THE TOP FIVE WORST LANDSCAPE MISTAKES
By Mark G. Stith
1. Little tin soldiers. It goes something like this: A flat (let's say 36 plants, a common number of little plants in a flat) needs to be planted. Many times, they are plopped into a thin line along a shrub bed, sidewalk, or along the driveway. If one of those soldiers steps out of lines, so to speak, or goes "awol," the whole formation looks bad.
Instead: Concentrate your color. Mass plantings of flowers-say the above 36 plants-near the front door, garden gate, or archi-tectural feature, produce a much more stunning show of color than a long, thin line.
2. Runway lighting. This is the electrified version of mistake number one: outdoor lights used to line a flower bed, drive-way, or sidewalk. With the same problem, too: if one light burns out or is out of line, the whole thing looks bad.
Instead: Accent lighting can create dramatic as well as practi-cal effects in the landscape. As with flower beds, use them to accent entrances and architectural features, as well as to uplight a tree or shrub with interesting form. We'll have more about using accent lighting in the landscape in future articles.
3. Bad dirt. Planting in bad soil produces bad plants every time. Heavy, acid, clay soils- the most common problem in in-land southern regions-don't allow roots to develop. Sandy soils are often poor or low in inorganic matter. Both condi-tions make a pretty pitiful plant. Poor gardener, too.
Instead: Compost, organic mulch, or other natural soil addi-tive enriches and aerates heavy soils, and has beneficial bo-nuses for sandy soils, too. As a general rule, mix about one-third compost with two-thirds of native soil. If possible, make holes for planting at least twice as wide and deep as the root balls for any plant, any size.
4. Poodle pruning. When done well, pruning holly or box-wood hedges results in an interesting, formal-looking geomet-ric shape and order to the landscape. When not, it can appear that someone was re-creating a scene from that Texas chain saw massacre movie.
Instead: Forget the Edward Scissorhands approach. Let plants grow to their natural shape and form, and everyone will be lots happier. Remember also to prune azaleas, if you must, right after they bloom, or they won't set flower buds for next year.
5. Set 'em and forget 'em. Cemeteries are full of faded plas-tic plants in front of tombstones. Given that their audience is unable to appreciate them, perhaps that's okay. Here among the living, plants need lots of TLC, especially small ones with little root systems.
Instead: Treat your plants as VIPs instead of RIPs. New plant-ings will probably need watering at least daily until estab-lished- say, a month from now. Even then, check them daily just to see how things are growing. Container-grown plants (see Lois Chaplin's accompanying article) need special atten-tion.
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