Planting for Continuous Color

Plan your garden to ensure color from spring through fall.

From The Family Handyman

Change Text Size

Change Text Size
|
Bookmark

Bookmark

Del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
Facebook
StumbleUpon
|
Print
|
E-Mail

More on:

Many common fall-planted bulbs like crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips bloom beautifully, but early and briefly. In the rest of the growing season they display only stems and foliage.

Here are some ways to have color throughout the summer.

Mix early-blooming bulbs with later-blooming varieties. For example, snowdrops are the earliest bloomers of all, while bulb irises bloom later -- many in spring. Dwarf iris and others bloom in early summer, and still other irises in late summer or early fall. Many lilies also bloom in summer or fall and will provide color after the spring-flowering bulbs have added their beauty to your garden.

Plant bulbs in flower pots or boxes. That way, when the blossoms are gone you can move them out of the way and replace them with containers planted with other flowers.

This also makes it easier to grow tender-bulb flowers. Instead of digging up the bulbs before the first frost each year, simply move the containers to a suitable location inside for the winter.

"Naturalize" bulbs by planting them randomly in areas of grass or ground covers, so they look like part of the natural landscape. Daffodils are especially pretty when planted this way. Just cover the holes with turf you remove for planting. You won't be able to mow the grass until after the bulbs have bloomed and turned brown, but the area will be covered with growth at all times.

In addition to bulbs, plant annuals in the bed; for example, pansies along with grape hyacinth. The annuals will continue to bloom after the bulbs have finished. You can do this after the bulbs have begun growing. Place the annuals between the bulb positions, but don't dig so deep that you disturb the bulbs.