DIY Focus Gardening

Determine the size, shape and location of your focus garden. Choose a place that is exactly suited to the type of plant that you wish to grow. For this, you will have to research the needs of the plants to determine how much sun they require every day, ranging from full shade to full sun.

Dig out the area of the garden using the shovel, and then break up the heavy clods using the garden hoe. Take a sample of your soil to a plant nursery to be tested to determine if the plants that you are installing require soil amendments. If they do, add the soil amendments prior to planting the focus plants. Mix the soil amendment thoroughly into the native soil.

Install the plants into the garden according to your plan. In order to be a true focus garden, each plant should have its own space, uncrowded and given all of its own specific needs. For example, if your focus garden is a rose garden, provide at least 3 feet between each example of rose. This will allow you plenty of room to prune and care for the roses.

Install mulch over the bare dirt in which the focus plants have been installed to help block the growth of weeds. Some gardens may benefit from the application of weed fabric underneath the mulch. This addition virtually eliminates weed growth in the focus garden.

Water and feed the focus garden according to the specific needs of the plants. