How to Arrange a Flowerbed

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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With the warm weather comes the time to get flowerbeds ready for the spring and summer months. It takes a little work and preparation, but with the right amount of effort, you can have a beautiful bed of flowers all season long.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Step1

Arrange plants according to the amount of sunlight or shade they will need. Place plants that need direct sunlight in the sunniest spots, and make sure that shade plants get placed in cool, shady areas. This will be very important for ensuring the success of your plants.

Step2

Place plants according to their soil needs, if your soil is inconsistent. Make sure that plants needing good drainage are planted in the best-suited spots.

Step3

Combine plants and flowers whose colors and textures complement each other. Varying colors and textures will keep your bed from looking too uniform, but they should complement one another to maintain a harmonious effect.

Step4

Plant "cool" colored flowers and plants, such as greens and yellows, in the warmest part of your bed to create a cooling effect. Put "warm" colors, such as reds and purples, in the back of the bed so that their vibrant shades don't drown out the cooler colors.

Step5

Arrange your plants and flowers by height, relegating taller ones to the back of the bed. Put shorter specimens towards the front so that they can be seen and enjoyed.

Step6

Decide whether you are going for a more traditional formal arrangement or if you want your flowerbed to have an informal air. If you are doing a formal flowerbed, arrange your plants in a standardized pattern, generally rows. If you are going for an informal look, though, you can arrange plants in clumps of three or more.

Tips & Warnings

Design the arrangement of your flowerbed on a piece of grid paper before actually planting. That way you will be able to ensure that plants are spaced and arranged as you want them to be.
Consider planting spring/early summer blooming flowers and later replacing them with mid- to late-summer bloomers. This will allow you to enjoy blooming flowers all season long.
Do not be afraid to get creative with your designs. Your flowerbed is meant to be enjoyed by you and others, so choose colors and arrangements that you find aesthetically pleasing.
Stick to the specified sun and shade needs of your plants when you are arranging your bed. Failure to do so can result in plants quickly deteriorating or dying.