Gardening Tips | ButterflySwirl » perennials http://butterflyswirl.com Veggies to flowers to everything in between Sat, 30 Jan 2010 21:52:33 +0000 en hourly 1 Preparing Your Garden For Winter http://butterflyswirl.com/preparing-your-garden-for-winter/ http://butterflyswirl.com/preparing-your-garden-for-winter/#comments Sat, 25 Jul 2009 17:04:13 +0000 Lindsay Hamilton http://butterflyswirl.com/?p=116 prepare your garden for winter.]]> Now that fall is approaching it’s time to prepare your garden for winter. The colder weather brings about some challenges to some plants you may have in your garden. With proper preparation, your garden will stay protected in the harsh winter months. It will also help it flourish in spring. Here’s how to prepare your garden for winter.
wintergarden

Steps To Get Your Garden Ready For Winter

  • Time To Close Down Your Garden – Start closing down your garden in late October and November when the temperature drops to the 40’s and 30’s F.
  • Move Plants Or Remove Plants – Autumn is a great time to take a moment and look at plants you want moved or removed from your garden.
  • Plant Your Bulbs – Fall is the time to plant your bulbs, and bare-root trees and shrubs.
  • Divide Your Perennials – Now is a great time to start dividing your perinials like day lillies or hosta plants. Dividing will maintain the health of your plant and will ensure a better coverage for next season.
  • Clean Away Dead Debris – Cut away flower heads and any dead branches. This will allow the plant to conserve its energy for the long winter.
  • Cover Delicate Plants – For delicate plants like roses it’s best to cover them to insulate them and protect them from snow and sub-zero temperatures.
  • Use Mulch To Insulate – It’s best to use mulch to cover the ground as in colder parts of the states, the ground will freeze.
  • Cut Back Your Perennials – This can also be done in the spring but fall is a good time as well.
]]> http://butterflyswirl.com/preparing-your-garden-for-winter/feed/ 0 What's The Difference Between Annuals and Perennials? http://butterflyswirl.com/annuals-and-perennials/ http://butterflyswirl.com/annuals-and-perennials/#comments Sat, 27 Jun 2009 01:28:50 +0000 Lindsay Hamilton http://butterflyswirl.com/?p=40 Tiger Lilly

Tiger Lilly

For many gardeners, one of the first things to do when the season warms up is to plant flowers in pots and window boxes. Nothing looks prettier than a basket full of petunias or a pot of geraniums on a nice summer day. It’s easy to pick what flowers for your garden, something that looks pretty and is cheap. But do most people know the difference between annuals and perennials?

Annuals are mostly the bright, cute flowers that you see in pots and baskets and window boxes. They are readily available and you get your money’s worth. Annual flowers only grow one season and do not return the following season.

If you have a spot in your yard you want to garden in, I suggest filling it up with perennials to give it some bulk and then sporadically place annuals to brighten and jazz it up. Here are some common perennials that would suit any garden:

- Daylilies
- Tiger Lilies
- Hosta
- Peonies
- Bleeding Heart
- Poppies

Some nice annuals to look for are:
- Petunias
- Begonias
- Marigolds

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