I am a complete newbie as far as gardening is concerned, so I'll be asking a lot of questions that will probably seem silly/stupid to many of you! I've done potted plants and hanging baskets in years past but not "in the ground" flowers. This year I'm starting from scratch in my back yard. I've had the space dug and mulched. I've been reading and looking at different plans. Like everyone else, I want to plant so that something is blooming from spring to the first frost.

One concern I have is poisonous plants. My two little dogs have access to the back yard thru a doggie door when I'm not home. Rhododendrun and foxglove are poisonous. I've also found that lantana has a pet warning. I had no idea and had planned to use those.

Here's a plan I found that sounds like it could be perfect. I'm interested in opinions on this. Butterfly bushes in the back next to the house, bee balm between the bushes and a little forward, columbine next, red coral bells and sunburst coreopsis at the front with sweet williams on the side. This will run next to the house. I still need to come up with a plan for one side of the porch and in front of the porch. I do have one tree in front of the porch that's been there a while. I would love to have a rhododendrun bush near the tree, but won't because of the poisonous aspect. Is there something else that has pretty leaves that could go there? I would love to be able to hire a landscaper but can't.

Here are some other questions:

1) I want flowers that will multiply for cutting. What would be good for that.
2) I'm thinking of letting honeysuckle grow on my fence. Is that a good idea or bad? I don't want it to become overpowering where I'll have to spend hours cutting it off.
3) Years ago I bought a freestanding trellis for my sister. She has it standing on her deck next to her screened in porch. She puts a mandevilla in a pot under it each year. It gets big and beautiful and always attracts hummingbirds. I never see trellises like this (that can stand on a deck). Does anyone have any ideas?? I started really looking for one last year when my porch was being built and couldn't find one.
4) I've never planted seeds or bulbs. I've heard that bulbs aren't that easy. What about seeds? Should I just try and if I do it wrong try again and again? I actually do have lily of the valley in my front yard that a friend of mine dug up and gave me about 20 years ago. I planted hers, and they bloom every year. I would put some of those in my back yard, but unfortunately they're poisonous to pets.

Thanks for any help. I really apologize for the length of this.

Carol R
Tennessee
USDA Hardiness Zone 7
Heat Zone 7

Hi Carol!
I'm new to gardening too, so I don't have much advice to give. But here are two kinds of free standing trellis set-ups.

http://www.solutions.com/jump.jsp?itemID=1552&itemType=PRODUCT&iProductID=1552

http://www.arbors-to-trellises.com/Planter-Trellis-cc-2034TR.htm

A little pricey tho. If you or someone you know is handy, you might even make one yourself. I know they sell wooden planter boxes at Lowes, and you could just add a wood (or metal) trellis yourself to it.

And on the bulbs. One thing I've learned in the past couple years of beginner gardening, is that bulbs like tulips don't do well down in the south cause they need real cold winters which we don't have. But I do see a lot of daffodils in the gardens around me. Here's a book that I'd like to get on which bulbs to plant in the south: http://www.timberpress.com/books/isbn.cfm/9780881928136

Some good seeds for starting outdoors once frost is gone and not harmful to pets are Zinnias & Cosmos. And cutting them just makes them grow all the better. (must be grown in full sun)

Also, I hope you're aware that the native Coral Honeysuckle is easier to maintain the size of than the japanese invasive kind. Altho, if you look at Joan's, you'll wonder what the heck I'm talking about!

Hope this helps a little.

p.s. you probably know this already, but just incase, here's a list of plants that are ok to plant when you have pets...
http://www.sniksnak.com/plants.html



Diana
Upstate SC
Zone 7b

Carol,

You got some great advise there!! and Kudoos to Diana for attempting to answer this question packed post with such wisdom! I didn't know where to begin....

On the Seed Trading forum we post what seeds we have to offer each other. If your interested come on over and see whats available! You don't have to reciprocate this year, theres always next year!

Here's the link.http://www.network54.com/Forum/625416/

Pam NJ 6B

Great suggestions so far. A while back someone posted pictures of cardinal vine growing on a railing around a deck. Maybe that would be something to look into. I think they used fishing line with weights to the ground so the vine could climb up to the deck railing. It would be an annual vine that you can plant from seed. The coral honeysuckle I have is not invasive. By that I mean it's not dropping seeds that sprout and need to be pulled up, but it did get big. I love it and find it gets the most action when blooming. In the fall I think the cardinal vine is the most used. I also plant zinnias for cut flowers. A pack of seeds is a lot cheaper than rosebushes and low maintenance.

