I'm not much at design, but a few thoughts based on my experience . . .

Sounds like you've been working hard and are off to a good start. The flat rocks are an excellent idea. Mulch will help keep down the amount of weeding you have to do. Most probably you will also want an edging of some sort to keep the grass from moving in. You can make a cut edge (V-shaped ditch) and keep it free of plants by hand, by recutting a couple times per season, or with a weed whacker used so the string cuts into the ditch. Or you can use a buried edge of some kind. I use the inexpensive black plastic edge buried down to the rolled edge and then place bricks inside of that, both to help stabilize the edging and to give the wheels of the lawn mower something to ride on. I prefer dug edges, but I don't mow the lawn, and my DH who does the mowing voted for the brick and buried edging. The grass hides the black plastic, so it's unobtrusive. You don't want an edging like only surface rocks since it's a nightmare to keep the grass tidy around the rocks and out of the bed.

Both forget-me-nots and lamb's ear can become weeds if not rigorously dead-headed, not only in the bed, but out into the surrounding lawn.

I find Stella D'Oros hard to match to other plants for color, and mine have ended up in a bed with white and green and blue. Just my opinion. Where I want day lilies to go with other colors, I use other types, such as ones with a clear yellow, without the apricot tinge of the Stella D'Oros.

I like to have some shrubs mixed into my perennial beds since during so much of our year the perennials have died back. Depending on what I want from my bed and where it's located, I may use low-growing shrubs if I want to be able to see over them (shrubs in the 2-3 ft. range) or taller ones to reach above our often deep snow. I often mix in deciduous shrubs with interesting branch structure or color and evergreens. A bird house, bird bath, or obelisk for a clematis or other vine will add to the multiseason interest. (Don't use a bird feeder in the bed since you'll get unwanted sprouts and sunflower hulls hinder other plants' growth.)

A final thought: think about foliage shape and color. You want to try to get some variety in this since perennials aren't always blooming and you still want some interest in the bed. The lamb's ear and daylily have different color, shape and texture of leaf - that's good. The tulips, lupine, and forget-me-nots will die back for at least part of the season. Yarrow is ferny and small, liatris is delicate and grassy, coneflower and monarda are both medium small size and green. You might want some annuals or perennials with larger, bolder leaves. If you get some books from the library with the kind of photos that are eye-candy, look specifically at the ones that appeal to you and the kind of foliage color and texture that are there when the flowers are missing. Will the bed still look as nice?

Enjoy the process - remember that you can always change or add plants as your experience and tastes change.

NHBabs, you can stop claiming to be "not much at design" - that was a lot of great advice.

NHBabs, thanks for the advice! The surface rocks left by the previous gardeners have been REMOVED. So far, we are going with the V-ditch. My husband, the mower, also sent away for an attachment for the Mantis tiller so do edging. He didn't ask first. I am scheduled to try it out next weekend. I'm not sure it will cut deep enough. The sod is very thick.
I think I can keep the lambs ears under control but will have to put the forget-me-nots on trial. I think my existing stella d'or is a good yellow but I noticed some in public plantings are very orange. Wish me luck because I just picked up 4 plants @ 50 cents at my local Ace hardware clearance. The labels are gone. They look like very small day liy plants. If not a good yellow I'll just use elsewhere. But coneflowers have an orange luminescence to the cones that may be complemented by even an orangey stella d'oro. It will be fun to have A Plan and be willing to Revise.

You make some very good points about shrubs for winter interest and contrasting leaf textures to consider. I may be overlooking some good annuals.

It's pouring right now but I didn't expect to be able to work in the garden this weekend. Also have to renovate a small, narrow herb garden. A great new recipe for zucchini gratin has given me a new appreciation for fresh oregano. Looking forward to a long Labor Day weekend. Thanks for the tips.

I love having a to-scale drawing of my Plan, if only to see how much of it actually gets implemented once the planting begins and the Improvising gets into gear.

Although I don't have coneflowers, I think you're on the right track using masses of them in this garden - that will have a bigger impact and tie things together better than using smatterings of them. Adrian Bloom used geranium Rozanne in "rivers" of color in the Bressingham Garden at Elm Bank, to great effect.

defrost,

I certainly like your plant choices and it is clear you have focused on having extended bloom through out the growing season in this garden, which is very important. I do how ever wonder if you might have skipped an important step in the design process? I certainly know how rewarding and how much fun it can be choosing plants for their bloom cycle but I wonder if you have considered the following;

I. From what location will you primarily be viewing this garden?
I ask this because if for example you primarily view this garden from your deck or patio but it is too cold sit outside in early June or too hot to enjoy the patio in August you may alter your plant choices accordingly.
2. Is this a daily walk by garden, one for example that you walk by from the house to the car? Or is this a garden that will be viewed daily from a distance?
You may want to keep in mind that even a large planting of forget-me-knots will be lost if viewing from a distance.
3. Your long distance view is of a field and woodland think if someone was painting the scene from your most prominent viewing location will this 12 bed be to scale of itÂs back ground?
Your digital camera is a great tool, drag a few outdoor items lawn chair, terracotta pots, stakes, ect that have similar heights and widths as the plants you are considering and snap a photo. This will tell you more than you might think.

