How to Plant an Edging Garden
Planting an edging for your driveway or sidewalks is easy and can be very pretty. Most edgings are designed with short flowering plants so as not to obstruct the pathway. You can choose from plants that attract birds and butterflies or ground covers that spread fast and look beautiful Here are a few a few ideas to help you get started on your edging.
Scented Flowers
Scented flowers are excellent edging for walkways. As visitors brush against them, they release their scent into the air. This creates a fragrance for your walkway that visitors will not want to leave. They should also be at least twelve inches high but less than two feet tall. This leaves the blooms below the level women carry their purses and above the ankles where seeds can drop in cuffs of pants. Many of the scented flowers attract birds and butterflies. Humming birds are one of the favorite birds to attract and sweetly scented flowers are excellent attractors for them. Roses are not a good pathway flower unless they are planted away from the path area and have a short edging of their own.
Annuals
Annual plants are plants that must be replanted every spring. They are easy to grow and make a beautiful fit for walkways. For instance marigolds will fill in a space with only a few plants. They are stemmed plants but they bush out after planted and flowering begins. You can find marigolds in yellow, orange, red and off white. They range in height from ten inches to three feet. Other easily grown annuals include lobelia, alyssum and nicotiana. You can purchase annuals in flats that make it easy to plant and space around walkways or driveways. Just make sure you have some form of edging to separate the flowers from the actual path. This keeps guests off of your flowers and your flowers off of the path.
Brightening Flowers
Brightening a pathway for visitors requires one of two things; lighting or White flowers. White flowers help brighten the pathway in the evening. Dianthus is an annual flower that mixes well with other flowers. You can choose a colored plant for a color fill and use alyssum for the edging itself. The brighter the flowers, the more butterflies and birds are attracted to them. You may even find you want to sit a bistro set in the middle of a larger garden on a platform.
Rock Gardens with Succulent Leaf Plants
If you live in a rather hot region, rock gardens are an excellent choice for sidewalk edging. Plants with succulent leaves are ideal for hot temperatures and sun. Flowering plants with vining habits work well for ground cover. They spread quickly and cover the ground easily, plus they offer color to your walkway. Ferns or feathery leaf plants and bold flowers should be considered for less hot and sunny regions. A vertical leaf or spiky leaf plant should be considered for rock gardens. Ornamental Millet attracts birds that eat seeds. Blue fescue has short bluish grass that makes a beautiful walkway.
John Smith is an avid garden and lawn care enthusiast. John is also an avid blogger. You can read more of his articles at http://www.toro-equipment.com/.