Estimated read time: 7-8 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Larry A. Sagers Regional Horticultural Specialist Utah State University Extension Service Thanksgiving Point Office © All Rights Reserved
FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO REGISTER GO TO OUR WEBSITE www.thanksgivingpoint.com then click on classes or call 1-801-768-7443
FLOWER BED DESIGN Larry Sagers Tuesday May 3, 10, 17 and 24 from 2:00-4:00 PM and 6:00-8:00 PM ( 4-week class) Cost: $40.00 Wonderful flower gardens don’t just happen. They are created by careful gardeners. Learn how to plan and plant flowerbeds that are aesthetically pleasing and that will bloom from early spring through autumn.
THE ART OF GARDEN PHOTOGRAPHY Larry Sagers Tuesday May 3, 10 and 17 at 10:00 AM-Noon (3-week class) Cost: $30.00 Learn about the quality of light, composition and equipment from a Master of the Art as you take pictures in Thanksgiving Point Gardens. Larry Sagers co-author of the new “Temple Square Gardening” book, and writer for the Deseret News “Home and Garden” section will be the instructor.
PLANTS FOR UTAH LANDSCAPE Paul Quist and Gretchen Campbell Saturday May 7, 14 and 21 11:30 AM-1:30 PM (3-week course) Cost: $30.00 When choosing plants for your landscape it is important to understand what will grow here in Utah. This class covers trees, shrubs, annuals and perennials suited for the Wasatch Front.
BASIC LANDSCAPE DESIGN Larry Sagers Tuesday June 7, 14, 21 and 28 from 2:00-4:00 PM or 6:00-8:00 PM(4-week course) Cost: $40.00 Whether you’re designing a first-time landscape or remodeling an existing landscape, learn the steps for creating a look that you will enjoy. The class covers creating focal points, entryways, how to frame your home or preserve a view and water-wise landscape. There will be USU Extension Service Master Gardeners available for a 15-minute individual consultation on the last day of class.
PASSIONATE ABOUT PERENNIALS Larry Sagers Tuesday June 7, 14, 21 and 28 from 10:00 AM- Noon (4-week course) Cost: $40.00 If you love perennial gardens or the cottage garden look then you will love this class. We will go in depth into perennial plants and how to select them according to their water and light requirements.
Saturday Morning Garden Lecture 10:00 AM Cost: $7.00 Taught by USU Extension Service Master Gardeners
May 7-Home Grown Vegetable: Growing a vegetable garden can be such a great reward or it can be a big pain. We will cover planning, variety selection and how to manage your vegetable garden for better production. May 14- Annuals: Seasons Long Color: Annuls add such great color to your landscape mixed with your perennials.
May 21-Summer Perennials: Perennials are the backbone to your flower garden. Learn what blooms in the summer and how to care for them.
June 4-Water Features-Do you enjoy the sound of running water? Would you like a fishpond? Learn how to build a water feature and what to plant in and around the water.
June 11-Cottage Garden- Love the English style of gardens and not sure how to get started? We will teach you how to have a beautiful cottage garden.
June 18- Creating an Oriental Corner-Oriental gardens are a tranquil place so why not create a place like that in your own backyard.
June 25-Understanding Irrigation- Are you confused about sprinkling systems and how to set them up for your yard? We will teach you how to install a system
Wednesday Night Workshops 6:30 PM Taught by USU Extension Service Master Gardeners May 11- Pressing Flower: You will learn which flowers are great for pressing and the how to’s. You will also make a flower press. Cost: $25.00
June 8-Living Wreath- This class will show you how quickly and easily make a small “living wreath” planted with three varieties of succulents. Cost: $50.00
GUIDED GARDEN WALK Cost: $8.00 (regular garden admission) Season Pass or Annual Pass Holders are free. A USU Extension Service Master Gardener will guide you through the magnificent Thanksgiving Point Gardens. May 2 10:00 AM Bulbs and other spring flowers. June 6 9:00 AM Early summer perennials
Spring is here and with spring comes the beautiful flowers that lift out spirits and brighten our outlook. If you are tired of flowerbeds that always look the same and wish your beds looked and grew like those that professional designers create, here are some design tips.
Designing attractive and functional flowerbeds does not have to be a daunting task. Well designed floral displays are a way to indulge your horticulture passions and make your home and garden more attractive.
Before you start planning or planting, start with a purpose in mind. The purposes will vary but always plan the design in advance. Planning a design helps you select the right number and the right kinds of plants for your beds.
There are several ways to approach creating beautiful gardens. It is often easier to create a design if you first select a focus or theme. Themes are not rigid decisions but often help you decide on the kinds and types of plants you want to include.
One way is to design your garden by themes. These include the following or many others popular options; Water gardens, fragrance gardens, woodland gardens, cottage gardens, cutting gardens, butterfly gardens or even moonlight gardens.
Other possibilities include gardens that feature collections of one or more types of plants. These include hosta, iris, roses, peonies, daylilies or other specific flowers or more general groups of annuals or perennials.
Another style is a garden devoted to a particular season such as a spring, summer or fall gardens. Remember that gardens might have spectacular times of bloom but they need to look attractive for the entire season. Sun or shade gardens are also favorite ways to come up with a garden design.
When designing a flowerbed, make it work for you, not the other way around. Make and execute plans or to create designs for plants that you can grow and appreciate for their blossoms, foliage, texture and form. Plant flowers that look good and grow well together.
Many times homeowners lay out individual beds in very formal designs. The problem is that formal beds are very time consuming to lay out and install. This process needs to be streamlined and refined to facilitate a more natural look that is easier and less time consuming to keep up with.
Instead of planting flowers in rows or in geometric formations, arrange them as nature would arrange flowers in natural areas. Plant your flowers so they are displayed informally in lovely spontaneous clusters that resemble the spontaneity of flowers in a high mountain meadow.
This is a radical change from the systems that are popular with most formal garden designers. Most homeowners need to design flower composites. Beds done as formal patterns and shapes with rigid delineations in colors and plant placement do not fit most residential landscapes.
Consider planting many different plants instead of a single species in each bed. This creates wonderful orchestrations of harmonic flowers that work well together. These flower beds come alive as they grow and change, rather than just having the same flowers in the bed year after year.
Another reason for including so many kinds of flowers in his designs is much more practical. Including many varieties increases the gene pool and adds another dimension to flower plantings.
The mixture of varieties makes it much more difficult for species specific pests to establish. For example, tobacco budworm (a common pest on petunias and geraniums) often take out one or two kinds of flowers.
With multiple kinds of flowers, you solve the problem. The openings created by the flowers might die are quickly occupied by those that are not attacked. That way, the pests do not destroy your entire bed in mid-summer.
All successful gardens start with the right plants in the right place. Growing the plants is important but arranging them in pleasing attractive successions will help you create show stopping beds like those at Thanksgiving Gardens or at Temple Square.
Designing flowerbeds is a great part of the gardening. Design classes help you create living works of art to share. They give you ideas for putting flowerbeds together using your creativity and planning.
For more information on flower bed design and to learn how to do it yourself, come to our classes at the Utah house at the Utah Botanical Center. Call (801) 451-3403 to register for that class.
The flower bed design class will be taught by Larry Sagers. Sagers coauthored the book Temple Square Gardening and is the horticulture education director at Thanksgiving Gardens and the Utah Botanical Center.
