A plain stretch of lawn can be beautifully transformed by adding one or more garden beds, which bring color, texture, and interest to your landscape. Garden beds can take various forms to suit different styles. For a subtle look, you might consider a shrub island with flowering shrubs and a small ornamental tree for a touch of elegance. For a bolder impact, a bed filled with vibrant annual flowers provides continuous color from early spring to late fall. It’s also increasingly popular to dedicate garden beds to vegetables and other edible plants, adding both beauty and practicality to your yard.
The most popular style, however, is the mixed border garden, which typically includes a few small shrubs, some annuals for continuous color, and primarily a variety of perennials of different sizes and bloom times. This type of garden, often referred to as a “perennial border,” is surprisingly simple to establish, with much of the joy found in the planning process.
When to Create a Garden Bed
The physical work of creating a garden bed is best started in early spring, once the ground has warmed enough to be easily worked. However, the planning often begins months before that. Winter is a great time to imagine what your garden bed could look like by browsing magazines and books for inspiration when you can’t be outdoors working.
Planning a garden bed is also a wonderful project for new homeowners who want to make their new property feel more personal.
Before You Start
The most important step when planting a new flower bed is to envision how it will look in the future. While the bed might appear sparse when first planted, remember that it will soon be fuller, taller, and more colorful. The key is to anticipate the heights, colors, textures, and fullness of each plant. To do this effectively, start by observing other gardens you admire in your neighborhood, visit local arboretums or public gardens, and explore garden magazines that often include planting diagrams to help you achieve a specific look.
If you’re aiming to create a unique garden design, keep these tips in mind:
Choose perennials that bloom at different times throughout the year, ensuring that something is always in bloom. While annuals can provide some color, the ultimate goal is to create a self-sustaining perennial garden without needing to replant annually.
For a visually appealing garden, place taller plants at the back, shorter plants at the front, and others in between. This layering technique helps create depth and balance in your bed as the plants mature.
Pay attention to how colors interact, considering both flower and foliage colors. Avoid combinations that clash.
Incorporate variety not only in color but also in shape, texture, and form. For example, small shrubs can add texture to the garden bed.
Remember, your garden design can always be adjusted as it grows. Don’t worry if you don’t get it perfect from the start—adjusting and experimenting is part of the process.
What You’ll Need
Equipment/Tools:
Utility knife or garden shears
Garden staples
Garden shovel
Trowel
Materials:
Plants of varying heights and colors
Mulch
Soil amendments (compost, etc.)
Landscape fabric
Instructions: Materials and tools for creating a garden and flower bed
The Spruce / Almar Creative
Choose a Garden Bed Location
The first step is selecting the ideal spot for your garden bed. A location that gets at least six hours of direct sunlight per day is typically best for flowering plants. However, if you’re working with a shadier area, you can still create a garden bed, but your plant choices will need to be suited to lower light conditions.
In general, a part of your yard where grass grows well is a good indicator that it will also support a healthy garden bed. Avoid areas with heavy tree roots, as trees absorb moisture and nutrients from the soil, making it harder to maintain a thriving garden without extra effort.
If your yard has poor soil, you may need to bring in extra topsoil to create a more suitable environment for your plants. This will give you the flexibility to create a garden bed anywhere with proper sun exposure.
Choose a Garden Bed Style and Color Scheme
Garden beds come in various styles and color combinations, ranging from an “island” bed filled with flowering shrubs to a meticulously organized cutting garden with annual flowers planted in neat rows for vase arrangements. However, for most people, a “garden bed” typically refers to a mixed perennial border, featuring mostly perennial flowers with some annuals to ensure color throughout the seasons. You might also incorporate a shrub or two for added structure, texture, and winter interest.
While entire books have been dedicated to designing and arranging perennial garden beds, beginners can start simply by selecting plants they love. Gardening allows flexibility, so feel free to change your design each year by adding, removing, or moving plants until you discover a layout that suits you.
Unless you’re aiming for the untamed, eclectic charm of an English cottage garden, it’s helpful to choose a color scheme for your flower bed. Some gardeners prefer to focus on a single color in varying shades, such as a white “moon” garden, while others enjoy mixing colors. A popular combination is blue, purple, and yellow or gold flowers, as these complementary colors generally work beautifully together.
Choose Plants
The real excitement begins when selecting the plants to fill your garden bed. This process offers a chance to explore the needs and traits of different plants. The key is to choose species that are suitable for your area’s USDA hardiness zone. Shopping at a local garden center typically makes this easy, as they will stock plants suited to your region. However, if you’re purchasing online, ensure you select plants that will thrive in your specific climate.
Also, consider the cultural requirements of the plants and how they fit with your gardening preferences. For example, irises need to have their rhizomes dug up and divided every couple of years, while daylilies can thrive with minimal care for many years. Some gardeners enjoy the hands-on aspects of gardening and view it as both a hobby and a form of exercise, while others prefer low-maintenance plants to minimize work—choose accordingly.
