I plan in stages, putting the big plants in first, then adding smaller plants in later seasons. I actually don't think I draw plans to begin with, but am more likely to go around with stakes and labels, plonking them down in the garden to show where the plants will go. We have a big garden and don't have so much of that problem of having to make sure that there's room for all the plants we order or grow. I do pay attention to colors, textures, and so on.

I think that between what they say are the two types of gardeners, collectors and designers, I am definitely more on the collector side. Our garden has limited areas with enough sun for roses, and those areas get roses, fit in however, as I acquire them and try to find room for them!

In the shade, there have been many beds that I have "planned" over the years. My plans do not always work out, of course. So what it has really come down to is trial and error. If a plant grows and is happy, I plant more of them. If they die, I never plant them again. Gradually many of the beds have achieved a "planned" look by this method, but they really evolved over time.

Last year I got a new oval brick lined bed in sun next to the front path, replacing some lawn. I actually did plan that one - a standard rose surrounded by 6 polyanthas, with some sort of small creeping petunia as ground cover in between. 6 weeks ago I added 200 daffodil bulbs. So far, nothing has died, so this bed is still as I "planned" it. See what happens - I can't wait for all 7 of the roses to get into full bloom.

Jackie

I try to plan, but sometimes it does not go well.
This year I pulled out 10 red Knock Out roses and am replacing them with roses that will "balance" better with my bed of SDLM. Knock Out beside SDLM simply does not have an eye pleasing balance. I will be putting in Blush Noisette with Odee Pink.

There are many roses that either look harsh or are diminished by the roses in the same bed.

My plan for the front also includes some well place red roses. In back of the SDLM I have Splendora on one side and Square Dancer on the other. In the back of the bed of Blush Noisette, I intend to put in Papa Gontier, then farther back I have Archduke Charles.

The roses I mentioned work well to my eye, but Knock Out spoiled the view as did Rina Hugo a few years ago. However, Cramoisi Superieur fits in wherever I want it.

I wish I had studied landscape balances, but since I didn't, I make many mistakes, and have no idea what is truly correct.

But, in answer to your question, I always plan, re-plan, and plan again.

Sammy

The best laid plans....usually go awry, lol! I have drawn out elaborate garden plans for the beds but somehow, in reality, they never end up looking like my drawing. The method that seemed to work best for me was to take the roses and lay them out on the ground where I wanted them and go from there. It was easier to visualize how they'd look with the pots and bags and bare roots in place. I could swap around colors and sizes as needed quickly. But that only works for new roses. For transplants it's harder but at least you already have some idea of how large they'll get.

My son designed and installed my front beds, and it looks really nice, certainly a lot more professional than I could do, but I don't like it half as well as my flowerbeds in back that I installed.

The pleasure comes from the 'planning' and installing, but at my age had to have some help this time around!

When we moved in 6 years ago (ish) my aunt in law gave us some flowers and one of them was a Blushing Knock out. It is beautiful and I do get compliments on it but it is in front of the house infront of the porch but I want to put another rose on the other side and I don't know what do put. I didn't plan anything I replant every few years to see if I like that...

I'm a planner. I draw plans of my gardens, most of the winter, but I still end up changing things, once I can get outside and start moving things around...especially arches, tables, obelisks, etc.

While I plan the overall layout and size of the beds, I usually make more changes, when I start planting. I move a lot of plants around, due to changing my mind, not the best spot for the plant, too cold in the winter, etc.

I do plant a lot of things in mirror reverse. Most of the beds are planted this way, but since I like cottage style gardens, no one seems to notice. The exception is the front bed, which has kind of evolved over time. It's mostly roses, with herbs and perennials, but it's not mirror reverse...because it would be more obvious there. Under the plum trees and in the fairy garden, it keeps things from looking too chaotic. In the kitchen garden, it's a more formal layout, which seems to work, against the 'wilderness' behind it :)

First I spend hours planning. Then I use the Seil method. Then after that, my collecting gets in the way of my design. So next year, it's back to the drawing board to make more changes. Lou

I also go back and forth. I generally have an idea, but then I fill in with impulse. On the whole it turns out well, and if not, I change it.

Just this morning I was admiring the color echoes of a pink tinged succulent with the purple pink flowers of a cranesbill geranium growing up through it, and a purple-green leaved heuchara setting it all off. Clever girl, I told myself with pride, until I noticed that the cleverest touch of all was the purple green creeping woodsorrel that really tied it all together.

Rosefolly

I like Sammy's philosophy: I always plan, re-plan, and plan again.

That describes my methods also. Somewhere back in the beginning I somehow knew it would be a good idea to plan the overal shape and placement of the several beds--that took me several years since most of that was hand-dug by myself. That overall plan is still with me today, many years later, with one major change about 6 years ago when I doubled the size of the central bed to accomodate my increasing interest/obsession with rose-growing.

