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I need help planting my first flower garden!?

Hey there! If anyone can help me with some suggestions it would be greatly appreciated! Okay I have no idea where to start,,,BUT I do know where I want the garden to go,and I also know that I want to start off small..but everything else is a bit new...the place where I want to put my garden has grass...what do I do? Do I need to put new soil over the old before I plant?Do I need to buy the seeds in the lil package or can I buy the flowers that are already in the pots and transfer that into the ground?Do I need to use Mulch?Or Miracle grow?What are some good flowers to start off with? Im planning on going and buying some very soon,,,I just dont want to be completly clueless when I go,,,thank you for reading and many thanks in advance for your advice!

Public Comments

1. to weed-free the area, I suggest Landscape fabric. After you put the fabric down, slice X marks on the fabric where you want the plants to go. You must start with small plants first!! 2 reasons, 1.- Cheaper, 2.- let your young small plants establish there roots for a season. Turning your soil over[tilling] with compost is also important. Soil must get air, water, food down there so the roots can grow and you have a healthy plant. If the area is more or less than 12x12 you should rent a soil tiller. You can buy packets and read the directions but you would really need almost fine soil for the seeds to germinate and etablish themselves. It is the cheapest way to go but will take lots of patients. I would wait till next year and start seeds indoors. Lots of fun if you can find a window that gets 6 hours of sun or more. GOOD LUCK!
2. I would dig the ground over, and remove any live weeds and roots, otherwise they will just regrow. This could be back-'breaking', depending on the area, but will give you your quickest planting area. Incorporate lots of well rotted manure or compost, if you can, as this will provide nutrients, as well as help the soil to retain moisture during summer - and your plants will grow the better for it. Try a mix of plant types, different types and coloured flowers and foliage, as well as heights - thought the taller plants are better at the back of borders. Some easy plants to raise from seed, which will grow and flower in one year are Sunflowers - from the giants, which can get to 14' or so, good the rear of borders Calendulas - 18'' high or so, very hardy colourful flowers http://gstuff.co.nz/shop/garden/images/calendula%20fiesta2.jpg Califiornian Poppies (Eschscholzia californica) bright,really pretty flowers, all summer long http://images.marketplaceadvisor.channeladvisor.com/hi/74/73694/california_poppy_mixed_escholzia_californica_seeds.jpg http://marianist.com/nlimages/cornflowers.jpg Cornflowers - typically blue/pink flowered Poppies - hugely mixed colours and types- http://www.thompson-morgan.com/seeds1/product/6973/1.html Nasturtiums - ranging from climbers/sprawlers to small bush types http://gstuff.co.nz/shop/garden/images/trapaeolum_TALL%20MIXED.jpg I don't know how much space you have, but packets of seed often contain hundreds of seeds, and will fill a large area. The above are generally undemanding, and many of them love poor soils. You can also buy the potted plants that you mention, though this is a more expensive option. Feed your plants with any fertilizer, though do not feed Nasturtiums and Californian poppies, as they tend to grow less flowers and tons of leaves if fed.. Slow release fertilizers are generally better, and mean that you don't need to remember a regular feeding cycle. Hope this helps. Good luck! Rob