Flower Gardening Made Easy

CHOOSE COLOR(S) WISELY BEFORE GOING TO THE GARDEN CENTER! - Think about the colors you want in your garden. Many 1st time gardeners (including me once) just go to the garden center and start choosing whatever stuff they like and don't consider how the colors work together. It's better if you stick to TWO COLORS of flowers in your garden or just ONE. Choose colors that look good together (my favorites PURPLE and YELLOW.)

FOR INSTANT GRATIFICATION - You can buy all the plants listed below already started in pots at any garden center so you don’t have to worry about how/when to plant the bulbs and seeds.

FOR THE BUDGET-MINDED - If you are on a limited gardening budget, planting from seed and bulbs will save you a lot of money, but you will not get to see the fruits of your labor until next year. Try planting bulbs and seeds and mix in a few grown plants for some blooms now knowing you’ll see even more when the others take root next year.

SPRING COLOR - If you want spring TULIPS and DAFFODILS, but didn't plant your bulbs last fall, you can buy blooming plants at the garden center to plant right now in your garden. They will continue to come up year after year. Plant these in a sunny or partly sunny spot.

SUMMER COLOR - For sunny spots, try summer blooming DAYLILIES (left) and IRISES (right) or Aug/Sept blooming MUMS, which all come up every year. The nice thing about these particular sunny plants is that their leaves look nice before and after they bloom so you can keep your flower beds nicely filled in if you cut off the dead blooms after they wilt (give your kids some safety scissors and have them help you out with this for family fun).


SHADY SPOTS - If you have a shady spot, plant HOSTAS (shown left) as they always grow well in most any soil and come up every year. They are a big leafy green plant (not like a bush) with long stemmed purple flowers that bloom briefly in mid-summer.


FOR SEASON-LONG COLOR - If you want a few plants to sit on the front steps for color to bloom all season long, choose GERANIUMS (right), which come in white, pink, purple, or red. They won't come back each year, but they will re-bloom all season especially if you give them a little bloom food now and then.

For help on choosing what to plant, visit: Flower Gardening Made Easy