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so the feeder gets them hooked on my nectar until they can get their own from the flowers.

TRANSPORT: I purchased a garden cart at a garage sale for $4 about ten years ago and I love it. It has two big wheels that roll easily across even the roughest terrain and holds more weeds that I have the energy to pull at one time. I used to use a wheel barrow, but lifting it and keeping the one wheel balanced as I pushed it was not fun for a person with arthritis in her knees and not a good choice for a lazy gardener. My garden car is balanced so it's easy to lift and if I'm really tired I can pull it instead of push it. I also keep a rake and a shovel in so they'll be nearby should I discover something that needs to be raked or shoveled.

PLANTS: Perennials make gardening a little easier, but they aren't work-free. They need to be dead headed (the dead flowers removed) if you want continual bloom and many need pruning once a year. Perennials such as Hostas, daisies and day lilies need to be divided every few years. So research your plants before you buy them if you want the least labor-intensive perennials.

Even though I'm a lazy gardener, I still plant veggies and annuals. I have to have fresh green peppers, hot peppers, beans, tomatoes, cucumbers and herbs as well as Impatients, Moss Rose (portulaca) and Gerbera Daisies each year. I grow herbs as well and my dill comes up from seed in the general area where it grew the previous year, tarragon is a perennial and attractive and I have Lemon Balm (mint) and lots of orange mint that I just let run wild in one corner of my garden.

Perennial ground covers are perfect for lazy gardeners. Sedums, Myrtle or Vinca, Violets, Sweet Woodruff and Bishop's Weed all fill large areas in quite nicely and require very little attention. They are invasive, however, so keep this in mind. They may take over an area too fast for your needs.

I hope some of my lazy gardener tips work for you and encourage you to keep on growing!

Learn more about this author, Pat Merewether.
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