How to Plant

A flower bed adds character and colour to your yard. If you’re willing to put in some work up-front, followed by a little maintenance and regular watering, you will be rewarded with a beautiful flower bed for years to come!

To start, ensure you create a healthy place for your plant to thrive by thinking through your planting location, the soil you’re going to use, and how you will feed the plant. Lastly, don’t forget to mulch!

If you have questions, don't hesitate to reach out to us and our experienced staff will be happy to advise you! 

Location

Your perennials and shrubs will live in your garden for years at a time. It is very important that you carefully choose the location where you plant them

Good drainage is essential. If the desired location tends to be wet for prolonged periods in the spring or fall, then you should choose another area or use raised beds that will be high enough to allow the roots of the plants to avoid wet areas.

Soil

To ensure your plants are healthy for years to come, it is important to make sure that soil is well prepared at the time of planting.

Thoroughly mix 1 part of existing soil with 2 parts of an enriched soil product. This can be a combination of peat moss, compost, blended soils, or any media that will enhance the structure, aid in drainage, and add nutrients to the soil.

You should try to produce an amended soil mixture that is dug down to a minimum of 18 inches in depth. Remember, you get one chance to lay the “foundation” for the house your plants will live in!

Mulch

After planting, you should heavily mulch the bed. Suitable options include shredded bark or nugget wood mulch. Hay is not recommended because it contains weed seeds

You want to allow the soil to breathe, allow water to penetrate, but will not stay too wet – as this can promote disease.

Generally, 4-6 inches of chopped wood mulch is required to inhibit weed growth, retain moisture and regulate temperature. This protects the plants from hot summer days, as well as reduces frost heaving during winter thaws. Please make sure that the mulch does NOT touch the plant stems.

Fertilizer

Perennials and Trees

An initial feeding in the early spring, and then a follow-up lighter application a month later.

Annuals

Fertilize twice a month with a water-soluble fertilizer. Follow instructions from the fertilizer manufacturer for suggested application rates.

Planting Instructions – Trees and Shrubs

We sell our nursery stock in many different types of containers. Plastic or fibre pots are the most popular on our yard. We also have balled in burlap and packaged stock. When you are planting the type of container is as important as the type of soil in which you plant.

The type of soil and how you plant in it are the key factors in the transplanting of nursery stock. With most soils (loam, sandy, clay) peatmoss and manure or compost are good additives. With the amount of heavy clay soils in our area these soil additives are extremely important in the success of your landscape.

Plastic Pot

Remove the pot. If the roots of container grown plants have occupied all of the soil in the container and in any way appear ‘root-bound’, use your hands or a knife to loosen the roots on the side and bottom.

Bare Root

When planting make sure all broken roots are pruned. Work in soil around roots to eliminate air pockets. Plants may require staking.

Balled in Burlap

When planting, dig the hole and then set the plant in. Always untie the burlap that is around the main trunk and pull it back. Also, slit the burlap in several places to quicken the rooting process

Fibre Pot

Do not remove the pot. These pots rot when completely covered with soil. Make sure you break or cut off the hard lip of the pot. Also, slit the pot with a sharp knife in several places

Planting in Most Soils

Place

Place the plant at the centre of the hole. In clay soils the bottom of the planting hole should be worked or scored with a pitchfork, shovel or iron bar to allow for better drainage and eventual root penetration. Also, in clay soils you’ll need to add 1-2 inches of soil to the bottom of the hole before placing the plant to create the raised mount effect described in #1.

Dig

Dig the hole at least one foot wider and 6 inches deeper than the pot your plant came in. For bare root plants, use the overall size of the roots naturally spread out. For heavy clay soils, the hole should be even slightly larger and the ground level should be raised 1-2 inches to create a raised mount effect.

Fill

Fill the hole with soil that has had peat moss, manure/compost, and bone meal mixed in thoroughly. Soil should be packed down very well. At this point the plant should be watered in.

Feed

Do not over fertilize your beds. Over-fertilizing results in excess, weak growth that will not be attractive and will be susceptible to insect and disease problems.