I'd like to revamp some of the beds in my yard and plant some additional plants and flowers. Anyone here have experience or knowledge of that who might have some suggestions? I've read up on some websites, but I don't have a green thumb at all. I'm not sure where to start - help please?

3/14/2007 8:28:41 PM

i am but i live in charlotte and my time is worth alot more per hour than it was when i did that as a job

3/14/2007 8:34:22 PM

I'm just trying to get an idea of what to look at, when to plant it and how to take care of it so it actually lives

I'd really like some flowers that are nice year round.

3/14/2007 8:48:33 PM

the best thing for year round color are annuals...or a succession of perennials, just go to a local nursery...not a home depot and see what they can tell you.

ncsu has a great site too...

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/

all or most of the plants in their listings can be grown in some part of NC

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/

these are some of the plant listings
gluck!

3/14/2007 9:36:35 PM

3/14/2007 9:55:40 PM

Day Lillies are cool and they bloom multiple times and different colors and stuff also bloom at different times! They also multiple rapidly. The Day Lily farm on Benson Rd. is open now

3/14/2007 10:20:23 PM

Actually, I would recommend going to a Home Depot, but not just any one. Go check out the one at Crossroads Plaza and talk to a guy named Terry. I used to work out there with him and he's a landscaping genius. He used to do it professionally - now he just designs, but he's got a good eye for what works well together.

3/15/2007 10:12:23 PM

I hate Home Depot...I can never find anyone in one to help me especially the one at Crossroads!

3/15/2007 10:19:44 PM

My biggest beef with Home Depot at Crossroads is that you can't trust shit to be in the right place.

When I did my tile job not too long ago I had to buy a brass trim piece for the doorway. I pulled out the right part, but it was a little bent. Stuck it back and grabbed one from the exact same bin. It turned out that it was slightly different and wouldn't work with my tile. I didn't find out until midnight when I went to install the thing. I had plaster on the floor, plaster on the tile, and a trim piece that didn't fit right, so I was SOL.

Also bought a pipe cutter not too long ago and it rang up $5 too high. I went back to the shelf and saw that the pipe cutters on the hanger didn't match the label just above them, so basically they had a hanger with about 10 of them all priced wrong.

I don't feel like checking every freaking barcode to make sure I'm getting exactly what it says on the shelf label. I'd rather they go back to individual pricing if they can't keep their shelves straight.

3/15/2007 10:28:36 PM

^I have had the same problem as well. Not this past Christmas but the Christmas before I went to both Lowe's and Home Depot to look at some tools that Jason had been wanting and I figured it would be a good present. Home Depot had them up where no one could reach them but an associate and it took him like 20 minutes to find them but he knew they had them I ended up going to Lowe's to get him both at one place because the retard couldn't reach the other one and was unwilling to get it! J & I have had the pricing issue as well. You could have gotten your $5 back too atleast when I worked in retail (not at Home Depot) you could because it was the associate's fault who stocked that area and since there was more than one in the wrong place. Gonna stop bitching now...LOL

3/15/2007 11:00:07 PM

i tilled 500 sq ft of bed today for two beds

now we just have 100 things to plant and we're all done

i hate this stuff almost as much as painting

http://springhillnursery.com/Default.asp?
their gardens were 50% off last week

Logan Trading Company is a good resource, though you might want to compare prices

[Edited on March 18, 2007 at 7:16 PM. Reason : asdfs]

3/18/2007 7:14:57 PM

Hemerocallis (daylilies) are horribly, horribly overrated. Try some hellebores if you want color all season!

And Lowes/Home Depot suck for plants. Try some of the local nurseries. You just missed the Plant Delights open house, but they'll be open again in a few weeks. They have great specialty stuff!

[Edited on March 19, 2007 at 1:47 AM. Reason : Yay Tony Avent]

3/19/2007 1:45:03 AM

where are quality and decent priced nurseries in raleigh? i'm willing to make a trip to any of the surrounding cities if it's worth it. i have an idea of what i want to plant, but i just want to be able to talk to someone about it when i go so i make the right decision.

if any of you are experts here's my situation. i have a front yard bed about 6'x10', full sun...i want evergreens that will bloom once a year (not azeleas--that's what i just pulled up) possibly at different times of the year, or not at all. i would like for them to grow up be medium/large sized shrubs, 4'-6' tall, as i have a pretty long foundation. i'm going to line the bed with day lillies, and possibly a low covering flowering vine (perennial). i had camellia's in mind. probably a boxwood or two since they're pretty sturdy. i also thought about a false cypress shrub.

what'd i'd generally like to do is have a tall shrub on each side of my bay window (planted closer to the foundation) and one in the front of the bay window (but keeping it trimmed down as it matures so it doesn't hide the bay window). those three may be enough and then lining my bed with other plants/flowers that will come back every year (maybe a few bulbs--i'll plant later), day lilies like i mentioned before and leaving room for a few annuals that i love and can plant for each season.

[Edited on March 21, 2007 at 7:23 AM. Reason : ]

3/21/2007 7:15:40 AM

Mich Gardens is awesome
It's where I get all my plants from

It's in Apex near Jordan Lake on 64
address: 86 Beaver Creek Road Apex, NC

worth the drive. Reasonably priced and much better quality than anything you'll find in Raleigh. And the staff is really helpful


Or you can wait - I just started about 40 flats of seeds in our schools greenhouse. Will have plants available for sale in about a month or 2.

All sales benefit our schools FFA chapter.
Summer annuals and perennials.

[Edited on March 21, 2007 at 7:36 AM. Reason : d]

3/21/2007 7:35:06 AM

if you dont want to pay a tremendous amount of money, email tarawli2@ncsu.edu. he's my ex-boyfriend and he's really good at that type of stuff. he'll work for $10/hr.

3/21/2007 8:27:58 AM

^$10/ hr? I would've charged someone at least $15 for my services when I was a student. Ten would barely cover drawing supplies and gas to visit the site.

3/21/2007 2:24:02 PM

or you can buy seedlings and produce from me


/message_topic.aspx?topic=466727

[Edited on March 21, 2007 at 3:19 PM. Reason : ...]

3/21/2007 2:59:40 PM