Planting Plan

• Inspiration
• Spacing
• Transplanting
• Design basics

Inspiration.  Go and look for it.  Take a walk in your community and look at the beds and gardens that are appealing to you.  Steal design ideas from your neighbors.  Perhaps you are planning during the winter and can’t take that stroll, the internet is a vast source of inspiration as well.  Simple searches for ‘garden plans’, ‘garden design’, or ‘flower bed design’ can easily keep you scrolling for hours.

When designing your plan it is imperative to focus on plant spacing using the mature plant size that is found on the tag.  Too often I see plantings that are too dense, or too close to structures.  Yes, it may look a bit sparse early in the season, especially as your perennials are becoming established, but proper spacing will allow each plant to be as healthy as possible.  These healthy plants will show well individually, as well as collectively, giving your flower garden a polished and finished appearance.

After several years, some of your perennials may outgrow their area, or perhaps you just want a change.  Don’t forget that you can transplant perennials and simply move them if they no longer fit your planting plan.  Many perennials can also be divided or split if they are getting large or unruly, if the blooms are small or decreasing in number, or if you just want more plants to transplant.  To divide, dig the plant up and separate it into several (3-4) plants each with multiple and vigorous shoots and roots.  There are several ways to separate the plant, but I tend to use a sharpened hori hori or garden knife.  What species can be divided?  Many.  Examples include peonies, oriental poppy, Siberian iris, daylilies, hosta, goldenrod, hen and chicks, and many more.

In design, using odd numbers of each species (3, 5, 7) will give you a more natural and less engineered design appearance, so it is often recommended.  I like this principle, but don’t always stick to it exactly.  Other recommendations are to imagine your perfect bouquet of flowers and try to emulate that in your garden.  Whatever design cues and principles you choose to follow, one piece of advice that I will give is to lay out all the plants in their containers in your garden before planting them.  They’re a lot easier to move in pots than they are to transplant.  Whatever your design, it will be successful if it’s pleasing to you.  Choose for you, design for you, enjoy!

Irrigation and watering

• Rule of thumb = at least one inch of water per week
• Check soil moisture
• Irrigation/watering options
• Frequency
• How to
• Time of day
• Wilting
• How much to water?

Although it varies greatly by weather patterns (rain, heat, drought, etc.) a good rule of thumb is to supply the soil with at least one inch of water per week throughout the growing season.  As an estimate, one inch of water per square foot is roughly equivalent to 0.6 gal per square foot.  To put that into context, if you have a warm week with no rainfall, you would want to add approximately 19 gallons of water to a 4 ft x 8 ft bed during that week.  Use your soil probe to check moisture.  You want the soil to be moist, not wet, as those roots need oxygen to breathe, or respire.  Too much moisture is just as bad for plants as too little.  Another key is to water the soil if possible, as opposed to overhead watering the plant itself.  Watering the soil instead of the plant will reduce the likelihood of plant diseases occurring.

So what are the options?  There are five main options to consider, with many variations of each.

1. Watering Can
2. Hose
3. Overhead Sprinkler Irrigation
4. Drip Irrigation
5. Soaker Hose Irrigation

Watering Can

For larger areas I wouldn’t recommend using a watering can, but they work great for containers, a single bed, or other small growing spaces.  When using a watering can, be sure to gently pour the water at the base of the plant to minimize both watering on the plant, and soil erosion or movement.  Even distribution is greatly enhanced when there is a rose spout attachment.

Hose

You can of course just turn the hose on and add water to the garden, this is certainly more efficient than a watering can, especially if you have a larger growing area.  If using a hose to water, it would be recommended to use a rain wand to minimize disruption to the soil surface and wetness of plant leaves.

Overhead Sprinkler Irrigation

Although these can be highly effective for watering larger areas much more efficiently than by hand, there is the likelihood that this overhead irrigation waters much of the plant foliage as well, which could lead to increased disease pressure.  If you live in an area that has very low humidity, such as in desert regions, this may be a more viable option than in regions with high humidity.  Another advantage is the ease of setup and takedown, very little labor is needed.  Then there is the cost, this is a relatively low cost option.   One consideration in opposition of overhead irrigation is that they water all areas of your garden, even those that don’t need water.  This isn’t as efficient as drip irrigation due to evaporation and wind drift, and it has a higher likelihood of causing or encouraging soil erosion. Couple your sprinkler irrigation with an automatic hose valve to make irrigation even easier.  I sure like the Rachio Smart Hose Timer!

