13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
Marie - I was thinking about digging out the whole area and trying to fix the soil issue. Given that my whole backyard is garden and I work a ton of hours, I was hoping for a simpler solution. But I was also "doing the math" and thinking it would probably save time in the long run.
Appreciate all of the insights on lamium too!
I appreciate the conundrum. Want more of what a garden provides (flowers, foliage) but no time to create the conditions and trying to sustain struggling plants is, in the long run, a waste of time if their basic requirements aren't being met.
I see you have a few choices:
Hire someone to dig out the area and either you or they put in new soil Don't need a mow and blow outfit for that: a teenager or someone who wants a small job. Pay fairly and you'll get the job done. Sometimes you really have to figure out what your own time is worth.
Just cover it with mulch until you have the time to deal with it. But it sounds like that would just look like a blank spot and you don't want that.
Having no picture I'm just throwing out an idea: a big pot with colorful plants ? Raise it up on bricks or blocks and make a unexpected focal point of your weakest spot? Mulch around it.
Add a couple of inches of compost and throw in some annuals or annual vines. That buys you a season. This fall or next year the spot can be your priority for soil removal/amendents. Also gives you a chance to experiment with leaf textures before you purchase perennials.
I'm here. But I have no idea what isn't available in the US so I'm not much help either. Plus I don't actually buy many seeds or plants myself. My garden is probably smaller than your living room Ken. Campanula and Malorena probably know much more about this than I do as they are both big growers from seed.
I looked up the Touchwood woman. She is not selling overseas because she has got downy mildew and doesn't want to be responsible for exporting it. So maybe you shouldn't buy from her if you are taking seeds out of the country.
I can only recommend browsing the racks at any garden centres you pass and seeing what is there. Mail order offers a greater selection but how would you do that if you're travelling?
What countries are you visiting?
Thanks for the replies.
Floral, my intent was to visit and purchase at the local garden centers but am being told I have to have on the permit the names of the seeds I plan on purchasing...and that needs to be done at least 2 weeks before I leave the USA. ive scouted quite a few of the England based seed companies ( Thompson and Morgan etc) so have sorta an idea what's out there... Was hoping someone would have some 'must buy' suggestions from the awesome pics that find their way onto this forum. Sigh... I'll be a week each at Scotland , England , France , then Germany . .
Black eyed susans (Rudbeckia) can be relatively short-lived (some types are annuals) but will self-seed, sometimes more than you might want, so you can decide how you want to manage this, whether removing some seed heads, or learning what the seedlings look like to remove them where unwanted. They will add a great punch of late summer color, and if you leave seed heads they will attract seed-eating birds like gold finches.
Looking forward to photos when you post them.
Thank you very much for taking the time to discuss this issue of the spirea with me.
GardenHo, if you are still reading, I cannot find Houzz or Gardenweb on my phone under the listing of aps. There must be something I do not have, and do not know how to insert. My daughter said something about Safari. I bought the phone from Verizon, so later this week I think I could take it in, and have them help me. (I will be out of town for a few days this week.)
I am looking forward to participating in this forum as my garden gets better developed.
Sammy
Sammy I know new phones can be confusing. You are correct there is not an app for this site. But you can add it to your home screen. If you follow the steps I mentioned above, it will then appear like an app. You can then click on it and it will bring you directly to the gardenweb forums. Just make sure you do these steps while on the gardenweb site. If it won't work for you, the Verizon people will be glad to help you :)
I am a new(ish) gardener and I've used both but now only use compost mixed with my own garden soil. I used to use MG in my crop bed for years and let me tell you, by that 4th or 5th year, my soil was dead as a doorknob. Never saw any bugs or worms in that thing, weeds galore. I also used to use MG in my planting holes for perennials and was told that it's best to mix your OWN soil with compost so as not to create an 'artificial' environment for your plants so that's what I do. And compost is much cheaper than bags of MG, we get it in bulk at our local OCRRA.
Referring to the original question, from my experience, yes it diminished soil life. Now I prefer practices that are geared towards sustainability and safe on the environment.
I wonder why this thread has reemerged after 7 years. One thing that hasn't been addressed is that highly soluble fertilizers, whether what is sold for lawns or MG are more likely to create water pollution issues just because they are water soluble. Compost, alfalfa, etc. have to be broken down by the microorganisms in the soil, so their nutrients are available over a longer time at a slower rate and are less likely to be washed into surface and ground water. With water soluble fertilizers, one sees quick results because the nutrients are readily available to plants, but what is available in excess can be washed away by rainfall or by irrigation. Having soil high in organic matter may help tie up the nutrients.
See if this works http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/dahlia
That one looks to me like one of the low growing spring bloomers such as Crater Lake Blue or something similar which have medium length stems that sort of flop to form a groundcover sort of look. You can cut it back and it should leaf out to make a tidier mound. It is done blooming for the year, so you might want to put it somewhere that it will be less visible the rest of the year and let other plants will take over the show.
I think I've found the perfect spot for it in the gravel driveway, now a court yard. It can spread as much as it wants as an understory for the pink flowering Rhodie can't think of the name at the moment and Sambucus 'Black Lace'. Of course my subconscious knew this when I bought it, at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it LOL
Annette
