Oh Susie green thumb!

becasmeca

1. I started reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, so far-- I love it!

2. FINALLY! the backyard of my Dad's property is ready to plant  things to make it "look good" for potential buyers.

I have 3 large planters and about 25 feet x 2.5 feet of fresh soil that I can plant in; these areas get continuous sunlight. Do you have any ideas of what would be budget friendly, filling, and beautiful?

Do I have to do anything to the pre existing dirt before I plant any flowers or plants?

becasmeca

Just found this for you!

SusieBW

I'm glad you're enjoying the book!  I'm almost done with it and it has only gotten better for me as it went more into the current lives of the surviving Lacks family members.

Is the 25 x 2.5 area a border? Like down the side of the yard or across the back or something?  I'm doing a long border in my yard this summer, and I'm going to use a lot of lillies and hosta that I already have in other parts of the yard to save some money and fill some space.  They're really hearty plants that need to be split every so often anyway, so I'm going to split some of what I already have and move it over there.  If something like that is an option for you, that would certainly be budget friendly.  You're in Colorado, right?  I don't know too much about that area, but I'm a big fan of planting native plants to keep your native birds and bees fed, and keep the native ecosystem thriving.  Here's a link to a really good website for CO native perennials.  Look around that website for some more good gardening advice specific to your area, too.  Perennials will come back every year, so no replanting is required.  Try to use a variety of heights to keep it interesting, and look for something that will spread. 

For the containers, I like using vines or wave petunias that will "drip" over the sides (sweet potato vine is a really pretty, bright spring green color), as well as a grass or tall flower, and then something mid-range to fill it in.  Again, I know very little about what sort of plants you have available out there, so I'm afraid I'm not much help with specifics.

Ideally, you should test soil before planting, but very few people actually do.  That would tell you exactly how much fertilizer/etc to add.  Generally speaking, I would add an inch or two of compost to your soil and till it in before you plant.  And then mulch around the plants to keep weeds from sprouting.

Good luck and have fun with it!  Visit some garden shops and look around and just plant what you like.  Just make sure they're good for sun/part shade.