Identify how you want to use the yard. Some examples for a front yard include: somewhere to put stuff you are loading/unloading from car, a meet-and-greet, a place for the kids to bounce balls while you can see them/are washing the car. A place to watch your plants growing. I'd caution you against rebelling against grass for the sake of rebelling against grass. Think of it as negative, open space that happens to be green, and you can always change it in your head to decking or paving/flagstone. The beauty of being a homeowner/DIYer is that you don't always need to have the master plan finished in your head in order to get started. You sound sure of a number of things. Do those. Or at least draw them out. Sometimes step two is more clear from after step one. Experienced people have implemented enough plans to be able to see step 7 from before step 1, but DIYers may need to take it one step at a time. One way to design is to mock up in person. Say, you want to do a low barrier and a courtyard. OK. Put a row or garbage cans where you think the hedge could be, and drag some chairs into the area and sit there. How does it feel? What's missing? Should the hedge move? Do you need shade? Etc. You might have analysis paralysis too. Taking the first step, even if you just go out and plant a tree where you want some shade, can help get you past that too. You can always move it for a year or two if you got the placement wrong. KarinL

You haven't given much to work on. The two big killers of rhododendrons are wet and dry. Too wet causes root rot. Too dry causes die-back. Other possibilities are weed killer on the lawn, lime on the lawn, the loss of a shade tree, or being improperly planted 20-years ago. That is probably the most likely. If the roots weren't opened up before it was planted they may be strangling themselves now. You would have to dig it up to detect this. If that was it, you could cut away the offending circling roots. It would be a real challenge to the plant, but it has a possibility of recovering if it isn't too far gone.

Overtis, maybe I missed something but I assume this is an indoor plant for now and when weather permits, overnight lows in the 50's, it will/may become and outdoor plant. Having said this, as long as it is warm and you've given it enough time to callous, it is safe to plant anytime. If conditions are on the cool side, it will just take more time to root. As Karen said, too much water before it establishes roots will only lead to rot.

I think containers is a wonderful idea. So are many of the seeds you have to plant. First, I would throw all the seeds of larkspur, poppies delphinium, and calendula. They should bloom, I am judging about the time of your wedding. I base this on the fact that I went to Denton, Texas in May, 2005 (or 2006), and I was astonished to see newly planted pansies! Our pansies had been gone, banished by our warm spring temps for months! So, our poppies are not quite blooming here in zone 9. Take 3 weeks difference in each zone, and that puts you approximately 12 weeks behind us. Yep, you should have poppies about then! How exciting! I think you can add snaps, lobelia, stock, nicotiana, and morning glory, too. Like Nell said, prune and fertilize your roses, and groom your other plants and feed them. From now to the wedding, feed your plants every time you water them. Well, maybe wait until past your last frost date before you do all that feeding..... But you can groom your yard, and be sure everything is clipped and edged nicely. A nice big fern (Macho fern?) would be lovely in a big pot, two would be better. You can always set these in the back of a flowerbed, or in a naked spot. Machos are very hardy, if you can find them, and they get huge! I once did a garden for a lady who was hosting a 'do' for the symphony crowd. It was the end of January, and absolutely nothing was available. Nothing, except for some very pretty pyracantha. So we used them, and cut(from the side of the road, even!) holly and yaupon, wonderfully decorated with red berries. Stuck in big pots, nobody even realized these were just sticks! LOL, it was very effective. Imagination goes a long way. We decorated a big hall with sunflowers cut from the side of the road once, for my BIL's birthday party. Used buckets and old teapots and such for containers. The decorations cost almost nothing. Don't worry too much. You will be such a beautiful and radient bride that no flower could move you from the center of attention. Be most happy on this day, and we will all be happy for you! Best of luck, and I wish you all the happiness in the world. Janie