Sorry to leave you to deal with our crazy Chinese friend all by yourself. I think you're quite right not to block the windows and as such to go with perennials. The problem with that is that for a good portion of the year you will have empty dirt or dead foliage, as you point out, but on the other hand perennials are interesting to watch up close because they are changing every day and maybe attracting bees. Nonetheless I'm not sure I would put the garden there, but rather outside the main sidewalk. But since the bed is there, you might as well try it, and you can always change it. Plants can be moved. If you are new to this I agree with leaving the grass where it is for now, not expanding the beds. See first what your gardening personality is. I think you'll find your planned planting amazingly sparse at first, and will have a lot of weeding to do before it grows in. So maybe be sure to mulch when you plant, but even so, you will have to be vigilant. Regarding your focal point shrubs, something tall and rangy like a hydrangea might make the doorway seem cramped - for that reason I'd tend to put the height near the outside corners, not near the door necessarily. Near the door I'd go with something narrow and ideally pretty up close. There is a narrow shrub I love called Ilex crenata "Mariesii" or else there is a columnar golden yew. Tall pots with clipped boxwood might also be fun, but the obviously need to be clipped. Just some thoughts; good luck. KarinL

"Also I live in Florida, does the weather has something to do?" Hugely so, mid-august in FL is an impossible time to get transplants to thrive. The thing to do is give those plants you bought no further thought, and while you are waiting for fall-garden planting time - a few weeks from now - read through the many, many threads on the FL gardening forum about growing vegetables there. There are a number of veggie experts in Florida on that forum. It makes a very big difference as well as to whether you are in central florida/northwards or south central/southwards. Homestead is as different from Gainesville as Gainesville is from Atlanta, or perhaps more so. You have to do some real research, and then expect to have several seasons of severe learning curve. Being a newbie when starting in FL is if anything an advantage, because you aren't burdened by a bunch of rules from northern gardening that simply don't apply to FL.

I have found over the years that if you are putting your plants into good, fertile, well drained, moisture retentive soil (this means you dug or tilled it and added lots of organic material to it), that you can follow the label directions and get the look you are after (allowing for a certain amount of time for them to grow in, of course). If the label says 18 to 24 inches apart, use the smaller measurement for the tight look you want, and the plants are still happy. If the label says plant 18 inches apart, you measure 18 inches from the center (the main stalk) of one plant to the center of the next plant. If you are planting a big plant and a small plant, say, one that says 24 inches apart, and one that says 12 inches apart, you measure 12 inches (half of the biggie) plus 6 inches (half of the smallie) between their two centers. And yes, I use a measuring tape. There are so many plants and so little space, so I give them the space they need, and no more. :) Forgive me if this is something you already knew. When I was a newbie, I did not know it. :)

Also, make some holes on the SIDES of your styrofoam cups near the bottom. Holes on only the bottom prevent the water from draining out and allow the roots no aeration at all. That can kill plants. They need air as much as they need water. See the link below for a long discussion about plant roots needing air, particularly plants in containers (and that includes seedlings that you'll plant in the garden later). Here is a link that might be useful: Container soils and water in containers