Planning a perennial garden can be overwhelming. Here are some tips to help organize your thoughts and choose a design you will like

Garden Style

In order for us to end up with a garden we can enjoy, we must first decide what we like. Choosing a garden style is the first decision. That style can be worked in to any size or shape later. A good start in choosing a style is to look at magazines and find pictures of gardens you like. Tear the pictures out and save them for a while as you collect more. Look at the collection of clippings. What do you like about them as individuals? What do they have in common? Are they calm like a Japanese style garden or are they a riot of color, shape, and abundance? Do you have a particular theme in mind like an all-white garden or a fragrance garden? A look we like can be incorporated into a property of acres or a collection of potted plants. In choosing a style, it is important to consider, not just what we like, but where the garden will be located. While you might like a meadow garden, or a whimsical garden in which to display your whirligig collection, perhaps the front yard is not the place. Your neighbors probably will not appreciate it and there may be zoning laws as to lawn height and content. In general, the front yard keeps a relatively formal look. As for the rest of the property, the farther from the house and street, the less formal the garden can be.

Perennial flower garden design tips

Plant Choices

Next, think about the flower and foliage color, various leaf forms, plant heights, and bloom times. Plants can be placed in drifts through a bed. They can be grouped in several places along a walkway to lead the eye down the path. Plants can be used as a single specimen, a focal point. Choose plants that vary in height, placing the tallest at the back. If the bed is large, plan how you will get to the plants in the back to care for them. A few well-placed stepping-stones may be in order.

Seasonal Considerations

Think about what each season will be like. Try to make a focal point for each season. You might put in some bulbs and forsythia, maybe an early blooming fruit tree like cherry, for spring. Add lilies, day lilies, gay feather, Russian sage, or a host of other summer blooming perennials. Choose different colors and shapes of foliage too. Many flowers, like gaillardia, bloom on into fall. Mums with so many colors offer great fall showings. Have some plants that have fall foliage color changes. Most of us have a winter to deal with. Grow plants that leave behind berries like nandina or bittersweet. Many plants have interesting seed heads that persist through the winter like ornamental grasses. Make sure to have some evergreen plants.

Containers

If your perennial garden is a container garden, a lot can be decided about the style by what kinds of containers you choose. They do not all need to match each other, but they should match your style. The containers could be rustic or they could be sleek and shiny lacquered pots with an oriental design painted on them. The plants can be bamboos, palms, bananas, trees, succulents or virtually any plant that you could grow in the ground. They can be colorful or serene.

Pots or other containers of plants can be set into the midst of a garden as accents. If you have a space that looks a bit drab or bare, set a potted plant there. This is an especially good trick if you are waiting for small perennials to grow into large ones. The garden can look a little sparse for a year or two. Another way to make a new garden look fuller is to plant annuals in the spaces until the perennials fill in. Some people leave sections of the perennial garden empty on purpose because they like to incorporate annuals, which are changed seasonally or for holiday flower displays.

Garden Accessories

If seats are placed along the garden path, sit there and look at the view. Is there a focal point for the lounger to enjoy? Is there something that attracts attention? Place seating with that in mind. If arbors are present, be sure that they are placed with the view through the arbor in mind. Think of the arbor as a picture frame. Any fencing should be chosen with garden style in mind. A two-foot-high fence of sticks might look cute in a rustic garden, but a more polished garden requires a more polished-looking fence.

As you can see, there is a lot to think about when planning a perennial garden, but dreaming about how you want it to turn out is half the battle. Now you know how to get started.

Planning a perennial garden can be overwhelming. Here are some tips to help organize your thoughts and choose a design you will like

Garden Style

In order for us to end up with a garden we can enjoy, we must first decide what we like. Choosing a garden style is the first decision. That style can be worked in to any size or shape later. A good start in choosing a style is to look at magazines and find pictures of gardens you like. Tear the pictures out and save them for a while as you collect more. Look at the collection of clippings. What do you like about them as individuals? What do they have in common? Are they calm like a Japanese style garden or are they a riot of color, shape, and abundance? Do you have a particular theme in mind like an all-white garden or a fragrance garden? A look we like can be incorporated into a property of acres or a collection of potted plants. In choosing a style, it is important to consider, not just what we like, but where the garden will be located. While you might like a meadow garden, or a whimsical garden in which to display your whirligig collection, perhaps the front yard is not the place. Your neighbors probably will not appreciate it and there may be zoning laws as to lawn height and content. In general, the front yard keeps a relatively formal look. As for the rest of the property, the farther from the house and street, the less formal the garden can be.

