Clueless and need some advice.

LisiLynn

I admit, I have zero knowledge of gardening. I plant and pray and always vow that one day I'll educate myself but have yet to do that. My question is, what should I be doing right now? I just started cutting things back before it freezes here in the NW. Do I do this with everything? Last year tons of annuals came back and I hadn't done anything to them however there was a lot of dead leaves and branches underneath. Should these be cut back? I know I can't count on them coming back, I just want to give them the best chance. Also, how do you split bulbs? I planted a Lilly years ago and now its sprouting up in weird places. I want to dig the bulbs which I imagine have multiplied? and replant so I have more next year. How should I go about this? And do I just cut the green stalk off?

If I cut everything back, should I then cover it with mulch? and what exactly is mulch? Does barckdust count?

Should I dig up our old barkdust that has lots of weeds and dead leaves/flowers in it and put down new for the winter so the weeds don't resprout?

Crap, they should teach us this stuff in high school. I am so freaking domestically clueless its frustrating.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Dr.Loretta

I would either consult someone at a local nursery, or just google.

I'm assuming you know what's planted there. You can google [plant] pruning and it will give you tips. Because some plants/shrubs need to be pruned in the spring, some in the fall, some right after flowering, and some none at all. There's no one-size-fits-all answer to that one.

Ditto on googling for splitting lilies. You'll get good tips on timing and how to do it.

I have no idea what barkdust is. I use mulch, which is basically wood chips. You can buy by the bag at HD, Lowes, or any garden center (or heck, even the grocery store sometimes). Or if you need a lot, nurseries will deliver for a fee.

GL. And remember, plants are cheap (for the most part). Do some trial and error and you should be fine.

pdxmouse

Go to the Portland Nursery website. They have a ton of free classes. Also a help desk manned by a master gardener. I love them. My mom prefers Al's if you're out in the Wilsonville area. 7 Dees offers pretty reasonable design services, my friend was really happy with them.

You can also take free "naturescaping" classes that focus on using native plants and natural controls. After taking the basics course they'll help you design your own garden plan.

No need to dig up old mulch, you can just lay fresh stuff on top. Barkchips last longer than barkdust, and imo, leave less splinters. I think it's cheapest here directly through the dirt/barkdust companies. Or even cheaper, Asplundh will drop a load off for free, but you have to wait until they're trimming in your area and it's pretty rough looking. Still, free.

There's a few websites that offer PNW emails (what to do this month). Sunset magazine is fun to mine for ideas. The Oregonian has a gardening section on their website.

Yeah, I think that should get you started.

LisiLynn

Great advice! I'm going to try Portland Nursery. A Help Desk manned by a Master Gardener = Awesome! I've never been to Al's but I've driven by dozens of times. Perhaps I'll stop in next time.