Garden and Flowers

As we all know that most flowering perennials are very dependable and easy care performers. That is why maintenance is a requirement for all perennial gardens. So the question is, how can I maintain my perennial flower garden? What are the important things to do so that my perennial garden is healthy? Well of course there are tips and tricks on how to maintain your perennial garden. So here are the 8 important things to do in order your perennial garden is healthy and floriferous.

Fertilizing
Most perennial flower plants are really heavy feeders and they will be happy with one spring application of a low-nitrogen, high-phosphorus fertilizer (5-10-5). For established perennial garden, just apply a handful of fertilizer around each plant.

Watering
Perennial flower plants don”t need plenty of water. So perennial gardens don”t require much water. But this depends on where you live. If you live in a tropical place where summer is very dry, then your perennial garden needs water. Soaker hoses and drip irrigation systems are great for perennial gardens.

Mulching
By early summer, a densely planted perennial garden will shade out most weeds. But a new garden, a spring garden or a garden that is more sparsely planted, will benefit from some kind of mulch. The mulch will keep weeds to a minimum and help retain moisture in the soil. Your garden will look best with a finely textured material such as shredded leaves, dry grass clippings, peanut shells, cocoa hulls or shredded bark. Big chunks of bark, newspaper or straw will overpower your plants.

Neat Edges
Your garden will look very beautiful and professional when you have a neat, cleanly defined edge between you lawn and flower beds. So if you want to have a neat and cleanly defined edge then you will use a sharp edging tool to cut the edge during the growing season or you can install a permanent edge. This neat edges will also keep the grass and weeds from growing into the bed.

Pinching
Some perennials such as asters, phlox, salvias and chrysanthemums benefit from being pinched. Pinching creates a bushier plant that produces more blooms and is less likely to flop over. You use your thumb and forefinger to pinch back the growing tip of the plant. But be careful because their are also perennials that not be pinched.

Deadheading
Some plants drop their spent flowers and seed heads, but some plants don”t. These plants hold them for months or longer. So you must need to remove these spent flower so your plants will look at their best and will also stimulate reblooming.

Staking
There are tall plants that are weak-stemmed plants and they need support when reaching blooming size. Not ony tall plants but also short plants also need support. But you must see to it that the support you put must not ne seen or invisible. Bamboo canes are best support for individual stems but for the entire plants you must use wire support rings. Position the support in the early springs to acquire best results.

Dividing
If your perennials are already too large to the space that you provide, then it is time to divide them. Because if not, then the center or oldest part of the plant will die out and leaving a bare middle. The growth will become so dense thus it will no longer bloom.