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Building A Raised Flower Bed
Annual bedding plants, planted in properly prepared beds, are the perfect choice for adding splashes of seasonal, vibrant color in your landscape garden. Most all annual bedding plants prefer good drainage, so the best way to plant them in the garden is in "raised beds", or "raised mounds". Raised beds do not require edging or lumber, though edging may help to define the bed. Below is a diagram with step-by-step instructions that can help you create the best performing and best looking flower beds in the neighborhood!
STEP 1 - Start by outlining the shape of your new flower bed on the ground with spray paint, flour or a garden house. You can create any shape you want: round, pie-shape, square, rectangular, triangular, peanut, kidney bean, oblong, etc..
STEP 2 - Then spray any grass or weeds growing inside the outlined area with a solution of glyphosphate, such as Killzall or Roundup. Wet all foliage of grass and weeds thoroughly with weed killer allowing 2 hours to dry completely. Always wear protective clothing and eye wear when spraying any chemical.
STEP 3 - Using a pointed shovel, trench around the outline of the flower bed to a depth of about 6", throwing dirt from trench into a pile at the center of the flower bed.
STEP 4 - Now, mix in equal amounts of a light professional potting or planting mix and a soil conditioner or compost, such as mushroom compost or composted cow manure, with the soil removed from the trench. For larger beds, it will be necessary to bring in extra native top soil to raise your annual flower bed to at minimum of 6" height at the center of the bed, gradually tapering the mound to ground level at the perimeter. You may also add other amendments to the mix, such as vermiculite, cottonseed meal, fish emulsion etc..
STEP 5 - After thoroughly mixing the native and/or screened top soil with the amendments, use a hard rake (garden rake) to taper and smooth mound.Tip:Rake from the trench towards the center of the bed to create the mound. A leaf rake can be used to put the finishing smooth touch on the mound. Now you are ready to plant.
Mulching Tip
One of the most key mulching tips is finding the right color of mulch. If you do not have the best color of mulch, your color scheme will not work well. Spend some time looking at the colors of your house and other landscaping. Think of a mulch color that will complement these colors well. For most people, they tend to go with a chocolate brown or a red mulch; however, this will not be the case with every reader.The second idea from my mulching tips would be to prepare the area for appropriate mulching. This can be done a few days before you actually have the mulch. It is best to put a weed prevention system into place. A fabric specially designed to be placed under mulch works very well. If you try to use plastic for this, weeds will eventually burst right through the plastic and up through your mulch. Also, this is a great time to make sure you have great edging around your mulched area. Make sure there is a distinct edge; therefore, you will not have mulch spilling over into your yard.
There are several mulching tips you will need on the day you actually acquire the mulch. Depending on the area needing mulched, you can buy your mulch in bags for small areas or in cubic yards via a dump truck for larger areas. Buying in bulk can often save a lot of money if mulching a large area. Make sure to have the mulch delivered preferably on a dry, non-windy day when you do not have to work. As previously stated, make sure you have a weed prevention system in place before you lay the mulch. This will prevent hours of weed picking next year. After all the mulching is done, use a hose to rinse the mulch residue off of your drive way or wherever the mulch was resting.
STEP 6 - Remove plants from containers and space them (as directed on plant tag) over the surface of bed. Start with a row around perimeter of bed. Then stagger plants towards the inside of the perimeter row, and so on towards the center until the bed is full.
STEP 7 - Use a hand trowel or shovel to plant bedding plants. Its a good idea to loosen roots at the bottom of the root ball or plug before planting. When planting, use hand trowel to dig a hole only as deep as the root ball is tall. Drop root-ball in hole and gently pack in soil to fill.
STEP 8 - When you have finished planting, you can broadcast weed preventive granules, such as Treflan, over surface of bed for season-long weed prevention.
STEP 9 - Fertilize your new flower bed with a granular flower food. Pansies, a winter flowering bedding plant, should be fertilized with a specialty Pansy Food every 4 weeks.
NOTE - If you are really serious about the performance of your annual bedding plants, get a professional soil test through your Local Extension Service. This will tell you two critical details about your soil quality; pH and fertilizer needs. For many bedding plants, ideal soil pH is between 5.6 and 5.8.