Friday, September 25, 2009

Flower Beds Designing Ideas

Flower bed design ideas allow gardeners to create pleasing patterns in their landscaping.


A beautifully arranged flower bed doesn't just come together with a handful of seeds and plenty of sunlight. In fact, creating a cohesive flower bed design is important, because different flowers grow at different sizes and heights, and clashing colors and mismatched sizes make flower beds unattractive rather than inviting. By implementing different flower beds designing ideas, you can create a themed look and organized, pleasing patterns in your outdoor areas. Does this Spark an idea?


Basic Tips


Flower bed design begins with the planting area itself. Physically walk around the area, and observe the potential flower beds throughout the day to notice when the area is in sun and when it's in shade. Make a diagram of the area and take notes of the hours of sunlight it receives. Prepare the soil by removing rocks, roots and weeds from the area. Flower beds must have well-drained, fertile soil; amend the area as necessary to prepare it for this purpose. Examine the bed's background, the surrounding trees and existing plants, and make a list of colors that will complement the space.


Perennial Garden


Plant perennial flowers that bloom every year for low-maintenance flower beds that need re-planting only infrequently. Unlike annuals, which must be re-planted once a year, perennials will bloom for several years in a row. Peony, lavender, coneflower, aster, shasta daisy, daylily, chrysanthemum, phlox and daffodil flowers are all common perennial flowers that will bloom yearly without re-planting.


Classic Themes


Design your flower beds around classic themes that have been used in gardens for centuries. For example, you can emulate an English country garden by interspersing aromatic herbs with vivid flowers. For a French-themed garden, use lush greenery to create a Mediterranean effect. Country gardens are often designed with curving pathways. To design a more formal flower garden, create flower beds with straight lines by edging them with stonework or brick borders.


Wildlife


Some flower bed design ideas focus on attracting wildlife. Plant a butterfly garden to fill outdoor areas with two kinds of life and color. Design flower beds with combinations of asters, black-eyed Susans, butterfly weeds, rosemary, daylilies, goldenrod, hibiscus, lavender, lilacs, marigolds, butterfly bushes, purple coneflowers and verbena to attract a variety of butterflies to your garden. Additionally, flowers that attract butterflies often draw other types of nectar-loving insects, including bees.







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