Have you ever bought a plant on impulse, only to find out when you get home that you don’t have a place for it in your garden? (Not me!) Many times, when a plant takes your fancy, there’s problem later on in determining the right place for it in your garden.
To avoid this, you should analyze your garden first, in terms of its location, the amount of sun it gets and the type of soil that you have. Doing so will help you choose your plants because you will know better which type of plants best suit the characteristics of your garden.
You must also determine whether your soil is alkaline or acidic. Some plants can only live in acidic soil, while others can only survive on alkaline soil. Of course, you can adjust the soil’s pH level by adding nutrients or fertilizers, but knowing how acidic or alkaline your soil is will also help you choose the right plants for your garden. Your local County Extension Center can direct you as to where you can get your soil analyzed.
The next thing you have to consider is whether your garden would allow for group or single plantings. If you have a large area, you should be able manage group plantings. This will make your garden look more interesting; especially if you buy plants of different colors and varieties. Make sure that you organize them in the most visually stimulating way possible.
Consider also if you have some big trees in the garden, as you would not want to have your small plants too close to these big trees. Keep in mind that big trees tend to rob nearby smaller plants of water nutrients, so your plants may not survive easily in this kind of environment.
Lastly, decide whether you want plants that need a lot of maintenance or you would prefer to have plants that can easily survive, even with the least amount of attention. Gardening can be time consuming, and so if you do not have a lot of time to devout to it, it will be a lot smarter to choose plants which are easy to grow and manage.
Let your garden give you the sense of serenity. Plan it carefully and choose your plants well.
