You have perused the gardening magazines, scanned the amazing pics on Pinterest, and are now ready to plant your own perennial garden. Before you venture out to your favorite garden centre, its important to have some information in hand. Most garden centres who bring in or grow their own perennials will have picture tags on the pots. These tags hold information for success. Take a look at the desired spot before you buy or dig. Make a note on how the sun moves over the bed.

 

Here's a basic checklist to fill out before you shop for perennials:

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Garden size: length____ & width____

Amount of sun:

• 4 – 6 hours

• 3 – 4 hours

• less than 3 hours

• all shade

 

Soil type:

• sandy

• clay

• amended/enriched

 

Soil moisture:

• wet

• slightly moist

• well-draining

• dry

 

Other things to consider are plant height, colour choices and bloom time. If you want your garden to bloom through most of the growing season, then you have to seek out plants with different bloom times. Staggering heights, bloom times, foliage textures and foliage colours can provide you with a very stunning and impactful garden.