Climate change presents us with major challenges. Not only people, but also animals and plants are affected in a negative way. A drought summer can be frustrating for gardeners because a garden can actually suffer in hot and dry conditions. What to do? To enjoy the blooms even in the hot summer months, you can simply create a prairie garden and grow heat-tolerant plants. Mixtures of grasses and flowering perennials have become known as prairie planting in recent years. Which prairie plants to choose for the garden and how to plant a prairie garden? We give you useful information and tips.
How to create a prairie garden
Prairie garden design can be a simple and effortless task. You can create your prairie garden by combining ornamental grasses and colorful prairie perennials that create a rich tapestry of height, texture and form, providing year-round interest. This extraordinary mix of grasses and flowers is made in groups creating a natural look. Grasses provide a natural structure that brings light and airy movement, and the flowering perennials give the site a splendor of flowers.
If you create a garden of your own, be carefulwhen choosing plantsMake sure they have uniform, beautiful and healthy leaves. Also use evergreen plants to provide structure. They can also grow freely and bring order to the plants, while flowering perennials and grasses provide the necessary dynamism. With the prairie grasses you create a clear focus in the outdoor area.
Which perennials are best for prairie gardens?
Here are other popular flowering plants you can plant in your prairie garden.
- Rudbeckias are bushy, short-lived perennials that bloom with a long bloom period and masses of small, daisy-like flowers in warm shades of yellow, orange, red and brown. They tolerate heat and are therefore perfect for a perennial border in the prairie garden.
- Crocosmia Lucifer is a vibrant perennial with folded leaves and bright red flowers in summer that is ideal for planting in prairie borders.
- Achillea is another suitable drought-tolerant flower. 'Paprika' and 'Red Velvet' are attractive varieties with bright red, flat flower clusters. From early summer onwards they provide a splash of color on the stems with their feathery foliage.
- Echinacea is the classic of the genre. The flower produces large, daisy-like flowers that appear from mid-summer to fall, aftermany other perennialshave finished their heyday. Cutting off the heads lengthens the flowering cycle. However, some spent flowers should be left on the plants in the fall because their seeds serve as winter food for birds.
The Best Grasses for Prairie Planting
Grasses convey an impression of lightness and playfulness. And they give every area of the garden a special and unique character. When growing grasses in the prairie garden, you need to keep in mind that they can get tall and therefore they need a lot of space to grow.
- From June you can enjoy tall tufts of Miscanthus sinensis 'Gracillimus' and the silver-pink feathers of Miscanthus sinensis 'Malepartus'. They are an eye-catcher.
- Other popular grasses for prairie gardens include Panicum virgatum 'Fawn' and Miscanthus sinensis 'Little Fountain'.
- Panicum virgatum is a very popular prairie grass. The variety 'Rehbraun'is a conspicuous grass, whose medium green leaves turn a fantastic dark red at the tips. The open, airy flowers appear in a brown and red hue in midsummer.
- Calamagrostis brachytricha is grown for its tall, fluffy flower heads. This ornamental grass produces green leaves that turn yellow in autumn. It is ideal for a sunny prairie because its upright growth gives it height.
- Carex buchananii 'Red Rooster' is a hardy, evergreen grass with strong reddish-brown foliage. Plant it repeatedly in planting schemes to achieve a great effect.
General tips for caring for a prairie garden
The beauty of a prairie garden is that it requires little maintenance. The two most important tasks are cutting off dead plants at the end of the year and pulling weeds. Caring for a prairie-style bed is more comparable to that of a traditional herbaceous bed:
Apply a deep layer of mulch of bark, gravel or wood chips as the plants grow. Mulch conserves moisture, cools the soil and protects against water runoff and erosion. Organic mulch such as shredded bark needs to be replenished every few years as the mulch rots.
You need to weed regularly.A thick layer of mulchalso helps keep weeds at bay. Most plants thrive with minimal care. As plants mature and become established, there are fewer opportunities for weeds to grow. Cut the foliage in the spring so that the plant material collected over the winter acts as mulch and suppresses early germinating weeds.
Before you go to the nursery, plan your prairie garden.
The following questions are important:
Do I have enough space for this prairie garden?
In general, you can make the garden larger or smaller depending on how much space you have available. You can add or leave out plants.
Can I ensure the right growing conditions?
Check the plant list to determine whether the plants grow best in sun, partial shade, or full shade. Make sure the plants are suitable for your zone.
Is my soil suitable or do I need to change it?
Most plants thrive in moist but well-drained soil. If you have soil with a lot of sand or clay, amend it generously with organic matter, such as: B. Compost.
Creating the prairie bed: step-by-step instructions
- Mark the outlines. Using a sharp spade, dig along the marked line to establish the edge of the bed.
- Loosen the soil to a depth of at least 15 cm with a shovel or rotary tiller. Add organic material such as compost, peat moss or rotted manure.
- Make surethe pots with the plantson the bed. This will give you a preview of what the bed will look like and allow you to make adjustments before digging holes.
- Once you're happy with the placement, plant your garden from largest container to smallest.
- How to plant prairie shrubs: Plant shrubs in a hole about twice the diameter of the root ball. The top of the root ball should be slightly above the surrounding soil level. Fill the hole with garden soil, binding it well. Water the shrub immediately.
