Trial and error. At my last place, I moved things all the time. I don't expect it to be any different here. I plant things according to sun and moisture needs, then by height, color, and winter interest. You have to keep all that in mind especially when working with seedlings.

I've already put in some of the foundations here. A few shrubs, some bulbs, some built items. I've also laid out some typical perennials so that they will be focal points. I'm using repeating plants to provide continuity. Where I planted Shastas, I also have rudbeckia, and a hibiscus. Three groupings of those to hold the bed together. The rest of my plants will be scattered between those areas based on color and size. I tossed in some buddelia for a different effect. Bare spots will be filled in with annuals this year until all the perennials bloom.

For the layout of the beds themselves, I let the fall of the land dictate that. I'm fortunate to have levels in the yard and not a flat rectangle of space. I'm using existing trees to hold the perimeter and will line those with flowering or scented evergreen and deciduous shrubs. The size is based on what I think I can handle without walking on too much of the soil. That causes compacting which will affect root development. About 4' across is the widest bed I have so far. That's stretching my reach.

For inspiration, I look to google and some GW users. I have found tons of pictures of cottage gardens that I really like. I also look at blogs. The pictures help me get a feel for what works together in other yards and how I can use that in mine.

In the end, it may end up looking like a jumbled mess, but lots of plants are tolerant of being moved if you do it at the right time.

It also helps that I have a blank slate at my disposal and tons of seeds.

token,

That is so funny! That was going to be my response, too - "trail and error".

...and nothing ever stays the same for long. I am always in the process of changing things around and moving plants to new locations that better suites me and the plants. :)

~ Annie

Think paths, winding through flowers. That's what I did.

Here's a link to my garden, note paths.

Here is a link that might be useful: my cottage garden

Shropshire Lad - all good ideas. I would chime in with Bones!!! Plan where you want large items, such as trees, fences, even shrubs. These tend to be the tricky bits, since they become immovable. Set the pots with them inside where you think you want them. Use hoses to mark out paths; use carboard to show when beds could be, or sitting areas.....by watching where you have, or don't have sun, you will know where these should go. We had a thread last fall about sitting and staring. A really good idea. Take pictures from different angles; wander around, beverage in hand, and take time to really 'see' what you all ready have in place. Build on that. Remember how large trees and shrubs will be fully grown, and where they will cast shadows. Have fun!!!!

Nancy.

Oh, Libby,

Your Cottage Garden is just to die for!
It is just PERFECT!
We have been thinking that if everything here was to go to the dogs, we might leave the country! BC looks like a good place to go!

~Annie

Libby, I'm just, just, speechless! Your gardens... your flowers... your colors.... your cat... *sigh*
Kris

I'm another who likes paths some of mine are curved some are straight. If you plan on staying not moving get the bones in first and work from there. Trial and error, a lot of constructive staring and in my case liking not being able to see all the garden in one glance has allowed me to try different things. My garden will never be finished, I'll pull it apart if it's not to my liking and try something different. Over the years my garden has evolved one piece at a time. I have several pseudo garden rooms planted differently, all this in a fairly small space.

Annette

Libby, your gardens are beautiful! I just worry that all the seeds I have and plants I want won't work well together. I don't even know how to construct a garden bed in spring (I'll have to build up because I have awful soil here). Thanks everyone for the great advice. Please keep it coming! I'll try to post a pic of my yard on here so you can see what I'm working with.

What's the term, is it Constructive Staring?

Lots of standing and looking in the garden, pages and pages of sketches and notes, measuring with a stick -- we all know the routine.

I've abandoned some of the notes now for 'before' or 'existing' photos placed in a word processor and notes built around them. I scan my rough sketches and put in there too. Doing it this way, planning can be done in the middle of the night or when it is raining outside.

As far as planning the size and number of beds, the available space determines that, limited by the resources and physical abilities of the gardener. Tall things in the back, medium plants in the middle, short plants at the front is a general rule. However, things that are sort of see-through, like verbena bonariensis or gaura, can come forward and form a sort of scrim in front. If you have ample plants, it's hard to mess up unless you put plants together that don't have the same needs, like water hogs with plants that like it dry. That's where the 'travail and error' gardening comes in.