Drip Irrigation

Drip Irrigation is my number one option for well planned flower beds, and using micro-drip components work great for containers too.  I like it because of the precision application of water to each plant, high level of efficiency, and minimal water moving off target or being lost to evaporation.  With the application of water directly to the soil, there is also a low likelihood of causing plant diseases.  Additionally, you’ll spend less time weeding as you are only watering your flowers, not all of the soil between the flowers. There are many different kinds of drip irrigation and design; a couple are pictured below.  I have found that both Black and Chocolate Labs love ruining drip lines, so if you have a ‘good boy’ or ‘good girl’ you may want to try  a small area first before investing in a drip system for all of your space!  This type of irrigation will be quite a bit more involved to set up, and it’ll also be more pricey.

Soaker Hose

This slowly applies water for the entire length of the hose, so some areas not needing water will receive it, but far less so than with overhead sprinkler irrigation.  These are made from a variety of different materials.  Setup is straightforward and you garner many of the benefits of drip irrigation.  A couple of considerations are that these don’t work as well if they are located on a slope, and they are really only suitable for a single row or bed per soaker hose. 

Test your soil nutrient and pH status using a MySoil Test Kit

• Soil testing = insurance policy for success
• pH and essential nutrient levels
• What if the values are high?
• Vetted fertilizer and amendment recommendations

The MySoil test kit is perfect for beginner and veteran gardeners alike.  It measures pH and the levels of available nutrients in the soil, then recommends vetted fertilizer and amendment products in the amounts you need for your garden area.  Turnaround time for the lab results is 6-8 days from when you put the soil sample and pre-paid mailer in your mailbox. Check out the example test report below.  Know before you grow for the healthiest soil and plants!

In this soil test, we see values that are low, optimal, and high.  For the low values, such as Nitrogen, you can see that either a 12-0-0 (N-P-K) or 46-0-0 are recommended in an amount that will bring those values up to maximize plant health and nutrient density.  You’ll notice that the second two numbers on the fertilizer are ‘0’.  That is because phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) are already present in amounts beyond the need of the plant.  In this case, there is nothing to worry about, we just let our plants bring those levels down through time as they absorb those nutrients and you remove them as you cut flowers and compost your annuals when they die. 

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are the three primary nutrients and are what are represented on the fertilizer analysis (N-P-K).  These are also the most likely to limit plant health, so they are the nutrients to focus on first.  In the soil test report above, you’ll also notice that sulfur is a bit low.  Sulfur, Calcium, and Magnesium are the secondary macronutrients, so are essentially the second tier of focus.  You’ll need to read the fertilizer label, but often they include sulfur.

If sulfur isn’t on the label, you can opt to add it with a different product as a second application at the same time. Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) are the other secondary macronutrients and have the same tier of importance, but they are not low as often as sulfur.

You’ll notice even more nutrients on your soil test report.  These are the micronutrients iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), and Boron (B).  Although essential, additions of these nutrients are considered ‘icing on the cake’ and may be delivered in high enough amounts with your compost.  If you are wondering what the nutrient status of your compost is, you can do a MySoil test of your compost too!  Of course, the MySoil team also recommends micronutrient products, just click “pH and micronutrient products” in the Shop Recommended Products section of your soil test report.

Amending and fertilizing

• Timing
• Adjust pH
• Gypsum
• Follow fertilizer recommendations
• How to fertilize

The best time to amend your soil or adjust pH is before planting or early in the season.  You can also add amendments in the Fall.  This is true for fertilizing as well, although fertilizing will continue regularly through the growing season.

If your soil pH is too high or too low, or if you have acid loving plants such as azaleas or rhododendrons you may benefit from adjusting your soil pH.  Lime (Calcitic or Dolomitic) can be used to increase the soil pH and make it more basic.  Elemental sulfur can be used to decrease soil pH and make it more acidic.  Your MySoil test will guide you to the correct product(s) for your specific soil.  There is a great demonstration of soil pH adjustment performed by SoiLab on YouTube that you can find here:  How to Correct Your Soil pH

If you happen to find that you have excessively high sodium levels, your MySoil test will recommend gypsum, as your flowers would benefit from moving that sodium out of the rootzone.  Simply add the gypsum, incorporate, and then irrigate in excess to move the sodium below the rootzone of your plants.  Here’s another SoiLab video that shows the use of gypsum:  Gypsum: The Secret to Explosive Plant Growth in High Sodium Soil!

