12 Stats About Garden Plants To Make You Look Smart Around Other People

Four Seasons of Garden Plants

Select herbs and vegetables that your family will enjoy. You should think about growing vegetables that thrive in shade, like kale and spinach.

Learn the difference between plants belonging to the same family by knowing their botanical names. Understanding their life cycle will help you plan and care for your garden.

Small Ornamental Trees

Trees can add a sense size to your garden and also provide visual interest throughout the year with their colorful spring blooms, autumn foliage, berries, or seed pods. They also can provide privacy screening and shade for a patio or entryway. Ornamental trees can be cultivated as a focal point on their own or grouping them together to create small groves or as part of a mixed shrub and border of flowers. Smaller ornamental trees are available pre-pruned to tree form at nurseries, or they can be purchased as bare roots and trained as required. Viburnums and winged euonymus and late lilacs are all large trees which can be cut down to small ornamental trees.

If you have an outdoor garden in an area that is hot and sunny that is well-drained, flowering trees will attract butterflies and other pollinators. Crape myrtle, as an example (Lagerstroemia Indica), is a popular choice in the southern part of the country because of its long blooming period of pinks and violets that last from the summer through to the autumn. The leaves turn yellow to red in autumn and it is a beautiful, exfoliating bark in winter. It is robust in zones 5 to 9.

The heptacodium or seven-sons tree can withstand full sun and produces small white flowers from late summer through early autumn. It's an excellent option for adding height to an uninspiring deck and is drought tolerant once established. The plant is tolerant of USDA zones 5 to 9.

In shadier places, the golden Irish yew (Chamaecyparis tricarpa) can bring color to shady corners of the garden thanks to its green to blue-green leaves. It is slow-growing, takes pruning with care and can thrive in full shade or partial shade. This plant is ideal for tight spaces because of its narrow, fastigiate habit.

Flowering Vines

Flowersing vines can be annuals that are only blooming for a short period or perennial plants that add some color to the landscape over many years. Some of these plants require a sturdy trellis to climb. Others can just sprawl on the ground. Most grow quickly to fill the vertical spaces in the garden which adds the appearance and interest where there may otherwise be a blank space. Vines are available in a variety of colors and blooming times. There are plants that fit into every USDA Hardiness zone. There are also many different types of climbing vines from clinging or woody varieties, such as English ivy, to herbaceous or non-woody vines, such as morning glory and nasturtium.

Flowering gardening tips for beginners are enhanced by a variety of flowers. The Susan with the black eyes Susan produces a lot of flowers in bright orange, yellow, or white with dark centers. This fast-growing annual works well as a trellis for the sun and also in containers. It's also a popular choice in hanging baskets where it can wiggle around the supports.

If you're looking for a more durable option than the black-eyed Susan Try the clematis. This perennial is popular and comes in a variety colors that include shades of yellow, pink white, and the apricot. Some clematis, like Duchess Edinburgh and Josephine have large, fragrant blooms that appear in the early spring. Others, like Sweet Autumn, bloom all through the summer and into the fall.

Another evergreen flowering vine is Carolina jessamine (Jasmine wrightii). This native to the southern United States is a lovely alternative for a planter or a container with its golden yellow, trumpet-shaped flowers. It will grow to towering heights if left unpruned and with sufficient support and care, making it an ideal plant for screening a view or shaded corner of an area.

Container Plants

Container plants can instantly add color to your garden without the burden of growing plants in raised beds or in the ground. They also make a great centerpiece at the entryway to a house. They're also a great way to plant flowers, herbs or vegetables that are at eye-level for easy picking and cooking. Containers come in a variety of sizes and shapes, including barrels (even half-barrels made of wood), buckets, baskets and boxes, window panes, urns, bath tubs, etc.

The most important factor to success in container gardening is knowing your plants and giving them the proper amount of attention. gardening tips for beginners to water plants in containers more frequently is essential because they dry out faster than those in the ground. Early morning watering is ideal because it gives them enough moisture to last the hotter midday hours. It also prevents dampness on leaves in the evening that can lead to disease.

Look for trailing plants with bright blooms or fun foliage to fill up a container garden. Coleus is a good option for pots. It comes in a variety of colors and leaf shapes that include dark green and variegated. Geraniums with ivy blooms are another appealing option. It's a classic plant for sunny containers and it will self-clean so you don't have to deadhead.

If you are looking for a taller potted plant to fill your outdoor space, consider the Japanese pieris. It blooms in spring or summer with stunning pink white, salmon-pink, or red flowers. This deer-resistant plant can dress up any corner, whether in the shade or sun. Papyrus can also be a great filler for large containers and its tufts vibrantly colored foliage look gorgeous hanging over the sides. Golden creeping Jenny is an alternative option (Lysimachia numularia 'Aurea' Zones 4-8). It's an excellent trailing plant that looks great in containers with more light. The yellow, coin-shaped foliage blends well with all colors.

Mid-Sized Trees

There is space in the garden for flowers that don't reach towering heights. These beautiful trees provide interest throughout the year and provide visual texture and shape to a garden. They also help bring your garden to life by their colors, flowers, and scents. These tiny trees are ideal to add a splash of color to a smaller garden, or in the front yard, or as an accent.

Crape myrtles, a type of flowering trees, are a classic. Breeders have developed an array of colors, ranging from the lilac-purple blooms of Muskogee crapemyrtle to the hot pinks and rich reds of Dynamite crapemyrtles and the exquisite whites of Natchez crapemyrtles. They are fast growing trees that bloom all summer long and can last for up to 40 years provided with proper care and the right conditions.

Serviceberry (Melancholiaxlucida) is a gorgeous deciduous tree that has flowers. This native tree features beautiful white flowers in the spring, followed by delicious dark berries and finely-toothed foliage. gardening for beginners has a red and yellow fall colour as well as a light-brown winter bark. It is easy to cultivate Serviceberry in full sun and well-drained soil. Once established, it will be drought resistant.

If you are looking for a small tree that will never die, look into swamp white oak (Quercus bicolor). This fast-growing, disease-free tree grows in wetlands where other trees aren't as adaptable. It can even withstand some flooding and is a good option for areas that are wet and where other trees can drown. It will reach 50-60 feet with a rounded shape and is an excellent choice for clay and wet soils. Once established, it will be drought-tolerant and is resistant to air pollution.

Light Requirements

There are mentions of "full shade," "partial shade" and even "part sun" on plant tags. These terms aren't always clearly defined. Typically, plants that require full sun must have a minimum of six hours of direct sunlight per day. The sun's rays are most intense between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. So, the spot of a full sun garden must be protected from the harsh, drying afternoon sun.





Certain vegetables, including fruit, can be grown in light shade but the majority of them require full sun. Leafy greens can also be affected by shade, however they might take longer to mature and produce.

Partial sun is a term used to describe garden areas that get between three and six hours of direct sunshine every day. The rest of the day they are moderately shaded or have dappled light from trees and leaves. The ideal partial sun or partial shade area is located on the east side of your home. This will provide shade in the early afternoon and cool morning sun for sun-loving plants such as rhododendrons and azaleas.

Full shade refers to extremely dark locations that seldom have direct sunlight. These areas could be covered by high evergreens or structures that hang over, or they could just be enclosed passageways and gardens between houses. These sites are hard to establish because of the competition between roots of trees for water and the general lack of sunlight. If you discover that a flower or vegetable isn't thriving in this kind of shade, consider moving it to another location and then provide additional water when needed. Shade-loving plants include astilbes, golden Hakone Grass, goatsbeard, and a range of ferns.