Planting Shrubs, Perennials And Annuals Correctly
You found the most perfect, beautiful annuals or perennials at the garden center. How you plant them in your garden is going to determine if they thrive or if they don’t.
As Michael Pollan wrote in his excellent book Second Nature: A Gardener’s Education, “Better to put a fifty cent plant in a five dollar hole than a five dollar plant in a fifty cent hole.” In other words, take your time and dig a proper hole for your new plant.
A BIG mistake that some folks make is to dig a hole the same size as the root ball, pull the plant out of the container, drop it in the hole and cover it up with garden soil. When the plant dies and you pull it out of the hole, in many cases the root ball looks just like it did when you originally planted it. The plant never had a chance.
Up to this point, your plant has most likely lived its life with near perfect light in a pot in a greenhouse and a garden center. It has most likely been hardened off and is at least a few months old. Any plant is going to experience a certain amount of stress when transplanted and it’s up to you to minimize how much your plant has to endure. Minimizing plant stress helps the plant to root faster which leads to proper stem and foliage growth. It’s also important to site the plant correctly: How much light or shade does it like? What kind of soil? How much water? What size will it be when fully mature? Once you’ve answered these questions you’ll find the perfect place on your property to show off your new addition.
Get your garden soil in shape
Poor soil = poor growth. Before you dig your hole, make sure that the soil drains well and has plenty of organic material to nourish the plant.
If your plant is bareroot, dig a hole wide enough to accommodate ALL of the roots and deep enough so the plant is at the same depth it was in the greenhouse. As a rule of thumb, your hole should be at least twice as wide and twice as deep as the root system. How do you tell when you have the depth right? When planted, the top of
the roots should not be showing and when you look at the stem, you should be able to see a slight coloration difference indicating the previous soil’s depth.
A container plant requires less guesswork. Dig a hole two to three times as wide as the container, and twice as deep as the rootball. Fill the hole with water, let it drain, then fill and drain again. Now support the plant with one hand, turn the container upside down and ease the plant out of the container (sometimes it helps to thoroughly soak the plant with water first). Lightly use your fingers to comb out the roots, letting the soil mix drop into the planting hole. Put the plant in the hole and let it stand upright. Throw a little compost on top of the roots to encourage growth and fill the hole with soil up to the point it sat in the container.
If your shrub’s root ball is wrapped in burlap, cut the burlap free after you put the shrub in the hole. The burlap will slowly deteriorate and act as a mulch.
Tamp the soil down with the palm of your hand (not too hard!) to get the air out, settle it and to make sure it contacts the roots. Then soak the plant and the area around the plant thoroughly with water. Put a small amount of organic fertilizer on top of the soil around the root zone (never on the roots in the hole) and cover with about two inches of mulch. Water regularly until your new plant is established.
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