What Flowers Should I Chose?
Choosing what flowers to put where can be a fun and exciting part of gardening. That said, it can also be one of the most frustrating experiences you’ll ever have. With a huge selection of seeds, plants, and bulbs available, how do you decide what’s best for you?
Research is the best way to figure out what you want and if it’ll work in your garden. There are a ton of gardening sites on the internet that are incredibly helpful, garden store staff are helpful, in most cases, and if you’re lucky enough to live near a botanical garden, the volunteers are present to answer questions you may have about their plants.
Annuals Versus Perennials
The most important plant divisions for most gardeners are annuals and perennials. Annuals will bloom and flourish during the summer, and then die during the winter. Perennials come back year after year, and after a year or so, can be almost maintenance-free. Rather than choosing only annual or perennial flowers for your garden, think about a combination of both. The perennials will provide hassle-free flowers for years to come, while a few annuals will allow you to change the look of your garden (sometimes drastically) each year.
The best way to choose flowers is to look at many different kinds - in books, on the internet, in garden stores, in botanical gardens, or even your neighbor’s garden! Once you find something you like, find out the name of the flower and start researching. Is it an annual or perennial? Does it grow from seed, from a plant, or from a bulb? Do I plant it in the fall or spring? What kind of light requirements does it have (full sun, partial shade, full shade)? Does it need special soil? How tall and wide will it get? (Some tiny shrubs can grow to 8 feet or more!) Does the plant come in different colors? What color works best with the flowers I already have?
Planning Your Garden Through Design
If you’re starting a new garden, it’s a good idea to plan your garden layout. Draw a diagram to show where certain plants will go. Your diagram will help avoid errors such as putting a 2-foot rose behind a 4-foot lily, and if you want to go even further, you can cut out small pictures of your flowers (either from catalogs or printed from the internet) and paste them to your diagram to help you get a feel for what your finished garden will look like.
As well, note bloom times when picking flowers to plant. A garden full of crocus and tulip is a breathtaking site in the spring, but if that’s all you have in there, you’ll be faced with a garden full of dying foliage during the summer. Planting flowers with varied bloom times can help keep your garden in beautiful bloom for months.
Varied shapes, textures, colors, heights, and bloom times can create a stunning garden that appeals to the senses, but make sure to do your homework first, and avoid impulse buying when it comes to flowers: you may be disappointed with the results.
It’s also nice to be able to expound intelligently on your flowers when your neighbours walk by your beautiful garden and ask, “What is that gorgeous flower?”
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