@bluegrassmom I would advise to shoot in early morning or late evening to get some nice light also overcast days make for nice even lighting most of the time.
Either use a tripod, monopod, brace against your own body or some sturdy fixture to avoid blurry images.
Shoot at a low f stop to get a nice blurred background and bokeh.
Compose your image well and look at shadows and lighting.
I hope you can get something useful out of these small suggestions.
Here's examples of some images from my garden
a rose right after a rain shower
hostas in early morning light
jasmine in evening light
