Flower Gardening--Plant Care Techniques

A beautiful and successful flower garden relies heavily on gardening techniques and proper plant care. The best design, most carefully selected and planted plants will not do well without good care. A garden truly must be "tended." Some gardens require more maintenance than others, depending on plant selection, but all gardens need certain tasks at least twice a year.

Watering

Watering is the hardest technique to teach, but the most important plant care technique. Watering should be based on the requirements of the plant. If you have an irrigation system, you will not want to water your flowers with the same systems as the turf, because they are likely to need different amounts of water at different times. When watering with a hose and watering wand, water at the base of the plant, and count to ten on each plant. Then go back and do it again. Watering in this week between two and three times a week should be sufficient once a plant is established. It does depend on the plant, though! Impatiens in a sunny area will need to be watered almost every day! "Deeply and Infrequently" is the plant-watering mantra. Water at the base of the plant, in order to not spread fungal or bacterial disease to the top of the plant, and water deeply to encourage plants to grow deep roots.

Feeding

If you had a soil sample tested, and followed its suggestions, your plants should be in good shape for almost everything except for nitrogen. Most annual flowering plants should be fed every two to three weeks with liquid fertilizer for best results. Perennials, trees and shrubs usually do not need to be fed unless there is a nutrient deficiency in the soil. Over-feeding perennials encourages tender, green growth that is more susceptible to diseases. Annuals can also be fed with slow-release fertilizer every six to eight weeks.

Pruning

When most people think of pruning, they think about pruning, they think about pruning trees and shrubs. Annual and perennial plants also benefit from pruning. Pruning stimulates a growth reaction in the plant. How a plant is pruned, and which areas are removed determines how the plant continues to grow.

To prune a plant to grow fewer, larger flowers, remove all but five or six of the flower buds. This technique is used to grow prize show-quality chrysanthemums or camellias. You can pinch off the flower buds right at the base of the flower, or remove the entire stem of the flower. How much you prune depends on the plant.

To stimulate a plant to produce more small flowers and a bushier plant, pinch off the top "bud" of each plant stem. This is called the "apical meristem." The apical meristem secretes a plant hormone that keeps the plant from producing too many side shoots. By removing the growing tip, the side shoots can then sprout, producing a bushier plant.

Staking

Staking helps keep plants from falling over. Bamboo stakes look the most natural in a garden, though there are many different types of plant stakes and supports. Depending on how your garden is designed, plants may or may not need to be staked. Low-growing annuals such as begonias and petunias will not ever need staking. Larger annual plants like heliotrope, and many perennials will need staking.

Some plants need to be staked individually. Delphinium is a good example. Delphinium flowers are heavy, and prone to falling over and breaking. Each flower will need to be supported by its own stake. To stake individual plants, put the stake against the stem, and use a small piece of twin or twist tie to secure the plant to the stake in several places. Leave enough slack (about ½ inch) so that the plant can move on its own. Some plants, such as peonies, benefit from staking each plant, but require a different technique. Peonies benefit from round grid-like plant supports. Put the support in the ground before the plant starts sprouting. As the plant grows it will grow up through the support, which will be easier than staking after the fact.

When staking groups of plants such as wildflowers, it is best to stagger stakes in the ground and weave the supporting string in between. Plants do not offer much aesthetic value if you tie one string around the bottom. The multiple stake technique allows the plants to have movement while still being supported.

Deadheading

Deadheading is the practice of snipping off the dead flowers of a plant. Plants produce flowers in order to produce seeds. Seeds help the plant reproduce. Once the plant finishes its life cycle, it will die. Deadheading prolongs the bloom period by stopping the plant from producing seeds. This is especially important for most annual flowers. Some perennials will re-bloom once if deadheaded, while others just look cleaner for the rest of the season if the dead flowers are removed. To encourage perennials to re-seed, let the flowers stay on the plant until the seeds mature and naturally fall off, then cut back the flower stems for a tidier look.

Mulching

Mulch serves several purposes in a flower garden. Mulch helps conserve water, prevent weed growth, cool the soil, and prevent soil erosion. Mulch also "finishes" the look of a garden. Shredded bark mulch is the most common type of mulch. Depending on where you live, crushed shells, pine straw, rock mulch and other types may be common.

Mulch should be put in the garden after plants have been planted, and then again after they have been removed. Put mulch around plants when newly planted, but leave an inch or so between mulch and the plant stem. Plants do not appreciate having mounds of mulch around them, as the area between the plant stem and the mulch usually stays wet, and provides a good place for disease to spread. Mulching prior to winter helps prevent soil erosion from winter rains and snows.

When finding sources of organic mulch, try to ensure that it has been tested for weeds. Organic mulch is a combination of composted or dried plant material from other places. Mulch with a large weed seed content will be more trouble than it's worth. Another type of mulch to avoid is black plastic landscape fabric. The fabric may be useful for one season, but as soon as a layer of organic matter begins to build up on top of the fabric, it will prove to be just as fertile to weeds as if it were never there.

Dividing

Annual flowering plants will not need division, but most perennial flowering plants will eventually need to be divided. Daylilies, peonies, sedum, and phlox are common perennials that need dividing. Divide plants in the early spring. Dig up the entire plant and then use forks or a sharp, flat spade to divide the plants. Rather than "teasing apart" sections of plant, make a clean cut. Fewer small roots will be disturbed this way. After dividing the plant, re-plant it as quickly as possible, and water frequently during the first few weeks. Dividing is best during cooler weather, and fall works well, too. Do not divide during the heat of the summer, as the plants will have difficulty taking up enough water to survive.