🌷 Beds, Planting & Mulch

• annual rotation AN-yoo-ul roh-TAY-shun ▶ EN
  cambio de temporada KAHM-byoh deh tem-poh-RAH-dah ▶ ES

  Swapping out seasonal color — pansies out, begonias in — on the schedule the contract promises.

  Spring annual rotation is the first week of April on all commercial accounts. — El cambio de temporada de primavera es la primera semana de abril en todas las cuentas comerciales.

• annuals AN-yoo-ulz ▶ EN
  plantas de temporada PLAHN-tahs deh tem-poh-RAH-dah ▶ ES

  Flowers that last one season and get swapped out — the color rotations on commercial accounts.

  The annuals for the entrance come in Thursday, 12 flats. — Las plantas de temporada para la entrada llegan el jueves, 12 charolas.

  Also: anuales (general)

• balled and burlapped BAWLD and BUR-lapt ▶ EN
  cepellón envuelto seh-peh-YOHN en-BWEL-toh ▶ ES

  A field-dug tree with its root ball wrapped in burlap and wire; heavy — machine or many hands.

  The balled and burlapped oaks come Thursday — have the mini skid ready. — Los encinos con cepellón envuelto llegan el jueves — ten listo el minicargador.

• bed BED ▶ EN
  cama de plantas KAH-mah deh PLAHN-tahs ▶ ES

  A planted area of shrubs, flowers, or ground cover, usually mulched and edged.

  Weed the beds along the front walk before you mulch. — Deshierba las camas junto a la banqueta de enfrente antes de echar el mulch.

  Also: arriate (general) · jardinera (MX)

• bulbs BULBZ ▶ EN
  bulbos BOOL-bohs ▶ ES

  Tulips, daffodils, and the rest — planted in fall at three times their height deep, marked so spring crews don't dig them up.

  Two thousand bulbs go in the entry beds this fall. — Dos mil bulbos van en las camas de la entrada este otoño.

• compost KOM-pohst ▶ EN
  composta kohm-POHS-tah ▶ ES

  Decomposed organic matter worked into beds to feed the soil.

  Till two inches of compost into the new bed. — Revuelve dos pulgadas de composta en la cama nueva.

  Also: abono orgánico (general)

• container size kun-TAY-ner sayz ▶ EN
  tamaño de maceta tah-MAH-nyoh deh mah-SEH-tah ▶ ES

  How nursery plants are sold — one-gallon, three-gallon, 15-gallon, B&B for big trees.

  The plan calls for three-gallon hollies on 4-foot centers. — El plano pide acebos de tres galones a cada 4 pies.

• cultivate KUL-tih-vayt ▶ EN
  escardar es-kahr-DAHR ▶ ES

  Loosen the top inch of bed soil with a hand tool to kill small weeds and freshen the look.

  Cultivate the front beds where the soil is crusted. — Escarda las camas de enfrente donde la tierra está encostrada.

  Also: remover la tierra (general)

• deadhead DED-hed ▶ EN
  quitar flores secas kee-TAHR FLOH-rehs SEH-kahs ▶ ES

  Pinch or snip spent blooms so the plant keeps flowering.

  Deadhead the roses at the entrance every visit. — Quítale las flores secas a las rosas de la entrada en cada visita.

• drainage DRAY-nij ▶ EN
  drenaje del jardín dreh-NAH-heh ▶ ES

  How water leaves the property — swales, french drains, downspout extensions; standing water kills lawns and sells projects.

  That corner has a drainage problem — quote a french drain. — Esa esquina tiene problema de drenaje — cotiza un dren francés.

• edging EJ-ing ▶ EN
  borde BOHR-deh ▶ ES

  The steel, plastic, or stone border that separates a bed from the lawn.

  Reset the edging where the mower caught it. — Acomoda el borde donde lo agarró la podadora.

  Also: bordillo (general)

• erosion control ih-ROH-zhun kun-TROHL ▶ EN
  control de erosión kohn-TROHL deh eh-roh-SYOHN ▶ ES

  Keeping soil in place on slopes — matting, ground cover, silt fence at the property line.

  Pin erosion control matting on that bank before the rain. — Clava la malla de control de erosión en esa ladera antes de la lluvia.

• flat FLAT ▶ EN
  charola chah-ROH-lah ▶ ES

  The tray annuals arrive in, usually 18 or 36 plants.

  Twelve flats of begonias for the entrance beds. — Doce charolas de begonias para las camas de la entrada.

  Also: bandeja (general)

• grade GRAYD ▶ EN
  nivelar el terreno nee-beh-LAHR el teh-RREH-noh ▶ ES

  Shape the soil so water runs away from buildings and doesn't pond in the lawn.

