Planting The Seeds Of SuccessFor Your Garden (NAPSA)—Any time of year can be the right time to make a contribution toward your garden’s success. Each season offers its own reasons for getting certain things done. Here are a few year-round tips from Cottage Farms and Roberta’s Exotic Flowers, both of which are available through electronic retailer QVC. In the fall, prepare planting beds for spring transplanting. Cut back dead or withered growth and remove it from the garden. Till planting beds and add organic matter such as compost or manure. Plant bulbs such as tulips, daffodils and hyacinths. Bulbs can continue to be planted until the ground has frozen. Then in the spring you can interplant perennials, shrubs, roses and annuals in the new beds. The fall is also a good time to dig up gladiolus, cannas and dahlias, which generally do not survive the winter months. Store them in a cool area and replant the following spring. In the winter, after growing season has ended and the ground has frozen, apply a winter mulch of shredded leaves, evergreen boughs or straw to prevent the roots of young plants from lifting out of the soil during periods of alternate freezing and thawing. Winter can also be a good time to review your garden results from the past season and prepare for the following season’s garden revisions. Start collecting spring garden catalogs and gardening publications in November, December and January so you can plan out the types of flowers and plants you'll want to add as well as make plans for any needed landscape design changes. It’s also a time to prune and shapetrees and shrubs 2 a a hat bloom on the current season’s growth. When spring comes, carefully loosen the mulch around plants. Prune spring-blooming shrubs after they have finished blooming to remove unwanted growth andto shape their size. Rake and remove all leaves, mulch and debris and let Mother Nature takeover. Summeris the best time to dig and divide large clumps of spring and summer-blooming perennials to either rejuvenate them or replant new divisions. It’s also essential to remove weeds from planting beds, especially during summer months, because they compete with your plants for food, water andlight. A good method to ensure moisture and reduce weeds is to use mulch throughout your garden. In early summer, apply a twoto four inch layer of shredded bark, compost or other organic mulch aroundyourplants. Remember, garden plants and flowers should not be fertilized after August. Fertilizing encourages green growth, and at this time you want your plants to grow a good root system to make it through the winter. More gardening information and products for the garden are available by visiting QVC.com or calling 800-345-1515.
