North Mississippi Gardening Tips
March 2009
Flowers
I bet you have spent a good part of late winter pouring over those seed and plant catalogs. As the weather moderates and the soil becomes workable, it is time to put those grand plans for a new flowerbed into action. A basic procedure to follow to maximize the probability of success for that new bed is outlined in the table “Seven Easy Steps for Flowerbed Preparation” listed below. Preparing the soil correctly is the key to success—it’s like the foundation of a house—“fortify” it and it will support your plants well.
Container Gardens
If you hauled all your tender, outdoor, pot plants indoors for the winter, now is a good time to start, pruning, repotting and fertilizing these plants to bring them out of the winter uglies. How to tell when it’s time to repot? A good clue is visible roots at the top of the pot or roots protruding from the drain hole. If you’re unsure, pop the root ball out of the pot and examine. If you see any roots winding around the root ball it is time to repot. When repotting use a pot at least twice the diameter of the old one.
Tropical plants like allamanda, ixora, hibiscus, mandevilla and others should be cut back and fertilized now so they will be trim, neat and ready to grow when you move them outdoors.
Trees and Shrubs
If you haven’t pruned evergreen shrubs yet, (those without showy spring flowers) it may be done this month. Try not to remove all the leaf area on broadleaf evergreens like burford holly, cleyera and boxwood. Always prune so the top is narrower than the bottom to allow light to reach the lower branches and to keep the plants from being top heavy and unsightly. Wait until after flowering to prune azaleas, rhododendrons, camellias, forsythias, spireas and other spring-blooming shrubs.
Prune only dead, broken, or wayward limbs on shade and flowering trees. Mulch newly planted or established trees and shrubs with pine straw or shredded bark. Do not allow the mulch to pack against the trunk. Pine straw packed against a tree trunk also provides the perfect haven for the vole (a stubby tailed mouse) to chew away on the bark.
Azalea Madness
Few sights are as grand as a garden of azaleas in full bloom. It’s an effect easily destroyed, however, by discordant color combinations.
Azaleas are showy plants, making the arrangement of their colors critical to creating a pleasing effect. Just like the clothes you wear, certain colors work together and others don’t.
Combining colors of azaleas, to some degree, is a matter of personal taste. However, there are some general rules of good design you should be aware of, if you want your yard to have a pleasing and professional look. The most common mistake people make when using azaleas in the landscape is to plant one of every color of the rainbow.
The simplest way to use azaleas is to use one color of azalea per planting area. If you just can’t help yourself and you want to combine colors remember it is a bit tricky--so separate the colored groups by using groups of white azaleas between the colored groups. White highlights any adjacent color and effectively separates opposing colors.
If you are planting azaleas close to your house, another important consideration is to choose colors compatible with the color of your home.
Vegetable and Herbs
Even if your parsley plant remained green through winter in your garden, you can’t count on it for long. As soon as the weather gets warm, parsley will grow tall, bloom, and go to seed. Set out transplants when frost is no longer a danger. Pick from last year’s plants as long as possible so the new ones can get established.
When it comes to buying vegetable transplants, bigger isn’t always better. Choose the compact, well proportioned plants, not the tall ones that have become root-bound. The transplant without flowers will perform better, and a young healthy plant is a better bet than an older, stressed one. Watch for signs of insects or diseases.
Fruit
Bundles of bare-root strawberry plants are now available at local garden centers. Set plants 12 to 18 inches apart at the proper depth, so the surface of the soil is midway between the crown and the roots. Mulch to conserve moisture, control weeds and prevent the soil splash back that can contribute to fruit disease spread. Mulching also makes for clean, not dirty strawberries that can be eaten right in the garden without washing!
Seven Easy Steps for Flowerbed Preparation
1. Remove all existing weeds and grass by application of an herbicide or the old-fashioned way with a shovel or hoe.
2. Till the bed area thoroughly as deep as the tines on the tiller will allow.
3. Add a 3-4” layer of organic matter in the form of sphagnum peat moss, rotted sawdust, compost or other organic material and till in thoroughly
4. Take a soil sample and submit for analysis.*
5. Time to sow seed or plant. **
6. Water thoroughly.
7. Mulch to control weeds, conserve moisture and make your new flowerbed neat and attractive.
*Soil sampling of any new bed area is highly recommended because it eliminates any guesswork when it comes to fertilizer or liming recommendations. Carefully follow the recommendations on the soil report.
**Follow seed pack sowing instructions. When planting container plants or cell pack transplants, be careful to plant them only as deep as the root ball and press the soil firmly around the roots.
Lelia Scott Kelly, Ph.D., writes North Mississippi Gardening Tips monthly and is a Horticulture Specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service. Her office is in the North Mississippi Research & Extension Center, Verona.