Make your patio, flower beds pop!
When planting a container, mix different heights of plants for a layered effect. Try something different from the typical tall plant in the center with a ring of shorter plants. Include plants that will cascade over the edge.
Think of your containers as large, exuberant floral displays when choosing plants. Combine different sizes of containers in each group for a good effect. A simple design of only one variety of annual planted in each container can also be beautiful.
• Pinch fall-blooming plants such as chrysanthemums and hardy asters to control their size and increase production of flowers.
Pinching will encourage side branching, producing bushier, stockier plants. Make the first pinch when the plants reach 6 to 8 inches in height by removing approximately 1 inch from the tip of each shoot. When the resulting lateral branches reach 6 inches, pinch them as well.
These plants should not be pinched later than July 4 in the Chicago area to avoid negative impact on flowering.
• May was a dry month so it is a good idea to provide supplemental water to any plants you have installed over the last two to three years. Any plants installed this spring should be getting regular water to get established during the dry weather.
Plants growing in containers may need watering two to three times per week, depending on the weather, where they were planted, and how extensive their root system is for the first few weeks until the roots grow out into the native soil.
Balled and burlapped trees and shrubs usually do well with one good soaking of the root ball a week. Check the soil to monitor how much moisture is present to help you determine when to water.
• Pay attention to the backs of borders, where invasive weeds such as buckthorn, mulberry and box elder can get a foothold and hide themselves among other shrubs. It's much easier to remove them with a soil knife than digging out roots of bigger plants with a spade.
I am seeing lot of buckthorn seedlings in my home garden and bigger ones that have gotten established in my fence, which will be difficult to eradicate.
• Tim Johnson is director of horticulture at Chicago Botanic Garden, chicagobotanic.org.