Mississippi
Gardens
Newsletter ArchivesEnjoy beauty of fall and
plan spring garden
Mississippi Gardens Newspaper and Web Column - November 4, 2002
Mississippi landscapes can continue to be attractive and beautiful this fall and through the winter with a little planning, preparation and maintenance.
Lots
of choices for fall beauty exist in the form of pansies, panolas, snapdragon,
dianthus, mums, marigolds and flowering cabbage and kale. While we are
enjoying such fall pleasantries, take a few minutes to plan for the spring
garden.
Planting annuals in the garden in November is a delightful chore that will lift your expectation for winter and early spring flowers. Bachelor Buttons (Centaurea cyanus) can be directly sown this month. Try a single-file row for plants to eventually be a foot apart since they get rather large. Flowers come in blue, rose, pink and white.
You may also sow larkspur directly into the garden, but make sure soil temperatures are cool. Pre-chilling seed in the refrigerator for one or two weeks prior to planting may improve germination. Thin to 6 inches apart in a double row.
The Giant Imperial series works for gardens in our area although sometimes larkspur is hit-and-miss. Snapdragons may be transplanted this time of year for a spring harvest of cut flowers. Several cultivars of snaps are available, however, the Rocket Series is an excellent choice for cut flowers in early spring.
Caladium can be treated as annuals and left in the flowerbed to be killed by cold weather or the tubers can be saved for next year's garden. Simply dig them before the leaves have lost all color and before soil temperatures reach 55 degrees. Sort them by leaf color for your designing convenience next year. After digging, spread them out so they can dry for about a week. Then, remove dry soil, cut or pull dried foliage from the tubers and store in an "airy" sack where they will stay dry and temperatures will not fall below 60 degrees.
For the most part, spring-flowering bulbs like daffodils and tulips are planted in November and December. Therefore, November is a great time to do your shopping for your choice of bulbs and complete planting site preparation. If possible, beds should be prepared to a depth of 9 to 12 inches. Remember, that with bulbs, uniform bed preparation permits uniform planting depth and uniform flowering. Choose a sunny, well-drained site for best performance. Mixing some bone meal or superphosphate into the soil at planting time is a common practice with bulbous flowering plants. Once the leaves emerge, fertilize with a balanced fertilizer such as 5-10-5.
There are many types of bulbous flowering plants to choose from for your spring garden. The worst choice is letting the planting season pass without planting any! Happy Gardening!
These archived columns were written by Kerry Johnson, a hobby gardener, former weekly newspaper columnist and retired Extension Horticulture Agent for 11 coastal counties in Mississippi.