How can I start a simple garden?

Can anyone tell me how I can start a simple garden in my backyard. I want to just be able to plant flowers that can grow in shade, and make it beautiful, but I'm on a budget.

How can I start a simple garden?
Get a really good gardening book. You can take it with you wherever you are. Even when you are staring at the site when you are thinking about what to do/plant. Staring is a big part of gardening.





Internet is good too, but you can't carry it around with you. I find it is great when I am researching specific plant topics.





Really excellent book for any level, beginner, or otherwise is "Garden Primer" written by Barbara Damrosh. She covers everything from planning, what plants need, gear, how to buy plants, or do your own seeding, annual perennials, veg, etc.





I have a copy I refer all the time re: veg. Have had it since 1991. It is still being published.
Reply:Hostas do well in shade Pick a few up every week through the summer. By the end of the summer you will have a nice collection.





Get all different colors. They come in green, blue, yellow and there are striped versions.





You can grow them from seed too. You can get them dirt cheap on eBay and grow them on your window sill right now. They will take forever though to mature. I think you are better off with buying them.





If you have friends, ask them for samples of what they got. Gardeners love to share! We got lots of stuff from our friends free of charge!





Bungle weed does well in shade. You can grow it where grass does not grow as a "walkable". They escape the lawnmowers blades because they are so low on the ground.





And they they do flower. Not very remarkable flowers but they do bloom once a year.





Asian Lillies are not supposed to do well in shade but I have had good luck with them. Pick some up at the Wally Mart. They are about 10 bucks for a nice big bag. They multiply like crazy in the full sun.





If you shop for seeds on eBay watch those ship prices. A lot of rip off artists there will sell you a pack of seeds for 30 cents and charge you two bucks to mail it. Read the fine print on the listings.
Reply:You first must prepare the area in which you want your garden. Prepare the bed - remove the grass either with a hoe or tiller. Depending on your soil conditions, you may have to add mulch or lime, especially if there is a lot of clay. Loosen the soil and mix the additives well.





Also take note of the sun's direction during the day - there may be moments where the area will get full sun - which can also affect your choice of plants.





Visit your local hardware or garden store and look for seeds for plants that will grown in shade. Read the directions on the package as to when to plant. Each region has a different time as well as different plants will do better.





You can start the seedlings early if you have accessible window or some place warm. There are several different methods - using agar agar, wetting a paper towel or using starting pots which you place a seed in and place in a window.





Having a garden doesn't have to be a big investment - except your time at the very beginning.
Reply:Prepare your flower bed first. You'll need good soil and top coat. Your local nursery can help with that. many ferns are beautiful and do not need a lot of sun. There is so much info on gardening in the internet. Go to a site for your area of the country
Reply:Okay - others have made some good suggestions, about preparing the bed and such, but I'm not sure you asked so much about preparing the soil, etc., but rather that you were asking about simplistic garden design and shade-loving plants that you can afford...[?]





Keeping it simple ~ by design and choice of plants ~ will help you get a good start and be satisfied with what you've done. Simple, could be that you choose just a few plants: one, as an evergreen, perennial groundcover or backdrop type plant [e.g., liriope, aspadistra, both shade tolerant]; and maybe two other flowering perennials. After that, you could augment with maybe one Annual that flowers when the perennials do not.





Gardening is mostly a learn-by-doing venture. Speaking of budgetary concerns, remember that most gardeners are happy to share plants. Again, I don't know where you live, but here in rural SE GA, I could visit many neighbors and come home with plants freshly dug from their yard. Also remember that if you plant perennials, essentially what you're doing is, growing additional plants for yourself: meaning, many will reseed themselves; plus, as they grow you can dig them up, separate them, and replant - giving you additional plants.





Since we don't know what area in which you live, it's hard to give specific plant recommendations. You can go to a site such as Better Homes %26amp; Gardens [bhg.com]: they have lots of info - you can specifically look up what type of shade plants will thrive in your climate; they also have small, medium and large flower bed designs.





Do as yoU said: keep it simple - the flower bed's design and just a few plants well chosen ~ you'll have FuN!
Reply:Tthe simplest garden is a container garden. Use any kind of pots with a drainage hole. They may need to be watered more but weeds are not usually a problem. Plant shade loving annuals or perennials. The container can be moved anywhere in the yard for appearance, or if they are not doing well where they are planted. If you like the look and they do well you can plant them in the ground.
Reply:You're not going to find many flowers that like the shade. However, some great shade plants are hostas (which some do bloom) and bleeding hearts. You can probably find shrubs and other plants. Your best bet would be to go to a garden store in your area (like Campbell's or Earl May) and ask someone there what grows best for your zone and climate.
Reply:get a shovel, and dig up the ground. Then go buy seeds, and plant them