Watch Your Garden Grow

TIME TO WEED AND SPREAD THE MULCH FOR A PERFECT GARDEN ALL SEASON LONG

By Kim Ann Zimmermann

It is time to play in the dirt again. As the weather improves, the garden centers are blooming with plants and flowers and shrubs looking for a home in your yard.

According to gardening experts around the state, many of the trends in gardening reflect the trends in interior home design, with a trend toward mixing bold colors.

“We had an early spring this year and people are ready to get out in their yards,” says Ed Brock, Jr., owner of Brock Farm and Garden Center in Freehold. “They really view the yard and the garden as an extension of their home.”

Brock says he definitely sees an increase every year in terms of fish ponds and fountains. “Water features in the garden are very attractive,” he says. He also notes that perennials and ornamental grasses are on the rise.

Suzanne Bontempo, garden center manager for Dearborn Farms in Holmdel says that bolder colors and dramatic contrasts are in vogue.

“People are looking for richer colors in the foliage,” she says. “The colors really follow the trends in fashion and interior design. The garden is an extension of our homes and of ourselves. The flower season is short on some of these plantings, so they are looking for interest beyond the flower so that their garden looks good even when the plants aren’t flowering.”

Container gardening continues to grow in popularity as time and space shrinks. “Container gardening is popular as houses continue to get bigger and the yards get
smaller,” says Dave Williams, owner of Williams Nursery in Westfield. “With time constraints being what they are, it easy to plant a couple of containers for a porch or
patio. It is becoming a bigger and bigger trend. The selection of plants that can be grown in containers is growing as well.”

PREPARING THE LAND
“You can never do enough soil preparation,” says Bontempo. “It is important to lay the groundwork for healthy plants.” She recommends a dry organic fertilizer and a rich compost blend.

According to experts at the Scotts Miracle-Gro Co., preparing the soil for planting involves cleaning it up, solving any problems it poses, adding soil amendments, and then tilling them into the soil.

Soil is prepared differently for different plantings. Trees and shrubs are usually planted so far apart that it isn’t necessary to prepare the soil between them. In this case, the planting hole becomes a pocket of prepared soil, rather than the entire landscape being prepared. Flower and vegetable beds, and lawns, need the most careful preparation.

Before you put anything in the ground, get rid of any weeds. “Weeding the garden is one of those things that no one likes to do, but it is nice when you’re done,” Williams says. He suggests putting on a pre-emergent such as Preen to prevent the weeds cropping back up during the season.

Once you’re done planting, Williams recommends a two- to three-inch thick layer of mulch. “This will help reduce water loss, especially as we head into hotter weather,” he says.

ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES FOR THE GARDEN
Over the years there has been much hype about new plants for the garden. Sometimes the plant isn’t as good as expected and the results can be disappointing. I test many of them in my garden, and there is one new plant that stands out above the rest. This plant is the Endless Summer Hydrangea.

Introduced in 2003, the Endless Summer Hydrangea is a must have for the garden. Endless Summer is the first repeat-flowering big-leaf hydrangea. It has the unique ability to bloom on old and new growth. This is an extremely important characteristic for those of us who love hydrangeas. With the older varieties of hydrangeas that just flowered on old wood, there were many winters that would freeze back the last few inches of growth. Unfortunately this is where the flower buds of the plant are located.
So with the old varieties of hydrangeas the chances of flowering were eliminated by the winter. Since Endless Summer is producing new flower buds all summer long, this is not an issue.

Endless Summer Hydrangea will grow 3 to 5 feet tall. It’s flowers are pink in alkaline soil, or blue in acidic soil. Endless Summer is also disease-resistant so that the need to spray is minimal.

Endless summer also performs well in a container on a deck or patio. My mom has had one on her deck for the past two years. She removes the old blooms when they start to fade, and it is sending new blooms all summer long. Her Endless Summer flowered last year from Mother’s Day through October.

Endless Summer is readily available at most garden centers.

David Williams is 4th generation partner at Williams Nursery in Westfield. He currently is on the board of directors of Garden Centers of America and serves as an advisor on Fashion in Bloom.

Williams Nursery, 524 Springfield Ave., Westfield; 908-232-1076

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