Kingsdene Nursery & Garden Center
16435 York Road, Monkton, MD 21111
Voted Best of Baltimore 2022 Nursery & Garden Center

Voted Best of Baltimore 2022 Nursery & Garden Center


News / Tips




Plants for Privacy

“What can I plant to screen the neighbors?” is a question we hear year round. While there are many conditions to consider, here are some of our favorite picks.

Pruning Hydrangeas

From our friends at Espoma, here is a great guide to pruning hydrangeas. Of course, we are always available at the garden center to answer any questions.
YOUR GUIDE TO FALL HYDRANGEA CARECaring for your hydrangea can make all the difference for next year’s blooms. Hydrangea’s are strong and can come back from almost anything when given enough time and proper care.

Just follow these fall tips for pruning and maintenance. It isn’t complicated.

Identify

It is important to identify your variety first because some hydrangea varieties do not like being pruned in the fall.

If your garden has hydrangeas, then you need to know that there are two types of hydrangeas. One type produces flower buds on old wood and the other produces flower buds on new wood. Stems are called old wood if they have been on the plant since the summer before. New wood are stems that develop in the current season.  Most varieties found in gardens are old wood bloomers including Mophead, Big Leaf, Lacecap, and Oakleaf hydrangeas. Double check your variety with your local garden center.

When to Prune

Hydrangeas can grow for years without being pruned, but if they get unruly, over take an area of the garden or lose their growing capabilities – it is time to trim. But when to prune them?

Prune fall blooming hydrangeas, or old wood bloomers, after they bloom in the summer. If you prune old wooded hydrangeas in fall, you are cutting off next seasons blooms.

Summer blooming hydrangeas, or those that bloom on new wood, are pruned in the fall, after they stop blooming.

Hydrangeas are colorful and vibrant in the early season, but are hard to preserve after being cut. They are easier to care for after they start drying on the bush.

How to Prune

Near the bottom of your plant, you will see thin, wispy, weak growth. Cut those down. They will take up energy that your plant could use for blooms.

Look for any dead stumps on your stems. They will not have grown any new wood or buds out of the original old wood. Cut the dead stumps down to their base to completely remove them. This will allow the new growth underneath to have a chance to succeed.

Dead and old blooms need to be removed to make room for new buds to come through. Cut the flower head off right above the first few leaves to encourage blooms for the next summer.

Stand back from the plant and observe its shape. You’ll want to prune the shrub into the shape you prefer, a sphere is the typical style but you could prune it into any shape you want!

Clean the Debris

Remove any debris that fell off from the base of the plant. You want to make sure your soil is free of any weeds, leaves and dead flowers.

Fertilize

If you’re growing blue hydrangeas, feed with Holly-tone to keep the soil acidic and the blooms bright. Otherwise, opt for Flower-tone.

For the best hydrangea care, feed 2-3 times throughout the growing season, which is from spring until fall.

Follow these few steps and your hydrangeas will be happy and vibrant for years to come.

Watering Plants in Fall

According to the US Drought Monitor, Maryland is in the moderate stage of drought.

Now it is especially important to water your plants to help them survive the winter and come back beautiful in the spring. Plants are storing nutrients to help them survive and we can help out by watering. Be sure to soak all around the edge of the plant canopy, which is where the branches end on a plant. This is where the roots are growing and searching for water.

We recommend watering twice a week ( 3 times if your plant wilts before the next watering day)

1 gallon plants need 40 seconds of water

3-7 gallon plants need 40 seconds of water per gallon container

15 gallon and B&B plants need 2 minutes per 3 gallons

Seeding or Overseeding Lawn Tip

If you’re thinking about seeding a new lawn or overseeding your old lawn, don’t forget to water. It has been very dry lately and grass seed needs to be kept moist at all times until it germinates. This means watering 2-3 times a day for 3 weeks in order to keep the seed moist, not wet. The top inch of soil needs to be moist and until the area is densely green you should keep it watered.