Welcome to Durham Garden Center!
4536 Hillsborough Rd., Durham, NC 27705   919-384-7526
Tips & Resources
Gardening Tips and Fun!

At Durham Garden Center, we always have a huge selection of heat and drought-tolerant trees, shrubs and perennials. A good majority of these, once established, can survive and thrive through our long, hot southern summers. Water-wise landscaping and proper mulching also means less time gardening and more time for your family's enjoyment of your beautiful yard. Xeriscaping does not just mean cactus! Think beautiful butterfly bushes, camellia, abelia, nandina, lantana, indian hawthorne, spirea, perennial herbs such as lavender and rosemary, evergreens such as juniper, aucuba, mahonia and holly, eleagnus, ornamental grasses. Many groundcovers such as ajuga, liriope (monkey-grass) and vinca are very drought-tolerant as well. The list goes on and on! Also remember, many of these plants are also deer-resistant! An added bonus! Container gardens in pretty pots can also be changed out seasonally for a fresh, new look on your patios and are fun and easy! Below are great links from the NC Cooperative Extension Service for more extensive lists of native plants, easy-maintenance landscape plants, deer-resistant plants, and urban gardening!


Plants do not waste water! Your outdoor and indoor living spaces need plants. Plants create oxygen, clean and cool the air, add organic matter back to the earth and keep the soil from eroding. Many, many perennials, shrubs and trees will dig their roots deep into the earth and need so much less water when established than you think! Take a look around the roadsides, or at some of the older neighborhoods and old homesites in the country and notice the mature plantings. These tough specimens have been taking care of themselves for years! Plants do not have to be considered "native" to thrive in your yard. Most "non-native" plants are not invasive. Re-think your lawncare practices. Cool-season lawns such as fescue go dormant in summer and need very little water  and no fertilizer during this time. These lawns brown during summer but are green in spring and fall. Forcing a cool-season grass lawn to be green in the hot summer by continuous watering and fertilizing only stresses the plants. Fertilize, lime and overseed in spring and fall when grass is actively growing for tough, carefree lawns. Shrub and perennial borders are very low maintenance. Drought-tolerant landscaping does not just need to be considered during drier years. Think of this as low-maintenance and carefree EVERY year! Think Sustainable Landscaping!

We are members of the Durham Progressive Garden Business Alliance. DPGBA is a group of local landscape professionals, gardeners, nursery owners and landscape material suppliers.  We are committed to sound, sustainable gardening techniques which employ conscientious choices for garden and plant installations.  We believe in selecting the right plant for the right place.





 


Medium shade, part sun, part shade, light shade? Confused? We get these questions often at DGC, so we have tried to clear it up for you

   KNOW YOUR SHADE

LIGHT SHADE: 3 to 4 hours per day; where a sun/shade pattern moves across the plants; high, thin canopy of deciduous trees; bright light; considerable direct light.

MEDIUM SHADE4 to 6 hours per day; also known as partial shade; morning, afternoon, or intermittent throughout the day.

FULL SHADETotal shade all day with no direct light, but some indirect light; under full canopy trees, north side of buildings and fences; "lots of shade"; continuous shade.

DENSE SHADEDeepest of shade; under shrubs, porches, decks, dark corners, narrow passages between houses or buildings; ground is usually dark and dry.

SHADE TO PART SUNThis refers to plants that prefer more SHADE than sun. This means morning sun, afternoon shade in our hot summer region.

SUN TO PART SHADE: This refers to plants that prefer more SUN than shade. This means a plant can tolerate sun part of the day, and light to medium shade part of the day.

FULL SUN: Plants that need FULL sun require more than 6 hours per day in order to be full and flower to their potential. A sun-loving plant will stretch, lean, flower intermittently, or possibly have disease issues if not in enough sun.






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