Mid to late summer
Grow in full sun in
Fine textured gray
atriplicifolia
blooming woody
well-drained,
contrast in large
perennial or sub
average to poor
scale mixed or
Russian Sage
shrub. Lavender-blue
soil. Space 2 feet
perennial border.
flowers in airy,
apart. Drought
branched clusters on
tolerant. Cut back
top stems. Leaves
to 1 to 1 ½ feet in
silver-gray and lanced spring before new
shaped. Reaches 3 to
growth begins.
5 feet tall.
Zones 5-9.
Sedum spectabile
Late summer and fall
Grow in full sun to
Best in perennial
bloom. Showy
partial shade in
border or rock
Showy stonecrop
clusters of tiny
well-drained,
garden. Favorites
flowers, pale green in average soil. Needs for mass planting.
bud and opening
full sun in the
pink, form dense
south or the plants
heads above the
grow too tall.
foliage. Succulent
Space 1 ½ feet
green leaves surround apart. Zones 3-10.
stiff stems, upright
clumps 1 ½ to 2 feet
tall.
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Weekender Bulb Recommendations
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Bulb
Description Maintenance
Comments
Plant Name
Chionodoxa luciliae
Early spring bloom.
Grow in sunny spot Plant in large
Stalks of several 1
in well-drained
groups. Foliage
Glory-of-the-snow
inch wide, bright blue soil. Plant 3 inches
dies down in
flowers with white
deep and 4 inches
summer.
eyes rise above the
apart. Spreads and
strap-shaped foliage.
self-sows. Zones 4-
Grows about 4 to 6
9.
inches tall.
Colchicum
Fall flowering corm.
Grow in full sun in
Looks best planted
autumnale
Large 4-inch long,
fertile, well-
in a ground cover,
vase-shaped violet,
drained soil. Plant
which forms a
Autumn crocus,
lilac, pink or white
corms in late
backdrop for the
Meadow saffron
flowers emerge
summer for fall
bare stemmed
directly from the bare bloom, spacing
flowers.
ground. Each corm
them 3-4 inches
produces several
deep and 10-12
flowers. Bright green
inches apart. Zones
leaves 8 to 10 inches
5-8.
long emerge in spring
and persist until mid-
summer.
Crocus spp.
Early spring or fall
Grow in full sun or Mass plant for best
blooming corm.
light shade in well
look under a
Crocuses
Vase-shaped flowers
drained to dry soil.
deciduous tree or
with yellow stamens
Plant corms 3
shrub. Perennial
bloom many to a
inches deep and 3-
gardens may be too
corm. Dark green,
6 inches apart.
moist for success.
grass-like foliage
Performs poorly in
Nice in cluster in a
often has white stripe
heavy or wet soil.
rock garden.
down the center.
Zones 5-9.
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Bulb
Description Maintenance
Comments
Plant Name
Leucojaum aestivum
Spring bloom.
Grow in full sun to
Plant along a
Clusters of bell-
partial shade in
walkway or where
Summer snowflake
shaped white flowers
moist soil. Plant 3-
they can be viewed
have petals with
5 inches deep and 4 from a window,
green on the tips.
inches apart. Bulbs
early blossoms in
Foliage is dark green
may increase and
spring will lift your
and strap-shaped; to 1 self-sow in right
spirits! Well suited
1.2 feet long.
site.
for mixed borders.
Lilium spp.
Early summer to fall
Grow in full sun to
You really must
bloom. Numerous
light shade in
have these in a
Lilies
species and hybrids
fertile, humus,
perennial or mixed
make lilies very
moist but well
border. Nicely fit
diverse. Fragrant
drained soil. Plant
in the mid-ground
flowers. Many shapes at a depth that is 2-
or background
from nodding, upright 3 times the
planted in groups
and trumpet, star or
diameter of the
of three bulbs.
bowled. Range in
bulb and 1 foot
Place in a cut
height from 1 to 7
apart. Zones 4-9.
garden too, so you
feet. Every color
can have them
except blue.
indoors to enjoy.
