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GardeningGardening can be a joy, but it can also be a chore. Thinking through your garden before you buy those showy plants could save you a lot of grief in the long run and help you to build a garden that will provide years of enjoyment. Gardens come in many shapes and sizes and can be as easy or as complex as you want to make them. For some, a garden can be as simple as a window box or a potted plant. For others, it's a manicured formal garden with many different variations in between. Gardens can be along a curb, at your entry way, in the back yard, side yard or even inside your home or on your balcony. Knowing the needs of your site and the amount of time, money and energy that you are willing to put into the effort, can help you to design a garden that you will enjoy and be able to maintain. The needs of sites vary. In fact, the different parts of the same garden can have very different needs and these will change throughout the year. Is it sunny? Shady? Hot or cool? Does it have good soil or will it need to be amended? If it's for a container garden, what kind of containers will you need? What size? How much water will the plants need? You will want to select the right plants for each location and group plants that have the same water needs for them to thrive. You will also want to select plants that match the amount of effort you intend to put into your garden. If you want a no-care garden, don't pick high maintenance plants- pick perennials that will grow year after year with little care, such as agapanthus, ivy or succulents. Once you've determined your basics, comes the fun part-- designing your garden and selecting your plants. What colors and textures do you want? What kind of look do you want your garden to have? Tropical? Cottage? Formal? Mediterranean? There is no one right look; it's what you like and what suits your home and your site. If you live in a view area, be kind and do not plant tall shrubs and trees that will grow up and block neighbors' views. If you live on flat land, keep the scale of the house in perspective when selecting trees and plants. Find out the ultimate height of the shade trees you plant as that small backyard tree could easily end up dwarfing your yard and blocking the sun for not only you but for your neighbors as well. For those of you with established gardens, take a moment and look at your garden as if you were seeing it for the first time. What do you see? Are you happy with it? If so, congratulations! Your hard work and care has paid off. If you're not so happy, don't despair. You probably have the bones of a good garden that with a little tweaking and some care could easily be taken to the next level and made great! It could be as simple as filling in empty spots with some seasonal color, moving taller plants to the back of the bed or trimming overgrown shrubs. Our site is full of ideas, inspirations and links that can help you to build the garden of your dreams. If you have a gardening problem, let us know. Chances are others are having the same problems. We'll ask our readers and master gardeners for advice and information on how to solve them. If you have a gardening success, please let us know so that we can share it with our readers and give them ideas on how they can have similar successes. Gardening is a wonderful endeavor and together we can make our gardens even better! Happy gardening!
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