I'm assuming you are doing this yourself, rather than hiring a designer? If so, make a scale drawing and play with changes to it. If the current layout isn't working, plan a new one, leaving space for perennial beds without selecting plants as you add new elements, like patio, walks, screening planting or whatever you need. Plan beds for perennials in locations that have the right conditions for the plants you want to grow. Once you have the layout down, you can start thinking what you want to plant in them, and start redistributing some of your existing plants into them. This is a good time to compost the non-performers, divide and increase your favorites, and as Bahia suggested, mass them together in drifts for more impact, rather than dotted around, if that's what you have now. Try not to be guided too much by the plants you already have. You don't want them to limit your design if they are not the best choices. If there are leftovers, put them in a holding bed or cutting garden in an out of the way spot, or share them with friends. This is probably how a designer would approach it. Redesigning perennial borders is a lot of work if they are large. Even with a plan in hand, you'll have to dig up sections, unless you have help or lots of time and can do it all at once, and replant them, moving the extras to pots or holding beds. I walk around the garden with a clipboard and make notes about what should go, what should be divided, which plants I'd like more of, what needs moving forward or back in the borders, etc. I also make notes that "section 4 is too quiet in August" or "some of plant X would look good next to shrub Y" or "the pink whatsit in section 1 isn't working". I refer to these notes when I have the time to make changes. I'd never remember in May what I noted in July or August of the previous year without writing it down.

15 yard penalty for not explaining the extent of the issue up front. I know you tried but really, words cannot convey what a few pictures can. Start with water and fertilizer. The point of this approach is to get a healthy stand of weeds and grass as fast as practical. Then kill the weeds. Some weeds will not take up the Weed-B-Gone unless they are healthy. More on the Weed-B-Gone below. Overdo the organic fertilizer. Have you read the Organic Lawn Care FAQ over on the Organic Gardening forum? I would start with 20 pounds per 1,000 square feet of soybean meal or alfalfa pellets. Repeat in 3 weeks. Watering is your critical issue. That soil does not look like it is going to absorb quickly without runoff. That means a lot of light watering with lots of pauses in between. Start by misting the soil and moving fast to another place. Eventually work your way back to the starting spot and water a little longer. Or you might try using a soaker hose in the places that are small and hard to get to. I have a killer soaker hose approach for you. Stretch the soaker out so that it is at least 18 inches away from itself. That means no coiling on top of itself. Just run it back and forth leaving 18 inches between the 'rows.' Try to keep the hose at parallel contours so that it does not have a low spot. Then turn on the faucet to a trickle. A trickle at the faucet means 1 cup per minute. I realize this is barely a leak and you have a long hose but this method will startle you as to the effectiveness. Leave that faucet running for a full week, day and night. At the end of a week if you have not covered the entire lawn with soaker hose, then move it over 18 inches and start again. When you finish covering the entire yard with the soaker, start again back at the beginning. By the way, this soaker hose does NOT take the place of regular watering. What it does is soften your soil so that it will absorb moisture quickly. The point of this is to get everything (weeds and all) growing and healthy. Some of the weeds will die out quickly because they cannot tolerate regular moisture or fertilizer. The rest will become healthy enough to die quickly when you hit it with the Weed-G-Gone. To summarize what I am saying: cultivate your weeds with the best lawn care practices (listed way above). Do this for six weeks or so. Then get some Weed-B-Gone with clover killer. Instead of a hand spray, get the one the connects to you hose. You can cover the entire yard in a few minutes. In fact it is so easy and fast you have to be careful not to overdo it. Some of the weeds will die seemingly overnight. Others will require another dose in a week. What you will be left with is grass and grassy weeds. I will not go so far as to say you will be out of the woods at that point, but it will be much easier to evaluate. My fear is you have some creeping bentgrass in there. That is a tenacious plant. It can be a nice...

Thanks lou and skoot. Skoot, Ok i will wait till my grass comes out of dormancy, but can you please tell me why i have to wait? becuase i thought if we spray seaweed or molasses now it should start preparing the soil for the growing season. May be i am confused. can you please explain? Also a newbie question. Is seaweed better or molasses, whats the difference can i use both at the same time or should i wait for few days before i use the other? Sorry for asking so many questions. Again thanks for the help Shank

If you are going to cover part of that area with cement there is no reason to spend any time, energy, or money on "weed" control, just dig out the soil in that area and put down the base for the patio and then the cement. For the are to be sodded you should make the soil into a good healthy soil that will row a good healthy turf and that means starting with a good reliable soil test. Contact your local office of your Louisiana State Universities Cooperative Extension Service about having this done. http://www.lsuagcenter.com/portals/our_offices/departments/spess/servicelabs/soil_testing_lab/ A few other simple soil tests you can do are, 1) Soil test for organic material. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. For example, a good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top. 2) Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drains’ too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up. 3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart. 4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell, to a point. Too much organic matter can be bad as well. 5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy. Once the soil is made into a good healthy soil the unwanted plant growth may be a thing of the past kimmq is kimmsr