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Ah, the budding landscape of Atlanta.
At this time, I'll get lots of questions from concerned gardeners about those things in their yards which are still...brown. "Did you water them over the winter?" I ask. "Was I supposed to? What about that snow we had, didn't that count as watering?" When the water table is lower than Callista Flockharts' weight, watering is neccesary all the time, not just when it's hot outside. And to the second part of the query, alas--no, our wee snowfall does not count for much. Short bursts of freezing precipitation actually dehydrate plants very quickly, with an effect just like refrigerator freezer burn. There is also the distinct possiblity that you may be looking at a plant which exhibits winter dormancy as part of its' natural growth cycle. This begs the following question-- How can you tell if a browned-out plant is really, REALLY dead? First and foremost, identify the plant correctly. This SOUNDS simple enough, but even the most experienced of us can forget what was put in the ground, and yank out a nice perennial, or hardy annual, which is still asleep. This can be a problem even if you tagged your plants....the tags may be gone. One year my son, who was about four, put all my tags in a ratty, old basket, and presented them to me as a gift. I never did identify everything, and ended up waitng to see if some of the plants ever woke up, were just plain toast, or were weeds to begin with. When in doubt, wait to pull it out! There are specific indications for some plants in this regard; hydrangeas will bud out on limbs which look like deadfall; balloon flower (platycodon) waits until very late spring to look alive. Knowing what plant you have, and checking out its' appearance schedule IN YOUR ZONE, can save you some grief. Remember: New England's midsummer bloomer is a Southern spring arrival. Once upon a time I kept a garden diary, which was extremely helpful when I forgot what I put where. Now, when I get super busy and don't have time to write in the diary, I date the nursery tags on plants I buy, and stick them between the pages of my book. It's not as elegant and impressive as a wordy diary, but it usually gives my memory a wake-up call. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article Wanted: Dead or Alive? in Gardening in Southern U.S. is owned by . Permission to republish Wanted: Dead or Alive? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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