Garden Design
Through trial and error I have learned that it is best to group plants together that have similar cultural requirements. This may sound like common sense, but all too often we let other factors determine what gets planted, and where.

I needed a low, yellow annual in front of a wave of red coleus this year and selected portulaca. It started out okay, but I soon realized that the water requirements for the two plants were vastly different. In order to keep the coleus from wilting, I had to supply more water than the portulaca could handle. So one or the other had to go.
It is helpful to remember this when designing planters as well. You wouldn’t want to combine lavender with hydrangeas because of the different watering requirements. Each year I like to group succulents in containers because they are so low maintenance. .jpg)
During a recent two week drought I was watering my coleus and dahlia container arrangements daily but didn’t have to provide a drop of water to the succulent containers.
The same principle applies to pH requirements. The need for some broadleaf evergreen shrubs led to the planting of some pieris and azaleas in one of my gardens. But often these acid-loving plants were sited right next to lilacs, roses and bottlebrush buckeyes, which prefer neutral to alkaline soils. As a result, I have to amend soils and alter pH in some very restricted and sporadic areas throughout my beds to try and keep everyone happy.
So if we want our plants to all get along and play nice together, start by selecting a grouping of plants that all have similar cultural requirements.
Posted by Bob Rensel


The new ones constantly wilted that year while the older ones were fine. But in year two, all was well with the new ones. Trees can take a bit longer. I have some Japanese Tree Lilacs that were transplanted in 2003. The stress of moving the mature trees took several years to go away. The first picture shows one of the trees in 2006. The second picture shows the same tree in 2008. Each year I would get lots of water sprouts and significant die-back at the ends of the branches. Five years later they are finally having a good year and filling out nicely.