Where in NC, coast, central, foothills or mountains? It makes a difference as to what will be flowering...

Here are some bulb ideas. Exactly when things bloom is quite variable. A few warm days and boom, trees start to bloom and stuff starts coming up.

http://wayne.ces.ncsu.edu/index.php?page=news&ci=LAWN+82

Congratulations and good for you for thinking about flowers now. :o)

Finding,buying and prepping the soil for planting, then worrying about watering and if they will bloom on time..

Make your wedding process easier..you'll have enough stress..
Go to your local growers/garden centers. They will have plenty of beautiful flowers blooming and this can be done the week of your wedding. Just place baskets of potted flowers all around. You don't need to go to the cost of buying planted pots of mixed flowers. Get what you want in 3-4" pots and group them in ground baskets with some well dampened potting soil underneath the pots. These baskets you can tuck anywhere..between shrubs, on porches, along walkways.

After you return from your honeymoon you can decide where to plant.

If your area is at risk of late frost or you have a critter(deer/rabbit) problem, you can bring in the baskets to porch or garage to protect your investment.

I agree with what Dottie stated.
Also, since your wedding is right before Mothers day- you will be able to find gorgeous potted Hydrangeas already in baskets and decorative sleeves as well as potted roses and gardenias. Small 6 inch blooming plants in baskets make beautiful centerpieces for tables.

Years ago I published a local gardening newspaper. One of the things I did was photodocument everything that was blooming every week of the year. After a couple of years I noticed that dogwoods can be blooming two weeks in either direction of the original date I first noticed them. So, just because you want certain flowers to be in peak bloom on a certain date doesn't mean you can count on them to do it. And no matter how you threaten them or sit out in the garden frantically pointing at the photos in the magazines - the plants will just ignore you. They are in their own little world and oblivious to your wedding plans.

My advice when family members were trying to pull off a garden wedding was to buy a lot of hanging basket boston ferns a month before the wedding. Take off the wire hangers, place them in some bright shade and feed & water them once each week (unless it rains, then just feed them). Go to the craft store and buy some nice white ribbon or ribbons in the colors of your wedding. Enlist someone to make up a ton of ribbon bows. Go shopping for blooming plants but don't buy anything until a day or so before the wedding (ideally you'll have someone else do the shopping for you). Put the bows in and around the ferns. Arrange the blooming plants wherever they will get the most view.

Now, back when I was giving this advice, hanging basket ferns were on sale. In the spring they won't be. But nice, full, dark green ferns can make a few well placed flowers and some nice bows really pop for the wedding. Ferns are cheaper then flowers (cut or in-pot).

Okay, these are very smart people giving you advice here, but I still think it's very romantic that you want to plant trees and flowers to bloom in the spring and remind you of your wedding for years to come.

I would go ahead and PLAN for your garden to be nice in May - but also keep in mind, and plan for, the idea of using bought pots of foliage plants and annuals to fill it out, if your plants are too early or too late to be at their peak. I would plant the "bones" of the garden as well - trees, shrubs, benches, paths, fences, arbors, etc. - as well, so you have a framework to use. Unless you spring for the biggest trees and shrubs you can find (with a LARGE price tag!), they won't be very big. Don't fall prey to the common idea of planting them too close, "so they fill in more". They will do so, and then be too big, too close, and not look good a few years down the road, when they are a royal pain to move or a constant pruning job to keep in check. You can leave things in pots, mounding mulch or pine straw around the pots to hide them, and mass them in the area of the festivities. Plant them out after the wedding in the right place - spaced at least half the projected mature width from their neighbors. The timing for planting isn't the best in early May, as it can get hot pretty fast (we still don't know WHERE in the state you are located?), but if the plants are in pots, and if you are assiduous about watering, most of them should be fine.

I thought I remembered a book that gave overlapping bloom times - I know it exists, but can't find it nor remember the name, even after a trip to Spartanburg to the Barnes & Noble last night - but if you can find a chart of bloom times for your area, both for plants and for trees/shrubs, you can work from it and hope it does come out as you want. Your local county extension agent's office may have such a list, or you might get it through the Master Gardener's group. The local newspaper may have a gardening columnist, and she/he (like T'john above) may keep records of what is blooming when. A local, long-time gardener may also have such records, in the form of a diary. I would ask around, and see what info you can get locally, and then hope for the best.

You can plant bulbs up until New Year's day, and still get blooms, perhaps a bit late, but that may be all to the good. My only advice is, unless you are in or near the mountains, is NOT to plant most of the tulips or daffodils said to be late bloomers - if it gets hot, they either won't bloom at all, or will bloom for only a day or two - they DON'T like temps in the 80's. You can, esp. if more easterly than the foothills or mountains, plant potted plants until about Christmas, even though now is the ideal. They may need a little more coddling, but..., they should be fine.

Hi Everyone,

Thanks very much for your suggestions. Sorry we forgot to list our location. We're in Charlotte.

Our thought is that, since we want to get some flowering things planted around the property anyway, we might as well do what we can now, and try to be intentional about planting things that will hopefully be blooming in early May. We'll be on (and are on) a tight budget.

We so appreciate your notes. Keep'em coming, if you think of anything else!

Hope you all enjoyed a great Thanksgiving.

Robert & Laura

Laura, despite our watering restrictions, now that it's cooler it's easier to plant shrubs/trees and I think we are still allowed to water with drip lines.
Check Lowes,Home Depot,Kings(in Stallings),Youngs(on 521 just over the SC line)and Rountree Plantation. You'll probably find some good values this season and will certainly get wise planting advice from the independent nurseries.
By May all the garden centers will be filled with flowers brought to blooming stage in greenhouses.
Perhaps if you spread the word to friends some will give you gift cards from Lowes/Home Depot for wedding shower gifts and you'll be able to fund your project more easily.

Robert and Laura,
Congratulations on your May 3rd Wedding Date. Certainly pick a plant or shrub that may bloom next year and every year for your memorable Wedding Anniversary!. Bloom times always vary. If you plant annual Pansies and Ornamental Cabbage or Kale now; they will be at full growth by early May. And a beautiful show. They will not last much past May as the weather heats up. Check Out Link Below for good information in your area.
You have sparked my interest! Our son is also getting married (same date) May 3rd in Raleigh. We will not be hosting the wedding here....but will certainly have pre and post out-of-town wedding visitors. We have been discussing the early May Garden. The Azaleas may be blooming, but other than that the garden will be gearing up for June-July.
I really like Triangle John's idea of hanging baskets and potted plants (ferns). Set them around and worry about potting them up later. That is simplicity! There are plenty of box stores and nurseries all stocked up at that time of year.......Good Luck and Many Happy Growing Years!..........Dianne

Here is a link that might be useful: NC State Cooperative

Congrats! According to my garden journal where I keep a list of what is blooming by date, here's what blooms near Winston-Salem for me, if that helps you: May 3 Hespiris, Allysum, Foxglove, wild Daisy, Spanish Lavender, early Allium, German Iris, Nigella, Cranesbill Geranium, Pandy 'Oliver Twist', May 4 white Peony, 5-7 Roses, 5-10 Veronica, Malva Zebrina, Vernena bonariensis, 5-11, Rugosa Rose, Siberian Iris, 5-13, Gaillardia, 5-14 Campion, Sage, pink Peony, Carolina thermopsis, Mock Orange, Ice Palnt, Jap. Iris, Silene (more, email me for exact dates)