In addition to color, think about the shape and texture of the plants. A well-balanced garden will feature a mix of textures, such as the bold, sword-like foliage of gladiolus alongside the delicate, lacy texture of bleeding heart. Keep in mind that “green” foliage comes in many shades, from deep blue-green to light yellow. For a unique touch, consider using plants like Iris pallida ‘Aureo-Variegata’, which offers purple flowers and variegated leaves with hints of gold, while its large, spear-shaped leaves provide an attractive contrast to other plants.
Lastly, ensure you incorporate plants of various sizes in your design. Typically, the tallest plants will be placed at the back of the bed, medium-sized plants in the middle, and low-growing, spreading plants in the front to create an appealing, layered effect.
Lay Out the Garden Bed
In most areas, the best time to start creating a garden bed is in the spring when the soil is warm enough to work with. Begin by outlining the shape of your garden bed on the lawn. This can be done using spray paint, powdered chalk, or by arranging a flexible garden hose to trace the desired shape.
While you can make your garden bed any size you prefer, one common mistake is creating one that’s too small. While it’s possible to expand a garden later, it’s better to start with a spacious design. A bed that is at least 5 or 6 feet deep and 10 to 12 feet long is a good starting point. Though the shape can vary, many designers recommend an oval or kidney-shaped bed for the most visually pleasing results.
Remove the Grass
When creating a flower bed in an area currently covered by grass, the first step is to remove the grass. One effective method is to use a pointed shovel to cut the sod into chunks, about 4 inches deep, 10 inches wide, and 10 inches long. Then, lay the shovel on its side with the blade perpendicular to the ground and pound the sod against the blade to remove most of the soil. The sod can be placed in your compost bin for disposal.
Alternatively, you can kill the grass using a broad-spectrum, short-lived herbicide like glyphosate. This herbicide eliminates all plants but becomes inert shortly after it touches the soil. Spray the grass within the garden bed outline, then wait a week or so for the grass to turn brown and die. Once it’s dead, you can mix it into the soil through deep digging, which will add organic matter and improve soil texture.
For a more organic approach, you can “solarize” the grass by covering the area with plastic sheets. Leave it in the sun for two or three weeks, and the heat will kill the grass, weeds, and soil pathogens. Once the grass is dead, simply dig it into the soil.
Add Soil Amendments
Most garden beds will benefit from adding an organic amendment, such as compost, peat moss, or well-decomposed leaf mulch. Compost enhances soil fertility, and when mixed into the soil, it helps to loosen it, making it more workable. If your soil is clay-heavy, peat moss can also be added to improve its texture.
This is also a good time to have a professional lab or university extension service test a soil sample from your garden bed. The test results will provide useful insights into the nutrients your soil may be lacking and which amendments to add. For example, if you’re planning to grow azaleas, which thrive in acidic soil, the test might recommend adding agricultural sulfur to lower the soil’s pH.
Add a Weed Barrier (Optional)
Although not essential, many gardeners choose to use a weed barrier to reduce maintenance. The best option for a garden bed is woven landscape fabric. Unlike the black plastic sheets often used, woven fabric allows air, water, and nutrients to reach the soil, benefiting your plants. Mulch will later be applied on top of the fabric to keep it in place and protect it from UV rays, as well as hide it from view.
You can also use garden staples to secure the weed barrier, especially on sloped garden beds, ensuring it stays in position.
Plant the Flowers
Once the weed barrier is in place, planting is easy. First, mark the spots where you want to place your plants on the fabric. Then, use a utility knife or garden shears to cut X-shaped slits in the fabric. Afterward, fold back the fabric flaps, dig a hole, and position the plant’s root-ball into the soil. Fill the hole with soil around the roots, then fold the fabric back around the plant’s stem.
Be sure to space the plants properly. While your garden might appear a little sparse during the first season, it will quickly fill in and become denser as the plants grow.
Plant the Flowers
Once the weed barrier is in place, planting is easy. First, mark the spots where you want to place your plants on the fabric. Then, use a utility knife or garden shears to cut X-shaped slits in the fabric. Afterward, fold back the fabric flaps, dig a hole, and position the plant’s root-ball into the soil. Fill the hole with soil around the roots, then fold the fabric back around the plant’s stem.
Be sure to space the plants properly. While your garden might appear a little sparse during the first season, it will quickly fill in and become denser as the plants grow.
Add a Focal Point (Optional)
If your garden bed needs a little extra flair, consider adding a focal point to enhance the overall design. A decorative ceramic planter or a small birdbath can create a striking visual. Other possibilities include a gazing ball, a hanging birdhouse or hummingbird feeder, a small statue, a decorative boulder, or a trellis for climbing plants like clematis.
However, it’s best not to go overboard. Usually, a single accent piece is all that’s needed to complete a small garden bed.
