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Gardens are one of life's truest and simplest pleasures for many folk, especially with their notoriety in temperate climes for shattering the monotony of winter's hostile and cold winds, insurmountable snow drifts and obtuse colors. Certainly the first few accumulative snowfalls of the season are welcome, although by January and February in the Midwest, it becomes nothing other than mundane and depressing. But finally, with those April showers the May flowers arrive, just in time to spare a guy or gal from hitting the brink of crappy weather insanity. Nod in accordance if you relate to what I'm saying.

Flowers, grasses, shrubs and trees of all sizes, shapes, scents and colors are at one's command to become a part of your landscape, your own little natural niche amidst relentless urban sprawl. And with the introduction of these specimens fly the birds, bees and butterflies making roughly half of the year an anticipatory pleasure to be outdoors. This all sounds good, and indeed it is, but what about caring for a garden and keeping it in healthy, maintained order? Beautiful landscapes don't just exist as such, they require a certain investment of time and sweat, think of it as your sweetest labor of love if you will. You will only get out of your garden that which you put into it - neglect your garden and it will become evident.

However, despair not. Albeit some gardens, depending on planted varieties, can justify endless hours of maintenance, there are also sensible remedies which can be minimalistic regarding your investment of time; one needn't dedicated every waking hour of her/his weekend in order to be the proud owner of an aesthetically pleasing environment. In fact, by following a handful of fundamental guidelines when planning your landscape, enjoyment can be the principle activity, not endless maintenance.

1) Ascertain the amount of space that you'll be converting to garden areas. If you have copious amounts of green space, it's recommended to transform those areas one season at a time. Leave some grassy areas for now as you can always eliminate and alter them in the future.

2) Spend some time observing the path of the sun through the growing season. You need to know which areas are full-sun, part-sun/shade and full-shade as each variety of plant has its own particular solar needs. While you're at it, take notes of some of the gardens that you find most appealing.

3) Determine the type of soil predominant in your yard; sand, loam, clay or a combination of

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