Categories
- Community Gardening (7)
- Competitions (21)
- Compost, Soil, Mulch & Fertilisers (17)
- Container Gardening (12)
- Garden Tools (27)
- Gardening (119)
- Gardening Books & Gifts (14)
- Gardening Tips & Ideas (26)
- Gardens (4)
- Home Garden (33)
- Landscaping (54)
- Organic Gardening (21)
- Pests & Plant Diseases (14)
- Plants (22)
- Annuals, Shrubs & Perennials (10)
- Bulbs, Corms, Rhizomes & Tubers (11)
- Cactus & Succulents (12)
- Climbers & Creepers (2)
- Ferns & Shade Lovers (4)
- Flowers (28)
- Fruit & Berries (13)
- Fungi, Mushrooms & Toadstools (4)
- Grasses & Groundcovers (3)
- Hedges & Screening Plants (3)
- Herbs & Vegetables (19)
- Indoor & Tropical Plants (6)
- Native Plants & Wildflowers (13)
- Roses
- Trees & Conifers (28)
- Weeds (8)
Perennials - Day 7: 21 Days of Garden Fatigue
NOTE: THIS IS A REPRINT OF AN ARTICLE ON MY PREVIOUS BLOG AS I REBUILD THIS INFO HERE.
The beauty in having perennials in your garden is that they don't need to be replaced each year. They can be just as showy as annuals but no way near the amount of work. They will give your garden a framework in which to plan and strategise about your flower colours, foliage, textures and heights.
Perennials and annuals seem to have much in common, so apart from lasting more than one season what differences do perennials have? Read on for more info...
- Maintenance - perennials such as daylilies, agapanthus, dietes and other rhizomous plants need to be divided probably every 2-3 years. This will encourage more blooms and a better looking plant. Other perennials need to be pruned by at least 1/3 each year to give better shap but also to avoid problems of becoming leggy or crowding your garden.
- Pest Control - unlike annuals which you can rotate each season to avoid soil-borne diseases, perennials are likely to stay in the same place in your garden and provide their own struggles with pests and disease. As diseases and pests can differ greatly between plants the best advice would be to take a sample of your infected plant to your local nursery and get their opinion. Having said that, many nurseries are likely to try and sell you a product to cure the ailment so be wise and not accept their remedy as gospel. If possible, look for an organic alternative before pouring chemical on the problem.
- Seed Outbursts - with annuals it's great to have them self-seed. However, with perennials this can become a nightmare. Plants like Rose-of-Sharon from the Hibiscus family can become a pest as seedlings grow and multiply. To remedy plants that do this, make sure there is a thick layer of mulch around the base of the plant to dissuade seeds from reaching the soil and germinating.
These articles may also be helpful...
Who's responsible for this...?
Get fresh posts in your Inbox
Recent Posts
My Other Blogs
Gardening Blogs
Australia & NZ
- A Grower's Delight [ACT, AUS]
- Balcony Flowers [WA, AUS]
- Frog Garden [QLD, AUS]
- Greenfoot [AUS]
- Outdoor Living Authority [Tas, AUS]
Canada
UK
USA
- A Study in Contrasts [OH, US]
- Angela's Garden Blog [CA, US]
- Cold Climate Gardening [US]
- Color's of the Garden [NY, US]
- Garden Djinn [MI, US]
- Gotta Garden [VA, US]
- In The Garden Online [MI, US]
- Katina's Little Gardeners [OH, USA]
- May Dreams Gardens [IN, US]
- North Country Maturing Gardener [NH, USA]
- The Garden Blog [SC, US]
- The Blogging Nurseryman [CA, US]
- The Transplantable Rose [TX, US]
- This Garden Is Illegal [OH, USA]
- Veggie Gardening Tips [PY, USA]
- Garden Rant [US]
- Gardening Launching Pad [Garden Blog Directory]
Comments
I have white spots that have appeared on the leaves of my perennials (hostas, daylilies). I planted them a week ago and we did have a few days of rain. I don't know how to prevent or treat them, so they don't die?
Posted by: Madeline Conrad | May 11, 2006 8:22 AM
This sounds like anthracnose, a fungi that develops on the leaves and stems of many shade-loving plants. In many ways this is similiar to black spot that you find on roses and really can only be controlled in the same way - by pulling off the leaves and destroying them.
Anthracnose is caused by poor air circulation or water that falls on the leaves and isn't absorbed. To prevent it occurring again, make sure that there is sufficient air movement around the plants and that they are irrigated from the base. This fungus, in most cases, won't kill the plant but it will make it unsightly.
Posted by: Stu | May 13, 2006 7:59 PM