If you want your flower beds to last until autumn, you have to take a strategic approach to garden maintenance. For example, it’s easy to prioritize spring bulbs since they’ll bloom first, but what about the fall flowers? To produce flower beds bursting with gold, yellow, and orange come autumn, follow these tips.

How to Prepare Flower Beds to Achieve Festive Fall Colors 

1. Stay on Top of Deadheading

Most annuals need to be snipped periodically to keep producing flowers. Simply cut the entire flower stalk off the plant, making sure to clip as close to the base as possible.

For plants with multiple flower buds on each stalk, wait until most of them have faded, and then shear off roughly one-third of the plant. Both deadheading and shearing will prompt new flowers and fresh foliage, ensuring bright and healthy flower beds well into autumn. 

2. Provide Plenty of Plant Food 

Plants need a lot of nutrients to keep producing blooms. If you’re diligent about deadheading, you must also be diligent about feeding your flower beds. The more plants flower, the more food they need.

Look for a high-quality plant food that contains super or triple phosphate, and apply it every three weeks or so. Keep in mind, however, that plant food doesn’t replace the need for a balanced fertilizer. Both are essential if you want vibrant flower beds.

3. Reseed Quick Growing Annuals 

You can extend the life of annuals that don’t respond to deadheading by reseeding them. Roughly four weeks after you plant the first round of annuals, collect the seeds they drop and sow them where you wish. If you plant existing seedlings, sow their dropped seeds at the same time to streamline the process and ensure additional blooms a month later. 

 

For all your garden maintenance essentials, turn to Nelson Plant Food. Located in Bellville, TX, this wholesale supplier sells the best plant food around. Their formulas allow for bigger blooms with better colors and healthier roots year after year. As a family-owned and -operated company, they’ve served retailers, landscapers, professional growers, and home gardeners since 1982. To learn more about their vast selection of products, visit their website or call (979) 865-8596.