We all wish that we were born with a green thumb — able to effortlessly create a beautiful garden full of color or cultivate a lawn that would be the envy of the neighborhood.
However, if you are anything like me — the girl who killed a cactus, which was supposed to be invincible against untalented killing machines such as myself — you need a bit of help to transform that “Secret Garden” dream into a reality.
Perhaps one day in the near future you will walk out your door and breathe a sigh of relief while staring at the perfection popping out all around you.
Cathy Fruhauf, executive director for the past 15 years of the Country Garden Club of Clifton Park — founded in 1952 — has some advice to make the green grass and stunning flowers to grow all around:
Read the Bible: “I always tell people that they have to read ‘The Well-Tended Perennial Garden’ by Tracy DiSabato-Aust,” Fruhauf said. “It’s an essential tool.”
Annuals or perennials: “If you want instant gratification, like if you have a graduation party or a function and need flowers in bloom right now, annuals are the way to go,” Fruhauf said.“They grow for one year and then they are dead and gone and you just buy some new ones to replace them.”
“Perennials are more of an investment; you plant them once and then they last for years, at least a couple of years,” Fruhauf said. “You have to know when they bloom; it’s kind of like art, you want to have a continuous succession of blooming flowers.”
Buying stock: “You don’t want to spend your whole garden budget at once in the springtime,” Fruhauf said. “Keep going back every couple of weeks to see what they have.”
Under not over: Watering your plants isn’t as simple as you may think. “Don’t water the tops of the flowers,” Fruhauf said. “Be sure that you water the roots; that’s where plants need it.”
Read labels: “Familiarize yourself with the botanical names,” Fruhauf said. “Get to know about the characteristics of the plants and be able to recognize them.”
Planting stage: “Flowers look better when placed in several groups versus rows,” Fruhauf said.
Don’t sully the soil: “Soil is the biggest thing that most new gardeners skip,” Fruhauf said. “You have to be sure that you do a soil test to tell you if the pH is acidic or alkaline. Different plants like different environments.”
No more mulch: “Do not buy mulch; it is the most overused and unhelpful thing.” Fruhauf said. “Compost and mulch are not the same thing — compost is better. There is no nutritional value in mulch. Also, if you have someone landscape your backyard, don’t let them mulch near your trees. It keeps the moisture in the base of the tree, the bark rots and insects go into the base.”
Create character: “Try to get a variety of different shades of greens including grayish, darker, chartreuse, bright.” Fruhauf said. “Also, be sure to have some different textures such as lacy foliage, long, spiky and ruffled; it makes all the difference.”
It’s not a school photo: “You don’t always have to put the shortest in the front and the tallest in the back,” Fruhauf said. “It looks better to mix it up.”
White out: Want those vivid colors to pop even more? Fruhauf said: “Every garden can use a little white.”
Disease control: “You can describe it or take a piece of the plant directly to a cooperative extension,” Fruhauf said. “That way you can find the source of the problem.”
