So nice you have a neighbor willing to share. I'd recommend looking at your neighbor's garden to see where she has located such plants so you know their mature height and spread and whether they like sun or shade, etc. Then put the tall plants in the back, the medium in the middle, and the low-growing in the front of the bed. Of course it's more interesting to vary this a bit so there is some "flow" to the arrangement. Make sure you leave enough space between plants.

You can also take color and texture into consideration but don't go crazy with that unless you need to.

Do look at as many garden pics as possible and make lists of what you like. There are so many styles/types of gardens. Check out some of the other forums on GW for more info.

I highly recommend starting to compost to save money and improve your soil. There is a Soil forum here on GW that has really helped me: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/soil/

A good way to get more perennials or annuals inexpensively is to grow them from seed. Do a bit of research and start with a few. You may be pleasantly surprised at what happens.

All the best and most importantly enjoy the process. :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: easy plants to grow from seed

This year, buy annuals and learn to propagate. It won't be instant, but it will teach you a lot about color, growth of plants, and give you some ideas of what not to do.

In September, gather together all your traded seeds. Go to the seed exchange forum and look for FREE or SASBE or BEAP offers. People will give you seeds for free if you send them an envelope or postage. Pay attention and always include your GW name with any email to traders.

Once you have some seed, use it to trade for what you want. Get a good basic set of perennials. Sow them in August outside in protected containers. Visit the wintersowing forum and read the FAQs. Use recyclables whenever you can, milk jugs, two liter bottles, takeout trays, etc. Put your containers and seed in the shade and keep them watered. By late fall, you'll have germination.

I plant mine right in the ground before the leaves are off the trees. Give them some time to grow before winter hits. They'll put down roots over the winter and will bloom the following summer. Use the information you learned from the annuals to realize that those tiny seedlings will become huge plants next spring. Don't overcrowd, but try to make it full.

Then sow more perennials over the winter using the wintersowing method. Plant them out in early spring. Keep moving on to annuals as the chance of frost diminishes.

If you're going to grow plants, the best advice anyone can give you is to learn about the plants before you try to grow them. A little background information makes the thumb greener. So does pinching. :)

Check with your landfill for free leaf compost, or at least cheap. Haul it in bags if you need to. Use this to amend your soil. Build small beds at first until you get the hang of it. Check out "Lasagna Gardening" on google.

Most important is to know the plants. Trial and error is expected. There will be failures. There will be success. It takes time and knowledge.

Thank you to both of you for replying to my post. A lot of good advice there :-))

I think my main problem, other than the money issue is that I'm not 100% positive that we'll even be able to stay in this house for this whole summer let alone a few years... so I think that's what is deterring me from making the effort in perennials here. I attempted to plant some annuals last year in the front of our house (the only place that was a "garden" area actually) due to it being framed on all sides by a sidewalk and the wall of our house but that was a huge failure as my dog decided she didn't like anything growing in "her" garden so she dug up a lot of them and those that she didn't dig up she ripped out with her rope! :-(( I even tried putting pieces of rebar into the ground at strategic points to keep her leash from damaging the plants.. but to no avail as she just wrapped herself around them and got tangled. She's not that bright of a dog LOL.

I have also been doing some research last year and this year into the types of gardens that I seem to gravitate towards and that is why I'm in this particular forum. I like the haphazard, carefree look to the cottage garden. Plus this property lends itself very nicely to that style as well. I also researched online and in a few locations close to where I live (especially my neighbor's gardens) what plants would do well in this area and type of soil. I have about six or so different plans that I drew up based on those plants I picked... which is a difficult choice and that's why I have a few different plans LOL... and I even went so far as to plan out a schedule of which garden I'd work on in each of the years I gave myself to complete them. I have found out though that they are NEVER complete!!! :) That's what bothers me about all this.. I want to plant so bad that it hurts but I don't want to do it and then have to move due to lack of employment making us move. That'd be a whole lot of stuff to move.. and I know DH would make me leave it all behind. :-((

I'm sure I could find numerous annuals to use in the various beds and only use a few well placed perennials and perhaps that is what I'll do, grow the annuals from seed and take the outcasts from my neighbor as the perennials. Seeds are cheap... and if I can get them in trade for something that's even better! :)

I had posted photos last year of what our property looks like right now and I also think I posted quite a few of my neighbor's gardens... I might put some of those photos in the "Gallery" if I get the time soon. Looking for a job takes up almost as much time as having a job!!!

Anyways, thanks again for replying and I'll keep reading and learning more until I'm ready to just do it... instead of dreaming about it. LOL

ttfn
MD

I suggest you start with defining 'what you want/need'.
Get a tablet, or a spiral notebook, and start making lists of plants you like, pathway materials that appeal to you, garden features you love, mulch and compost resources, first/last frost dates, rainfall records, where the sun is at different times of the day, 'recipes' for pot combinations, .....Put it all in this one spot. You might think it is frivolous, but I use my 'book' about every day. You can make it a journal if you want.

You can start small, and make a difference almost immediately. Suppose you have a lamp post in the front yard; You can dress it with a simple flowerbed; Remove the grass around it and give it a sharp edge with the shovel (kind of a little ditch), then sow a pack or two of zinnia seeds. You will have pretty flowers until frost! If your neighbor gives you a few fans of daylilies, plant them together, allowing the proper spacing between them. Together, they will make a nice impact, wheras planted separately, they may get lost.

DO check with your county to see if they offer free compost and mulch. It can save you hundreds of dollars, and native is always better, when it comes to mulch. All of my mulch comes from our county transfer station (the dump). Also, if you have any grain mills around, you might check to see what kind of 'trash' is available there. We have a cotton gin close to us, and we get fantastic compost from there, for free.

DO learn to propagate your own plants. There is a propagation forum on this Garden Web, and the people there are very knowledgeable and will cheerfully advise you how to propagate anything and everything.

I think it is wonderful that your neighbor will share plants with you. The best friends are those who share plants.

Good luck to you, and let us know your progress.

Janie