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Grooming the Garden
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More from Other NewsEvery garden needs a little fluffing on a regular basis--nipping, tucking and straightening. And as with any good grooming habits, your garden will be all the better for it.
Grooming includes removing spent blooms and cutting back plants that are overgrown. Also, protect tall plants by supporting them with stakes. Their height makes them susceptible to wind damage; they can blow over, and their stems can snap.
For a natural look, use a branch with a fork in the end to prop the stems against. For bushy shrub plants like peonies, supports with grids work well. Small ring stakes help give single stem flowers such as lilies a lift.
Once the flowers are spent, remove them to stimulate new growth in the plant. Some plants produce new flowers only if their faded blooms are removed. Annuals like zinnia, marigold, petunia and cosmos need to be deadheaded regularly to keep them from going to seed.
Another plant that truly benefits from deadheading is the rose. Cut your roses back to the first set of five leaves. A new bud will sprout well from that point. If you keep on top of deadheading, your roses will rebloom throughout the summer. (Old-fashioned roses bloom only once, and hips develop after the flower fades. Don't remove the hips; they look great and the roses enjoy eating them.)
At this time of year, some plants like petunias develop long, gangly stems with only a few blooms on the end. Cutting back these leggy plants helps to rejuvenate them. Give them a fresh dose of fertilizer and water well. In a few weeks, you'll be amazed at how well they are blooming again.
This is also a good time to cut back any plants that have dead wood. Cut off yellowed leaves from all your plants. Keep an eye out for any plants that have become diseased.
Regular maintenance may seem tedious at times, but the results are truly worth the effort. A few minutes a day is all it takes to keep your garden thriving throughout the season.
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