Layering

As I walked through the garden, I finally realized how much layering for succession blooming I have done in the past few years.  Interplanting for continuous blooming cannot be haphazard, i.e., nothing invasive or plantings that cannot be cut down after blooming.  Lilies don't count because their stalks are so slender other plants can easily grow up around them.

I have lilies coming up throughout the garden with daylilies, roses, phlox and shasta daisies.

Lilies coming up in the front garden behind daffodil and daylily foliage.

Lots of layering here with roses, shasta daisies, phlox, daylilies, lilies, and snapdragons.

Short to tall all the way back, Heucherella Stoplight, rose, daylily Amelia, phlox Blue Paradise and David

Lilies are great to plant between early flowering daylilies like Happy Returns.

Lilies are great coming up through groundcovers placed behind flowering spring shrubs and bulbs.

Foxglove and phlox are just meant to be layered behind shorter plantings.

The rhodies are behind a stone wall right next to my front door.  They are attractive all year, but it is refreshing to look down and see hostas and ferns taking over the show.

Little Lime Hydrangea  is leafing out through the daffodil foliage, grows about three feet tall.

Allium and daffodils come up through Sweet Woodruff in the spring only to be replaced by phlox, iris, daylilies, roses and clematis.

I treat bulb foliage in different ways depending on where it is located and how much it interferes with other plantings.  I give most of the daffodil foliage a little haircut when all of the blooms are gone also cutting off the seed head in the process (this conserves energy for flower production next year).  I come around again a month out and cut a little more foliage off to let in light to other layered plantings.  My last cuts around the end of June just low enough so they do not interfere with other plants and in most cases this still leaves quite a bit of foliage.

I have never had a problem with the daffodils returning for a stunning display the following year, never have left my daffodils yellowing and sprawling all over the ground unless they are in a garden bed where I don't see them.

Blue Spike Muscari coming up in the same area where daylilies will enhance the summer garden.

Heuchera Southern Comfort coming up through the groundcover

Starlight Hydrangea

Even behind and next to Brunnera Silver Wings there are lilies and daylilies taking over.

Valerie Finnis Muscari and Geranium Magnificum are spring bloomers and can be cut down when done blooming for Heuchera Carmel and Heuchera Miracle to fill the area.

There is a row of very large bleeding hearts on the north side of my home, but as we know bleeding hearts die down during the summer with no redeeming qualities except yellow foliage and stems.  This is a Japanese Painted fern ready to take over.

Peach Flambe Heuchera is getting ready and I will remove a few stalks of the bleeding heart to give it more light.  This will not affect the next years blooming of the bleeding heart.

 Stoplight Heucherella coming up under the bleeding heart

Carrots planted under the daylilies - by the time the carrots need lots of sunlight the daylilies will be cut down.

The radishes look very lush don't they?

Same scene a day later, the rabbits have made a visit!