Joan Garvey - Metairie, LA Zone 9

Carol, I don't know, I've always wondered about these lists. I see plants on there that we had in our yard for years. We had several different dogs during that time, and none of them paid a bit of attention to those plants. Daylily! All parts of the plant are edible to humans. I think that was one my dog used to "taste". He was a doggie flower lover. He'd go up to a flower look it over, then very gently clamp down on it like he just wanted to feel it. I really can't imagine any dog dumb enough to try lantana. The stems are kind of prickly and I can't imagine they would be attracted to them. Maybe someone else has more input on that one. I'd be interested in hearing.
dell

Thank you Diana, Joan and Pam for your advice! Dell, I was wondering about that list, too. I hadn't thought about the prickliness of lantana, but you're right. I don't think my dogs would be interested in that. I found another list that has the plants listed as "extremely poisonous" to "mildly poisonous."

I may have to wait until next year to start seeds. I wouldn't know exactly where to put them yet since I can't really start flowers here until the middle of April. Is anything fast growing enough (from seeds) to start in April?

Thanks again. I know that was a really long post. I'm sure I scared away a lot of answers by doing it that way.

Carol R
Tennessee
USDA Hardiness Zone 7
Heat Zone 7

FYI, one reason lantana is on the list is that although cats and dogs may be smart enough not to try it, not all domesticated animals are. Some good friends of mine in Florida own a small cattle ranch, and they lost a couple of calves one year to them eating lantana growing wild along the fence in one pasture.

Like many people I develop "tunnel vision" based on the things I experience everyday. Had it not been for that incident, I wouldn't have thought about all the animals people keep which graze - cows, horses, goats, sheep - which might eat a poisonous plant.

Kevin Morgan
Baton Rouge, LA

You're right Kevin. Hadn't thought about the grazing animals, was just thinking of dogs and cats.
Carol, zinnas will work, and hummers seem to like those. You can get penta plants too, I've seen hummers at those also. They tell me at the nursery down here in southeast alabama that they won't have pentas in for another couple of weeks.
dell

There is LOTS of Lantana that grows in many pastures here where both cows, horses and goats graze. Doesn't seem to be a problem.

Carol the Salvia coccineas and subrotunda can be sown in april and still have plenty of time to bloom Salvia greggii will bloom for me the first year. Any of the annual vines will bloom. I have sown them as early as April and as late as the end of May. Cannas will bloom the first year from seed. Mexican sunflower makes good cut flowers and can be sown in April.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

Carol I don't think you have been given a name for a good honeysuckle. Coral, or Goldflame are two that good and well behaved. Also loved by the hummingbirds.

Dianne
Southeast Alabama
Heat Zone 8
Sunset Zone 31

.

Carol, I came across this link in today's local paper. www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/plants/. I didn't go to it, but hopefully it can help.

Joan Garvey - Metairie, LA Zone 9

Thanks for the link, Joan. Thank you to everyone else who has helped me also. I have been spending hours planning my garden.

After reading all of the poisonous plants I've come to the decision that I can't have a garden. Only kidding, of course, but just about everything I'm thinking of is on a list of toxic plants. I wonder what they would really try to eat. My dogs are small. I have a Japanese Chin and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. I certainly don't want them to get sick eating toxic plants but don't want to worry unnecessarily about all of this either. It's confusing!

On a happy note, I'm in Knoxville, TN and it looks like the hummingbirds are almost here! This is earlier than last year. I called WBU this morning to make sure I was correct from looking at the map, and they suggested putting a feeder out within the next week. I don't think I've ever seen a hummingbird before the end of April. I hope there's enough food for them here!

Carol R

Carol R
Tennessee
USDA Hardiness Zone 7
Heat Zone 7

Carol,
There is no hard and fast rule where are pets are concerned and what they will or won't chew on. I can tell you that I have had dogs and one cat off and on all my life and I have never hzad any of them eat plants other than grass. The dog I have now is a black lab mix and he has eatchen toys, bits of flease blankets, tinsel, pillow stuffing but never plants. By all accounts he should have died ages ago but he is still around.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

Carol,

You may want to invest in some inexpensive garden fencing at Walmart or kmart. If your dogs are very small than they probably wouldn't jump over the fencing (about 16" tall).

Glad my dog (Cocker Spaniel) isn't interested in MOM'S PLANTS. Anything with MOM attached to he tends to steer clear of.

Pam NJ 6B