Perennials

If you have thumbed through catalogs or walked through garden centers, you probably noticed the varieties of hydrangeas on the market.

If you are up on your hydrangea lore, you may be hesitant to purchase these shrubs if you live in a USDA zone 5 and/or have alkaline soil.

phlox

Once the garden starts blooming, another garden chore eats up the gardener’s hours--deadheading.

Keep beds and borders tidy

The first reason to deadhead is to keep the borders and beds tidy and neat. Some early bloomers look scruffy after their bloom cycle is finished. A sever pruning job encourages regrowth and the plant finishes out the season as a well-shaped member of the border.