Planning a Flower Border
By Teri B Clark The Location Flower borders are similar to flower gardens, but they are typically not as spacious. Flower borders are typically seen in front of a fence, along the shrubbery, or in front of a building. It is even possible to put a flower border along the front edge of medium sized annuals or perennials. Flower borders are not a specific size. They can be as small as 2 feet wide. In larger spaces, they may be up to 8 feet wide. Tip: If you have a really wide border, you may want to include stepping stones as part of the pattern. This will help you work among your flowers without packing down the soil. The Shape Once you determine where you would like to place a flower border, you will need to create the space. Many people mistakenly create straight edges and put their border flowers all in a row. Although this would work for a formal garden, it will feel too stern for most any other location. Gentle curves work well. A good way to create a pretty border shape is to lay out your garden hose and follow the path it takes. The Flowers The most logical way to choose plants is: Hardiness and light Blooming season Size Color With hardiness and light, you will need to be sure to pick plants that are in your hardiness zone. You will also need to determine the amount of sun your border receives. Next you will want to consider the blooming season. For annuals, this is usually not a problem since they bloom from early spring to late fall. However, if you are planting perennials, you will want to add those that bloom at different times to create color all season long. When mixing annuals and perennials, you will want to consider how the border will look both when the perennials are simply green plants and when they are in bloom. When you are thinking about choosing your flowers, you will also want to think about their size. Their adult size will help you determine how far apart to space your plants. This is very important because space between plants is essential and many gardeners crowd their plants too much. Here are some good spacing rules: Tall, spired-type flowers should be spaced about 1/4 as far apart as their mature height. Tall bushy plants should be spaced about 1/2 as far apart as their mature height. Rounded, bushy annuals and perennials should be spaced about as far apart as their mature height. Creeping, groundcover-type plants may be spaced about twice as far apart as their mature height. And now we get to color. You get to be quite creative here. Borders can be different tones of the same color. They can also be made of related colors. Or for those that have a bit more enthusiasm, a border can be made with an assortment of hues!If you are choosing to go wild, you will want to remember the following: Light tones placed near dark ones, or contrasting palest tones with the most intense are a good way to mix colors. White flowers and gray foliage help separate conflicting colors. Dont be too worried, however, because planting a flower is not like creating a cement foundation! Flowers can be easily moved and transplanted. So, if you create a border and do not care for the look, simply rearrange until you do! Teri B. Clark is a professional writer and published author offering writing help for professionals. Her book, Private Mortgage Investing, is a finalist in the Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award. Her book, 301 Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home NOW and For More Money Than You Thought, has just been released. Learn more about Teri at http://TeriBClark.blogspot.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Teri_B_Clark http://EzineArticles.com/?Planning-a-Flower-Border&id=475672 free like bible each software her for for pda come charles also foster did jesus where inquest get church my carson like city another nevada between christian that home way and way bible after school between rainbow were resource it home of school still
