Find the Hidden Master Plan in Your Yard

Do you ever feel at a loss when contemplating the condition of your yard? Does every part look unfinished to you? Do you wonder what your idea was when you first put a shovel in the ground? Why are some garden areas thriving and others petering out? What are you doing right or wrong?

I have seen these situations on visits to new clients. When it is not your own creation, it is much easier to see solutions.

Here are five steps to bringing coherency and beauty to your gardens.

1. Assess bed shapes.

When the beds are all different shapes, planting and maintenance become difficult. Mowing around and between them leaves unmown areas. Access with wheelbarrows and carts becomes a problem. These difficulties distract us from seeing beds of beautiful growing plants. Use gradual natural curves along the edges and leave ample room between them. Rectangular shaped beds are fine. Choose one shape and stick with it. With distinct areas in your yard, you may choose a different shape that works best in them.

2. Assess bed edges.

When beds are on level or slightly sloping ground, use a flat edging that makes mowing easy and walking safe. The edges help to keep weeds from entering the beds. The lines created by edging define spaces and lead our eyes around a garden, like they do in a painting or drawing. Raised beds are another option that can make gardening tasks easier but add weed and grass cutting chores. These beds are usually rectangular.

3. Consider bed placement.

Decide how you would like the beds viewed. Do you want them to be visible all at once, or discovered while walking through the yard? This design preference affects what you decide to plant in each one. Striking trees and other plants with seasonal displays may warrant a top spot. Some plants have three- or four-season interest. Even on the dreariest days, a shrub or tree that retains bright berries turns a garden into a refuge for birds and a cheerful sight for humans.

4. Work with the Seasons.

With foresight, gardeners design their beds to look natural through the seasons. Manage dormant plants with a modest amount of cutting back to leave seeds and cover for birds and insects to overwinter. Plan beds to contain interest through the year. Resist raking beds clear in the spring and allow some plant debris to remain to protect roots and the soil from drying out completely. This natural mulch reduces weed growth and improves the soil. You may add a light layer of shredded leaves to the mix.

5. Sketch the bed placement.

Make a simple drawing of where you have placed the beds. Before you start, first draw the boundaries of the area on the piece of paper. This will help the drawing to match the shape and size of the garden area in your yard. If you have more than one garden area, make additional sketches. As you draw, you may realize that you need to start over to get everything in. This is fine and is how you really get to know the space. You may realize that you need to remove a bed or combine two or three.

Take into consideration where you store your tools, so you will accommodate the space it takes to walk or wheel them into the garden area.

Over time, you will come to know each bed, what it contains and when the bulbs and perennials will emerge in the spring or when shrubs and trees will bud with the promise of leaves and flowers.