Questions & Answers
Want to know more about the gardens or have a question about your gardening challenges? Contact us at info@garvangardens.org for a personal response to your question from garden staff. Check below for answers to other common questions received at the Gardens.
You can also take advantage of the expertise of a great professional staff of horticulturists, agronomists, soil scientists, pest management specialists, and other experts at the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service by visiting www.uaex.edu.
- I've just moved to Arkansas (or am a new gardener) and don't know what plants will thrive here. How can I find garden ornamentals will grow well in my garden?
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There are a number of great resources for learning about gardening in the South and Arkansas. One of the best is an experienced gardener in your area Also:
Books:
Dr. Michael Dirr Woody Landscape Plants Carl Hunter Wildflowers of Arkansas
Trees and Shrubs of ArkansasOxmoor House Southern Living's Gardening Book Carol Bishop Miller The Southern Gardeners Book of Lists Steve Bender Passalong Plants
Other Resources
Arkansas Certified Nurseryman Program: Contact the Arkansas Green Industry Association for a qualified nursery professional in your local area.
University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service. Numerous publications listing plant materials for various purposes (many are free) available at local office in each county or by visiting www.uaex.edu. - I'm taking a trip soon and would like to know about other Gardens I can visit. How can I find out about other public gardens?
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Contact the Gardens for a copy of gardens that participate in the American Horticultural Society's Reciprocal Garden Program, of which the Gardens are a member. Join the Gardens membership program and you can visit them all on your card!
Other Resources:
The American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta (302) 655-7100 or www.aabga.org. Website includes a listing of gardens open to the public throughout North America and links to the websites of most of those gardens.
Most bookstores carry one of several garden guides. - How do I create a colorful garden that can cope with the heat and drought of a Southern summer?
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Probably the most important consideration is proper plant selection. Cannas, annual vinca (Catharanthus), Pentas, and Impatiens are examples of great heat-tolerant plants. Look for experienced gardeners and garden centers in your area for the best plants for your locality. Don't forget summer bulbs like amaryllis, rain lily (Habranthus), and surprise lily (Lycoris).
Prepare planting areas well by incorporating lots of organic matter and perhaps a moisture-retaining additive like polyacrylimide. Dig these additives in at least 8" deep. Plant good, healthy plants. With annuals, look for roots that fill the container completely, but without excessive roots growing out drainage holes. Look for vigorous plants that are mostly or entirely green, as plants in full bloom won't establish as easily. Water generously until roots begin to penetrate deeply into the bed and leave the original soil mass.
Water properly. You should apply approximately 1" of water weekly during average weather and 2" in very hot spells. However, it is important to apply at least ½" with each application. When watering properly, ground moisture will 'meet', meaning that moisture is continuous from the surface through the bed. If there is a dry layer between upper parts of the soil profile where water was applied and deeper layers that still have some water from the last watering, inadequate moisture was applied. (It takes approximately ½ hour with a typical sprinkler to apply » " of water.) Then, with fully established plants, do not water again until the top 2 inches of the bed are dry. This encourages deep rooting and makes for more drought tolerant plants.
- I love the beautiful containers I see at the gardens and in nurseries and commercial landscapes. How do I create beautiful container gardens of my own?
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Start with a proper container. Clay pots are wonderful containers, but dry quickly and are not appropriate if you can't water daily. Glazed pottery makes an attractive alternative and doesn't lose moisture as quickly as it isn't porous. Plastic makes a light-weight and very effective container. However, any planter should include one critical element, a drainage hole. Remember that clay pots cannot be left outside during freezing weather unless they are glazed over the entire surface to prevent absorption of water that will result in cracking.
Use the proper planting medium or soil. It must be fast draining, but have good moisture retention. In order to achieve this, you need a very light soil with a high organic matter content. Do not use soil based media, but rather any of the good soil-less mixes now available. While more expensive, they will yield much better results and save money on plant materials.
Plant the pot properly. For a really attractive design, plant a tall or spiky plant in the middle, surrounded by full, rounded plants, and fill the edge with creeping or cascading plants. Leave about ½" of the pot unfilled to allow 'freeboard' for generous waterings without spilling over.
After planting, water carefully on a daily basis in hot weather, being sure you add enough water for run-off out the drainage hole with each watering. Consistency is crucial, as allowing potted materials to wilt severely only a few times will negatively impact performance for the remainder of the growing season. Add liquid fertilizer at ½ strength twice each week or at ¼ strength each time you water. You'll be rewarded with outstanding foliage covered with colorful blooms.
- The tulips at the Gardens are spectacular every spring, but I don't have luck with them in my garden. What's the secret?
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Most tulips should be treated as annuals in the warmer parts of the U.S. Our summers warm up too quickly and late spring and early summer are often too dry to allow tulips to develop a flowering size bulb consistently. Tulips also multiply quickly and become overcrowded in just a season or two. So, the best solution for most gardeners is to buy new bulbs each fall and replant.
However, many species tulips perform quite well in Arkansas, often blooming each spring consistently for decades. A favorite at the Gardens is the lady tulip (Tulipa clusiana). Gregii series tulips like 'Pinocchio' also rebloom dependably. Several early, large flowered cultivars will also repeat bloom for a few seasons, including 'Red Emperor', 'Yellow Emperor', 'White Emperor', and 'Rosy Dream.'
If only the large flowered cutting hybrids will do, many Arkansas gardeners have also had success with an intensive method using the mid-season Darwin Hybrid tulips. Start with a classic double dug bed, meaning fully excavated for two full shovel depths with 2" each of sand and compost worked in fully throughout the full depth. Plant bulbs with the tops 9 to 10" deep (deep planting discourages side shoots and directs all the plant's resources into a single bulb) after working in superphosphate generously in two inches of soil underneath the bulbs. Water generously during dry periods and apply a bulb formulation of slow release fertilizer in late fall. When the bulbs bloom, remove the seedpod immediately when the first petals start to fall. Water generously during dry spells and remove all foliage when the first leaves begin to turn yellow (this also discourages formation of secondary bulbs). If you follow all these steps religiously, you'll be rewarded with a great tulip display every spring for up to five years from a single planting.
- Rhododendrons are so beautiful in gardens in many parts of the country, but I can't grow them well. What am I doing wrong?
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Unlike their close relatives, azaleas, which thrive in our region, rhododendrons don't respond well to the natural conditions in most of the South. Native primarily to mountainous regions that provide thin, but highly organic soils and cool, moist conditions, rhododendrons are poorly suited to the heat, humidity, and heavy clay soils that are common in our region. The Gardens are successfully pursuing a regime developed through research at North Carolina State, in which a raised bed is created by placing 14 to 16" of fine organic matter (we use finely ground pine bark) and a little sand or perlite directly on top of the ground. The rhododendrons are planted slightly raised in the bed and then the entire bed is covered with 1 to 2 inches of light mulch such as pine needles or composted oak leaves. Be sure the medium and the mulch are acidic or pH neutral. Water generously at least twice weekly if not provided by rainfall. Your rhododendrons will thrive and reward you generously with their colorful blooms each year.
Submit your questions to Bob Byers, Garden Director at rbyers@garvangardens.org