Perennial flower garden design tips

Plant Choices

Next, think about the flower and foliage color, various leaf forms, plant heights, and bloom times. Plants can be placed in drifts through a bed. They can be grouped in several places along a walkway to lead the eye down the path. Plants can be used as a single specimen, a focal point. Choose plants that vary in height, placing the tallest at the back. If the bed is large, plan how you will get to the plants in the back to care for them. A few well-placed stepping-stones may be in order.

Seasonal Considerations

Think about what each season will be like. Try to make a focal point for each season. You might put in some bulbs and forsythia, maybe an early blooming fruit tree like cherry, for spring. Add lilies, day lilies, gay feather, Russian sage, or a host of other summer blooming perennials. Choose different colors and shapes of foliage too. Many flowers, like gaillardia, bloom on into fall. Mums with so many colors offer great fall showings. Have some plants that have fall foliage color changes. Most of us have a winter to deal with. Grow plants that leave behind berries like nandina or bittersweet. Many plants have interesting seed heads that persist through the winter like ornamental grasses. Make sure to have some evergreen plants.

Containers

If your perennial garden is a container garden, a lot can be decided about the style by what kinds of containers you choose. They do not all need to match each other, but they should match your style. The containers could be rustic or they could be sleek and shiny lacquered pots with an oriental design painted on them. The plants can be bamboos, palms, bananas, trees, succulents or virtually any plant that you could grow in the ground. They can be colorful or serene.

Pots or other containers of plants can be set into the midst of a garden as accents. If you have a space that looks a bit drab or bare, set a potted plant there. This is an especially good trick if you are waiting for small perennials to grow into large ones. The garden can look a little sparse for a year or two. Another way to make a new garden look fuller is to plant annuals in the spaces until the perennials fill in. Some people leave sections of the perennial garden empty on purpose because they like to incorporate annuals, which are changed seasonally or for holiday flower displays.

Garden Accessories

If seats are placed along the garden path, sit there and look at the view. Is there a focal point for the lounger to enjoy? Is there something that attracts attention? Place seating with that in mind. If arbors are present, be sure that they are placed with the view through the arbor in mind. Think of the arbor as a picture frame. Any fencing should be chosen with garden style in mind. A two-foot-high fence of sticks might look cute in a rustic garden, but a more polished garden requires a more polished-looking fence.

As you can see, there is a lot to think about when planning a perennial garden, but dreaming about how you want it to turn out is half the battle. Now you know how to get started.

Planning a perennial garden can be overwhelming. Here are some tips to help organize your thoughts and choose a design you will like

Garden Style

In order for us to end up with a garden we can enjoy, we must first decide what we like. Choosing a garden style is the first decision. That style can be worked in to any size or shape later. A good start in choosing a style is to look at magazines and find pictures of gardens you like. Tear the pictures out and save them for a while as you collect more. Look at the collection of clippings. What do you like about them as individuals? What do they have in common? Are they calm like a Japanese style garden or are they a riot of color, shape, and abundance? Do you have a particular theme in mind like an all-white garden or a fragrance garden? A look we like can be incorporated into a property of acres or a collection of potted plants. In choosing a style, it is important to consider, not just what we like, but where the garden will be located. While you might like a meadow garden, or a whimsical garden in which to display your whirligig collection, perhaps the front yard is not the place. Your neighbors probably will not appreciate it and there may be zoning laws as to lawn height and content. In general, the front yard keeps a relatively formal look. As for the rest of the property, the farther from the house and street, the less formal the garden can be.

Perennial flower garden design tips

Plant Choices

Next, think about the flower and foliage color, various leaf forms, plant heights, and bloom times. Plants can be placed in drifts through a bed. They can be grouped in several places along a walkway to lead the eye down the path. Plants can be used as a single specimen, a focal point. Choose plants that vary in height, placing the tallest at the back. If the bed is large, plan how you will get to the plants in the back to care for them. A few well-placed stepping-stones may be in order.