How do you fertilize your flowers?  This can vary a bit depending on the size of your garden or bed, but I really like to use shaker applicators like this one:

Your MySoil test recommendations will tell you how much fertilizer to apply in your garden, all you need to do is input your square footage.

The soil has already been amended, now it’s time to start fertilizing.  Your MySoil test tells you how much, so how do you apply and how often?  There are many different and successful philosophies here, but I like to add fertilizer at planting, and then again monthly in small amounts for annual plants.  This will help maintain plant growth without a flush of growth.  At the first application, add the fertilizer to the soil surface of the entire container, bed, or garden, then incorporate it into the top couple of inches.  It will slowly release nutrients that are, or will be, plant available.  Once you’ve planted you can reapply the same fertilizer directly at the base of the plant every 4-6 weeks. For perennials, I like to fertilize in the spring and then again mid-season. Some successful gardeners also add a third application in the Fall.  It’s also notable that too much nitrogen can actually encourage vegetative growth and delay flowering, so multiple fertilizer applications in smaller amounts is preferred.

Are you using a soluble or liquid product?  Simply add it to your watering can, add water, and evenly distribute across the whole bed, or on either side of your plants.

You can check out this video from the MySoil team to get an explanation and see fertilizing in action:  How To Fertilize a Garden

Adding organic matter

• Organic matter benefits
• What type?

The benefits of additional organic matter are numerous.  I can think only of rare instances when it wouldn’t be recommended.  Some key benefits that will help your flowers out are:

1. Provides nutrients as it breaks down
2. Improved soil structure
3. Enhances the ability of your soil to hold water
4. Enhance drainage and aeration
5. Enhances the ability of your soil to hold nutrients in the rootzone
6. Increases life in the soil, from worms to beneficial microorganisms
7. Sequesters carbon
8. Likely reduces soil diseases and pests
9. Enhances soil temperature regulation
10. Reduces soil compaction

In the Fall of the year, at the beginning of each season, or before planting it is of benefit to liberally add organic matter.  This could be compost, shredded leaves, vermicompost, biochar, or very well composted manure.  You may add this as a mulch to suppress weeds, or incorporate it directly into the top several inches of soil.  Avoid adding bark mulch or chips directly into the garden where plants are growing as the woody material will actually tie up nitrogen in the soil as it breaks down.  Woody mulch works great in between beds or on walkways to help suppress weeds and retain moisture.

What are some concerns or things to look for?  Some organic inputs may have high salt levels.  If you start to see a white film at the soil surface, this is likely salt that has been left behind as water evaporated from the soil surface.  If you are seeing this, then irrigate heavily to flush, or leach, the salts below the rootzone.  You’ll want to be sure not to leach immediately following a fertilizer application as you may be washing away your much needed nutrients as well.

Planting

• Depth and width
• Amend & fertilize
• Planting process

This is pretty much a case of following the directions.  The plant tag should tell you how deep to plant.  Most flowers will be more or less the same, suggesting planting at a depth the same as the pot, but some may require a shallow or deeper hole than others.  I like to dig the holes twice the diameter of the pot and approximately the same depth as the pot. 

If you haven’t already, now is the time to add organic matter, amendments, and fertilizer as outlined previously. 

The soil is now prepared and ready for you to dig the holes that will become home to your flowers.  Depending on the size of the hole needed, choose a shovel, hand trowel, or Hori Hori for digging.  The hole is dug the appropriate depth and width, now remove the plant from its pot, bucket, or other container.  You’ll likely notice a mass of roots growing against the side of the container; this is typical.  Loosen the roots gently by hand; this will lead to better root growth and development and if we grow good roots, we’ll have beautiful shoots.  Now place the plant in the hole and add the amended soil back into the hole, firming it in place.  The plant should be planted at the same depth in the soil as it was in the container.  We need to be certain that there is good contact between the soil and the roots.  Once you have all the plants in the ground, simply water them in.  Maintaining good moisture for the first few weeks is essential until the roots begin to further develop and extend into the soil below.

Weeds

• Why control weeds? 
• How to control weeds

They don’t help your flowers grow, in fact, they directly compete with your plants for water, nutrients, and sun.  Some weeds may also have toxic effects (allelopathic) on other species near them.  One example is spotted knapweed which exudes chemicals from its roots that suppresses the growth of several other species occupying the same, or closely adjacent, rootzone space. Outside of those reasons, aesthetically, many of us like the look of a neat, tidy, and clean flower garden area. 