Narcissus
Spring flower with a
Grow in full sun to
Most grow well
trumpet-shaped
partial shade in
mass planted in
Daffodils, jonquils,
corolla and petal-like
fertile, humus, and
natural landscapes,
and narcissi
rounded perianth;
well-drained soil.
especially smaller
double or single.
Plant 3 times
flower types. Also
Leaves usually 12-20
deeper than the
in a border.
inches long.
diameter of the
bulb. Foliage dies
back in mid-
summer. Zones 4-
9.
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Bulb
Description Maintenance
Comments
Plant Name
Tulipa spp.
Spring flowering
Grow in full sun in
Plant in cutting
bulb. Hybrids are
well-drained,
garden and remove
Tulips
elegant with a single
fertile soil. Plant at
them after flowers
large flower at the top depth 3 times the
are cut for indoors.
of a sturdy stem with
width of bulb and 6 Nice when treated
several large basil
inches apart. Zones as annuals in a
leaves. In every color
2-8.
mixed border. Try
but blue, can come in
plantings in masses
bi-colors and
in a single color.
streaked.
Rosa
Polyantha hybrid
Grow in full sun to
Great in a strong
rose. Clusters of tiny,
light shade in
hedge or screen, or
‘The Fairy’, The
pink, double
moist, fertile soil.
as a specimen in a
fairy rose
blossoms from spring Tolerates poor soil
mixed border or
to early frost. New
and drought. Very
cottage garden.
canes emerge, and
insect and disease
then arch over to
resistant. Zones 5-
form a 5-foot mound
9.
without pruning.
Rosa ‘Simplicity’
Clusters of bright,
Grow in full sun in
Great as a
clear pink flowers
moist, fertile soil.
flowering hedge or
‘Simplicity’ rose
bloom from early
Prune out
screen. Use as a
summer until frost.
deadwood in
specimen in a
Dark green, bold
winter but
mixed garden or
foliage. Upright
otherwise needs no cottage garden.
plants reach 5 feet tall pruning.
without pruning.
Susceptible to
black spot in some
sites, but generally
pest free. Zones 5-
9.
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This chapter has attempted to give you an overview of readily available plants that you can use for a carefree weekend garden. However, it is not exhaustive, and should you wish for a more complete listing visit your local garden club, library, or horticultural society. They can guide you to many fine plant directories currently available on the market.
Now let’s take a look at the tools and techniques that will be helpful to you in the next chapter.
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Chapter 8: Matching The Tool and
Task In Your Weekend Garden
Don’t Take Your Tools For Granted
As a fellow weekender you’ll be happy to know there are many tools and
techniques
you can employ to save hours of labor and virtually assure you experience
little or no frustration. It’s important not to take your tools for granted, and
do invest in the best you can afford. The better made tools last longer and
will ultimately save you money.
Power tools exist for nearly every gardening chore you can come across, I think my old neighbor Fred had them all! But these loud, environmentally unfriendly power tools don’t always do a better job than your sturdy hand tool can. I for one think it’s rather ironic that some gardeners can love the earth enough to spend hours tending to her, and yet expend tons of fossil fuels to power these mechanical marvels. The power mad might not like me saying this but now that you’ve learned many ways to create a maintenance free garden, you really don’t need all that ‘extra’ help these gizmos promise.
However, in the following list I haven’t totally left out the power tools. Where I have found them particularly effective they are listed alongside my favorite hand tools. There is discussion of techniques that you will find of interest too.
Dig In and Plant With These Tools
Digging, preparing beds, planting, and lifting are intensive tasks that can wear you down pretty quickly, especially if you’re not in the best of shape. These tools cut down the amount of physical effort you need to expend to be successful. While some gardeners use one tool for many different jobs, others prefer to match the job to be done with a tool that is particularly helpful to that task.
Spades. This traditional English digging tool has a flat, rectangular blade attached at an angle to a short handle. You can put your weight behind the tool while you push the blade straight into the ground for digging. The handle should be sturdy enough to hold your weight with a short handle which allows to lift the blade from the ground with ease. If you’re over 6 ft. tall you can find spades of longer length (30 to 32 inches) that will be easier on your back.
