“When people will not weed their own minds, they are apt to be overrun by nettles.” – Horace Walpole
They’re everywhere … they’re everywhere.
Commonly known as ditch lilies, these prolific orange daylilies (Hemerocallis fulva) are readily found along roadsides and in other nondescript areas.
Be warned. They may look deserving of your garden but they are an introduced invasive perennial weed. They will eventually take over any space that has soil. Just investigate those country ditches where they grow profusely.
Once they start blooming, gardeners should make a mental note the season is on the downslide. We’re at the halfway point in the gardening year.
Avid gardeners plant because of their love of horticulture. But gardening is work. Returning home after a three-week vacation, gardeners can expect to be greeted with a loud “Where have you been?” from a weed infested flower bed.
Gardening should be a relaxing, summer endeavor, but in reality it takes a lot of time-consuming effort. Maintaining a weed-free garden can be an onerous task. But by simply trying a few proven remedies, gardens can look well-maintained throughout the year.
Try planting some low-maintenance plants. They will help to make all that hard work seem more manageable.
Shrubs are low maintenance and they will keep your garden looking well tended without a weekly upkeep schedule.
Many shrubs are very attractive with long cycles of colourful blooms. Others are evergreens which offer foliage year-round. Once planted, they will stay in place for years without constant maintenance.
Garden centres usually have a clearance sale in July. With a little patience and a persistent bargain-hunting attitude, a low maintenance garden can be obtained for a fraction of the spring price. And yes, there is still time to plant them.
Ornamental grasses are a natural choice for low maintenance gardens. Once roots are established, they require little other than removing old foliage and flower heads in the spring before active growth emerges.
Insects are seldom a problem. Wildlife will choose other plants to munch on.
The types of perennial grasses are very extensive. A mixture of various colours, textures, shapes and sizes will make a stunning presentation. They add lots of winter interest with great sounding movement without additional work.
Choosing perennials is an excellent solution as they are planted once, and come back year after year. They will have to be divided every three or four years to keep them performing well.
Similarly, fall bulbs are also a great low-maintenance option. They are only planted once and return year after year.
Mulch is by far the best way to reduce the amount of maintenance time spent in the garden. Organic mulch can be composed of shredded bark, coconut husks, cocoa bean hulls or compost. Caution: Cocoa bean hulls have a wonderful chocolate aroma, but dogs may be allergic to this product.
Mulch is any type of material that is spread over the surface of the soil. It acts as a covering and will hold moisture in. It does a super job of preventing weeds from growing. It looks very attractive and gives the garden a professional finished look.
Using mulch also helps improve the soil’s fertility, as it will eventually break down and fully decompose into the soil.
Normally applied in the spring, mulch can also be used throughout the growing season. If applied mid-season, all growing weeds should be uprooted and removed. It controls weeds by smothering seedlings and creates a barrier between the soil and any weed seeds.
To be effective, mulch should be applied to a thickness of 5 cm (2”).
To calculate how much mulch is needed, multiply the length of area to be covered by its width (measured in feet). Then, multiply the total by .167 to determine the number of cubic feet, or volume, of mulch needed to cover the garden.
It is important to carefully spread the mulch between plants but keep it away from individual plant crowns and prevent it from touching the stems of trees and shrubs.
Keep replacing decomposed mulch as needed.
There is no such thing as a maintenance-free garden, but with some careful planning, gardeners can easily reduce the workload.
Ron Stevenson is a member of the Fergus Horticultural Society
