It’s time to fertilize and prune to keep your plants looking fresh until fall
The last week of July is when annuals, bedding plants, hanging baskets and container gardens will need a quick refresh to keep them looking their best until fall. Fertilize them all now.
Be sure to water the night before you use any fertilizer to prevent fertilizer burn, which happens when the plant takes in the plant food too quickly — it’s like indigestion in the plant world. An exception is if you use a slow release plant food such as Osmocote.
Next, snip back branching plants such as petunias, verbena and lobelia to encourage bushier plants, and continue to dead head or remove faded blossoms all summer long.
Remember that in late summer your potted plants will demand more water than they did earlier in the season as their roots fill up the pot leaving little room to store moisture.
Q. We have a hanging basket of ivy geraniums. It has done well but I am a bit confused about removing the dead flowers. Do I cut the stems as well as the flower heads? — N.G., Bonney Lake
A. Yes, when you dead head or remove spent blossoms, you should snip off the stem as well as the flower. When it comes to geraniums, here is a tip: When you see that almost all the flowers in the cluster have finished blooming, follow the stem of that bloom down to the point where it meets the first branch. Then use your thumb to just push this joint to the side. You should hear a satisfying snap as the stem, petiole and entire flower cluster comes off the plant. After the snap, you’ll be rewarded with a pop of new blooms.
Q. I have a question. We have a place near the ocean. Will Sea Hollies grow well near the sea or is that just a weird name for a plant? — Jeff, Email
A. Yes! There are many varieties of Sea Holly, or Eryngium, but many are native to seaside locations and all of these attractive perennials are known for their silvery foliage, exotic looking blooms and love of full sun and tolerance of exposed or windy locations. Although some of the Sea Hollies are originally from alpine locations they still survive in the well-drained soil that is common for many gardens near the sea.
The spiky, ruffled blooms come in intense shades of blue and purple, and unlike many flowers, the colors become more pronounced as the blooms fade. Then as a bonus you can harvest the stems and blooms, hang them upside down, and in the fall use them as dried flowers for indoor arrangements.
The best known variety of Sea Holly is “Miss Willmott’s Ghost,” which is about 4-feet tall with a silvery, ghost-like cast to the foliage.
Sea Holly is a fun plant to search for at local nurseries if you want to add something a bit different to the landscape.
Q. What is the name of the hydrangea that blooms on both old wood and new wood and blooms in the shade? My old-fashioned hydrangeas fail to bloom when the “landscaper” insists on pruning them back in the spring! I wish I could fire this gardener here, but he is unpaid and is a great husband so I cannot really complain. I just want hydrangeas that he can prune. — M.W., Tacoma
A. I am laughing at that last statement — lots of spouses insist on pruning how they want to prune. There are several types of hydrangeas that flower on new wood but the most common are the “Endless Summer” hydrangeas. There are also a series of hydrangeas called “Let’s Dance,” reblooming hydrangeas with extra-large flowers. Some stay pink (Let’s Dance Big Easy) even in our acid soil, a compact variety called “Let’s Dance Blue Jangles” blooms with blue, and “Let’s Dance Rave” flowers purple. They all survive harsh winters and harsh pruning to flower with big beautiful blooms — despite the unpaid gardener doing his thing in early spring.
Marianne Binetti has a degree in horticulture from Washington State University and is the author of several books. Reach her at binettigarden.com.