Seasonal Considerations

Think about what each season will be like. Try to make a focal point for each season. You might put in some bulbs and forsythia, maybe an early blooming fruit tree like cherry, for spring. Add lilies, day lilies, gay feather, Russian sage, or a host of other summer blooming perennials. Choose different colors and shapes of foliage too. Many flowers, like gaillardia, bloom on into fall. Mums with so many colors offer great fall showings. Have some plants that have fall foliage color changes. Most of us have a winter to deal with. Grow plants that leave behind berries like nandina or bittersweet. Many plants have interesting seed heads that persist through the winter like ornamental grasses. Make sure to have some evergreen plants.

Containers

If your perennial garden is a container garden, a lot can be decided about the style by what kinds of containers you choose. They do not all need to match each other, but they should match your style. The containers could be rustic or they could be sleek and shiny lacquered pots with an oriental design painted on them. The plants can be bamboos, palms, bananas, trees, succulents or virtually any plant that you could grow in the ground. They can be colorful or serene.

Pots or other containers of plants can be set into the midst of a garden as accents. If you have a space that looks a bit drab or bare, set a potted plant there. This is an especially good trick if you are waiting for small perennials to grow into large ones. The garden can look a little sparse for a year or two. Another way to make a new garden look fuller is to plant annuals in the spaces until the perennials fill in. Some people leave sections of the perennial garden empty on purpose because they like to incorporate annuals, which are changed seasonally or for holiday flower displays.

Garden Accessories

If seats are placed along the garden path, sit there and look at the view. Is there a focal point for the lounger to enjoy? Is there something that attracts attention? Place seating with that in mind. If arbors are present, be sure that they are placed with the view through the arbor in mind. Think of the arbor as a picture frame. Any fencing should be chosen with garden style in mind. A two-foot-high fence of sticks might look cute in a rustic garden, but a more polished garden requires a more polished-looking fence.

As you can see, there is a lot to think about when planning a perennial garden, but dreaming about how you want it to turn out is half the battle. Now you know how to get started.

Planning a perennial garden can be overwhelming. Here are some tips to help organize your thoughts and choose a design you will like

Garden Style

In order for us to end up with a garden we can enjoy, we must first decide what we like. Choosing a garden style is the first decision. That style can be worked in to any size or shape later. A good start in choosing a style is to look at magazines and find pictures of gardens you like. Tear the pictures out and save them for a while as you collect more. Look at the collection of clippings. What do you like about them as individuals? What do they have in common? Are they calm like a Japanese style garden or are they a riot of color, shape, and abundance? Do you have a particular theme in mind like an all-white garden or a fragrance garden? A look we like can be incorporated into a property of acres or a collection of potted plants. In choosing a style, it is important to consider, not just what we like, but where the garden will be located. While you might like a meadow garden, or a whimsical garden in which to display your whirligig collection, perhaps the front yard is not the place. Your neighbors probably will not appreciate it and there may be zoning laws as to lawn height and content. In general, the front yard keeps a relatively formal look. As for the rest of the property, the farther from the house and street, the less formal the garden can be.

Perennial flower garden design tips

Plant Choices

Next, think about the flower and foliage color, various leaf forms, plant heights, and bloom times. Plants can be placed in drifts through a bed. They can be grouped in several places along a walkway to lead the eye down the path. Plants can be used as a single specimen, a focal point. Choose plants that vary in height, placing the tallest at the back. If the bed is large, plan how you will get to the plants in the back to care for them. A few well-placed stepping-stones may be in order.

Seasonal Considerations

Think about what each season will be like. Try to make a focal point for each season. You might put in some bulbs and forsythia, maybe an early blooming fruit tree like cherry, for spring. Add lilies, day lilies, gay feather, Russian sage, or a host of other summer blooming perennials. Choose different colors and shapes of foliage too. Many flowers, like gaillardia, bloom on into fall. Mums with so many colors offer great fall showings. Have some plants that have fall foliage color changes. Most of us have a winter to deal with. Grow plants that leave behind berries like nandina or bittersweet. Many plants have interesting seed heads that persist through the winter like ornamental grasses. Make sure to have some evergreen plants.

Containers

If your perennial garden is a container garden, a lot can be decided about the style by what kinds of containers you choose. They do not all need to match each other, but they should match your style. The containers could be rustic or they could be sleek and shiny lacquered pots with an oriental design painted on them. The plants can be bamboos, palms, bananas, trees, succulents or virtually any plant that you could grow in the ground. They can be colorful or serene.

