Seán Considine asked 15 years ago
About 2 years ago we constructed a new garden bedIn Autumn and Spring over the last 2 years we have saturated the bed with all kinds of perennial bulbs mostly purchased at Lidyl and Dunnes Stores.Now I am suspicious but not 100% sure that a significant number of the summer perennials that came out last year havent appeared this summer (even though it has been a slightly sunnier summer). I am thinking that only the additional summer perennials that were planted this spring are only appearing with last years summer perennial bulbs not appearing at all!All we did with last years summer flowers that grewwas cut back the stems in the autumn as they rotted.Can you advise or help me with why last years perennials bulb flowers may not reappear this summer yet?I am also wondering what are the best multicoloured,durable summer and spring perennial flowers recommended to last through the spring and summer and come out every year.We find that the perennials (with exception of gladolias) dont last too long and are not multicoloured with lovely blues, purples etc like the bedded plants. Can you advise here also?Finally finally whats the best spray in big quantityfor rose attack and flower attack and the best killerfor dogleaves, weeds etc in lawns? We tried A d50substance spray in the lawn, half killed the dogleaves but not fully.
Gerry Daly Staff answered 6 years ago
All bulbs are perennials but not all perennials are bulbs.
The word bulbs is used in two ways:
strictly speaking, a bulb is a storage organ with scales on the inside, exactly like an onion or daffodil.
But a bulb can be taken to mean a plant with any kind of storage organ, such as a bulb, tuber, corm or rhizome.
Sometimes bulbs do not flower in the second year, if they were exhausted by flowering and the soil was not rich enough.
There are no bulbs or perennials (not bulbs) that flower both in spring and summer. One or other but not both.
Roses that are not resistant to blackspot need to be sprayed but other flowers do not. There are several kinds of rose spray, such as Roseclear or Multirose.
Any lawn weedkiller will kill lawn weeds if applied in accordance with the instrucitions on the packet.
