In recent years, many seed catalogs and seed packages …
Susan Moore
11:29 am on Saturday, April 6, 2013
If you really want your perennials to thrive, considering planting at least some plants native to this area! Native plants have adapted to our soils and climate conditions, so don't require intense maintenance to keep them going. There are 2 native plant growers in Oakland County, plus many more throughout the state. To learn more about native plants, check out Wild Ones (national native plant … more ›