Pots or other containers of plants can be set into the midst of a garden as accents. If you have a space that looks a bit drab or bare, set a potted plant there. This is an especially good trick if you are waiting for small perennials to grow into large ones. The garden can look a little sparse for a year or two. Another way to make a new garden look fuller is to plant annuals in the spaces until the perennials fill in. Some people leave sections of the perennial garden empty on purpose because they like to incorporate annuals, which are changed seasonally or for holiday flower displays.

Garden Accessories

If seats are placed along the garden path, sit there and look at the view. Is there a focal point for the lounger to enjoy? Is there something that attracts attention? Place seating with that in mind. If arbors are present, be sure that they are placed with the view through the arbor in mind. Think of the arbor as a picture frame. Any fencing should be chosen with garden style in mind. A two-foot-high fence of sticks might look cute in a rustic garden, but a more polished garden requires a more polished-looking fence.

As you can see, there is a lot to think about when planning a perennial garden, but dreaming about how you want it to turn out is half the battle. Now you know how to get started.

Planning a perennial garden can be overwhelming. Here are some tips to help organize your thoughts and choose a design you will like

Garden Style

In order for us to end up with a garden we can enjoy, we must first decide what we like. Choosing a garden style is the first decision. That style can be worked in to any size or shape later. A good start in choosing a style is to look at magazines and find pictures of gardens you like. Tear the pictures out and save them for a while as you collect more. Look at the collection of clippings. What do you like about them as individuals? What do they have in common? Are they calm like a Japanese style garden or are they a riot of color, shape, and abundance? Do you have a particular theme in mind like an all-white garden or a fragrance garden? A look we like can be incorporated into a property of acres or a collection of potted plants. In choosing a style, it is important to consider, not just what we like, but where the garden will be located. While you might like a meadow garden, or a whimsical garden in which to display your whirligig collection, perhaps the front yard is not the place. Your neighbors probably will not appreciate it and there may be zoning laws as to lawn height and content. In general, the front yard keeps a relatively formal look. As for the rest of the property, the farther from the house and street, the less formal the garden can be.

Perennial flower garden design tips

Plant Choices

Next, think about the flower and foliage color, various leaf forms, plant heights, and bloom times. Plants can be placed in drifts through a bed. They can be grouped in several places along a walkway to lead the eye down the path. Plants can be used as a single specimen, a focal point. Choose plants that vary in height, placing the tallest at the back. If the bed is large, plan how you will get to the plants in the back to care for them. A few well-placed stepping-stones may be in order.

Seasonal Considerations

Think about what each season will be like. Try to make a focal point for each season. You might put in some bulbs and forsythia, maybe an early blooming fruit tree like cherry, for spring. Add lilies, day lilies, gay feather, Russian sage, or a host of other summer blooming perennials. Choose different colors and shapes of foliage too. Many flowers, like gaillardia, bloom on into fall. Mums with so many colors offer great fall showings. Have some plants that have fall foliage color changes. Most of us have a winter to deal with. Grow plants that leave behind berries like nandina or bittersweet. Many plants have interesting seed heads that persist through the winter like ornamental grasses. Make sure to have some evergreen plants.

Containers

If your perennial garden is a container garden, a lot can be decided about the style by what kinds of containers you choose. They do not all need to match each other, but they should match your style. The containers could be rustic or they could be sleek and shiny lacquered pots with an oriental design painted on them. The plants can be bamboos, palms, bananas, trees, succulents or virtually any plant that you could grow in the ground. They can be colorful or serene.

Pots or other containers of plants can be set into the midst of a garden as accents. If you have a space that looks a bit drab or bare, set a potted plant there. This is an especially good trick if you are waiting for small perennials to grow into large ones. The garden can look a little sparse for a year or two. Another way to make a new garden look fuller is to plant annuals in the spaces until the perennials fill in. Some people leave sections of the perennial garden empty on purpose because they like to incorporate annuals, which are changed seasonally or for holiday flower displays.

Garden Accessories

If seats are placed along the garden path, sit there and look at the view. Is there a focal point for the lounger to enjoy? Is there something that attracts attention? Place seating with that in mind. If arbors are present, be sure that they are placed with the view through the arbor in mind. Think of the arbor as a picture frame. Any fencing should be chosen with garden style in mind. A two-foot-high fence of sticks might look cute in a rustic garden, but a more polished garden requires a more polished-looking fence.

