We live in north Texas. The average annual minimum temperature is 20 degrees to 10 degrees.
Sans good soil and flowers:
What we used:
Organic cypress Mulch
Miracle-Gro Organic Choice Garden Soil from Home Depot
Blooming flowers planted:
Golden Scotch Moss (perennial)- Needs 4-6 hours of sun (part sun). Water weekly during dry spells, and should be pinched* for full growth. These should be 2 inches tall by 12 inches wide at mature size.
Marigolds (annual)- Needs 6 hours or more of sun. Water daily. Requires a well-drained amended soil. These should be 10 to twelve inches in height at mature size. Remove spent flowers using scissors or hand pruners, snip off flower stems just above a leaf or bud when they finish blooming to promote more blossoming . Pick off damaged leaves.
Seeds planted:
Solar Eclipse Sunflowers and Chianti Hybrid Sunflowers were planted in the back of the garden since they will grow to be the tallest of the flower family. Natural rainfall should suffice for watering; however, if it does not rain regularly, hand watering is necessary. These will grow to be four to five feet tall. I love sunflowers! We planted some last year too.
Bulbs planted:
Anemones (St. Brigid mix)- Require full sun (6 hours or more) and will grow to be 12 inches in height. Tender bulbs need to be dug up in the fall and then replanted the next spring. Hardy bulbs may be left in the ground to grow the next summer. Anemone bulbs need loose, well-drained soil. After the blooms have faded, do not remove the leaves until they turn yellow and begin to die back. The leaves continue to produce energy that the bulb stores.
Tigridia (mixed)- Require full sun (6 hours or more) and will grow to be 18 to 24 inches tall. Keep the soil drier than you would with any other bulb as the Tigridia bulb rots quickly in wet soil, or in areas with humid summers where the soil is apt to stay wetter than in areas with drier air. Harvest and store the Tigridia bulbs in peat or vermiculite during the winter in a cool, dry place to prevent damage to the bulb.
What we did:
• Cleared the soil, and derooted old plants.
• Applied organic, nutrient-rich soil to our current terrible soil and mixed it together.
• Applied a small amount of mulch in the holes, and then placed the bulbs on top of the mulch. Then covered them up with soil. Mulched around the flowers and watered the soil.
• Planted seeds into holes (refer to your seed packet for instructions on hole depth and spacing). Watered the soil.
• Ate pizza with Jeremy and Rebecca.
I was instructed and inspired by the book "You Grow Girl: The Groundbreaking Guide to Gardening" by Gayla Trail. If you want to create a garden, read this book. I borrowed my copy from the library.
* How to Pinch Back Flowers
