Sunrise Landscape Designs

Fall is here and it’s a great time to plant spring flowering bulbs!  Tulips, Daffodils, and Hyacinth are always favorites and for obvious reasons!  However, there are some beautiful bulbs available that are easy to find yet rarely used. 

Fritillaria – a tropical looking bulb that can get about 2’-3’ tall and the flowers hang down with spiky green on top reminiscent of Dr. Seuss!

Tulip Varieties – opening a bulb magazine, you can find pages upon pages of tulip varieties.  From feathered flower petals to red striped leaves you can find it all. 

Allium – From the onion family, this bulb is very deer resistant.  Alliums send up a ball of color on a tall stem.  The largest variety (globemaster) can reach 4’ tall and the flower ball is 10” diameter.  This makes quite a statement!  After the flowers fade, spray paint the flower heads for a couple more months of color!

When choosing bulbs, be sure to choose the right bulb for the spot.  If you have deer or rabbits, look for deer-resistant bulbs.  Otherwise they will have a nice feast come spring!  When planting the bulbs take note of the planting depth and bulb position.  A sprinkle of bulb booster always promises a nice spring show.   If the bulbs are particularly tender, extra bark over the bulbs will protect them in winter.

Fall brings many changes to the garden. Fall color is seen in many trees, shrubs, and perennials but did you know some evergreens also have a fall & winter color? Some evergreens will turn a different shade of green, brown, or greenish purple.

You may notice your Pines, Arborvitaes, or Cedars turning yellow or brown inside and the needles falling off. This is normal! These trees usually drop their 2nd or 3rd year old needles every year and the inside of the tree will get more open. This is what gives us that nice needle carpet on the forest floor.

The threat of a hard frost is here! Your hostas may still be looking pretty good but right now is the time to cut them back. Hosta is more difficult to cut if you wait until after the frost because it gets the texture of limp lettuce and that doesn’t cut well. I recommend doing the “ponytail cut” method. Grab the hosta leaves close to the ground like you would a clump of ponytail hair and with your pruners, cut the leaves off as close to the ground as you can. Dispose of the cuttings into a mulch pile or trash but do not leave them in the garden because insects like to over-winter in dead leaf residue.