Garden Design

Carol,
I will help you design your garden. First, what is your soil like? Dig some up and wet it slightly and then see if you can roll it into a ball -- if so, you have clay soil -- if it falls apart very fast you have sand -- ideal soil is loam, which is somewhere in between clay and sand. This will tell me whether or not you need to amend your soil to make it nutritious and healthy for plants before you start planting anything.

Second, what plants exist already? This will tell me something about what does well in your garden so that I can find other plants that like the same things.

Third, I need to see photos of every area that you want to work on -- start with one or two so you don't get overwhelmed -- and then I have to know how many hours of sun or dappled sun they get per day.

Fourth, I need you and Killy to come up with an irrigation plan for those areas. It doesn't make sense to start planting things that don't have a watering system to keep them alive. I suggest you do a combination of soaker hoses and sprinklers -- this will be the most economical approach and you can get these things at any home improvement store. You should also look to see where your outdoor water sources are located -- are they near the beds or far away? We can plan more drought-tolerant plants for far away.

Once I have all of this, I can draw a simple design plan for you to take to a nursery and start buying things. I can also tell you which plants can be grown from seed.

E-mail me photos of plants you think might be weeds and I'll tell you if they are or not. Don't tell Killy I'm helping you -- let him be awed by your sudden green thumb gardening skills, instead!!