Fall Lanscaping Tips & Ideas « Brackman's Stepping Stone Rock and Garden Center, LLC

Landscaping Tips for a Shaded Lawn & Garden

Posted by admin on November 1, 2012

Does your lawn or garden have large shaded areas? Have you been trying to figure out what to do with these areas for months or even years? While many people think nothing except moss, lichen, or a foliage garden will grow in these areas, that just isn’t the case! There are plenty of grasses, vegetables, plants, and flowers that can grow in shaded areas. Keep reading to learn what types of greens grow best in the shade and how you can grow them to their fullest potential.

1 ) Growing Grass in the Shade

While most all grasses prefer sun, some tolerate the shade more than others. If you have large shrubs or trees that are blocking sunlight, try to thin them out as much as possible, allowing the maximum sunlight to reach your grass. Your goal should be allowing at least 4 hours of sunlight to reach your grass each day. Using the adequate amounts of fertilizer and watering properly will also help to ensure your grass is healthy, even in the shade.

Best Grasses for Shaded Areas:

Rye
Fescue
Bluegrass

2 ) Growing Vegetables in the Shade

Most vegetables will need three to six hours of sunlight each day or consistent, dappled sunlight throughout the day. While not all vegetables (especially fruits/roots) will grow properly in the shade, there are still plenty of vegetables that you can grow in shaded areas. There are even benefits to growing vegetables in the shade such as: less frequent watering, crops like lettuce and spinach may grow longer without too much heat, and adding a garden in a shaded area will give you more room to grow something else in sunny spots of your lawn!

Best Vegetables for Shaded Gardens:

Leaf Lettuce
Arugula
Endive
Cress
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Peas
Brussels Sprouts
Radishes

3 ) Growing Plants & Flowers in the Shade

Plants and flowers that grow well in the shade are usually better protected due to nearby trees and shrubs that blockout summer heat or winter winds. Even better, you don’t have to rake up leaves that fall on or near your shaded plants. The leaves will provide a natural mulch that both enriches the soil and helps prevent weed growth.

Best Plants & Flowers for Shaded Areas:

Impatiens
Torenia
Bloodroot
Viola
Sweet Potato Vine
Gardenia
Dogwood

Do you have a vibrant garden growing in the shade? What are your favorite plants, vegetables, or flowers to grow in the shade? Leave us a comment below or tell us on Facebook!

If you would like the professionals at Brackman’s Stepping Stone Rock and Garden Center, LLC to help with any of your landscaping or gardening needs, give us a call today at 601-264-2886 or email us at thesteppingstone@live.com.

Tags: Garden Center in Hattiesburg MS, Irrigation in Hattiesburg MS, Landscape Design Hattiesburg MS, Landscape How To, Landscaping Tips

Posted in: Fall Lanscaping Tips & Ideas, Gardening in Hattiesburg MS, Gardening Tips, Landscape Design Hattiesburg MS, Landscape Design Tips, Landscaping in Hattiesburg MS, Landscaping Tips

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Fall Landscaping Tips & Ideas

Posted by admin on September 26, 2012

With the Fall months upon us and Summer officially over, how can you prepare you landscaping for the next season? Should you care for your lawn and garden any differently as the weather begins to cool and leaves begin to fall? We’ll answer these questions plus give you some ideas for landscaping your lawn for Fall!

1 ) Prepare for a freeze – While in South Mississippi the weather won’t start getting extremely cold for a few more months, a little early preparation sure couldn’t hurt anyone!

2 ) Overseed your lawn – Usually the word “over” in front of another word is not a good thing, but when it comes to your yard this time of year it can be a great thing. Overseeding your lawn is a method by which you simply sow seeds over your existing grass to help fill any bare patches.

3 ) Mulch your garden – Yes, even in the Fall you should mulch your garden – once all your plants and vegetables have been harvested or have died. Before mulching you should first remove any plant debris and take care of any weeds (they will come back in the Spring)!

4 ) Aerate the yard – Aerating your yard can create pockets for air, water, and nutrients to enter the soil and roots. For smaller yards, a yard fork will do the job perfectly well!

5 ) Trim your perennials – Working your flower beds this Fall will result in healthier beds this Spring! Remove dead annuals and anything that feeds on them such as slugs, which breed in the Fall. Trim your perennial foliage down to the ground which will send the energy to the roots, strengthening them for next season!

6 ) Plant new shrubs – Planting in the Fall?? Yes! Often times planting new shrubs in the fall will give them a jump-start establishing roots in the cooler weather.

Remember that the Fall is a great time to prepare your lawn and garden for the next growing season. A little work now will produce much bigger results next Spring, so pull up your sleeves one more time, crank that mower up a few more times, and prepare your landscaping for the Fall! If you need any help preparing your landscaping for this Fall, the professionals at Brackman’s Stepping Stone Rock and Garden Center, LLC are here to help with your landscaping or gardening needs. Give us a call today at 601-264-2886 or email us at thesteppingstone@live.com.

Do you have other Fall preparations for South Mississippi or other climates such as the Northeast? Tell us about your Fall preparation habits in the comments below!