  Grade that side yard away from the foundation before we sod it. — Nivela ese patio lateral con caída hacia afuera de la cimentación antes de poner el tepe.

• ground cover GROWND KUV-er ▶ EN
  cubresuelo koo-breh-SWEH-loh ▶ ES

  Low spreading plants used instead of grass or mulch in a bed.

  Don't trim into the ground cover, it fills that slope on purpose. — No metas la desbrozadora al cubresuelo, esa ladera se cubre a propósito.

  Also: cubierta vegetal (general)

• hedge HEJ ▶ EN
  seto SEH-toh ▶ ES

  A row of shrubs kept trimmed as a wall or screen.

  Take the hedge down two inches and keep the top level. — Bájale dos pulgadas al seto y deja la parte de arriba pareja.

  Also: cerca viva (general) · barda de arbustos (MX)

• landscape fabric LAND-skayp FAB-rik ▶ EN
  tela para maleza TEH-lah PAH-rah mah-LEH-sah ▶ ES

  The woven barrier laid under mulch or rock to slow weeds.

  Overlap the landscape fabric six inches and pin it. — Traslapa la tela para maleza seis pulgadas y clávala con grapas.

  Also: malla antihierba (general)

• mulch MULCH ▶ EN
  mulch MOOLCH ▶ ES

  Shredded bark or wood chips spread over beds to hold moisture and keep weeds down.

  Two inches of mulch in every bed, keep it off the trunks. — Dos pulgadas de mulch en cada cama, sepáralo de los troncos.

  Also: acolchado (general) · corteza (MX)

• paver PAY-ver ▶ EN
  adoquín ah-doh-KEEN ▶ ES

  The interlocking concrete or stone units patios and walks are built from.

  Sweep sand into the paver joints and run the plate compactor. — Barre arena en las juntas de los adoquines y pásales la placa compactadora.

• perennials per-EN-ee-ulz ▶ EN
  plantas perennes PLAHN-tahs peh-REH-nehs ▶ ES

  Plants that come back every year; cut back in season, never yanked as weeds.

  Those brown stalks are perennials — cut them back, don't pull them. — Esos tallos secos son plantas perennes — recórtalas, no las arranques.

• pine straw PAYN straw ▶ EN
  aguja de pino ah-GOO-hah deh PEE-noh ▶ ES

  Pine needle mulch, sold in bales; the standard bed cover in the Southeast.

  This account takes pine straw, not hardwood mulch — 40 bales. — Esta cuenta lleva aguja de pino, no mulch de madera — 40 pacas.

• plant PLANT ▶ EN
  plantar plahn-TAHR ▶ ES

  Set a plant into the ground at the right depth — root flare at grade, hole twice the width of the root ball.

  Plant the three-gallon shrubs on the line I painted. — Planta los arbustos de tres galones en la línea que pinté.

  Also: sembrar (general)

• planting plan PLANT-ing plan ▶ EN
  plano de plantación PLAH-noh deh plahn-tah-SYOHN ▶ ES

  The drawing that says which plant goes where, at what size and spacing; installed as drawn, changes go through the office.

  The planting plan shows liriope on 12-inch centers along the walk. — El plano de plantación marca liriope a cada 12 pulgadas junto al andador.

• prune PROON ▶ EN
  podar las plantas poh-DAHR lahs PLAHN-tahs ▶ ES

  Selective cutting for plant health and shape — at the node, clean blades, right season per species.

  Prune the hydrangeas after they bloom, not before. — Poda las hortensias después de que floreen, no antes.

• retaining wall ree-TAY-ning WAWL ▶ EN
  muro de contención MOO-roh deh kohn-ten-SYOHN ▶ ES

  The wall that holds back a slope — block, timber, or stone, with gravel and drainage behind it.

  The retaining wall gets drainage gravel before we backfill it. — El muro de contención lleva grava de drenaje antes de rellenarlo.

• rock bed ROK bed ▶ EN
  cama de piedra KAH-mah deh PYEH-drah ▶ ES

  A bed covered in gravel or river rock instead of mulch; blow it gently or the rocks fly.

  Low throttle on the rock beds — a blower at full blast throws gravel at the cars. — Acelera bajito en las camas de piedra — la sopladora a todo lo que da avienta grava a los carros.

• root ball ROOT bawl ▶ EN
  cepellón seh-peh-YOHN ▶ ES

  The ball of roots and soil a plant comes with; loosen it if it's circling before it goes in the hole.

  That root ball is dry — soak it before planting. — Ese cepellón está seco — remójalo antes de plantarlo.