Heavy gauge steel is recommended of solid socket or sold-strap design. Try to get the lightest one you can afford which meets these strength requirements.
Shovels. Designed for scooping and lifting the shovel has a rounded head with a pointed The Weekend Gardener by Victor K. Pryles
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end. It is attached at an angle to a long handle providing good leverage for moving dirt, gravel, sand and soil. Americans enjoy shovels and they make the best in the world.
Quality shovels have a blade and shank created from a single piece of high-carbon, heat tempered steel. This makes it stronger than a single socket type.
Crowbars. When you need to pry up rocks or heavy root balls use a crow bar instead of your shovel. Prying could easily break a shovel handle, or at least break your hind parts from the strain. It’s just not designed for this kind of effort. The crowbar, on the other hand, is tailor made for prying up heavy objects.
Mattocks. This digging tool can be used for difficult soil types like rocky, hard-baked clay. It resembles a thick axe head and will cut large roots. The other end is more like a hoe and will chop into and pull up the soil. Since you must swing the mattock over your head, please use caution. If you swing too loosely or with too much force it may get unwieldy pretty fast and cause you irreparable harm.
Forks. When you need to lift and loosen, or turn over soil, a fork does the job. It won’t do much digging for you, but it will do splendidly in raising potatoes and bulbs of all kinds. There are many types of forks with different numbers of tines and shapes.
Whichever you choose make sure it’s sturdy especially in the handle because the tines take so much stress they must also be of top quality. Fine tempered steel and solid socket construction with tines that spring back a bit when a stone gets caught between them is ideal.
English garden fork. This square-tined fork loosens and serrates soil. It’s sturdy, sharp pointed tines penetrate the soil easily. Use it to loosen double dug soil in spring without turning it over. Just push it into the soil with your foot, then rock it back and forth to open up the soil. You can find it useful when dividing perennials, too. It will also cause less root damage than the American, or flat tined fork.
Spading fork. This specialized fork tool is used to turn and lift new soil, as opposed to simply stabbing and loosening it. It has broader tines which allow more surface and lifting of clods of soil.
Compost fork. This fork hoists wood chips, manure, or compost from one pile to another or to a wheelbarrow and is much lighter than a shovel. In turning compost it can move across coarse material which won’t fall between the tines. Its numerous curved tines are longer, thinner and more widely spaced than a spading fork. The tines are more like a shovel blade in their angle and you should find one that has a handle that is longer than a garden fork allowing better leverage and lifting.
Pitchfork. This is lighter than a compost fork and with only three or four tines it works for lightweight, coarsely textured materials like straw. Its saving grace is that it will always save your strength for these lighter jobs.
Garden rakes. This tool helps you put finishing touches on your gardening work. The comb-like steel rakes are short, straight teeth that can make a new bed or prepare an old one for new annuals or other crops. After loosening or turning over the soil with a fork, The Weekend Gardener by Victor K. Pryles
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the rake levels it out and removes any left over debris. Snag loose weeds, roots, stones and clods. You can also spread fertilizer and lime with the rake.
Trowels. Mostly used for planting seedlings and small plants, the trowel is a hand tool and you must kneel or sit to use it while working. They are indispensable and don’t be surprised if you go through several of them over the years. Their narrow blades come in different shapes. The very narrow, often called transplanting trowels, are for small seedlings or tiny bulbs; those with wider blades are multi-purpose. Choose yours for balance and comfort. Hold it in your hand and imagine it is an ice pick; with your knuckles wrapped around the back of the handle jab it into the soil to make a planting hole.
Bulb planters. A cylindrical digging tool is great for planting individual bulbs, like daffodils and tulips. The blade punches out a circle of earth as you jam it into the ground.
You then insert the bulb and knock the soil back in to cover. Remember, for smaller bulbs all you need is the trowel.
Power Tillers
Power tillers help to prepare beds, work in soil amendments, till in weeds and cover crops. Most weekenders’ won’t need these amazing workers though. The one thing I
hope you’ve gotten in reading this book through is that when you do permanent planting of shrubs, flowering perennials, groundcover, and even perennial vegetables— after the initial preparation you don’t need to continually turn the soil over. So people-power is the real economical, sensible way to go.
