Springtime is a great time for planting a garden. Yes the daffodils and hyacinths are up as are other early Spring flowers but the rule of thumb for planting a flower garden is to wait until Mother's Day. Why? In most areas the hard frost has past so it won't harm the plants. If you are trying a flower garden for the first time or have been unsuccessful in the past here are a few tips before getting started which hopefully will save time and money.
First look at the area where the flower garden is going to be made. Decide if this is going to be a garden just for the season or for many seasons or years. This decision makes a difference in the plants needed for the garden. If you can't decide do an experimental garden. For this type of garden choose annual plants to give you an idea of how the flower bed will appear. Annual plants do not come back year after year; they are a one shot plant but they do tend to re-seed themselves. These flowers tend to be cheaper by buying them in flats giving you many flowers to plant with. A perennial garden is one where the flowers or plants come back every year. These plants mature with age and need room for growing and spreading. When planting a perennial garden most people tend to plant alot of plants in the space because it doesn't "look right" or "full enough". Don't over plant, it will just lead to a waste of money time and frustration. If the spaces bother you put a few annual flowers in between the perennial ones to give the garden a fuller look.
Secondly for at least a week observe how much light or sun the area gets. If the area gets 8 hours or more of sun it is considered to be a full sun area. Plants which need full sun tolerate the heat better than a part shade plant. The full sun flower will not wilt or melt in the heat where as the shade plant will and will probably need more attention,such as watering much more to survive. Part sun plants usually require 6-8 hours of sun while part shade plants need 4-6hours. Full shade flowers need very little sun light. These plants mainly have small or inconspicuous flowers but their leaves usually add texture or color to the garden.
Thirdly check the zone you live in. How do you do that? This can be done by using the computer or looking on the back of a seed packet. The back of the packet shows a map with colors on it. Find the color of the area where you reside and look at the number which corresponds to it. That is the zone number and tells you the average temperatures the plants can tolerate. Plant flowers for the area's zone. They will be more successful in growing. Some plants will grow outside their zones if the zones are close such as zone 7 to zone 6. These will be successful if there is a micro climate or sheltered ares in the garden. It is best to stay in the plants hardiness zone. Once you get experience d or daring try these plants.
Next check the soil the garden has. Here's where the experts tell you to test the soil for it's pH. I have never done this and have beautiful gardens. Maybe I just got lucky. What I believe is more important is the type of soil the plant is going into. Does the water drain or does it sit there on top of the soil for a period of time. Sand drains quickly where clay doesn't drain well at all. This is how I believe plants get lost because their roots either dry up like a prune or rots because it doesn't like wet feet. The soil may have to be remedied with additives such as manure, compost, topsoil, peat or mulch.
The next decision to be made is what type of garden do you want to achieve. Do you want a formal looking garden or a wild untamed one, which wild life loves or a focal garden. The choice of gardens will determine the look you need to achieve which will in turn determine the plants and flowers needed. It will dictate the amount of work, time and energy needed to get to that goal.
All gardens initially take time and energy. They all need some attention to get started and mature. You, the gardener, are the only one who knows how much time and work can be devoted to the project. Start small. The garden can evolve and can be added onto if need be. To me the garden is therapeutic. After working a stressful job it was nice to spend time in the garden mindlessly pulling weeds. As seasons pass the plants mature and there is less work to keep them looking good. Now I pass that time enjoying the gardens with my friends and wild life. Remember think big but go small at first. Be successful in you endeavors and if you need accessories for the garden please visit the website www.WildBirdSeedMart.com
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