Gardening Toolshed

Taking Care of Your Bulbs

In order to properly care and maintain the bulbs that you want to plant in your garden, you need to keep track of exactly what you have in stock. Many bulbs are extremely tolerant and can be kept well enough alone if accidentally ignored for several months. On the other hand, there are other bulbs that must be replanted as early as possible to prevent them from drying out. The key to all this is of course knowing how to identify your bulbs in stock.

One trick that most gardeners use is to take notice of the type of packing material the bulbs are in. Doing so will provide the best clue. For example, if you find bulbs that were sold to you loose and dry, then it is typically safe to store them up to four or five weeks until you can get around to planting them. Bulbs that are packed in extremely moist peat moss should be planted in the ground as soon as possible.

Other Tips…

Hold off on moving or dividing an evergreen bulb until it hits the non-flowering stage. Do not transplant your other bulbs until they are dormant and the leaves have turned brown. Dig up the entire clump and carefully pull the bulbs apart. Then replant each one separately. By repeating this process every couple of years, you can enjoy the beauty of hundreds of new plants that stemmed from only a dozen or so bulbs that you originally started with.

Another tip is to always snip off the bloom as soon as it has dried out. This will prevent the bulb from wasting its energy and nutrients by trying to turn the dead blossom into seeds. Now instead of wasting its energy, the bulb will have more energy to work on creating its new bloom.

And lastly, it can be a bit of a chore to keep your bulbs maintained so that you can enjoy them for years to come. For example, many tulips are incredibly intolerant of soil that is very wet, which is especially true when in dormancy. Therefore, in areas that has high rainfall levels during the summertime, you have to dig up your tulips once the leaves have turned brown and then store them in a dry location to prevent them from rotting.

Tags: how to care for bulbs, evergreen bulb, gardening, garden planting, tulips, personal gardening

3 Benefits Of Planting Perennials Inside Raised Beds

Some gardens and landscape areas just do not have the appropriate type of soil to grow beautiful perennials. Because of this challenge that you may face in your desire to raise these lovely flowers, you may want to consider planting them in raised beds.

What is a raised bed?

A raised bed is simply a boxed area where you are growing your plants in soil that are a few inches above your ground soil (or higher). The planter box may be tightly sealed in a small wooden frame or you could have soil that slopes over the sides. There are different types of raised beds that you can choose depending on the look you want.

Using a raised bed to plant perennials is extremely beneficial when you want to have 100% control the soil you are using, and without the battle of removing the salts out of the ground soil. Going to the trouble of clearing up poor conditioned ground soil is typically frustrating and unsuccessful, and can be very time-consuming as well.

What are the advantages of planting perennials in raised beds?

1. Raised beds offer a somewhat “directional” look to your garden. You can use these beds to form traffic patterns and walkways. Your garden design can look proportional with the setup of raised beds and it presents a clear walk-through path for people to avoid damaging your flowers. Using raised beds also creates a structured look and is very decorative, especially around the edges of driveways or other areas like patios and yard decks.

2. Planting your perennials and other flowers in raised beds can make it easy to garden if you or other members of your household are bound to a wheelchair. Raised beds can be built as high as you need them and what better way for the disabled gardener to enjoy their favorite hobby than by using raised beds to plant and grow their garden?

3. Raised beds also offer your perennials and other plants protection from damage and uprooting that often result from small pets and children running around. Even raised just a few inches off the ground, these beds can deter most damage from even the innocent person who is simply walking through your garden.

4. Last but not least, your perennials may enjoy a longer growing season as a benefit of being grown inside of a raised bed. If they are constructed from brick or stone, the soil stays warm longer than it would if it were in the ground.

Tags: grow beautiful perennials, Flowering Perennials, raised bed perennials, perennial flower beds, perennial plants