5 more gardening tips from Cantigny's head horticulturist

Here are a few pointers for the home gardener from Joy Kaminsky, director of horticulture at Cantigny Park, where more than 250,000 annuals are grown a year:

Prepare the soil: "If it's really hard for you to plant in, then you need to visualize that a root is probably not going to grow in that easily," Kaminsky says. "So it's a matter of turning the soil." Too much sand? Add some compost.

Think green: Cantigny keeps sustainability in mind with peppers and other "season extenders." Black Pearl peppers "have such a vibrant color that even after you get a very first frost, they're still great in the garden" with a fall mum, Kaminsky says. Also try drought-tolerant annuals to conserve water.

Take the occasional risk: The vast majority - roughly 90 percent - of what Kaminsky plants are varieties that she knows are reliable and durable. That way, she can try something new, and if it doesn't do so well, it's easy to change out.

Plan for next year - now: "You should always be planning for the next season while you're in it, and that's a tough thing for people to remember," Kaminsky says. So snap some pictures to document what looks good and where. And shop around early if you want to get your garden gloves on the hard-to-find annuals.

Break the rules: To Kaminsky, there are no perfect color combinations, no right design scheme. "You can't allow yourself to be limited by what a garden book might say," she says.