Tag: fall planting

Out of The Box And Into the Yard – Mail Order Perennials

New little hydrangea plant
One of The Hydrangea Plants

I was impressed with the packaging of the perennials I had ordered from American Meadows, and even though they were a little droopy, they bounced back.

Both Hydrangeas are planted in the backyard where they will get sun and the forsythia is out front. Unfortunately we got a freak 2 feet of snow the end of October, so they hadn’t been in the ground for long before they were covered. One of the long stalks of the forsythia broke off so it’s pretty small now, and the hydrangeas are droopy and partially broken. (The photo was taken before the snow – which may seem obvious, but the snow has all melted now).

I ordered from an online store because I was anxious to get my gardening started here at my new place, but I have my doubts as to how well these plants will do once Spring arrives. And more importantly, how much will they grow. I will be saving up this winter to buy some local hydrangeas and probably more forsythia so we’ll see how much of a difference it makes as far as growth.

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Heading Into Fall and Not Doing Much Planting

Extinct?
Image by Chiot's Run via Flickr

The New England Fall season brings us a new set of circumstances to deal with and probably not many people are thinking about planting anything.  They are thinking about chopping, splitting and lugging firewood and maybe buying a new or used wood stove.  They are concentrating, like I am, on the cold season that is coming all too soon.

Fall is a great time to plant perennials and get them established before snow to bring beauty to the landscape the following year.  I have mail-ordered some hydrangeas and other things – I can’t even remember what – that should be showing up on my doorstep any day now.  Or maybe it’s October that they ship?  The problem with mail-order is that I tend to forget.  I have too many other things to worry about and when the arrive I will worry about planting them.  I have the bonemeal, a shovel, work gloves and spots selected in the yard, so I am ready.  I think.  As long as they arrive in decent weather.

In the mean time, I will be waiting for my wood delivery to arrive and after the new wood stove is broken in (I have to do a couple of low temperature burns) I’ll be getting my wood organized before it’s covered with snow.  Then it will be time to rake the abundance of leaves that will surely cover my yard.

I enjoy Fall tremendously, but it’s a busy time.  For me, it’s the whirlwind before the calm.  Once the snow falls, it seems that things calm down and people stay inside as much as possible unless they ski or drive a snow plow.  Winter brings it’s own chores that are not nearly as enjoyable and there will be no planting going on then.

My Perennial Choices to Plant This Fall

Convallaria majalis cv. Plena
Image via Wikipedia - Lily of the Valley - for Shade

Besides Spring, the end of summer is a great time to plant and divide perennials. The hot days of summer are not the time to consider adding a garden or moving plants around. In fact, when planting a new perennial shrub or annual, it’s best to do so on a cool, cloudy day. Or plant them in the evening when they have the night to adjust to their new spot.

I was thinking about this when I disregarded my own advice and uprooted a little azalea I found among the overgrown front border at my new home. Considering where the poor thing was, I felt that it had a better chance in a new spot in the sun by the driveway. So I planted it mid-day but gave it lots of water and covered the top with leaf mold.

Digging holes for planting up here in the Granite State (New Hampshire) means dealing with rocks. Lots of rocks. In fact it can take me up to 10 minutes to dig a decent size hole for a quart size root ball because I have to pull all the rocks out of the hole and usually cut some roots that are criss-crossing the opening.

Next I add some good dirt. It can come from a store or from your compost or from another section of your yard. And I add bonemeal to strengthen the roots. Always mix it in well with the dirt in the hole. And then water – really well. Soaking the entire root system is important when first planting something. In fact, if you bought a plant and the pot is dried out, give it lots of water before transplanting.

Since I am starting from scratch at my place, I need to find some shade loving perennials for the front under a line of trees along the road. I also have lots of sun in the back so a few sun-loving perennials will go back there to grow among my vegetable garden.

This is what I will shop for this Fall and next Spring:
Shade plants – Astilbe, Hostas, Lily of the Valley and Bleeding Heart.

Sun plants – Coneflowers, Monarda (red flowers for hummingbirds), Peonies and Hydrangeas.

These may be hard to find at this time of year and most likely they won’t be looking too good if they are dormant and without blooms, but as long as they look healthy they will come back next spring. Depending on the cost, I hope to add all these favorites to my zone 5 landscape before winter. Pictures to come!

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