To add a touch of color to their spring and summer landscape, some people can't wait to rush out to local greenhouses or home improvement stores for blooming plants on the first sunny day.
But not everyone enjoys the spring ritual of planting annuals - from the early blooming pansies, to those that grace yards with color all summer like marigolds, zinnias, impatiens and petunias. The reason is that these annuals, pretty as they are, will only stay with you for a season and then they eventually die out. And most of today's varieties are hybrids and even though they are capable of reseeding, they are not expected to produce the exact variety which you actually planted.
Your home can take advantage of perennial plantings if you don't enjoy a lot of gardening but nevertheless wish you had flowers in your garden. If you select plants that suits your locality well and plant them where they receive enough light and moisture for their kind, you can basically plant them once and leave them to memory.
But not everyone enjoys the spring ritual of planting annuals - from the early blooming pansies, to those that grace yards with color all summer like marigolds, zinnias, impatiens and petunias. The reason is that these annuals, pretty as they are, will only stay with you for a season and then they eventually die out. And most of today's varieties are hybrids and even though they are capable of reseeding, they are not expected to produce the exact variety which you actually planted.
Your home can take advantage of perennial plantings if you don't enjoy a lot of gardening but nevertheless wish you had flowers in your garden. If you select plants that suits your locality well and plant them where they receive enough light and moisture for their kind, you can basically plant them once and leave them to memory.
Unlike annuals, perennials return year after year. Many plants will become larger and more attractive. Others will spread through rhizomes, creating new bulbs, or through seeds, so that a single plant can, over time, become many that fill up flower beds without additional work.
Among the hardest working of these self-propagating plants are some of the best known. And while spring plants would need to be set in the fall, for this summer you can still buy bagged or potted varieties to add to your lawn.
Evaluate your planting areas before buying. While most areas are sunny in the early spring before trees leaf out, when looking for summer plants you'll have to consider foliage and the difference it makes.
Probably one of the easiest plants to think about is day lilies if you can find a spot that is going to be mostly sunny. While the original stock was tall, orange and only bloomed once, newer varieties offer a lot of options with the hardiness of the original. Today you can find day lilies in virtually any color from nearly black to the palest pinks and yellows. You can opt for plants that are much shorter and those that will bloom again as well. You wouldn't have to do a lot of digging and cultivating to get an area ready for them because their soil demands are actually quite low. Left with room to grow, they will extend their rhizomes and spread and can quickly fill in beds with their foliage, which looks like some ornamental grasses, then cover themselves in blooms by mid summer.
Hostas in all their varieties are an easy choice for shady areas. Their blooms are generally small so they rely on their foliage for their beauty but the leaves come in many sizes and color combinations. Many have clumps of leaves that are just about the size of an average hand in variations of greens from yellowish to blue-tinted, or variegated with white or multi-tones. There are also t
Among the hardest working of these self-propagating plants are some of the best known. And while spring plants would need to be set in the fall, for this summer you can still buy bagged or potted varieties to add to your lawn.
Evaluate your planting areas before buying. While most areas are sunny in the early spring before trees leaf out, when looking for summer plants you'll have to consider foliage and the difference it makes.
Probably one of the easiest plants to think about is day lilies if you can find a spot that is going to be mostly sunny. While the original stock was tall, orange and only bloomed once, newer varieties offer a lot of options with the hardiness of the original. Today you can find day lilies in virtually any color from nearly black to the palest pinks and yellows. You can opt for plants that are much shorter and those that will bloom again as well. You wouldn't have to do a lot of digging and cultivating to get an area ready for them because their soil demands are actually quite low. Left with room to grow, they will extend their rhizomes and spread and can quickly fill in beds with their foliage, which looks like some ornamental grasses, then cover themselves in blooms by mid summer.
Hostas in all their varieties are an easy choice for shady areas. Their blooms are generally small so they rely on their foliage for their beauty but the leaves come in many sizes and color combinations. Many have clumps of leaves that are just about the size of an average hand in variations of greens from yellowish to blue-tinted, or variegated with white or multi-tones. There are also t
Probably one of the easiest plants to think about is day lilies if you can find a spot that is going to be mostly sunny. While the original stock was tall, orange and only bloomed once, newer varieties offer a lot of options with the hardiness of the original. Today you can find day lilies in virtually any color from nearly black to the palest pinks and yellows. You can opt for plants that are much shorter and those that will bloom again as well. You wouldn't have to do a lot of digging and cultivating to get an area ready for them because their soil demands are actually quite low. Left with room to grow, they will extend their rhizomes and spread and can quickly fill in beds with their foliage, which looks like some ornamental grasses, then cover themselves in blooms by mid summer.
Hostas in all their varieties are an easy choice for shady areas. Their blooms are generally small so they rely on their foliage for their beauty but the leaves come in many sizes and color combinations. Many have clumps of leaves that are just about the size of an average hand in variations of greens from yellowish to blue-tinted, or variegated with white or multi-tones. There are also tinier leaves and some as large as a plate. They can even be periodically dug and broken apart for new plants as desired, because they will make larger clumps of leaves each year.
You can morph your garden into a sight of summer beauty with little work and just two types of plants, without having to dig out your gardening tools every time spring comes.
Hostas in all their varieties are an easy choice for shady areas. Their blooms are generally small so they rely on their foliage for their beauty but the leaves come in many sizes and color combinations. Many have clumps of leaves that are just about the size of an average hand in variations of greens from yellowish to blue-tinted, or variegated with white or multi-tones. There are also tinier leaves and some as large as a plate. They can even be periodically dug and broken apart for new plants as desired, because they will make larger clumps of leaves each year.
You can morph your garden into a sight of summer beauty with little work and just two types of plants, without having to dig out your gardening tools every time spring comes.