Garden: Decorate Your Yard for July 4th
Cary, NC — This weekend is the 4th of July holiday, the day that we celebrate the birth of our country’s independence. So, how can you celebrate this important day in the garden? A little blue, a little white and lots of red!
Flag Etiquette
The most obvious symbol of pride is the American Flag. Lots of options are available from the traditional flag hanging off the porch to small flags you can randomly stick in the yard. Remember these rules from ushistory.org when hanging the American Flag:
- If hanging the flag from a pole, the union of the flag, or the blue section, should be placed at the peak of the staff.
- When the flag is displayed in a manner other than by being flown from a staff, it should be displayed flat, whether indoors or out. And, in this case, the union should be uppermost and to the flag’s own right, that is, to the observer’s left.
- The flag should never touch the ground.
In the Garden
As for the garden, showing American pride is just as easy as adding a little extra color. Most of us have lots of white within the architecture of the house, and red is such a popular color in the garden that many of you probably already have quite a bit of it, too.
So, a simple idea is to just add some blue. You can find a large, blue pot and drop in a smaller pot of flowers you already have. Or, buy some inexpensive blue vases of various shapes and sizes, and add a simple red carnation. These look great displayed in groups on any flat surface.
If you have small kids, you could keep them busy by getting some small clay pots and letting them paint them in red, white and blue and add single flowers to each one. Then, have the kids place them anywhere they like–the front yard, the porch or the entry steps.
They will be so proud!
Visit a Gardening Center
Include a visit to your local garden center. They always have some great July 4th displays to give you some more ideas. You can even bring in a pot, and they can put together a nice plant combination that will look great for any outdoor 4th of July event.
Last, but not the least, remember all our military on this day. If not for them, we would not have the freedom and independence we all enjoy here in the good old USA.
Mel’s Tip of the Month
This tip is from Home Hort Hints.
The best time of day to water your plants is in the morning before the temperatures begin to rise. This gives the plants a good supply of water so they can get through the heat of the day. Also, early morning tend to have less winds, which increases evaporation.
If this isn’t an option, the next best thing is late afternoon. Your goal is to make sure the plants are dry by evening to avoid the development of fungal disease.
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Melody Hughes is a North Carolina State Extension Master Gardener Volunteer and a real estate agent at Dunlap Lilley Properties, Inc. Photo by Dave.
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The gardening column is sponsored in part by Garden Supply Co. on Old Apex Road in Cary.
