5 Quick Tips for Daily Flower Garden Maintenance

1.  Establish a Routine

“I don’t have an extra 30 minutes a day to pull weeds.”  Hang on.  I bet you do.  How many minutes (or hours) do you spend on Facebook?  Yep, that’s what I thought.

So, now that we’ve found that extra 30 minutes, what are we going to do with it?

First of all, don’t adopt the attitude of flower maintenance as a chore.  It should be something you enjoy doing.  Tending to your flowers can become a relaxing and fulfilling hobby.

Song of Songs 4:16 

Awake, north wind, and come, south wind! Blow on my garden, that its fragrance may spread everywhere. Let my beloved come into his garden and taste its choice fruits.

My flower maintenance routine starts first thing in the morning.  But you may decide evening works better for you.  As long as you aren’t doing flower maintenance (especially watering) in the mid-day heat, it really doesn’t matter what time of day you choose.

Figure out the best time for your routine and commit to sticking to it.  Once you’re in the groove, you’ll likely find that you’re wanting to spend more time in your garden.  You’ll appreciate your work and you’re sure to be mesmerized at the beauty of your blossoms.

2.  Deadheading

I have flowers on the back deck, front porch, and three flower beds in the front yard.  I find that it’s easier and faster to work in each area to complete the tasks before moving on to the next area of flowers.

I start by deadheading the spent blooms.

What Does Deadheading Do?

Deadheading helps to redirect the plant’s energy to producing more blooms.  It also makes your flowering plants look more manicured.

A flower with withered and spent blooms is not very attractive.

Deadheading just means cutting off the blossoms that have completed their show.  Those blooms will be withered and have begun to turn color.

Most flowers benefit from deadheading back to the first set of leaves.  This allows the plant to refocus it’s energy into developing more blooms, instead of making seeds.

Don’t just pull off the spent blooms.  You need to cut back past the ovary to ensure the plant doesn’t produce seed.

It’s best to use small garden nippers or garden shears.  Pinching off the blossoms can damage the plant and it doesn’t leave a smooth cut, which make the plant work harder to heal.

3.  Watering

While you’re deadheading, check to see if the plants need water.

Poke your finger about an inch or so into the soil to see if it’s wet.  The top of the soil may be dry, but if the soil is still wet about an inch or two down, it probably doesn’t need extra water.

You can also lift hanging pots to analyze the weight to determine if watering is needed.

Pro Tip from Gardening on the West Fork with Teresa:  Put a baby diaper in the bottom of hanging baskets to help retain moisture.

Don’t Overwater

If you have an evening routine, be extra careful to not overwater your plants.  Most flowers do not like to overnight in heavy, wet soil.  Morning watering allows the plant to soak up the moisture during the heat of the day, when they need it most.

It’s best to use a watering can, like this one, that has a perforated spout.  This will more evenly distribute the water around the plant.

Rain Barrel Water Source

I don’t have a water spigot at the back of the house, so we recently purchased a rain barrel.  Oh my goodness!  It is so handy to have a nearby water source!

It’s the best $30 I’ve spent in a while.

We redirected our gutter to the top of the rain barrel, and it filled up with one rain shower.  This barrel holds 55 gallons.

Ernie attached an 18″ long hose (yellow in the picture) to the spigot, using a hose clamp.  That makes it easier to fill the watering can.

I highly recommend a rain barrel, especially if you need an extra water source for your plants.

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4.  Fertilizing

Start-up and Seasonal Fertilizing

Mid-Spring is a good time to add some plant tone fertilizer around your perennial flowers.  This helps them to start off the season with some extra nutrients.

As you begin planting annuals, sprinkle some plant tone fertilizer into the potting soil.

It is also helpful to give your flowering plants another boost with plant tone fertilizer mis-season.

Mid to late July, sprinkle some additional plant tone around the outside edges of your flowers.

As the roots grow and expand in the soil, the fertilizer will better reach those roots from around the outer edges of the plant instead of fertilizing directly at the base of the plant.

Weekly Fertilizer Maintenance

To help your flowers produce an abundance of blossoms, use a water soluble fertilizer such as Miracle Grow Bloom Booster.

Establish a weekly fertilizing routine – “Fertilizer Friday”.

It’s easy to do.  Just add the fertilizer granules in your watering can, fill it with water, and water your plants as you normally would.

5.  Weeding

The last step in my daily flower garden maintenance routine is weeding.

Weeding is a never-ending process.  It can quickly become overwhelming, if you allow it to get out of hand.  And it’s a lot of work.

How to Weed Your Flower Garden Without Getting Overwhelmed

Here’s how I tackle it.  It’s not perfect, but it works for me.

I choose one area of the flower garden to work in each morning.  I have a 2-gallon plastic basket (or a bucket will work) and I weed until the basket is full.  That’s it.  That’s all I do on the daily.

This keeps me feeling productive with the weeding task and it provides about 20 minutes of exercise.

I don’t feel anxious about the weeds that are still there, because I know that tomorrow I will get to them.

Gardening/Weeding Tools

My “go-to” weeding tool is this little gadget.  It easily digs into the weed root and with a twist the weed easily detaches from the ground.

I always wear gloves.  It keeps the dirt from getting all over my hands and under my fingernails, plus it help me from getting a rash.  I seem to be alergic to certain grasses and break out with a rash on my hands and arms when I come into contact with whatever it is that causes the rash.

Gloves with rubberized fingers and palms also helps to get a better grasp on the weeds.

If you’re looking for thornproof gloves, for use when working with rose bushes, these are good choice.

One of the best tools for your flower garden is a floral shovel.  My mom got me this shovel a couple years ago and I love it.  It has a small blade, which is perfect for getting into tight places.  Whether you’re adding new flowers or transplanting existing ones, the small blade makes it easy to not disturb surrounding plants.  They’re hard to find in stores.  She ordered mine Amazon.  This one is similar to the one I have.

You need good tools to work with. – Ernie Johnston

Enjoy Your Beautiful Blossoms

One of my favorite things about flower gardening is that I get to bring the blooms indoors.  It’s so nice to have fresh flowers to display and admire.

The fragrances that fresh indoor blossoms bring to your home cannot be matched by store-bought picks.

Add variety to your bouquets with snips from hanging pots and vines.  Experiment with different colors and textures for a unique creation.

And don’t forget to share a bouquet with a friend.  It doesn’t need to be a special occasion, just share some garden love.

Need some help with freshing up your home for summer?  Check out this post: 5 Quick And Inexpensive Ways To Freshen Up Your Home For Summer

I hope you’ve found these 5 Quick Tips for Daily Flower Garden Maintenance helpful and encouraging for getting your flower garden flourishing.