Fernwood
(864) 934-6396 Free estimate
Native pollinator garden with coneflowers and bee balm

Gardening

Color, borders & tomatoes.

Get a free estimateCall (864) 934-6396

Seasonal color, perennial and pollinator gardens, raised-bed vegetables, and garden visits for the beds you already have.

Front-yard bed of pansies, violas and ornamental kale in fall

01 · Seasonal color

Two changes a year keep the beds full.

Pansies, violas and ornamental kale go in during fall and bloom straight through an Upstate winter. After the last frost they come out and summer annuals go in. We prep the soil, plant, feed, and pull the tired ones when they’re done.

  • Fall & spring change-outs
  • Containers & planters
  • Soil prep & feeding
  • Removal of spent plants
Gloved hands deadheading coneflowers in a summer border

02 · Perennial & pollinator gardens

Planted once, flowering for years.

Borders built from natives and tough perennials that feed bees, butterflies and birds — coneflower, bee balm, salvia, bluestem — planned so something is blooming from spring to frost.

  • Native plant borders
  • Bloom-season planning
  • Meadow-style plantings
  • Rain garden plantings
Cedar raised beds full of tomatoes, peppers, basil and marigolds

03 · Raised beds & kitchen gardens

You pick the tomatoes. We handle the rest.

Cedar raised beds filled with a real soil mix, drip irrigation on a timer, and a planting plan for spring and fall crops. A head start on red clay without fighting it.

  • Cedar raised beds
  • Soil mix & compost
  • Drip irrigation
  • Spring & fall planting plans
Gloved hands setting a shrub root ball into red clay soil

04 · Garden visits

Already have a garden? We’ll bring the hands.

One morning or every few weeks: weeding, deadheading, dividing, cutting back, feeding and tidying. Each visit ends with a note on what we did and anything we noticed — pests, dry spots, a plant that’s struggling.

  • Weeding & edging
  • Deadheading & cutting back
  • Dividing perennials
  • Feeding & mulching

The Fernwood plant list

Plants that handle an Upstate summer.

Clay soil, July heat and the occasional deer. These are plants we trust. Filter by what your spot needs.

Filter plants
Fernwood plant listNo. 01

Christmas fern

Polystichum acrostichoides

Light
Shade
Size
1–2 ft
Type
Groundcover

The fern in Fernwood. Evergreen, tough, and happy under trees where grass gives up.

NativeEvergreenDeer-resistant
Fernwood plant listNo. 02

Oakleaf hydrangea

Hydrangea quercifolia

Light
Part shade
Size
4–8 ft
Type
Shrub

White flower cones in early summer, burgundy fall leaves, peeling cinnamon bark in winter.

NativePollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 03

Inkberry holly

Ilex glabra

Light
Sun to part shade
Size
4–8 ft
Type
Shrub

Evergreen screen that doesn’t mind wet spots. A native stand-in for boxwood.

NativeEvergreenPollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 04

Virginia sweetspire

Itea virginica

Light
Sun to shade
Size
3–5 ft
Type
Shrub

Fragrant white spring flowers, wine-red fall color, and happy in damp clay.

NativePollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 05

Eastern redbud

Cercis canadensis

Light
Sun to part shade
Size
20–30 ft
Type
Small tree

Pink-purple flowers on bare branches in March. A good-sized tree for near the house.

NativePollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 06

Serviceberry

Amelanchier arborea

Light
Sun to part shade
Size
15–25 ft
Type
Small tree

White spring flowers, early-summer berries the birds strip in a day, orange fall color.

NativePollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 07

‘Little Gem’ magnolia

Magnolia grandiflora ‘Little Gem’

Light
Sun to part shade
Size
20–25 ft
Type
Tree

The Southern magnolia, sized for a normal yard. Evergreen with summer-long flowers.

NativeEvergreen
Fernwood plant listNo. 08

Willow oak

Quercus phellos

Light
Full sun
Size
50–70 ft
Type
Shade tree

Fine-textured, fast-growing shade tree for big lawns. Plant it well away from the house.

Native
Fernwood plant listNo. 09

Crape myrtle

Lagerstroemia

Light
Full sun
Size
3–30 ft
Type
Shrub / tree

Summer color for months. Choose the variety for the space so it never needs topping.

Fernwood plant listNo. 10

Azalea

Rhododendron

Light
Part shade
Size
2–6 ft
Type
Shrub

The Southern spring show. Wants acidic soil, pine straw, and pruning only right after bloom.

Evergreen
Fernwood plant listNo. 11

Boxwood

Buxus

Light
Sun to part shade
Size
2–6 ft
Type
Shrub

The classic clipped hedge. Needs good drainage — soggy clay is what kills it.

EvergreenDeer-resistant
Fernwood plant listNo. 12

Loropetalum

Loropetalum chinense

Light
Sun to part shade
Size
3–10 ft
Type
Shrub

Purple-leaved evergreen with pink fringe flowers in spring. Pick a dwarf form for foundations.

Evergreen
Fernwood plant listNo. 13

Little bluestem

Schizachyrium scoparium

Light
Full sun
Size
2–3 ft
Type
Grass

Blue-green all summer, copper all winter, and no watering once it’s established.

NativeDeer-resistant
Fernwood plant listNo. 14

Pink muhly grass

Muhlenbergia capillaris

Light
Full sun
Size
2–3 ft
Type
Grass

Clouds of pink plumes in October that stop traffic.

NativeDeer-resistant
Fernwood plant listNo. 15

Purple coneflower

Echinacea purpurea

Light
Full sun
Size
2–4 ft
Type
Perennial

Summer-long flowers for bees and butterflies; the seed heads feed goldfinches into winter.

NativePollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 16

Black-eyed Susan

Rudbeckia fulgida

Light
Sun
Size
2–3 ft
Type
Perennial

Late-summer gold that spreads politely and shrugs off heat.

NativePollinators
Fernwood plant listNo. 17

Lenten rose

Helleborus × hybridus

Light
Shade
Size
1–1.5 ft
Type
Perennial

Flowers in February when nothing else will. Evergreen leaves, and deer leave it be.

EvergreenDeer-resistant
Fernwood plant listNo. 18

Coral honeysuckle

Lonicera sempervirens

Light
Sun
Size
Vine, 10–15 ft
Type
Vine

Hummingbird magnet for fences and arbors — the native, well-behaved honeysuckle.

NativePollinators

Garden questions

Planting, timing, visits.

All questions

When is the best time to plant?

Fall. Trees and shrubs planted from late September through November grow roots all winter. Spring works too if you can keep up with watering through the first summer.

Do you do small gardening jobs?

Yes. Garden visits can be a single morning of weeding, dividing and cutting back, or a regular schedule.

Pine straw or mulch?

Pine straw is lighter, cheaper to refresh, and suits azaleas and slopes. Hardwood mulch looks more finished and lasts longer in beds. We’re happy to do either.

What do you want growing? Color by the front door, tomatoes by August, or just a border that behaves.
Free estimate