Within those overall shapes and placements of the beds, I usually have some specific effects I am after and plan accordingly. Like one year I decided I wanted a perfumed path winding through some highly fragrant roses, mostly HTs (I was surprised to realize that I had very few left as I had expanded in the direction of Austin shrubs and such for several years). The winding path itself is quite charming and hasn't been changed during the 5 years of its existence, but I still don't quite have the right combination of HTs along it -- I'm adding a red striped Red Intuition and a white Memoire/Ice Cream this year--hopefully that will do it. So the individual roses may occasionally change, but the idea/layout are still intact.

Another example would be the long narrow strip along the property line on the east (a long driveway goes along there and doesn't leave much width for rose shrubs. I did lots of planning there--needed taller, vertical, narrow HT types (2 hybrid perpetuals snuck in there also) that were floriferous and disease-resistant. I finally came up with a superb combination (thanks to help from this forum)-- but 2 of the roses died this past year for reasons I don't know. But I will be replacing them with the same roses. Why ruin a good combination!

However the narrow strip that extends beyond the neighbor's garage never got really planned--I was just blank there. I had a left over Queen of Sweden and plopped it and some left over iris over there, but it certainly had no particular shape or purpose or effect. That was a couple years ago. Then just last month I had a moment where I could suddenly "visualize" what I wanted there--a short hedgerow of Queen of Swedens, which I promptly ordered and will be planting in the next week or two. A hedgerow that exact height with a narrower, vertical growing shrub like QofS--just what I needed there, but it all started (very slowly) with just plopping an extra QofS over there because I had no room anywhere else to plant it.

So I'd say sometimes its a combination of meticulous planning and chance placement. Sometimes it comes in a "vision" and I can see it all exactly as it was meant to be. Other times it needs to ferment slowly--taking several years to clarify what that bed needs to do to enhance my yard/gardens.

Kate

No, and it shows. :(

I plan it all. I have very specific likes and I follow them. For eg, I love bold contrasts so I make sure all roses are planted adjacent to a contrasting rose. Thus, I ended up with white Blanc Dbl de Coubert next to red Mr Lincoln next to buttery Graham Thomas next to bicolored Baron Girod de l'Ain etc. I also love planning which perennials go where. I love salvia, lupines, dianthus and zinnias with my roses so I plan the color scheme :) Oh, also I love straight lines and hate curves LOL!

Planning is the funnest part and gets me through our frigid winters!

um, I plan inasmuch as I have an idea, say a 'gravel garden' or an alpine screebed, then grow the plants I deem appropriate with my ahem 'plan'- which only ever exists in my head, never managed to put anything on paper apart from hardscaping and stuff for customers. Beds do not come together all at once: sometimes a specific area will take some years to evolve but, as a rule, I am fairly consistent as regards colour, texture and mainly soil and aspects. A late summer border will still contain early flowering plants but will generally reach its peak in September....and will usually have some sort of colour theme or style. Nothing stays for long though as my allotment is for experimenting and trying out stuff before foisting it on paying customers. I have numerous garden areas so tend to grow or buy plants I like then slot them in a suitable place.

I had plans, all right, but nothing stayed as planned. I came to learn that strong yellows bothered me (Julia Child found a new home) and that I didn't care for apricot (except for the tea Miss Atwood and the climber Reve d'Or). Lady Hillingdon is allowed to climb up a white wall since she's not in a large bed with other roses. Many roses didn't like my heat and therefore excused themselves, as did any number of perennials. What remains are whites, pale yellows, light and dark pinks, lavenders and purples. The day lilies do supply gold in their fairly short blooming season and somehow that's okay because they're not roses, and ditto the irises. Basically nature has "planned" survival of the fittest and I've "planned" which colors I'll allow. Considering all these restrictions, it's actually worked out fairly well, and having the same colors and varieties of plants in different areas gives the garden a sense of cohesiveness, and probably also saves me quite a bit of work. The other consideration was that the roses not look modern even though some, like Burgundy Iceberg, certainly are, as are the Austins. My garden is not a horticultural masterpiece by any means, but there's usually quite a bit in bloom, with insects and lizards and birds giving it life, and that makes me a happy gardener.

Ingrid

Nothing stays as I planned, either. My husband pointed out to me that my back flower bed facing south, our alley, is mostly pink and white, Cl. Pinkie, G Nabbonand, Souv. de la Malmaison, Dutchess de Brabant, two Lamarques, a Zeffy, Maitland White, plus others that haven't gotten very large but does include a couple with brighter color. That's okay by me, they're beautiful and the climbers are doing a great job of covering my 6' chain link fence! I didn't even realize I was doing this, just liked the roses.

My new bed along the east side of our yard will have much more color, reds, yellows, cream, orange (Tropicana). This is fun!

