Gardening or Yard tips

[Phrozen Sands]

I just bought a house a few months ago. I’m still trying to figure out my yard and how I want to do it. Any (look nice) easy suggestions?

[carnation]

Check out the future height of any shrubs or trees before you buy them if you don't want to prune a lot. Also, make sure you look at how wide they can get so you won't plant them too close to anything.

[PrettyBoy]

I use hostas. They’re easy to maintain, they don’t need a lot of water and they come back every year. Before winter sets in, I use my lawnmower to cut them completely down, then when spring/summer comes around, they come back and they come back bigger and more than they were when originally planted. Plus, they also will choke out your weeds. Geraniums are great too. If you’ve got trees in your yard, hostas are nice to plant around them. Before you know it, you’ll have a beautiful yard.

I don’t know about a garden though. We have a lot of rabbits around and they used to destroy our garden. And then, Minnesota is kind of weird for a garden because the weather is kind of unpredictable. I’m not sure if you live in a cooler state though.

Good luck man.

[PGD-GRAD]

Plant as many perennials as you can—this includes bulbs in the fall that will come back every year. For beautiful shiny shrubs that stay green all winter try holly and boxwood. They can be trimmed and shaped and they are hardy. Both can have branches cut and put in vases for Christmas. If you want red holly berries, you’ll need BOTH a male and a female holly bush. They should be marked F or M—or ask the nursery!
GOOD LUCK!!

[aephi alum]

Impatiens are pretty low-maintenance. The flowers come in a variety of colors, and they work well in shade. However, they are annuals.

Carpet roses can work well. However, if there are deer in your area, you MUST spray the plants with deer repellent the moment you plant them. I learned that the hard way. You must also watch for black spot, so they're not all that low-maintenance. (I think carpet roses are lower maintenance than full rosebushes.)

I second PrettyBoy's suggestion on the hostas.

Have fun! I moved from a house in the Northeast to a condo in the South a few years back, and sometimes I miss my garden.

[Phrozen Sands]

Nice! Real nice information. What’s funny is I was at the bookstore looking at ideas but a lot of it looked like it was for people who have been doing it for a minute. So I said to myself let’s see what ideas GC has Lol. I’m going to my neighborhood gardening shop this weekend to do some purchasing. I’m going to pull this thread up when I do and follow it to the tee and go from there. Thanks again for this information. It’s helpful. I’ve got neighbors whose yards are crazy nice and mine is just bleh.

Thanks again!

[honeychile]

My parents were avid gardeners, and when I bought my house, they told me to make a list of the plants & bushes I liked, and see which grew in what season. Once I did that, we decided the colors and needs for each and went from there. I had awesome spring gardens, and low maintenance for the other seasons.

If you can list some of the plants you like - for your area! - then you'll be ahead of the game before hitting the gardening stores.

FWIW, my spring gardens started early, but lasted until mid June. There are so many hybrids of tulips, daffodils, etc that you can do that more easily than 20 years ago!

[Phrozen Sands]

Yeah, a list would make shopping easier. I didn’t think about that. Will do.

Thanks, honeychile

[honeychile]

So, Phrozen Sands, what are you planting?

[Phrozen Sands]

Originally Posted by honeychile

So, Phrozen Sands, what are you planting?

So far I’ve started with some hostas, geraniums, and I decided to try a little gardening, so I bought some tomato plants too. The sales person told me that geraniums come back every year. He told me when the season ends, I can put them in a box or bag and then replant them again the following season. Apparently, they’ll come back? I haven’t put anything in the ground yet though. I’m doing that this weekend. Everything is still in their little holders they came with. I’m excited to see how the tomato plants will turn out.

I seriously can see this turning into a hobby of mine.

[Phrozen Sands]

I’m up early this morning so I can plant my purchases. I’m also going to go back today when they open up at 9 to see what else I can cross off on my list. This is fun.

[andthen]

Originally Posted by Phrozen Sands

I’m up early this morning so I can plant my purchases. I’m also going to go back today when they open up at 9 to see what else I can cross off on my list. This is fun.

I find it sort of relaxing myself. One other cool thing my neighbor told me was about the seed packets they sell at dollar tree, they sell quickly and I think they put them out around March although it might differ if you're further south. I bought some flowers from seeds last year threw them down and I've got a lot of pretty little flowers, I have no idea what they are since I threw the envelopes out. Also while at your local garden center you might want to see what plants that are native to your area, since those will likely be less maintenance since they are suited to the climate of the area you live.

[Phrozen Sands]

Originally Posted by andthen

I find it sort of relaxing myself. One other cool thing my neighbor told me was about the seed packets they sell at dollar tree, they sell quickly and I think they put them out around March although it might differ if you're further south. I bought some flowers from seeds last year threw them down and I've got a lot of pretty little flowers, I have no idea what they are since I threw the envelopes out. Also while at your local garden center you might want to see what plants that are native to your area, since those will likely be less maintenance since they are suited to the climate of the area you live.

Ahhh… good idea. I didn’t think about the dollar store. I haven’t done anything with any seeds yet, but that too is a good idea. I’m in Nashville. It can get cold here so I’ve been mostly planting year long items, with the exception of the tomato plants. Today, I picked up a small wooden windmill and a decorative well. The well actually has running water, but unfortunately, I don’t have a power outlet outside for it to plug into. It still adds flavor to my yard though. I picked up a bird bath too.

[Kevin]

Are we talking about gardens or lawns here?? If we're talking lawns, before you do anything, get a soil test. In Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University will do a pretty inexpensive soil test and give you good recommendations for what you might want to amend your soil with or what kinds of lawn grass would thrive.

There are some pretty great local FB groups on lawns and gardens for Oklahoma. I'm sure central TN is the same.

[Phrozen Sands]

Originally Posted by Kevin

Are we talking about gardens or lawns here?? If we're talking lawns, before you do anything, get a soil test. In Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University will do a pretty inexpensive soil test and give you good recommendations for what you might want to amend your soil with or what kinds of lawn grass would thrive.

There are some pretty great local FB groups on lawns and gardens for Oklahoma. I'm sure central TN is the same.

I was doing both. I used my rototiller yesterday morning so I can start my garden. But I decided to plant the tomato plants in pots. I’m going to plant something else in my garden. I never heard of soil testing for the lawn though. What’s that all about? Sounds like it’d be useful. My neighbor seems to have a lot of backyard knowledge but he hasn’t mentioned that one. Thanks for mentioning it. I’d be interested in more information on it.