Landscape Plant Care Schedule

Multi-Season

  • Columbine: liquid fertilizer monthly. Slow-release granualar in spring. Deadhead.
  • Cotoneaster: fertilize every 2 weeks until flowering, then monthly.
  • French Mulberry: optionally, 10-20-20 every 4 months.
  • Goat's Beard: water-soluble fertilizer every few weeks during growing season.
  • Hyacinth, Blue Grape: lift and divide bulbs every couple of years.
  • Scabiosa: cut back old flowers to base of stem for more blooms.
  • Yucca: prefers poor, dry soil with good drainage.

    Early Spring

  • Abelia: fertilize
  • Ajuga: fertilize
  • Astilbe: add compost as new growth emerges.
  • Goatsbeard: divide if needed.
  • Knockout Rose: prune to 12"-18" then sprinkle time-released rose fertilizer.
  • Iris: 5-10-5 lightly dusted around plants.
  • Scabiosa: Light application of organic fertilizer. Divide every 3 years.
  • Surprise Lily: fertilize.

    Spring

  • Azalea: apply Bayers every 6 weeks - Apr.1, May 15, Aug.1. (No late summer.)
  • Buckeye: fertilize.
  • Clematis: fertilize after buds are 2", every 2-4 weeks except when in full bloom.
  • Daylilies: 5-10-15 or 6-12-12.
  • Ferns: high-nitrogen fertilizer once a month during growing season.
  • Goat's Beard: cut back dead foliage.
  • Hydrangea: 10-10-10 in May, 2-3 cups for a large plant spread around drip line.
  • Primrose: light applications of organic fertilizer throughout the growing season. Prune dead leaves and spent blooms.
  • Yucca: cut away older leaves which have died.

  • Iris: Lifting, dividing and replanting the rhizomes is best done once flowering has finished as this is when
                 the plant grows the new shoots that will flower the following year. Divide every 2-3 years.

    Early Summer

  • Daffodils: lift and divide every 5-10 years.
  • Hyacinth: after leaves die, prune them at the base.

    Summer

  • Arum Italicum: divide every 3 years. (Toxic - wear gloves.)
  • Mums: fertilize every 7-10 days until buds begin to show color.
  • Fritillaria:
             After flowering stops and the leaves die off in mid summer, cut the stems back to just above the ground level, then mark the spot with a stake.
    Provide a heavy winter mulch, which should be removed and replaced with a top-dressing of compost in the spring.
    Once the foliage has yellowed and dried, the foliage may be removed by gently pulling it out of the soil.
    If the leaves do not easily pull away from the bulb, they are not ready to be removed.
  • Hibiscus: Use a high potassium fertilizer: a diluted liquid fertilizer once a week or a slow release fertilizer once a month
  • Hydrangea: 10-10-10 in July, 2-3 cups for a large plant spread around drip line. Prune after flowers fade.

    Late Summer

  • Easter Lily: cut stems to ground for new growth/blooms.
  • Surprise Lily: fertilize after blooms fade.
  • Yucca: After blooms have died, cut the bloom stalk to the ground.

    Fall

  • Goat's Beard: divide if needed.
  • Yarrow: deadhead for reblooms. Divide every 4-5 years.

    Late Fall

  • Easter Lily: 10-10-10
  • Iris: 5-10-5 lightly dusted around plants.
  • Monarda: cut back to ground.

    Winter

  • Abelia: prune before new growth.
  • Quince: high-potash fertilizer in late winter. High-N fertilizer ever 3-4 years.