Mine tend to evolve that way over years. I always follow a very exact plan for my vegetable gardens, rotating to new areas, etc. But the flower beds! I start out with a simple, sometimes even elegant plan, carefully planned as to color and bloom times, and then... In the end, most of them look like a cottage garden on steroids - at least it keeps the weeds down, because there's no room for them! ( but there's always room for one more flower)
Connie

I'm still reletively new to gardening (less than ten years), but since that first garden went in, now it's kind of a fill and/move sinerio. If something didn't make it in one spot, I try to figure out why, and put in something new that might be happier.

I still try to plan with new gardens. I just don't do the diagram anymore. Usually, I just buy the plants, read the tags, and stick them in. Hopefully with better irrigation, and more compost, I'll have happier gardens this year than last year.

My planting plan is fondly called Cram & Jam. As long as the plants are suited to the conditions (and most of my yard is full sun), then all I do is plant with overall height in mind.

Yup me too. Only things that really can't be moved like shrubs and roses get much thought put into their placement. Every spring I seem to end up with far more plants than I have room for and I panic and put them in weird places.

One thing that I have learned over the years is that you can plan all you want but it's not going to look that way anyway. Some things won't make it, or won't get as big as you thought, or will grow to a gargantuan size and swamp its neighbours... this is part of the fun of gardening. You never know what you're going to get.

I've had a couple of beds that started out with a plan but the plan didn't make it past their first year before it changed. Mostly, i have an idea and i try to plant accordingly but then i need room for all those things i've winter sown, and out goes the plan!

LOL, sounds like I am not alone with my plan-tossing! LOL

Pudge, I love your name for it. That is definately how it goes after WS'ing!

Very true that plants either need to be moved or don't grow as big as you think. I find that the volunteers and reseeders make me change my plans too. I've had some very nice volunteers that I know ended up blowing here from the neighbours yard!

Ang