I sure do, particularly relative to color so my modern roses are in a "modern ghetto" along the deck b/c I think they look harsh next to the antiques. My few moderns are: Golden Celebration, Ebbtide, Night Owl, Playboy, Hot Cocoa, Lavaglut, Honey Bouquet and Oklahoma. I'm very sorry I planted Night Owl-- since I'm lucky to see that glorious purple 2 weeks out of the year and the rest of the time it's just dark pink (well, rose!). I find both the Austins and the Bucks play well with the antiques so they're over in the circle.

I really enjoy trying to plan, even if it doesn't work out perfectly. I do a drawing and use swatches of color for each rose to see how the colors will look together.

also it's a great way to try to plan for the eventual sizes of the roses, otherwise you could end up super crowded...!

I don't plan, although I would like to plan and think it would be best to plan. I think I have more of an idea in my head that slowly is "created" in my garden, a little at a time. I sort of envy people who can plan their gardens but mine seem to have a life of their own, although that way of doing sometimes doesn't work out. Overall, though, I've been happy with the results. I guess you could call it intuitive gardening.

I can also say that I do have an 'idea' to what I want and where to put it, but that is if I get it is another story...

I just drink beer and plant away. Do not worry about color or anything. Like it to look like mother nature did it herself.

What a surprise to hear from you again, beerhog. It's been awhile. You have a good idea there -- just like Mother nature herself!

Why don't you stick around, and give some more suggestions!
Sammy

I like your style, beerhog, you've got the right idea!

I over think the garden beds (just like in the veggie garden) Thinking of water needs, likes and dislikes, heights, bloom times...etc.

good god, i have tried the 'mother nature' method and all i got was a weed pit. Nope, my garden is now 100% artifice, sweat, tears, rage and a smidgeon of pride.

The way I see it, we are all artists in our own gardens. Some artists portray realism. Some bend and exaggerate proportions for effect. Some use very soft colors, some very loud. Others put globs of paint on a brush and fling it at the canvas. It's all art. Just a matter of style, which I really believe comes from deep within us. In the end, I think our gardens are reflections of our inner selves. Critize your garden, critize yourself. Love your garden, love yourself.

I have to admit, despite my planning for the tree roses we were given, I thought I had 3 of them as white icebergs. I had my holes dug and ready days before the big transplant day. But when I wheeled them to the house, there was one extra. I had to quick add a hole for a 4th iceberg (10 trees instead of 9). I put them in faster than I should have because I was worried about the shock to them (they had been planted in an unprepared location and left alone as staging for a flipped house-new owner did not want them and it was later in the day and hot)

Fast forward a couple of weeks and shock is showing, I did have 3 icebergs after all-not sure how I missed the difference in the forms/leaves but they were looking kind of sad before they were dug up....now to see what the unknown rose will be in the row of icebergs...

"Criticize your garden, criticize yourself. Love your garden, love yourself."

Ahem. I love my garden yet consider it to be a never to be mastered art. Always to be perfected, never to be perfect. And there (sometimes) the frustration lies. Well I guess you nailed it.

Cath

Surely you jest - plan? Big in back, small in front. Works for me.

Kippy, I think they'll be alright. It's not unusual for them to have some transplant shock. Keep them well watered and give them some time to recover.

I agree that everyone's garden is a reflection of themselves. And that changes with time too. I think the best gardens are never finished but always growing and changing as the gardener learns and changes too. I've found that when I go to public gardens they look rather static to me. Private gardens, on the other hand, seem to flow and change and hold surprises now then. You go down a path or turn a corner and AHA, there's a something unexpected to catch your eye that tells you a little something about the gardener. But then I don't like "soldier" gardens where every thing is planted in neat little rows. I like my gardens full to overflowing and spilling out with colors and shapes and scents. I guess that would be the more Mother Nature style. MN doesn't care if she puts red and purple and yellow together or if the tall guy is growing in front of the short fellow. She paints with a wide brush!

I don't like gardens to look 'too' perfect. While some attention to color or scale is nice, it's more important to me that it be inviting to hummingbirds, butterflies, bees, other birds, the barn kitties, etc. I plant a little something for everyone...and then enjoy the life that the garden brings in. So even though I plan the bed sizes and the bigger plantings, Mother Nature provides the best part :)

Well, the intent is to plan, at least as far as the "big in back, little in front", and garish colors separate from subtle ones, but the roses have a way of not cooperating. Every year, I need to move a few roses that refuse to grow as high (or are way higher) than they're supposed to be in my zone.

As for colors, the only one that stays fairly consistent is my front bed, which is a mix of apricot, white, and burgundy roses to match our brick (with purple/blue perennials in there for spice). Beyond that, the lavender bed is mostly mauves, with some cream and burgundy roses, but the rest are generally a split of "hot" or "cool" colors so they mostly blend. As soon as I can figure out pictures this spring I'll post to show what I mean. On paper, my beds are planned out, but in practice they look like joyful chaos.

Cynthia