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Hey, Poochie! What did you have in mind? Some annuals, perennials or some shrubbery?
But first I should probably say . . . you will want to amend your soil by adding some other soil and mulch and nutrients.
Give us some idea what you were thinking about doing, and there are many here who will jump in and make suggestions!!!
SEE ANIFANI YOU ARE SOOOO INFORMATIVE! YOU HAVE TO READ MY LADIES NITE OUT POST!!
Well, here in NY I have an herb garden, I don't usually plant veggies and stuff cause I am afraind of bugs! But I did have some cornflowers & butterfly bushes and lillies.
We just bought a home on a nice bit of property, so i willl need some treess too! Do your flowers last year round if you cover them?
I bet pansies grow nicely.
ok thanks
SEE ANIFANI YOU ARE SOOOO INFORMATIVE! YOU HAVE TO READ MY LADIES NITE OUT POST!!
Well, here in NY I have an herb garden, I don't usually plant veggies and stuff cause I am afraind of bugs! But I did have some cornflowers & butterfly bushes and lillies.
We just bought a home on a nice bit of property, so i willl need some treess too! Do your flowers last year round if you cover them?
I bet pansies grow nicely.
ok thanks
You may find that different varieties of the same things you enjoyed in NY will still grow here! I just picked up my herbs yesterday . . . and all these work well here . . . thyme, sage, oregano, lemon balm, peppermint, dill, chocolate mint, etc. So you will have no problem finding herbs you enjoy and they will grow just fine as long as you amend the soil. Sunny has posted a good link that will help you get started. I have butterfly bushes in several colors, as well as Irises and lilies (but you will need to plan the bulbs this fall).
Many perennials will come back, but it will depend on how cold it gets and how well you have mulched your plants. Pansies do grow nicely here, but it is really too late to put them out now.
(PS. I did read the other thread, LOL, but believe me - there are many others who can help you more than I - I just happen to be online right now while doing a layout - yes, working on a Saturday nite!!!!!)
I will see if I can find you some more links on growing plants here in NC, but hopefully many other of our members w/ Green Thumbs will add their advice to help you get started.
Soil amending is recommended. What you plant depends on the 'zone' the plant likes, and if you have sun or shade. Most plants that say sun, like at least 4 hours to bloom well. Annuals: Geraniums, Vinca, (periwinkle) Marigolds, Annual Salvia, Petunias, Dark leaf Begonias, Pentas, Blue Daze, Angelonia, Mexican Heather, Cosmos, Zinnias, large and small. Snapdragons and pansies are best for the early spring, and fall. Heat gets them here usually. Some lantanas are annuals.
Perennials: Some lantanas, Coreopsis, Butterfly bush, perennial Salvias, (all of these are very good for heat) daylillies, artimisia, Lavenders, (I love these for the bloom and foliage, some of mine never went dormant this past winter, even in a pot) some salvias like pineapple sage, love it! Oh yeah, the BEST...for summer long color and return, perennial, homestead purple verbena!
Butterfly weed, (butterfly larva love to eat these, same for dill) some hybiscus, dianthus. There are lots more.
Shade plants: Most coleus, impatiens, begonias, caladiums, these are annuals. You can also do elephant ears, ginger, for a perennial tropical look. If you have shade, don't try to plant sun lovers, or grow grass for summer. (unless you get someone to trim the lower branches of the trees.) Just spread pine straw or mulch around heavily so the weeds won't grow through, and make a bed for azaleas, hosta, etc, that like shade. (and other shade loving plants). My mind is going blank.
A good independent garden center is the best place for advice on more than just the basics. If you know nothing, start there first. It might cost more, but you won't lose as many plants. If you go the big box store, make sure you get there the day the truck arrives with plants. You don't know how the plants are taken care of once they get there.
We use to own a garden center. So my husband and I are plant folks. Our house back home use to be nicknamed 'the jungle house' by those in the community. Palms, banana trees, ginger, everything tropical in the shade, and then, other sun loving things on the perimeter. (large multi-lot place, lots of trees) And on our small lot here, in the Carolinas, we are packed, but not so 'abandoned' plantings.
Have fun. Just remember, in the drought, you can get by on your twice a week watering on new things, just water long and deep. Ijt's not easy, but it can be done. Don't go out there and water just hit and miss, for a short time, or you will have shallow roots, that won't withstand the dryness. This is applicable, drought or no drought! If they get 'thirsty' for a few days, they will establish deep roots. (don't drown them either, or you won't have any roots.) If you have a sprinkler system, and it is set for just short sprays several times a day, (for only 1 or 2 days a week) your plants, new trees, new shrubs, won't make it through a drought stricken summer most likely. But if you set it to long soaking for those 1 or 2 days, they probably will. Probably. Not promised. Different planting areas and conditions are tricky.
Hope you have good success. Our yard still looked good most of the summer, only relying on the city mandated watering times. Bedding plants, new cypress trees, and perennial shrubs, regular shrubs, etc.
Oh yeah! Don't forget a good balanced fertilizer. Slow release is good, with a bit of quick nitrogen in it too. I know this is probably too much information. Sorry, but I hope you can glean some good out of it. Have fun! A lot is trial and error, for anyone!
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Quote:
Originally Posted by poochiepoo
What Can I Grow In This Beautiful Red Earth?
I'm not moved yet, but live at the northern end of the same planting zone & my lot is all marl (It's multicolor clay).
First, double-dig garden space. You won't do it all at once, but it lasts for years. Wait until there's some rain to soften the ground in the fall, unless you want to use a jack-hammer instead of a shovel.
If I plant pansies in the fall, they're good until the summer heat the next year. Yes, they flower in the winter.
Go on websites for various plant & seed companies & look for plants that are good in planting zone 7. Have fun.
Geraniums are great, especially in droughts. Also, go for begonias. They will keep plugging along with little water, in extreme heat.
Pineapple sage is really nice. Sometimes it overwinters, sometimes it doesn't. It gets tall & flowers in the fall.
I have some ice-plants for groundcover. They die back in the winter, but come back the next year.They flower from spring until winter.
Trial & error will be involved. I like sweet gum trees, but you might not be happy with them in the winter when the gum balls fall down. No matter how attractive you might think that a ginko tree is. Don't plant them.
I've been researching plants that are 1) xeric and 2) like clay soil or impoverished soil. :-) When I get my list organized I'll share it.
For those of us with bad backs, raised beds are a great way to go. They don't have to be rectangles, you can border a raised bed with almost anything and create flowing shapes.
(Please don't do what a former neighbor did and use tires to make a border. Although, maybe if planted so perennial creeping plants grew over the edges and obscured the tires it wouldn't be bad.)
I am also experimenting with an idea from "The Gardener Guy" (HGTV) - I laid out the edges of a butterfly garden, and layered on gypsum (the soil is clay and sodic), organic components like grass clippings, raked up old leaves, composted manure, and wheat straw. Then I wet it down periodically. I keep adding organic materials. In 4 - 6 months I should be able to dig into it. We'll see.
Hired help is coming over today to relocate some bushes and put a bunch of pampas grass into the ground, as well as hedge roses and butterfly bushes. If they do a good job I'll be willing to recommend them, so PM me if you want to know about their "report card".
Enjoy the day!
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