Nell

I have to admit, that last summer was a lot more error than trial. I didn't take the time to properly amend my soil. I had beautiful cosmos. Not much else thrived. Soil is the key to having a great garden.

Libby, Your paths are unbelievable! I love all of the beautiful plants and colors. What was the pink bloomer in the 15th pic? Oh to be able to take a stroll on your path and have you tell me all about each plant..... Nikki

I could have opened a nursery with the plants I've dug-up, given away or pitched. I agree with token....more error than trial. But what fun!!!!!
Libby, who does your weeding? I don't see a one!

jim

I echo what has already been said here. It's a process. It's trial and error. It's putting in the bones and filling in around them.

When we bought our lot, which had nothing but mature trees around the perimeter. We bought a long measuring tape and measured everything. Next, we got graph paper and pencilled plants and pathways in. Well, we did plant some of what we'd put on paper, but you know what? Living on the land was entirely different than looking at it on a piece of paper.

Originally, we were going to put in a Gazebo with pathways that made a cross shape.--That didn't happen. We did plant seven small trees along our neighbor's fence for privacy, but they did not fill in as planned and two ended up dying in a recent drought. I've since replaced them with plants more suitable.

There is this great live oak tree at the very back of my property. It's trunk is about 3 ft in diameter and the trunk lies on the ground for a good 8 ft before going into the air and making a canopy over the trunk. After putting a huge rock that you can sit on by that tree, my husband created a meandering brick pathway that leads to it and flanked the pathway with two beds. This was not in our original plan.

The point is that it all evolved over time. You will probably start with a small bed and then soon add another or connect to the first. You will move things and things will die as others live. There is very little you can do wrong that can't be undone...and you learn by your mistakes...Here are some of mine: placing a moisture- loving plant next to a xeric plant, not allowing for the mature size of a plant so that it overwhelms other plants as it grows, not ammending the soil from the very beginning...

Just have fun because that's what it's all about.

Here's some of my yard....whaddya think? It gets some morning sun, full afternoon sun and late afternoon shade.

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Here is the small garden I created inside of the fenced area last summer.

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Just a guess, but the fence is around a pool area, yeah?? Puss looks very happy in the shade!! Is that what most of the yard is, shade??

Nancy.

No, Nancy, most of the yard is sun except in the very late afternoon (after 5). And yes, kitty is very happy in her garden!

I have a two-story house, so what helped me to design beds is to take pictures of the grounds from upstairs, print large copies of them on a regular printer, and then let my imagination go wild with drawing beds and paths.
Our home had nothing but few standard trees and bushes when we bought it - you know, the typical subdivision design.
I eventually got rid of the bushes, and created more space for cottage garden beds.
Gardens are ever evolving living thing - always changing, never the same.
Good luck Shropshire_lad!

~Natalie

OK, so: all of the above suggestions on paths and placements for beds. Use cardboard to place the beds where you want them. If you are going to have grass paths to start with, remember how wide your mower is, and how tight it's turning cirlce is... Depending on your budget, you'll need to source inexpensive compost or garden soil, which you will put onto the cardboard, about 8" deep. This will be fine for annuals, maybe some perrenials from seed. This will save you a lot of sod lifting. By fall, the base should be significantly enough to add bulbs, etc. for Spring interest!!

Nancy.

And when it comes to soil/compost, always check with your landfill to see if you can get it for free or cheap. Ask for leaf mulch or composted leaves. If you have a friend with a truck or trailer, it helps. Otherwise, be prepared to fill a lot of plastic bags, bins, and buckets with a shovel.

Thanks for your kind comments everyone.

Nikki It's Queen-of-the-Prairie Filipendula rubra

jim I'm retired and spend a lot on time in the garden. Good thing I enjoy weeding.

Libby

When we moved to this property a little over 4 years ago I was faced with opportunity and obstacles. There were only a couple of very small flowerbeds that seemed to have been laid out with no apparent plan in mind. But there was a LOT of space to add more. Almost all the beds could be sunny and all would be very well drained. But the "soil" was sand and the sun can be fierce in this area.

