Time to Shine

Flowers are the best way to create color in a landscape. These come in the form of annuals and perennials. Because there are millions of different types of flowers that come in a rainbow of colors, heights, textures and sizes, the decision of which to plant can be very overwhelming. This decision is made easier when you know when you need your garden to shine, and for how long.

It is a good idea to start by deciding when you want your garden to be at its best. If you are only in town for the holiday, then you want to consider only plants that bloom early to mid summer. For the folks that are here full time, or visit several times over the course of the summer, a mixture of early, mid and fall blooming plants, will give you constant color as the season progresses. You should space out your plants based on their bloom times throughout the garden, so your whole garden is always blooming, even though all the plants are not.

Any flower regardless of when it blooms can have a prolonged blooming season if they are “Deadheaded.” This is the process of pruning off the old flowers, when they are finished blooming and starting to die back. This encourages the plant to continue re-blooming. If you have annual containers deadheading will keep your pots looking their best for the entire summer. The job of deadheading spent flowers is fairly easy. There are a couple “rules of thumb” to easily accomplish this task. The first rule is to deadhead tall plants by cutting the stem at the base of the plant. The second rule is to deadhead bushy plants with a pair of shears or pruners, and trim them back, as if you are giving them a haircut.

In the Rocky Mountains it is not uncommon to experience snow and below freezing temperatures into June, and starting again in September. Because our season can be so short, we recommend giving the plants some help by fertilizing. At local garden centers, there are several options to boost plant growth and promote blooming. This is especially helpful if you are hoping to see significant color and growth by the 4th of July holiday. Before planting the correct plants, fertilizing, and deadheading, the most important thing you can do to ensure a colorful garden whenever you see it, is proper water amounts. Every time you are in your garden, we recommend checking to make sure your soil is not too wet, or too dry. If these steps are taken, the results will give your garden vibrant color any time during the season.