I wish I was an expert in this field, but instead I search the internet and my local community for ideas and uses of my yard. There is a beautiful home on a corner lot about a half mile from me. They used the white picket fence effect as well as numerous large raised beds in their yard. I actually go out of my way to drive by that home all year to see how it looks during different seasons! I just love this home. The white picket fence is in part of the front yard as you walk up to the door. Take a walk or drive around your area and see what catches your eye and then view it at different times of the day and night and during the different seasons! I also love looking through garden magazines and will pick something I really like from a page and clip it and put it in my own little notebook. I go back to my clippings and look at and think about what and how something like that could work in my yard, I am not creative enough to come up with these ideas on my own ... so I copy or borrow other's ideas and add a twist to make it my own. Good luck and do share your progress with us!
With Spring approaching, many folks may be deciding if they want to change up their garden areas. Now is the time to start planning such changes so you can be ready to implement them when early Spring arrives. I also do changes in steps. Each year I try to add the next step or phase to my yard. There is no way I could possibly do it all in one year. My yard has been a project in the making for several years and I've also had setbacks, such as the notorious Knot Root nematodes that have destroyed large sections of my inground garden beds. So I am now doing container gardening for many parts of my yard. Be prepared for curve balls ... nature is not predictable! But that also is what makes gardening so challenging but enjoyable. I never get bored!