  Also: bola de raíz (general)

• root flare ROOT flair ▶ EN
  cuello de la raíz KWEH-yoh deh lah rrah-EES ▶ ES

  Where the trunk widens into the roots; it must sit at grade — buried flare is how planted trees die slowly.

  Pull that mulch back — I want to see the root flare on every tree. — Quita ese mulch — quiero ver el cuello de la raíz en cada árbol.

• shear SHEER ▶ EN
  emparejar em-pah-reh-HAHR ▶ ES

  Cut a shrub's whole surface to a shape with hedge trimmers — fast and formal, the opposite of pruning.

  Shear the boxwoods square and hand-prune the hollies. — Empareja los boj en cuadro y poda a mano los acebos.

• shrub SHRUB ▶ EN
  arbusto ahr-BOOS-toh ▶ ES

  A woody plant smaller than a tree, the main body of most beds.

  Shear the shrubs square along the drive. — Empareja los arbustos en cuadro a lo largo de la entrada.

  Also: mata (general)

• soil amendment SOYL uh-MEND-ment ▶ EN
  mejorador de suelo meh-hoh-rah-DOHR deh SWEH-loh ▶ ES

  Anything worked into native soil to improve it — compost, sand, gypsum, peat.

  This clay needs soil amendment before anything goes in it. — Este barro necesita mejorador de suelo antes de plantar nada.

• spacing SPAY-sing ▶ EN
  distancia entre plantas dees-TAHN-syah EN-treh PLAHN-tahs ▶ ES

  How far apart plants go, center to center; off-spacing shows forever once things grow in.

  Check the spacing with the tape, don't eyeball a 200-foot row. — Mide la distancia con la cinta, no calcules a ojo una hilera de 200 pies.

• stake STAYK ▶ EN
  estacar es-tah-KAHR ▶ ES

  Support a new tree with stakes and straps for its first year; loose enough to sway, and removed on time.

  Stake the new maples — this lot catches wind off the field. — Estaca los arces nuevos — a este terreno le pega el viento del campo.

• sun exposure SUN ek-SPOH-zhur ▶ EN
  exposición al sol ek-spoh-see-SYOHN al SOHL ▶ ES

  How much direct sun a spot gets — full sun, part shade, full shade; the tag on the plant has to match the spot.

  That's a full-sun plant and you're putting it in full shade — check the plan again. — Esa planta es de pleno sol y la estás poniendo en sombra total — revisa el plano otra vez.

• topsoil TOP-soyl ▶ EN
  tierra negra TYEH-rrah NEH-grah ▶ ES

  Screened planting soil brought in to fill beds and level low spots.

  We need two yards of topsoil for the back beds. — Necesitamos dos yardas de tierra negra para las camas de atrás.

  Also: tierra vegetal (general) · tierra lama (MX)

• transplant TRANS-plant ▶ EN
  trasplantar trahs-plahn-TAHR ▶ ES

  Move a plant to a new spot: dig wide, keep the root ball together, water in hard.

  Transplant those daylilies to the back bed before it gets hot. — Trasplanta esos lirios a la cama de atrás antes de que haga calor.

• volcano mulching vol-KAY-noh MUL-ching ▶ EN
  volcán de mulch bohl-KAHN deh MOOLCH ▶ ES

  Piling mulch against a trunk like a volcano — it rots the bark and invites pests; the thing we never do.

  The last company left volcano mulching on every tree — rake them into donuts. — La compañía anterior dejó volcanes de mulch en cada árbol — acomódalos en dona.

• water in WAH-ter IN ▶ EN
  regar al plantar rreh-GAHR al plahn-TAHR ▶ ES

  Soak a plant thoroughly right after planting to settle the soil around the roots.

  Water in every shrub today — the irrigation doesn't reach that bed yet. — Riega cada arbusto hoy al plantarlo — el riego todavía no llega a esa cama.

• weed WEED ▶ EN
  hierba mala YEHR-bah MAH-lah ▶ ES

  Any plant growing where it isn't wanted; pulled by hand or sprayed in beds.

  Pull the weeds around the roses by hand, don't spray there. — Arranca la hierba mala alrededor de las rosas a mano, ahí no fumigues.

  Also: maleza (general) · monte (MX)

• weed barrier spray WEED BAIR-ee-er SPRAY ▶ EN
  aplicación en las camas ah-plee-kah-SYOHN en lahs KAH-mahs ▶ ES

  Spot-spraying weeds inside beds with a shielded wand — never on a windy day, never near annual roots.

  Do the bed spray before we mulch, it works better on open soil. — Haz la aplicación en las camas antes del mulch, funciona mejor en tierra descubierta.

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