I know because I have myself denied or ignored considering some of the above because they seemed so elementary but over the years I have had to edit and re-edit many gardens because I skipped this what should be initial step.

I am sure most folks who spend time on the perennials forum would agree that there are so many thousands of plant introductions that there is for example the perfect daylily in terms of size and bloom time that will meet your needs. You just need to back track and determine what those needs are. IeÂlarge blossom to be view from a distance mid July  mid August, or smaller flower to be viewed from above and up close.

All of that said I could be totally off the markÂwhat the h3ll do I know I garden on one enclosed acre. I would be interested in nhbabs design thoughts as I suspect her design eye as dtd mentioned above is sharp and much more regionally/environmentally astute than any thing I might have to offer.

Apologies for rambling but I have like everyone else in NE been trapped indoors all day due to 12 hours of down poursÂcan you believe it? The dog and cat are bored and I was almost desperate enough to spend some time in the kitchen and do some cooking. kt

runktrun, those are things I didn't even think about. I think the masses of coneflowers will be noticeable from a distance. The bed is seen daily from indoors, as we drive into the yard and I walk past it on my way to the vegetable beds. In a way, it's a preface to the vegetable beds. Right now the lawn between the driveway and bed is large enough to use as a play area for the granddaughters. They can play under the sprinkler while I sit in the shade of a maple tree next to the driveway.

I am befuddled by so much area and have not thought past an exisiting hole in the ground. A future screen porch will be on the back side (north) of the house and that is where I want to do most of the gardening and landscaping. But you've made a good point, we won't see any of that unless we look out the right window or enjoy it during the warmer months. The circular bed can be seen from the kitchen, DR and LR. We regularly watch that part of the yard since in winter there are bird feeders hanging from the maple as well as next to the kitchen windows. The field attracts a variety of wildlife.

You are right. Forget-me-nots are too small to be enjoyed from a distance. Landscaping on the east side of the porch would be viewable from the road and make the house more attractive hence this would be a good area for large shrubs. Maybe I should think more about the circle bed/lawn area since this is the active area of our yard in all seasons. Wow. A few simple comments and you've opened up new things to consider. My husband's only requirement is that tall shrubs and trees not be placed where they would hide the view.

There is graph paper in the garden journal a friend gave me. I shall put ideas on paper!

I hope everyone enjoyed Sunday's sunny weather and it looks like a great week ahead. I actually did spend time on Sat cooking since we had visiting relatives and today we needed a picnic. Many thanks.

Defrost -

If the Mantis edger doesn't work on sod, you can try running a couple of passes or you can hand cut it the first time with a sharp straight-edged spade and then maintain it with the Mantis.

KT recommended using your digital camera. It's a good suggestion, and I remember reading where someone recommended using it on the black & white setting to get a feel for how texture and mass of plants might look without color, though that was with an already established garden . . .

OK, I'm going to admit I don't understand how to use my camera for planning purposes. As an wannabee artist I have appreciated changing a color photo to gray tones to better see "value" changes. Good value changes still look good in B&W.
I'm still thinking about how a garden can relate to the distant view. There is room between the circle bed to have a narrow bed of ? flowers. I had tried an edging of flowers along the front of the vegetable beds to have some color but not much shows up that far away. Masses of color, maybe a cutting bed of annuals might work. You all have given me a lot to think about.

Also, nhbabs, thanks for the idea of using the Mantis edger to maintain the edge. I can try it out this weekend and compare maintenance to cutting a new edge. I love my square edge spade and also have an edger with the semi circle blade.

Local nursery is having a blow out sale 50-70 % off on perennials!

A circular bed, to me, seems to scream out "formal". Have you considered a parterre? You could divide it into quarters (like and O with an + in the middle) with access/walking paths paved with brick or cobble or whatever you like. I would think for "pop" when viewed from a distance, keep it simple and perhaps edge with dusty miller instead of lambs ears. I have both, but the Dusty Miller looks far better in winter, and definitely has greater "punch" in summer than the lambs ears. I think the lambs ears look great up close, but not as nice from a distance as the Dusty Miller. They come back every year and need only a little clipping here and there, and removing flowers if you don't want the bright yellow to clash with the beds. Speaking of that, I'd consider filling all the quadrants with knockout roses. Maybe all one color, or at most, two colors. Maybe red in two opposite quadrants and white in the other two. Or whatever you like. Finally, a focal point in the center, which wouldn't have to be so high as to block your view. Maybe a birdbath, statue, small fountain, gazing ball (they seem to be making a comeback) or obelisk for some vines. I've seen these types of gardens in Europe, and for a dramatic "punch" they seem to work, but definitely because they don't overdo the mixture of plants. Just my thoughts. Sorry if I rambled but I just retired so now I have time!