You’ll doubtless see tons of ads for such power tillers, smaller cultivators that run on 2
cycle engines and they certainly do churn organic materials for you. They have various attachments as well. Sometimes these machines do not give you the kind of depth you need, they can wear on you physically as well. If yours weighs 25 pounds you might actually start missing your hoes, trowels and other hand tools before too long.
Of course, if you have a really large property and wish to expand beyond the scope discussed in this book then by all means go for it. Big tillers, with tons of power can do a lot of work for the very ambitious gardener. Remember too, you can experiment with these powerful marvels by renting them, too.
Weekend Weeding & Cultivating Tools
Weekenders cultivate soil for many reasons. Breaking up clods or a hard soil surface to prepare a seed bed, cultivating the soil to mix in lime, peat or other organic material. This cultivation disturbs weed seeds and is used for weed control, too. The following tools help you with all you weeding and cultivating chores.
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Hoes. They come in hundreds of styles, some designed to fit special spacing between rows of particular crops. The most common, however, is the simple garden hoe, which has a square blade and a long handle. You can use the sharp edge of the hoe to loosen up encrusted soil and to cut through small weeds. You’ll most likely to cultivate soil in a newly planted garden and this tool allows you to get close to each plant. But if you’ve mulched like I’ve recommended in this book your hoeing chores will automatically be lessened.
Claws, forks, or cultivators. Specialized pronged or tined tools that help you get at single weeds or small patches of weeds. When you use them to scratch across the soil, they snag and allow you to dig up weeds that are too tough for a hoe.
Weekend Pruning Tools
Weekenders use pruning tools to cut, and shape. The one you choose depends on the size of the branch or the type of cut you wish to make. No one tool does it all in this category and you may wish to eventually own all of the following tools.
Hedge shears. These two-handled shears have long blades that trim a hedge into flat surfaces. Pruning a formal hedge requires an enormous amount of work several times a year. Clipping with hedges can seem to shear your hands more than the hedge you’re working on! This is one case where I recommend the more modern and powerful electric shears. Use them for dried stalks or perennials and ornamental grasses in late winter.
Hand-held pruning shears. These cut stems less than ½ inch thick and is the tool of choice for pruning most shrubs. Thicker stems will ruin the alignment of the shears so avoid using them for this. Shears with steel blades stay sharp longer and are worth the extra money they cost.
Lopping shears. Sturdy and stronger than hand-held clippers these shears have long handles with more leverage for cutting branches between 1 and 1 ½ inches thick. With an extended reach these afford easier work at cutting branches at the base of deciduous shrubs and branches just above head height.
Pruning saws. These cut through stems and branches larger than 1 ½ inches thick. The pruning saw is not like a carpenter’s saw; it cuts both on the push and the pull strokes.
Small curved blades, many of which will fold back into a wooden handle so it can be stored safely. There are pole saws for high limbs which will save you from getting the ladder out and allow you to reach upwards to 15 feet beyond your normal reach.
Chain saws. This is an invaluable tool for cutting down small and medium trees and then using it to create firewood. It allows you to cut larger wood than you can do by hand (not to mention less wear and tear on your body) and does a big job in a much shorter amount of time. There are both gas and electric powered brands.
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Weekenders Raking And Blowing Tools
Dealing with fallen leaves can become a major event in the life of a weekend gardener.
There is just no getting around the chore. However, these tools can make the work go more efficiently for you.
Leaf rakes. Also known as lawn rakes, these are usually lightweight rakes with 48 inch long wooden handles and long tines can come in bamboo, plastic or metal. They vary in size from 10 to 30 inches on the spread of tines. A 24-30 inch wide rake makes fast work of pulling leaves off the lawn and your beds into piles. You can use it to scoop up the pile and then deposit it into a wheelbarrow or large leaf bag.
Here’s a tip on raking a lawn. To dramatically cut down on the amount of movement you must make rake leaves into parallel rows as you walk backward across the lawn. Create the rows with a single sweep of the rake with each step you take. Afterwards, rake each neat row into small piles. Finally, use the rake to scoop up and deposit