Ajuga

Allium

Alyssum

Aster

Basil

Bee Balm

Begonia

Blanket Flower

Bleeding Heart

Borage

Calendula

Cardinal Flower

Columbine

Coral bells (Heuchera)

Dahlia

Daylily

Delphinium

Dianthus

Foxglove

Fuchsia

Geranium

Gladiolus

Globe Thistle

Helianthus

Hollyhocks

Iris

Joe-Pye Weed

Lantana

Lavender

Lily

Marigold

Mullein

Musk Mallow

Petunia

Phlox

Poppy

Purple Coneflower

Queen Anne’s Lace

Salvia

Scabiosa

Stonecrop

Sunflower

Sweet William

Verbena

Yarrow

Zinnia

The post 47 Beautiful Plants that will Attract Bees, Butterflies and Hummingbirds. appeared first on Landscape Edging Blog.

There’s no reason to leave your garden drab and bare during the winter, though! With a variety of cold-hardy plants that grow lovely flowers, you can add vibrant color to that winter garden in no time.

Here are some of the best plants to consider growing during the winter. Just grow them in containers that can be put on your patio, balcony or porch and moved inside if there’s an extreme freeze coming.

Calendula (Calendula officinalis)

Calendula is a lovely flower that resembles a daisy. It comes in shades of deep yellow, cream or apricot with a match center. The plants grow anywhere from one to two feet tall and equally as wide, making wonderful container plantings or for growing in a flower garden. These flowers will require full sun and well-draining soil. Be sure to water enough to keep the soil moist, too. When you see dead or dying blooms, clip those off to encourage new, lively flowers.

Candytuft (Iberis)

Candytuft gets its name from the sweet scented white flower clusters that grow on its long stems. These babies can reach eight feet in height and just as wide. The leaves, which remain year-round, are a lovely shade of shiny dark green and quite narrow. Not so much of a sun lover, you’ll want to put this plant in a shady–or at least partly shady–place and be sure to consistently water it every few days. Like calendula, it will need well-draining soil and you’ll want to clip off the dead blooms to encourage new flowers to grow.

Cineraria (Senecio x hybridus)

Another shade-loving plant, cineraria blooms with intense colors of purplish blue, purplish red, white and pink. Typically growing to about two feet tall and wide, the daisies bloom in broad clusters that are between three and five inches in diameter. These bright, colorful flowers prefer rich, loose soil and will require consistent watering.

Cyclamen (Primulaceae)

Cyclamen provides a wonderful break from the bleak grays of wintertime with its soft whites, pinks, roses and reds. These two-inch-wide flowers are full of air-filling fragrance as well. Its lush green leaves are heart-shaped and have long six inch stems to hold up the flowers. This flower requires rich soil that is porous and drains very well. Be sure to add lots of humus for this one and put it in a place that is mostly sunny with some shade during the day.

English daisy (Bellis perennis)

Ah, the English daisy. Its bright, beautiful blooms are reminiscent of the English countryside. They come in a variety of colors ranging from rose to red or pink and white. These large, eight inch wide flowers grow on fairly short stems and are surrounded by full, bright green leaves. These daisies prefer sun with just partial shade and also need to have well-draining soil and consistent watering. You’ll want to deadhead the plants often to encourage new blooms to keep that color vibrant.

Scotch heather (Calluna vulgaris)

The needle-like leaves of this low-growing, colorful shrub produces small, bell-shaped flowers in cream, orange, pink or yellow. You’ll want to grow them in an area that receives at least half a day of sun and be sure to use a soil that is sandy and has lots of organic matter added to it. Don’t let the soil dry out with this one either. You’ll want to water it consistently.

Indeed, there’s no reason to drive yourself crazy with desire for color in the winter. With flowers like these in containers for easy transporting, you can keep your yard bright and beautiful all the way to spring.

About the Author

     Jonathan Leger is a gardening enthusiast. He runs a small site dedicated to the education, history and care of a

variety of roses at CabbageRoses.net.

The post The Best Plants For Great Winter Color appeared first on Landscape Edging Blog.

Other plants die back after the first frost; the foliage becomes brown & messy. Trim back any stems or leaves and add them to your compost pile.

If any plants were diseased or had a lot of insect pests, cut the stems/foliage back to a few inches above the ground and dispose of the plant material in the trash, not the compose pile. This will help prevent a recurrence the following year.

If you have any invasive weeds such as Japanese Knotweed, Oriental Bittersweet or others, you can begin the removal process. Dig them up and/or use a herbicide. Be sure to follow the directions on the label of the herbicide, this will prevent overuse of and exposure to the chemicals. Remove smaller weeds or tree seedlings by hand to prevent them getting established next spring.

Finally add a layer of mulch of bark or leaves to the soil, a two inch layer is sufficient. The mulch conserves moisture and prevents ‘frost-heave’ where the freeze-thaw process forces plant roots to surface of the soil.

These steps will ensure a healthy flower bed for the following year.

The post Flower beds – Fall Cleanup appeared first on Landscape Edging Blog.