I, and likely you too, will come to have a love-hate…or is it a hate-love relationship with weeds.  In my experience, this is where much time is spent.  My Grandpa had great advice that’s stood the test of time, and I still adhere to it at a minimum.  “Pulling a bucket full a day will keep the weeds at bay.” Hand pulling weeds can consume much time, but an often overlooked benefit is the ability to add those weeds (that aren’t producing seed) to the compost pile.  These provide a great ‘green’, or high nitrogen, addition to your compost pile.  In my situation, I have predominantly leaves and woody, brown, material from the many mature trees at our property and my compost pile is always craving some ‘green’ additions to really start breaking everything down.  The type of weeds that you are seeing can also be indicators of your soil condition.  Seeing a lot of clover, medic, and oxalis?  Your soil is likely low in Nitrogen.  Seeing a lot of broadleaf and buckhorn plantain?  Your soil is likely a bit too compact.  There are some great articles and books out there on weeds as indicator species if you’re interested in learning more.

Quick Tip:  Hand pull or hoe just after a rain or irrigation cycle for easier weed removal.

What are some other strategies besides hand pulling weeds?  Although many avoid it, you may opt to use pre-emergent or post-emergent herbicides.  If you do choose this route, be sure to closely follow the label to avoid damaging the plants that you want to grow.  Mulching is great option.  Many will put a layer of cardboard against the soil surface, then add mulch on top.  Using drip irrigation will also help your plants be more competitive.  You can also use hoes and various other tools, till lightly, or use flame as options.  Whichever method you choose, diligence is key.

Deadheading

Deadheading, or removing flowers after they have finished blooming serves a few purposes.  First, it’ll help to keep your flower garden or bed looking neat and clean.  Second, it allows the plant to put energy into producing more flowers.  Another benefit, for self-seeding species such as zinnia, is that it reduces the number of volunteer plants that will germinate and emerge the following season.

Pest control

• Common pests
• General control options

Our first order of business should be growing the healthiest plants that we can. Healthy plants better resist, or recover from, pests and pest damage. Even if we are successful at this, it is likely that we’ll encounter some pests.

Common pests include aphids, spider mites, slugs and snails, deer, rabbits, and fungal diseases such as powdery mildew.  Although this is a short list of common pests, expect a myriad of other pests that are more regionally relevant or relevant in certain microclimates. What follows is a brief overview of considerations for pest control.

General control options for aphids and other insects include:

1. Use of diatomaceous earth to discourage insects
2. Introducing beneficial insects that will prey on other insects (ladybugs and praying mantis)
3. Use of dish soap and water mixture on the plant
4. Using a hose to remove the insects from the plant
5. Use of insecticides such as Sevin.  Always follow the label directions.

General control options for slugs and snails include:

1. Moisture management (make overall garden less damp; use drip irrigation)
2. Improve air movement with strategic pruning or through plant division
3. Use traps (beer traps, trap boards)
4. Apply crushed egg shells
5. Hand pick
6. Use a pesticide such as Sluggo.  Always follow label directions.

General control options for deer and rabbits include:

1. Fence (8 feet high for deer)
2. Plant deer resistant plants
3. Use of motion activated sprinklers
4. Deer and rabbit repellent sprays

General control options for fungal diseases include:

1. Plant resistant varieties
2. Increase air circulation by pruning adjacent tree and shrubs
3. Mulch around plants to retain soil moisture
4. Avoid over-fertilization
5. Use sulfur-containing organic fungicides
6. Use fungicides that have potassium bicarbonate
7. Use Neem oil
8. Acceptance or tolerance of small infections

Time in the garden

• Do frequent walk throughs

Even if you’re not planning on working in your flower garden, it’s a great practice to do frequent walk throughs.  While you’re walking through enjoying the beauty that you’ve created, be sure that you are also scouting, looking for anything that has worked well, or looking at plants that are struggling.  You should simply be observing and seeing how everything is doing.  Look to see if weeds are creeping in from adjacent areas, look for insect pests, look for beneficial insects such as ladybugs and praying mantis.   Check for irrigation system functionality.  Brainstorm on how to improve or adjust for next season.  These garden walk throughs, when you’re not focused on specific tasks, are often the source of inspiration for the next season.

Other additions and features

Depending on the size of your new flower garden, there may be some other additions and features to consider including in your area that aren’t plants.  Some popular additions and features include:

• Bird house
• Bird bath
• Bird feeder
  • Note:  Spilled seed from the feeder will often germinate and have a weedy appearance.
• Landscape lighting
• Potted or container plants
• Water feature
• Sitting area
• Art and Sculptures
• Rocks
• Logs
• Walkways
• Pergola