Favorite Fabrics

I've been in my house 21 years now, and so my perennial garden is... 20 years old. And it's definitely not looking as exciting as it once die.

My question is for those of you who also have (or had) old gardens.

At some point, did you just dig everything up and totally re-do it?

Or did you just leave it as it is?

Or, having made your choice... do you wish you had chosen the OTHER route?

Vicki W

You have to dig up and divide every so often. I love my perennials but also love the pops of colors that annuals add.

brushandthimble

Working through my beds (not as old as yours), this year, dig and divide. One thing leads to another, so this will be an ongoing project into next year at least.

GrandmaPeggy

What an exciting proposal.... to replant, move, update, rejuvenate!!! When we moved into our 10 year old house, we watched, planned and waited. A hurricane came in and took out some of the plantings in the back yard, which was both good and bad news. With our budget in mind, we started work in the front yard. We removed the first group of plants. We improved the soil and enlarged the bed slightly. Then, we bought mostly 1 gallon size plants, along with a few larger ones. Some were a hit (spring blooms, plus the deer ate them), but some were a miss (conditions were not right for them). The next year, we removed the next group of plants and repeated the previous year of work. Then, we filled old bed areas with grass and planted a tree. Now, four years later, it all looks pretty good....but still not a "Yard of the Month". I want to add roses to brighten all the green, but as a retiree, they might be more work than I want.

So, if you have good bones to your garden, just move, remove, replant the smaller shrubs and annuals that will make a garden look fresh. Have fun!!! Try some new things!!! Or, if your budget is not a problem, hire a professional to make your vision a reality. Share photos with us too.

Joset

about every 5 years i dig out and divide my plants. and add a a little new soil when i put them back in.
i move things around a little if i want. and let it go for about another 5 years. brings new life to it.

Tartan

My perennial garden is getting to look better as I am fixing it a section at a time. The grass was creeping in and some needed dividing and others were not doing well. I suggest you do the first section where you see it from the house first. It will give you a little boost to look out and see it doing well and the motivation to tackle the rest. Keep your eye out this spring for end of planting season clearance too. When garden centers are closing down for the summer, you can get some perennials at rock bottom prices. My perennial favourites are stargazer lillies, peony, hollyhock, hosta, poppy, shasta daisy, iris because they do well for me with no maintainance. I have spring pops of colours with tulips, lilly of the valley, star of Bethleham, grape hyacith and daffodils. I also like ground covers of snow on the mountain and perriwinkle for the shady spots with some native plants like jack in the pulpit and mayflowers. I must admit spring came a little early for me this year and I barely got my rose garden trimmed back in time.

wildyard

Because of my physical problems, I cannot tackle a huge project, so I try to do things a little at a time. I divide something every year, and move things when I decide I don't like them where they are. I do a few square yards of garden upkeep every week, and one bigger project each week. That's about all I can manage. I have replaced some perennials with shrubs to lower maintainence, and grow only old time roses that don't require all the TLC the tea roses need. You just can't beat a Rugosa for beauty and health in a rose.

sniktasemaj

I wish I had this problem. I am in a maintained village in Florida and don't have that option.

crafty pat

We built our house twenty four years ago. I have changed out my perennials several times. I have five live oak trees in my back yard so only half of my yard gets sunshine most of the day. As the trees have grown I have had to move the sun lovers several times and replace with shade loving plants. I also love the annuls when my RA lets me work with them. I so loved my Hong Kong orchid tree however it froze back and came back as a bush. DD is taking it to Corpus where she will have better luck with it, I hope.

Annaquilts

I'll take your established perenial garden and you can have my weed over grown front yard. It does come with two trees, a magnolia and a willow. Both are small. If possible maybe take out parts that are less inspiring and add annuals for the summer. Then with the fall plant bulbs. I love perenial gardens but a little pop is fun and brings sparkle. Plants are expensive and what does not look great this time of year might look stunning at another time. All of this you want to take into consideration before removing perenials permanently. I would love to see pictures of your garden.