Why Lazy Gardening Could Be Your Best Decision This Spring
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This spring, consider the lazy gardener’s route: planting wildflowers! It’s a great way to add beauty to your garden while attracting wildlife and pollinators like bees and butterflies. And... bonus... they are relatively inexpensive to plant! This one-pound bag of wildflower seeds covers over 7K square feet for just $40!
“There has been more interest in native plants and wildflowers over the last few years,” says Michael Hagen, curator of the New York Botanical Garden’s Native Plant Garden. “There’s a changing aesthetic about what is beautiful. We’re seeing people embrace a more naturalistic garden design, instead of neat rows of flowers.”
So, if you want to go natural, start by picking your spot — it should be sunny with at least six hours of full sun a day. There are some varieties of wildflowers that are shade tolerant (like black-eyed Susan and sweet William), but the majority prefer blazing sun.
Next, weed your bed before sowing seeds; this is a very important step because weeds can choke out wildflowers, especially when they are becoming established. Then, gently till the soil, enhance it with fertilizer if necessary, and then rake it level. If you want immediate gratification, plant some starter plants (like echinacea or zinnias).
Then spread a wildflower seed mix that is designed to work in your area and hardiness zone. It’s recommended to pick a mixture of perennials and annuals for planting. Once the plants are in and the seeds are scattered, be sure to water thoroughly. Keep the soil moist, and your first blooms should appear in five to six weeks.
While wildflower gardens aren’t completely maintenance-free, they are easier to maintain than, say, a planned English garden. You will need to water during dry spells to keep the blooms in tip-top condition. Weed occasionally to help keep them from taking over. Deadhead blooms to keep them flowering all season long. And in the fall, mow or cut your wildflower garden back to four to six inches tall. This helps seed heads drop, makes it all look a little neater, and keeps woody perennials in check.
There are so many benefits to a wildflower garden, from keeping pests at bay to helping feed all the pollinators. There really is no downside to going au naturel.
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