As you can see, there is a lot to think about when planning a perennial garden, but dreaming about how you want it to turn out is half the battle. Now you know how to get started.

Planning a perennial garden can be overwhelming. Here are some tips to help organize your thoughts and choose a design you will like

Garden Style

In order for us to end up with a garden we can enjoy, we must first decide what we like. Choosing a garden style is the first decision. That style can be worked in to any size or shape later. A good start in choosing a style is to look at magazines and find pictures of gardens you like. Tear the pictures out and save them for a while as you collect more. Look at the collection of clippings. What do you like about them as individuals? What do they have in common? Are they calm like a Japanese style garden or are they a riot of color, shape, and abundance? Do you have a particular theme in mind like an all-white garden or a fragrance garden? A look we like can be incorporated into a property of acres or a collection of potted plants. In choosing a style, it is important to consider, not just what we like, but where the garden will be located. While you might like a meadow garden, or a whimsical garden in which to display your whirligig collection, perhaps the front yard is not the place. Your neighbors probably will not appreciate it and there may be zoning laws as to lawn height and content. In general, the front yard keeps a relatively formal look. As for the rest of the property, the farther from the house and street, the less formal the garden can be.

Perennial flower garden design tips

Plant Choices

Next, think about the flower and foliage color, various leaf forms, plant heights, and bloom times. Plants can be placed in drifts through a bed. They can be grouped in several places along a walkway to lead the eye down the path. Plants can be used as a single specimen, a focal point. Choose plants that vary in height, placing the tallest at the back. If the bed is large, plan how you will get to the plants in the back to care for them. A few well-placed stepping-stones may be in order.

Seasonal Considerations

Think about what each season will be like. Try to make a focal point for each season. You might put in some bulbs and forsythia, maybe an early blooming fruit tree like cherry, for spring. Add lilies, day lilies, gay feather, Russian sage, or a host of other summer blooming perennials. Choose different colors and shapes of foliage too. Many flowers, like gaillardia, bloom on into fall. Mums with so many colors offer great fall showings. Have some plants that have fall foliage color changes. Most of us have a winter to deal with. Grow plants that leave behind berries like nandina or bittersweet. Many plants have interesting seed heads that persist through the winter like ornamental grasses. Make sure to have some evergreen plants.

Containers

If your perennial garden is a container garden, a lot can be decided about the style by what kinds of containers you choose. They do not all need to match each other, but they should match your style. The containers could be rustic or they could be sleek and shiny lacquered pots with an oriental design painted on them. The plants can be bamboos, palms, bananas, trees, succulents or virtually any plant that you could grow in the ground. They can be colorful or serene.

Pots or other containers of plants can be set into the midst of a garden as accents. If you have a space that looks a bit drab or bare, set a potted plant there. This is an especially good trick if you are waiting for small perennials to grow into large ones. The garden can look a little sparse for a year or two. Another way to make a new garden look fuller is to plant annuals in the spaces until the perennials fill in. Some people leave sections of the perennial garden empty on purpose because they like to incorporate annuals, which are changed seasonally or for holiday flower displays.

Garden Accessories

If seats are placed along the garden path, sit there and look at the view. Is there a focal point for the lounger to enjoy? Is there something that attracts attention? Place seating with that in mind. If arbors are present, be sure that they are placed with the view through the arbor in mind. Think of the arbor as a picture frame. Any fencing should be chosen with garden style in mind. A two-foot-high fence of sticks might look cute in a rustic garden, but a more polished garden requires a more polished-looking fence.

As you can see, there is a lot to think about when planning a perennial garden, but dreaming about how you want it to turn out is half the battle. Now you know how to get started.

Courtyard gerdens are an extension of your home. Prevent problems like glare and heat build up by planting lots of plants and adding a water feature.

Courtyard gardens are spaces that are enclosed by walls usually on three sides and sometimes four sides. They usually do not have a roof. Most courtyards do no have a lawn. Mulched areas and/or paving is most common for the floor of a courtyard garden.

