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Cedar Management Group Blog

Scott Hines
Tips to Consider When Installing a Flower Garden
Written by: Scott Hines

Just a little history, the term “Keeping up with the Joneses” actually started in Wilmington NC at the turn of the century when Pembroke Jones and his wife landscaped about 67 acres of their property. His neighbors had no hope of keeping up with the scope and beauty, and thus the term “Keeping up with the Joneses” was introduced into our society.  This historical Garden is now called the Airlie Gardens.  It is a long standing part of our culture in North Carolina to improve our immediate surroundings with beautiful plants, lavish flowers, and trees that bloom in the spring or that produce the majestic fall colors.

If you have been considering installing a new flower bed or garden and you are new to gardening, our hope is that we can provide you with a few simple tips that will not only help you “Keep up with the Joneses”, but more importantly will help enhance the beauty and integrity of your home and your community as a whole. If you have been considering installing a flower garden, here are a few very simple and very basic ideas that you will want to consider before getting started: Height, Color, season, and the size of your garden or bed. 

Flowers come in most every height. If you are planning to have multiple plant families or species in one garden that will have differing heights, you will most likely want to plant taller flowers in the back and the shorter flowers in the front (depending on how you have designed your garden). Most plants will indicate on the packaging how tall they will grow, so always take the plants height into consideration. If all of your flowers are going to bloom at the same height, you may want to consider stepping or sloping the landscaping to help produce a more vibrant view of the plants.

Flowers will also come in almost every color imaginable. Consider what colors will work well together and what colors may compliment your current landscaping. This may be a more difficult task for some more than others. If finding colors that complement each other is difficult, you may want to take a look at what others have done. Spend some time online looking at landscaping arrangements, or better yet spend an evening walk through your community with the intention of noticing what your neighbors have done (and compliment them on their lawn if it is appropriate). Visiting a local Botanical Garden, such as the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden or the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens, is also a great place to get some ideas of what colors and plant types will work well together. While you most likely will not be planting a garden on the same scale as the Botanical Gardens, it is a great place to gather ideas and reliable information.

You will also want to consider the seasons when planning a garden. Different flowers will bloom at different times of the year. While considering the seasons, you will also want to consider whether the plant types are annuals, perennials, or biennials as some flowers will need to be replanted every year and some will naturally grow back every year. You may want to consider replanting for each season throughout the year. Take some time to research what plants will grow best in each season and in what seasons your plants will be blooming.

There are several reasons for considering the size of the area that you are going to be working in. You will need to know the size of the garden, and consider the appropriate plant spacing when determining how many of each plant species to purchase. You will also need to know the size when purchasing fertilizer, mulch or other products for your garden. Take some time to think about the layout of the area and consider how you want to separate the garden from other landscaping areas. 

I hope you find this information helpful if you are considering installing a flower garden or if gardening is something you have not had the pleasure of doing yet. Gardening can be very rewarding, and not just for you, but also for your neighbors and your community as a whole. It is a great way to show your pride in your home and community. Take time to compliment your neighbors on their landscaping and let them know how much you appreciate their efforts to make their home and your community a more beautiful place to live.

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