Bill, each comment is helping my brain move forward. I have pondered on keeping the circle bed as it in size and shape but didn't have a good reason to change. Your comment that it screamed formal made me think again because my style is more 'cottage'. Behind the circle bed are rectangular vegetable beds so right now everything is very symetrical. That has bothered me. Your comment plus my desire for some shrubs, esp to attract birds, and the previous suggestions have now led me to think that an odd shaped bed to the left (woods are closer in that direction and there are more trees along the driveway) of the circle bed to interrupt the straight path to the leftmost veggie beds will break up that symmetry and make everything relate better to the country stone walls and random maples. Also, I can put tall things in this area since our view is more to the right. This irregular shaped bed can also be much larger and help keep attention to the yard. The green veggie beds blend into the meadow view except for their geometry and darker green. Right now the distant field is full of goldenrod. In the recent past it was planted to cow corn and plans are to use it as a hayfield. (As I understand it there has to be a 3 year fallow period because of the herbicides used on it. This was it's 3rd summer.)

Nhbab's suggestions for shrubs and birdhouses fit those on my wish list. An irregular shaped bed to the left with taller shrubs including a crab apple will fit that location and break up the rigid symmetry that I had started. I think one clump of an unusual coneflower in that bed would be fun and make design sense. I didn't realize there were so many coneflower varieties until I explored the perennial thread yesterday. My shrub budget can be spent here because now I understand that I don't want to put a lot of time and money into future landscaping on the back side of the house we will only enjoy in summer.

My MIL loved flowers and shrubs but started dotting her yard with shrubs which bugged my FIL because it made mowing more difficult. I have bought some gardening books and magazines and taken quite a few local garden club tours but still felt lost when it came to planning my own yard. I am so surprised by how much progress I have made with all your help in just a few days.

Bill, I want some roses but I'm not sure where yet!

Dotting the lawn with a shrub here and there is definitely not what makes the lawn keeper happy! Personally I also think it just doesn't look good. I am very much in favor of "islands" of plants if you want something out in the lawn area or beds along the edge of the property. Either way I like them generally irregular in shape. For the "islands", put taller items in the middle area and shortest around the edges, remembering that these will be visible from all sides. For the beds at the edge of the property it's nice to have the tall things at the rear, shortest stuff in front.

You mentioned that you're more of a "cottage" type. In France and especially in England , I have seen many gorgeous cottage style gardens. But some of those also incorporated a (small) area that was formal, and it works! So maybe you don't have to abandon your 12 foot circle. Just a thought.

Around here, the estate gardens often are formally laid out beds, planted with an informal mix of plants. The big 'added feature' of doing this is it's a way to pick up cheap winter interest. Even when the plants aren't doing anything, there is the geometrical layout of the beds.

As a former engineer, I personally find vaguely geometrical things much easier to design in pleasing shapes than informal ones. The hierarchy seems to be that anybody can plop. Many people can plan on geometrical lines. A few true geniuses can make a high quality informal plan because those rely on implied geometry. That's why I can do design in my back yard but not the front. The house style demands a layout that is both informal but balanced.

Mad Gal,

A few true geniuses can make a high quality informal plan because those rely on implied geometry. That's why I can do design in my back yard but not the front. The house style demands a layout that is both informal but balanced.

Intriguing but I am not sure I am grasping your point can you give us some examples? I would love photographic cues from your garden but I know the whole camera thing can be too much for many folks. Perhaps there are photos on line of other gardens that can emphasize your point.

Look around for pictures of Kykuit. Plans of Kykuit are hard to find, but very much help explain the various axes running through the thing.

Regarding the opposite, it becomes painfully obvious during the winter. Without the flowers (and the leaves) a lot of designs just become a collection of plants.

I have a lot to learn about garden design. Found a few photos of Kykuit. The house is heavily symetrical. Our house is an old New England style farmhouse with the driveway close to the house. The kitchen ell and now the new garage are nicely balanced but nothing is symetrical except for the main part of the house with typical window placement. Close to the west side of the garage is the rickety old barn so I have a narrow shade garden down a steep slope to the back of the house. Otherwise you have to walk around the house or the barn and adjacent outbuildings to get to the back. The circle bed is on the south side of the house across the driveway. Beyond that lies 4 soon-to-be 6 small vegetable beds. To the west is field. To the east are a few maples trees haphazardly planted, and stone walls. I have the compost bins near the stone wall to keep it out of sight. Ground is either boggy or full of roots from the trees that grow along the walls. Beyond the vegetables the meadow starts and right now there is nothing to delineate where the farmer's future hayfield will be when the meadow gets renovated.
I keep in mind that I have a small budget and not a lot of heavy duty garden years left.
The size of the new irregular shaped bed to the lef/east of the circle bed will be decided this weekend. I have researched which crab apple I would like (the house is white so I want pink or red blooms and preferable reddish foliage). A visit to the local Agway sale this morning produced 3 fragrant day lilies (2 White Gloves and 1 Banana ?), a decent size Ruby Spice Clethra and a clear pink small leaved rhody I couldn't pass up at 50% off. I was also looking for a Korean spice Viburnum. Both the viburnum and crab apple choices are available at a nearby shrub nursery but the crab needs to be dug and may not be available for 2 weeks once picked out.
I will attempt pictures this weekend.