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The Herbaceous or Perennial Border, Plant Selection
and Planting Tips
By
James Kilkelly
So, your perennial border is prepared with the requisite quantities of plant
food soil and drainage grit if required. What’s next?
Plant Selection
Once you have gotten this far in the process, it is time to think about
actually selecting the plants that will populate the bed or border itself. My
first piece of advice to gardeners selecting perennial plants is to let your
mind “drift”. Groupings of plants that weave and interlock with other groupings
of plants within the same bed are known as “drifts”. One cluster of plants
begins where another cluster ends and the groups have a flowing effect as they
grow to bloom. The shapes that these drifts create should be irregular, weaving
through your perennial border and wrapping around other plants. Planting in
drifts creates a sense of movement, which in turn will make your garden look
alive, full and lush.
Select plants with interesting and contrasting textures. Plant fine leaved
perennials with bold leaved specimens. Also, select different flower forms and
shapes, select from tubular, loose, flat, round, pendulous spiked etc. Do not be
afraid to include some non-perennials as well. Plants like Phormium, Cordyline,
ornamental conifers and grasses all add structure and body to the perennial
border.
When selecting colors be guided by the following…
Drifts of light or pastel colored flowers tend to fade into the background,
so the quantities of these colors should be larger than the drifts of vivid
colors. If you find yourself having color clashes (red / pink), try creating
buffers between these colors with massed plantings of ornamental grasses or
plain green leaved plants.
Planting Rules
To ensure rapid establishment and growth of a perennial or herbaceous border
it is important to follow a few simple planting rules.
Water your perennial even before planting. Immerse the pots in water-filled
containers for about 10 minutes before planting is the best method, after this
time remove them and allow the surplus water to drain away. Remove the pot and
if the plant roots are wrapped tightly you should gently tease some free. This
will cause new roots to branch out into new soil instead of continually
encircling themselves.
When creating a planting hole, the ideal situation would be to make it twice
as wide and deep as the pot, don’t forget to break up the soil as you dig. The
planting depth can be just as important with some perennials, with certain
varieties refusing to bloom or thrive if planted at an incorrect depth. A good
rule of thumb to follow is to never plant any higher or deeper than the compost
level on the pot. Position the plants in the prepared holes and firm the soil
around the roots.
Water thoroughly and deeply afterwards; continue doing this twice weekly for
a few months to aid establishment. Certain perennials are quite tall upon
purchase, I would advise you to reduce these in height to prevent plant failure
due to wind rock. Although bark mulch is not a traditional material used on
herbaceous borders, the addition of it to soil around your plants will save
weeding and retain valuable moisture.
A 5 to 8cm (2 - 3in) layer of bark is sufficient for this purpose.
James Kilkelly runs a professional garden design service in Galway, Ireland.
He has a regular gardening column in an Irish regional newspaper. Visit his
website at
http://www.gardenplansireland.com/ He also regularly posts his expert advice
on a gardening forum at
http://www.gardenstew.com/
Article's original location:
Marvelous May Plant Color
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_Kilkelly
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