Starting A Perennial Garden.
 (Read 20+ times)
By Glory Lennon
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If you are new to gardening, the best way to acquaint yourself with the ways of horticulture, next to devoting years to study and traveling hither and thither to Botanical gardens, is to “buddy” up to some old gardeners. Not necessarily old in age but already knowing a bit more than you. In the same vain, knowing someone who has “been there, done that” can come in handy when you want to start your very own perennial garden. They not only can tell you the best plants with which to begin a nice flower bed, they most likely, if they are any sort of true garden buddy, will start you off with bits of plants from their own yard which costs you nothing but a sincere smile and a thank you.
This is, in truth, the only way to garden especially when you don’t have a Paris Hilton type bank account. Yes, gardeners are thrifty by nature and generous by design. While it may seem to you that they are being overly generous by giving you half of a Hosta, Iris, Liatris or Daylily, it is, in fact, doing themselves good. They not only get their plants divided which helps keep them healthy and productive but the extra space can be used to grow another plant. We gardeners run out of room for plants in remarkable rapidity.
To “weed” out the garden and give these extra plants away to other gardeners is our way of making room for any new stuff that comes our way and in the process make new friends who in turn may, one day when they establish their own perennial boarder, return the favor and share with us. It’s a wonderful cycle of give and take which benefits everyone, bees, butterflies and birds included.
So, there you are with a prepared site in a spot getting the most sun you can in your particular yard, hopefully between 4 and 8 hours. The site should be weeded and tilled with rocks and other debris removed. Hopefully you’ve added organic material, such as compost, leaf mold, peat moss or rotted cow manure, to the site and tilled that in as well. Now all you need do is take a walk around your neighborhood preferably in early spring. That is when most folks are out in the yard eager to start gardening.
On your first recognizance trip around the neighborhood you should be taking notes, literally taking notes in a notebook about what you see that you like in others’ yards. If possible ask the owners the names and cultivars of plants you really like. This will come in handy when shopping for particularly valuable or hard to find plants. Note size in height and width and try to picture them in your own garden. You should notice, in a well designed perennial garden, the taller plants are in the back with plants gradually growing shorter as they get to the front. This is important to enable you to see all the plants at a glance. If the bed is not up against a fence or is freestanding, an island bed as it is often called, the taller plants should be in the center with shorter ones radiating from it.
Unless you are currently living outside shouting distance from another human being, you should have easy access to a gardener. In spring they come out in droves dividing perennials. Just walk around your neighborhood. Surely you’ll come across someone who gardens. Not acquainted with them? Have you ever heard of saying “hello”? Works most times. Try it and while you’re at it compliment them on their beautiful....fill in the blank with whatever plant catches your eye. If you don’t know what it’s called, ask. Gardeners love to talk gardening. It’s what we do and it’s the only way for newbies to learn about a plant’s growing habit, size at maturity, when it flowers, what the seeds look like, care and anything else you need to know about it. Tell these neighboring gardeners you want to start your own garden and you won’t have to ask for advice. They’ll just tell you all you need to know. I can almost guarantee you’ll come away with arms full of plants, seeds, advice and possibly an offer of help to start you off right.
I’m telling you, gardeners are wonderful people, most of them anyway. Anyone with an established perennial bed can tell you from whom they got each plant. The Iris from Wendy, the Daylily from Geri the mail lady, the Hosta Alba Variegata from Mom, the Mint from Uncle Julio, the Sedum from Steve’s grandmother, the Sundrops from Elizabeth, the Canna from Rene, the lemon grass from Aunt Thelma and the Aloe vera from Grandma. I could go on but you get my point, I’m certain. A person with a true generous spirit will undoubtedly be a gardener. Those who have disdain for it, would never in their lives stoop so low as to dig in the soil or roll their eyes when you mention flowers or growing your own vegetables....well, my mama told me if I didn’t have anything nice to say, to just keep silent, so, I will.
So, there you are making friends about the neighborhood, collecting plants, seeds and advice and learning about it as you go along. You’ll have your own perennial bed going in no time and within a few years you’ll be the one helping someone else who wants to start their own garden. It’s a fantastic cycle this gardening. I’m glad you’ve joined our ranks.
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Author Bio Box: Glory Lennon
 For more amazing garden facts, a glimpse at an unfinished novel and amusing short stories come visit me at
http://www.helium.com/user/32782
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