Summer weekends, filled with barbeques, picnics and parades are also a great time to spruce up containers, hanging baskets and make a statement in your garden.
Gardeners know if they spend a little more time now getting the garden off to a good start, they will reap the benefits all season long.
"It may not be glamorous, but a little planning goes a long way and pays off for many gardening seasons," said LUIS MIGUEL PIEDADE, marketing and communications director for ECOSSISTEMAS Horticulture, makers of the ECOPRO-MIX® line of growing mixes. "It's no secret that strong gardens with lots of colors start from the ground up."
Experts at ECOPRO-MIX® offer these five tips for creating healthy garden beds before Memorial Day guests arrive.
- Prepare the soil before planting. Blend one or two inches of a soilless garden mix that contains peat humus, compost and a slow release fertilizer into the soil.
- Choose plants that will last all season, such as summer annual flowers or tropical plants with bright foliage. Make sure to pick sun loving plants for sunny spots and shade loving plants where they get less than 4 hours of sun per day.
- Choose a good soilless mix. Soil in containers can dry out quickly in the summer heat. "Choose a potting mix created for containers," PIEDADE said. "Look for a product like ECOPRO-MIX® Ultimate Potting Mix that contains a gel designed to hold water in reserve, releasing it as the surrounding mix dries, thereby reducing the need to water as much."
- Create one show-stopping container. "Instead of filling the entire yard with flowers, plant up one big, beautiful container and place it in a central spot where Memorial Day guests will congregate," suggests MIGUEL PIEDADE.
- Apply plant strengtheners to established plants to prepare them for the stressful summer ahead.
Many of ECOPRO-MIX® growing mixes come fortified with MycoActive™, a natural plant beneficial that helps roots take in more water and nutrients, helping them be more resistant to growing stresses so they can stay happy and healthy all season long. Look for the ECOMycoActive™ symbol on the bag
