Whether you’re planting only one shrub or fifty annuals, it’s important to prepare the soil. This is true even if you’re planting in an existing flower bed. Prepare new flower beds well. In existing flower beds, work a few spadefuls of soil ammendment, such as compost, into the area you’ll be planting. Especially if planting annuals, work a slow-release fertilizer into the ground. Annuals are hungry, fast-growing plants that thrive when given plenty of nutrients.
Before planting, make sure your plants are well-watered and not wilting. If they are looking droopy, water them in their existing pots and wait a day for them to recover. If a plant is a bare-root, soak the roots in cool water for several hours before planting.
To plant, remove the plant gently from its pot. If the roots are wrapped in circles or are thickly knotted, loosen them with your fingers. If the roots are very large and tough, you may even need to slice through them slightly with a space to loosen them.
Position the plant so the soil level is the same as it was in the pot. If the plant is bare-root, plant it at the depth specified in the package.
Difficult as it may sedem, pinch or trim off any flowers. They’re taking energy that would be better put into establishing the plant’s root system for bigger, better and more flowers later on. You’ll lose a few pretty blooms initially, but you’ll be rewarded with a healthier, longer-blooming plant.
Water the plant well. If it’s a shrub or a rose, position a hose at the base just barely at a trickle and let it run for half an hour or more. For annuals and perinneals, water so the soil is soaked a foot down.
Keep the plants well watered for the first two weeks, checking them daily for soil moisture and signs of wilting. Once they’re established, they’ll need less water.
Hot Tips!
Get those roots going! When planting, it’s a good idea to add something that will get the roots off to a FAST start. Well-developed root systems make for healthier plants that are better at taking up water and critical nutrients. A so-called starter fertilizer is heavy on phosophorus, which encourages growth. Another way to get roots going is to use a root stimulator. Root stimulators contain hormones that encourage rapid root growth.
Happy planting!
