Question
I want to plant some flowers in my Mothers flower areas in her front yard. They are in front of the house and will be used for decoration for the porch and the appearance of the front of the house. I was considering those strips of flowers that are sold in a roll that are layed down on the soil that require no seeding or fertilizer on my part. I do not know the history of success with these roll of flowers, so I hesitate to use them. I have tried before to plant flowers in these areas with no success. I use potting soil and good fertilizer, however nothing grows except weeds. Any suggestions? Thank You.

Answer
Roger, I personally do not use the tape strips, but from those I know who do, they do work.  The nice thing about them is that they take out the guess work on spacing, and every seed is planted at the same depth.  The tape decomposes after a few weeks, so there's no need to remove it following germination.

The down side is cost.  The strips are far more expensive than if you bought the seeds by the pack.  I also like to plant two seeds per planting hole to compensate for those seeds that do not germinate.  That is not an option with the strips.

In regard to the planting area, you may have a problem with the ph level of the soil or with drainage.  My recommendation is to till in as much organic matter as possible.  These amendments would include peat moss, aged grass clippings, shredded leaves, and compost.  If you don't have these readily available, you can purchase organic soil at your local garden center.  Once you've amended the soil and planted your flowers, mulch the area real well to retain moisture and keep down weeds.  The mulch will then decompose over the summer and provide additional nutrients to the soil.

To determine if you have an imbalanced ph level, you would need to take a soil test.  You can purchase your own test kit, or take a sample to a local nursery to be tested.  If the ph is below 6.5, you will need to add lime to lower the acidity level.  If it is above 7.5, add sulfur to lower the alkaline levels.  A good rule of thumb is areas east of the Mississippi tend to be acidic and need lime, and those in the west are alkaline and need sulfur.  But a test is your best bet rather than guessing.  Keep in mind that by adding the organic amendments I recommended above, they help to keep ph levels neutral at 7.0 which is exactly where you want the level to stay.

I hope this answered your question.  Please write again if I can ever be of assistance.

Regards,

Mike