A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion Landscape trials and triumphs The Frugal Gardening Forum All Season Gardening?

I just bought a house last year that has a potential for some very beautiful landscape gardening. It already has some of the basics.. for example there are spring and summer flowers, and there are 3 rose bushes. The problem is they're well overgrown, I've found garbage in them (fencing and fence posts), and they're not exactly complete. I'm a noobie gardener. The most I've ever done are Irises as they pretty much take care of themselves.

I'm starting off easy, this spring. I'm wanting to get the strip that runs across the front of the house set up properly. It has two shrubs and two rose bushes. I've planted tulips and some other spring flowers growing wild in the backyard gardens, but I was wondering if anyone knew where I could go to find out how to plant a garden that blooms all season? You know, flowers die in the spring as summer flowers start to bloom, then die as the autumn flowers bloom? Aside from the rose bushes, I really don't want anything extremely tall. I want the rose bushes to be like the focal points. (If I don't accidentally kill them first lol.) Anyways, does anyone have any ideas? Cuz I'm at a complete loss...

P.S. I think the wild flowers that are cropping up are naked lady lillies and calla lillies. I know the naked ladies won't actually bloom until late summer. They pretty much grow wild all over my yard.

I'm slowly building a 4 season garden myself. So I wish you all the luck.

Unlike you all of my beds will not be in bloom all the time. That's a great idea. I find that managing to find plants that like the same type of soil, water, and sun and also bloom at different times is asking alittle more than I can do.

it looks like you are short the fall plants so I'll reproduce my list of those here.

Fall Blooming flowers categorized by bloom colors available

The perennial grass miscanthus requires full sun and regular water.

The following are examples of colorful flowering plants:
Blue flowers: monkshood, globe thistle, pale-blue flax, bottle gentian
Pink flowers: Aster novae-angliae 'Alma Potschke' or 'Honeysong Pink', Japanese burnet (Sanguisorba obtusa), Sedum 'Vera Jameson', roses, Aster, Suprise Lilies
Yellow flowers: black-eyed Susans, dahlias, perennial sunflowers, ligularia, chrysanthemums, Patrinia scabiosaefolia, goldenrod, marguerite, golden asters
Purple flowers: Joe-Pye weed, asters, Russian sage, ground-hugging spiderwort, autumn crocus, Mexican Sage, Aster, Panzies
White flowers: dahlias, chrysanthemums, sweet autumn clematis, Aster, Suprise Lilies
Warm Color Combinations: Helenium autumnale (red, yellow, orange, combinations)

Red: Pineapple Sage, Suprise Lilies

I am also working on some that bloom during the winter.

Adonis Amurensis
Erica Carnea "Vivellii
Erica Carnea "Winter Beauty"
Witch Hazel

For winter interest although they are not blooming at that time are the walking stick tree and the chinese lanterns. Note: the chinese laterns are invasive.

I'm sorry I couldn't give you a link. But this is what information I've gathered so far. I hope some of it helps.

Thanks for the list! I truly appreciate it. I will be looking to those as my budget allows. I didn't think there was anything of color for the winter lol.

So far, I've done a lot of work on my front bed. I found out that one of the flowers I have is called an Asaitic Lilly. It blooms in the summer.

I decided I hated the ceder shrubs on each end, so I got rid of them. I've transplanted my rose bushes in their places. So now I have a rose bush on each end and one in the center.

I also found that the eaves hanging over my garden, though does restrict the rains, does NOT restrict the sun. Therefore, my front bed gets full sun, and I've put in one of those seeping hoses to make sure it gets plenty of moisture.

I had a bunch of shamrocks spring up, and I've transplanted them in intervals across the strip I'm turning into a garden. I know they're invasive, but I positively LOVE them, and they will help to keep out the weeds. At this point, they're the only thing that's blooming. My tulips aren't growing well, so I may have to bring someone in to make sure I've planted them properly, and that my soil ph is balanced for them. It may be a bit too sandy for them, I don't know. I may add more peat to it before I plant more as it is quite a bit sandy with a layer of clay about a half a foot underneath. Otherwise, it's dark, rich soil just waiting for good planting.

I also have more monkey grass then I know what to do with. I've just dug a trench going across the front and sides of the bed. I'm going to put in two garden edgings about 6 inches apart and will be transplanting the monkey grass into them. These will be in place of rocks and fences.

I've transplanted butter cups? and tulips from the back yard to the front yard as well as the Asiatic lillies. I have some sort of plant that has just started come up in the flower bed. I don't know what it is, but it's a bulbous plant, so I'm looking forward to see what springs from it. I do know it isn't an iris. I found some naked ladies sprouting up here and there in my yard that I transplanted last summer. That gives me 2 types of lillies and roses for the summer and late summer months. I will be researching the plants you've given me to find what I would like to plant for the fall.

Have you looked for any plant swaps around you? That is where I got all my year long blooming plants. West Tn is getting ready to have a big swap in Memphis in May.

actually there are alot of pre-planned gardens on BHG.com. I have quite a few printed out for referance. I think I did see some that had all season plans, with plants $ alternate plants- depending on your zone.

I'm new and I'm trying to figure all of this out.... where on the page after you log in do you go to post a forum or question??? I've been trying to ask a question about my little vegie garden.... I've planted some crookneck squash and the plants look beautiful and they have bloomed and put baby squash on but now they are alll falling off without maturing??? help

Hi bluebird-- I had the same question about posting when I joined last year.

After you log in, on the main page, you'll see a heading (below the ad) called "forum list". Click on it & you'll see the list of forums. The one you want to post to about the veggies is "Food Forum". Go there & you'll see another list of sub-forums. Go to "vegetables", and then click on new topic.

Hope this helps.

By the way, it helps if you include your location in your profile.

I know exactly what you are saying about budget. I always go way overboard when it comes to the garden budget. My friends are learning not to let me stop at garden centers. Those things kill a budget. Are you going to get the free grant from the government for up to 8,000. For buying a new house now? I got into the one last year but that one I have to pay back over 15 years. But no interest and only 500 a year is still a good idea in my book. After paying off bills and getting a new used car pretty much the rest of it ended up in the yard. No surprise there right? I went for fruit trees, bushes, power tools, and soil amendments. Now I'm working on all the plants that aren't easy to find and cost more than I've ever spent on plants before. I love it everytime I get one. It's like a celebration. So far I've completed the foundation bed, the sidewalk bed, and the tree/flower bed. I'm going to terrace the veggie garden next and then all all amended dirt into the terraces. That should pretty much use up all of my energy this year.