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Straight to the point: As the fall season kicks off, it is time to get the team ready to garden. The milder temperatures of fall are a great time to install perennial plants, add cool-season color and consider construction features to create the ultimate gameday experience. Score points with friends and family by following this playbook to make every yard count.
Many of us suffer through summer with one thing on our mind: “Get me to fall.” Football season, cooler temperatures and hope springing eternal for a successful year on the field. With kickoff just around the corner, there remains a lot of work to do in the landscape, but also an opportunity to sit back and enjoy the view — whether that is in your yard or in Tiger Stadium.
The start of football season welcomes the next generation of athletes — new faces being put into new places. The garden is not so different. Certainly, some of the plants (or players) you are installing have been developed locally. These are homegrown natives that you have had the privilege of paying attention to since they were seedlings (or seniors in high school). Some plants may come from far away, recruited from far-reaching areas of the country (or world, even), perhaps transferring in after growing in someone else’s yard for several seasons. Whether coming from near or far, fall is a great time to put new players and plants in the field. Temperatures are not as extreme during the fall as they are during the sustained summertime swelter, so additions can acclimate better to the new environment.
While paying players for their name, image and likeness — or NIL — is a new consideration in college football, horticulturists know all about the importance of this acronym, and managing NIL must be considered regardless of your plant or roster composition.
Plant names catch our attention, with examples such as Linebacker Distylium casting an imposing presence in the landscape and serving as an excellent choice as an evergreen hedge.
Image is important, and keeping a clean-cut appearance may be the goal of some coaches; however, certain plants should be unleashed in fall. In other words, do not try to control them (i.e., do not prune them). Azaleas should not be cut back in fall, as this removes the coveted springtime blooms. Ornamental grasses should not be cut back either, as the foliage serves as protection for wildlife throughout winter.
Get your Tiger garden ready for gameday. Photo by Allen Owings
Violas add purple and gold to the cool-season landscape. Photo by Damon Abdi
Lemon Ball sedum can be used for aesthetics and school spirit. Photo by Damon Abdi
As far as likeness, make sure you know what plant you are working with. For example, Hydrangea macrophylla and Hydrangea paniculata have similar flowers, but require different maintenance considerations (H. macrophylla prefers afternoon shade and pruning after flowers fade, but H. paniculata prefers full sun and can be pruned in late winter, since flowers form on new growth).
Make sure you put the right plant (and maintenance practices) in the right situation to succeed. Native plants are a great option for inhospitable conditions in Louisiana. For example, let’s say you have a low, poorly drained area of the landscape where many species suffer (a “Death Valley,” if you will). Putting plants like Louisiana iris, bald cypress or buttonbush in these challenging conditions turns the intimidating site into a home-field advantage, since those species thrive in that environment.
Cool-season color is a great way to add a jolt of interest to the landscape, including Louisiana Super Plants such as Jolt dianthus adds purple to the playbook. Petunias and violas provide another avenue for purple, which certainly plays well with gold-colored plants this time of year. The vivid yellows of snapdragons are a quintessential cool-season bedding plant, adding height to annual beds; whereas Lemon Ball sedum provides a tender perennial to add a golden texture to the landscape. Whether in-ground or in-container, purple and gold are always a great way to show school spirit during the season.
Finally, views are all important whether you are watching the game live or in your backyard landscape. Installing comfortable conditions for fellow football fans may include a patio for gathering, a pergola for shade or an outdoor kitchen for tailgating at home. Install these features now so they are ready for football season. If you want to block off rival fans (or neighbors), consider suitable hedge species, such as the previously mentioned Linebacker Distylium. Since football season goes well into winter, perhaps you want something like a holly as your evergreen hedge. Hollies, of course, conjure a vision of red berries during the holiday season. Due to the dioecious nature of hollies, separate male and female plants are often both required to facilitate fruit. If you can only pick one specimen, take some advice from Keith Jackson by exclaiming “Whoa, Nellie,” and selecting the Nellie R. Stevens holly, as this can produce (parthenocarpic) fruit without fertilization from a male plant.
As you prepare for the best time of year, go to your local independent garden center for plants, and Geaux Tigers!
