Photo by L.G. Patterson

If April showers really do bring May flowers, then it’s time to get your garden in gear! For some, a garden can be a place of beauty and tranquility. For others, the thought of maintaining a garden could be anxietyinducing (for the gardener or the plants, we’re not sure).

As summer approaches, your garden is about to take center stage – but is it ready for the spotlight? The heat, unpredictable rainfall and potential pests of the season can make landscaping feel like a challenge, even for those seasoned in gardening. Whether you’re a natural green thumb or a certified plant killer, a little preparation goes a long way in ensuring your outdoor space thrives.

Ashlee Wallace, a landscape designer at Doctor’s Lawn & Landscape in Sunrise Beach, says one of the main things people struggle with when starting their garden is having the patience to let things grow.

“They tend to overplant and mix things that shouldn’t be together,” she says. “In a year or two, it’s so overgrown (that) plants are struggling because of where they were placed. I think people just look at a space and don’t really think about sun or shade. Then they overplant because they want it to look full and have that instant gratification instead of being patient and waiting.”

Wallace says it’s important to understand where plants need to go, based on whether they need full shade, full sun or partial sun. “For example, anything that blooms, you need to have at least six hours of sun in order to get the full color.”

As a designer, Wallace says her priority is to make a space “more beautiful than it began.” When planning a design that includes a pathway or patio, she draws at full scale, meaning the sizes are representative of what they will be in five years. “That ensures you don’t overcrowd or overplant.”

When choosing what to plant, people often want options that bloom and come back year after year. “In Columbia, hydrangeas and peonies are great to make sure you have a bloom all summer long,” Wallace says. “Having some butterfly bush or allium will also help promote bee pollination, which is a really good thing to help the flowers stay colorful all summer.”

Wallace also recommends investing in a good irrigation system. “If you are committing to doing a garden or any type of landscaping, you need a quality irrigation system,” she says. “Relying on watering by hand doesn’t always guarantee the life of the plant or the vegetable. With the irrigation system, you can make sure that each area is timed the way it needs to be timed.”

For anyone who identifies as a “black thumb,” low maintenance options include boxwood bushes, Andorra junipers or blue star junipers. “They don’t take a whole lot of water, and any of the ornamental grasses are really, really low maintenance, especially if you haven’t invested in an irrigation system,” Wallace says. “They’re pretty drought-friendly, and aside from the grasses, they’ll stay green year-round. It’s a nice pop of color year-round, and in the dead of winter, you’ll still have some greenery.”

Whether you’re refreshing the garden you’ve been working on for years or just starting out, a lush landscape can do a lot to beautify your home.

Best Low Maintenance, Perennial Pollinator Plants For Columbia

Flowers
Purple Coneflower
Black-Eyed Susan
Milkweed
Bee Balm
Blazing Star
Coreopsis
Yarrow
Goldenrod
Columbine

Herbs & Shrubs
Lavender
Russian Sage
Catmint
Butterfly Bush
Spicebush

Grasses
Little Bluestem
Prairie Dropseed

Pairings
Purple Coneflower + Black-Eyed Susan + Blazing Star
A mix of color, height and season-long blooms

Milkweed + Butterfly Bush + Bee Balm
The ultimate monarch and bee-friendly combo

Lavender + Russian Sage + Catmint
Drought-tolerant, fragrant and full of buzzing pollinators

Goldenrod + Aster + Yarrow
Late-season nectar source for migrating butterflies