Attracting butterflies to your garden and backyard helps the environment and adds color and activity to your home.
This you tube shows how easy it is to set up a butterfly garden and the flowers that butterflies need, both in their young stage as a caterpillar and later as a butterfly.
Many gardens are in the middle of their growing season. Vegetables are producing and the flowers, both perennial and annual are in varying stages of growth.
photo credit: luckyjimmy
I know many people who do their planting in the spring and consider it done. But it’s best at this time of year to take a step back from your garden areas and re-evaluate their growth and look.
New plants, both vegetables and flowers will give the gardens and backyard areas a new look.
You may want to plant new annuals for a burst of fresh color and to fill in any holes from plants that did not survive. And a few new window boxes or hanging baskets will brighten your yard and patio or picnic area. And added bonus is most annuals are on sale at this time of year.
This is also a good time to pick up perennial plants. As the summer season has progressed you may have realized you want a new garden area or that its time to redo the perennial beds. Many perennials are on sale at this time of year. If you have an area you want to add perennials this would be the perfect backyard and landscaping project.
Planting the perennials late will mean they will stay small and you should try not to disturb the roots any more than possible when planting. By adding annuals to the perennial bed and small garden art you will add color and interest the garden bed design and the size of the perennials will not matter. Next year after one year of root growth your perennials should fill in the garden area.
This would also be a good time to add perennial herbs to the garden. Many of my friends are downsizing their herbs at this time of year and I will trade for other plants. I brought home 10 lemon verbena plants today I plan to keep five and trade the others for plants from my neighbors yard.
Since you are adding plants late and the roots will be small they will need additional water. You can help the garden bed areas retain moisture by water them well when planting and then adding a thick layer of mulch. Water the mulch well and this will help the garden retain moisture. I also try to cover the new plants for a few days from the bright sun by setting up a lean to that will block the sun and provide additional shade to the new garden plants.
And in the vegetable garden area, there is still time for second crops, rotating crops and planting fall crops. At this time of year I like to plants container gardens that I can move indoors, grow on the patio or move to the greenhouse for a late garden.
By sprucing up your gardens and landscaping areas you can add new color and fun to your gardens and lawn.
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