May 19, 2012

Still Time For Planting & Transplanting!

The Longest Summer

A lot of folks are acting as if this is summer already and the landscape is supporting us in this with so many plants that have bloomed early this year. Fortunately, there is still a lot of time for transplanting and planting before the real summer comes upon us.

The good news about an early spring is it makes the summer seem so much longer. I know I already feel like school is out, and its only late May! There is still tons of time for garden work and particularly transplant work which is a constant in a developing garden.  This is especially the case in sub-urban gardens where plantable space is at a premium and gardeners jam as much into their planting space as possible. This picture of a small sub-urban planting is a perfect example, holding a spirea that is overgrown, a variegated Miscanthus that is helping the spirea eat space and then jammed in between are peonies squeezing their way out about to bloom.  You know that when this area was planted, everything fit perfectly, the joy and the sorrow of plants is of course that they grow.

Don’t be afraid to cut back spring bloomers like spirea that are done and once the peonies or whatever other perennials you may have (that are being consumed by other vigorously growing) plants are done blooming, transplant away! Grasses take up a lot of territory so if yours are crowding our other plants, consider splitting them and/or transplanting them.

We have been blessed with a good deal of rain, but if you are moving plants and there is no rain for three consecutive days you will want to water. Feeding them with a little plant tone,  won’t hurt either. There is still a lot of time for intensive growth! Finally, make sure you take some time to enjoy this long sunny warm year we are having.

Posted in: Garden Structure