Home and garden plans: Courtyard garden design

The perimeter against the walls is where the planting beds are usually located. The walls protect the plants from wind but sometimes this leads to poor air circulation. With paving and courtyard walls heat can build up and present a problem. All courtyards need many plants and a water feature to keep down the glare and the heat. Vines growing on the walls will help add to the comfort level of a courtyard garden. Fountains or any type of water feature will serve as an interesting focal point and help add humidity and moisture to the plants.

Keep the courtyard design simple by having just a few types of plants in masses. If too many plant species and too many different colors are used it will take away from the calming effect a courtyard should have. Blues, greens, purples and whites are good cool and calming colors for courtyard gardens.

Choose plants that don’t have an invasive root system or you will have roots breaking through your courtyard floor. Keep plants in scale with the size of the courtyard. If the walls of the courtyard create shady areas then choose shade loving plants such as ferns. Always add compost and mulch to your planting beds.

Container plants are perfect for courtyards. Roses, dwarf fruit trees, palms and flowering annuals can all be used. Hanging baskets will draw the eye up. Divide the walls into three areas, ground level, eye level and upper level. Something interesting should be at each level, whether it be a plant or something else.

Espaliered plants look great against a courtyard wall and they take up very little space. This will also help reduce heat and glare. Avoid plants that will harm your walls. If you have rock walls with mortar then do not use plants like Climbing Fig or English Ivy because these plants have roots and feelers that will destroy the mortar in between the rocks and cause it to be unsafe in time.

Add garden art to your courtyard garden such as statues or gazing balls. An interesting addition can be a bird bath, bird feeder or a simple, yet decorative ivy pole. Hang up chimes or little wind gadgets that twirl and sparkle in the sun. If your courtyard wall is short enough to sit on, add cushions for more comfort, when you have guests. A small table and some chairs are needed in any outdoor room. Homemade benches can be unique and comfortable. Use an old stump to carve out a chair or an animal for a conversation piece. Take out some paving stones and add some plants that like to be stepped on, like the thyme plants. When you step on them they will release their essential oils and be very fragrant.

Courtyard gerdens are an extension of your home. Prevent problems like glare and heat build up by planting lots of plants and adding a water feature.

Courtyard gardens are spaces that are enclosed by walls usually on three sides and sometimes four sides. They usually do not have a roof. Most courtyards do no have a lawn. Mulched areas and/or paving is most common for the floor of a courtyard garden.

Home and garden plans: Courtyard garden design

The perimeter against the walls is where the planting beds are usually located. The walls protect the plants from wind but sometimes this leads to poor air circulation. With paving and courtyard walls heat can build up and present a problem. All courtyards need many plants and a water feature to keep down the glare and the heat. Vines growing on the walls will help add to the comfort level of a courtyard garden. Fountains or any type of water feature will serve as an interesting focal point and help add humidity and moisture to the plants.

Keep the courtyard design simple by having just a few types of plants in masses. If too many plant species and too many different colors are used it will take away from the calming effect a courtyard should have. Blues, greens, purples and whites are good cool and calming colors for courtyard gardens.

Choose plants that don’t have an invasive root system or you will have roots breaking through your courtyard floor. Keep plants in scale with the size of the courtyard. If the walls of the courtyard create shady areas then choose shade loving plants such as ferns. Always add compost and mulch to your planting beds.

Container plants are perfect for courtyards. Roses, dwarf fruit trees, palms and flowering annuals can all be used. Hanging baskets will draw the eye up. Divide the walls into three areas, ground level, eye level and upper level. Something interesting should be at each level, whether it be a plant or something else.

Espaliered plants look great against a courtyard wall and they take up very little space. This will also help reduce heat and glare. Avoid plants that will harm your walls. If you have rock walls with mortar then do not use plants like Climbing Fig or English Ivy because these plants have roots and feelers that will destroy the mortar in between the rocks and cause it to be unsafe in time.

Add garden art to your courtyard garden such as statues or gazing balls. An interesting addition can be a bird bath, bird feeder or a simple, yet decorative ivy pole. Hang up chimes or little wind gadgets that twirl and sparkle in the sun. If your courtyard wall is short enough to sit on, add cushions for more comfort, when you have guests. A small table and some chairs are needed in any outdoor room. Homemade benches can be unique and comfortable. Use an old stump to carve out a chair or an animal for a conversation piece. Take out some paving stones and add some plants that like to be stepped on, like the thyme plants. When you step on them they will release their essential oils and be very fragrant.