Besides that, our 5 acres is mostly heavily wooded. There is only a relatively small clearing where the house, garage, and storage sheds are located. A white sand drive winds back to that clearing from the road and all is surrounded by mixed hardwood and evergreen woods. The privacy is wonderful but it's a bit like being inside a big green room. Also, for reasons of access to the back of our land my husband insisted that enough clear space had to be left all the way around the house to drive a truck or tractor - grass was o.k. there but no beds or structures to get in the way. That further pushed my gardening space to the edges of the clearing.

I didn't want to simply echo the shape of the lawn and I really wanted a reason for the shape of the beds. It's all fairly level except for a gently slope from the road past the house and down to a creek far back in the thickest woods behind the house.

I spent a lot of time looking and thinking and finally came to the idea of addressing the fact that my garden would be at the exact point of transition between "wild" and "domestic" - the natural woods that gave way abruptly to green lawn. I tried to think of places in nature where there is a transition from one state to another and decided to model my garden beds on the tide - the shapes made by the tides, advancing and receding - at the transition from sea to land.

I love smooth curved edges anyway and my garden would not have lent itself to formal symmetrical shapes. I've tried to lay out the edges to suggest the shapes left on the sand by the water's movement.

Abstract, I know, but it has given me a place to start and I like it very well. Of course the placement of plants is still very much a work in progress and is also "trial and error" as others have mentioned. But the shape of the beds makes sense to me.

Here are a couple of pictures that may make my "tidal" beds more clear. All are taken from the front of my house, looking toward the road (not visible through the woods).

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This one shows the "high water mark" in the shape of the beds along the foundation of the house:

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Wow Linda, you're idea of "tidal wave" beds is really creative! It is fitting for your lot and I think it is so pretty! It gives a much-needed colorful edge to the all-green woodland (which is also very pretty, by the way). Thanks for sharing! I'll look at my own yard and decide how the shape of the beds could complement it.

The secret is to just have fun. Don't stress yourself out. Perennials are like furniture. Most can be moved. You will never be happy with your garden, and you'll always be changing it. I think that's what I enjoy most.

Here is a link that might be useful: Advice to a new Perennial Gardener

Luckily when we moved to our current house, the shapes of the beds were already there, they just were 95% empty. I liked the shapes of the beds so I did not change that. I edited the existing plants and then went about studying the different amts of sunlight that fell on each bed, then I researched which of my favorite plants fit into each light category. I had decided to keep the back yard mostly pastels/blues/pinks and let the front yard have the hot colors (red, orange, bright yellow) I used the computer (Excel) to organize my "wish list" of plants, so I could sort by color, height/width at maturity, sun or shade requirements, wet or dry tolerant, etc. Once I had that list, I could filter by "full sun", then "tall" and just look at those plants. I looked at the colors and forms of those, and chose plants for the center of the beds from that grouping. Then I did the same, but filtered by "medium height". Once I had that list, I had to look more closely at the color combinations, since they would have to look good with the taller plants. (Don't forget about foliage color and texture when designing. Sometimes they eye needs a place to rest when there is so much glorious color !) I did the same for the shorter front of the border plants. I also save room for filling in any bare patches with annuals in complementary colors, then mulch over any visible dirt, and it will look very professional and keep the weeds down..
I agree that some things you plan just don't end up looking as great as you thought they would, especially if they bloom at the same time and thier colors clash. So, just find a new home for whichever plant you like least ! It's no big deal nor is it a failure on your part. I like to think of it as "painting with plants", so have fun, enjoy your learning curve, and keep experimenting !! I already have a to-do list of garden chores I will be doing as soon as it thaws out in April, and that includes moving some plants around, buying more plants, and improving the soil around the existing plants.
Lastly, I have never been one of the gardeners that abides by the "plant in groups of 3 or 5" rule. I like too many plants to have multiples grouped together, so my beds are usually many individual plants, but much thought is put into how the individuals look together, and that is where the editing comes in each year (that is the most fun !)