Level the playing field.
Pick an area that can be completed in one day. Our space was 20 x 90 feet. Remove sod, roots, rocks, or other debris, and amend soil with compost. Smooth area with a stiff metal rake so that soil is slightly higher in the center. Do this prior to planting day, if possible.
Develop your game plan.
On graph paper, sketch the area to scale, and draw circles to represent the mature sizes of plants to be added. Consult The Southern Living Garden Book for plant ideas and mature sizes. Your sketch will serve as your shopping list. Nurseries start receiving plants for the weekend on Thursday, so shop early for best selections. When adding them to your yard, the biggest plants go in first, annuals last. Mulch and water well.
Don't forget spring training.
Fall is the time to purchase and install bulbs for spring. We bought our tulips and snapdragons at the same time. Once home, we planted the snapdragons and put the paper bag of tulip bulbs in the refrigerator for eight weeks. (There is no need to chill daffodils, which grow in the Upper, Middle, Lower, and upper third of the Coastal South.) On planting day, the bulbs were spaced 8 inches apart between the existing snapdragons. Come April, our garden was filled with buttery yellow blooms.
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THE PLAYLIST
Here's what we used in our garden.*
2 possumhaw (Ilex decidua 'Warren's Red' and male pollinator 'Red Escort')
2 plumleaf azaleas (Rhododendron prunifolium)
2 Korean boxwoods (Buxus m. koreana 'Winter Gem')
3 cast-iron plants (Aspidistra elatior)
11 lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina)
13 parsley plants (Petroselinium crispum)
6 snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus 'Liberty Classic Crimson')
60 tulips (Tulipa 'Golden Appeldoorn')
1 spiral juniper in an open wire container
*Liriope was existing.
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| right: Gently break up roots before planting to stimulate growth. |
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OUR BIG 10--THE REASONS WHY FALL IS BEST FOR PLANTING
Come fall, the South is all about football, but those in the know don't bench their shovels just yet. Here's why.
1. The weather's cooler, so gardening is more pleasant.
2. Seasonal sales mean plenty of plants cost less.
3. Plants establish faster.
4. There's less watering, which means less hose dragging.
5. Plants go through less stress.
6. Starting now leads to more flowers next season.
7. This is the time to plant spring bulbs.
8. There are not as many bugs to swat.
9. There are no long checkout lines when buying materials.
10. More bang for your buck. By next July, a fall-planted, 1-gallon plant will be about the same size as a spring-planted 5-gallon one.
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Click here for more fall garden articles.
This article is from the September 2005 issue of Southern Living.
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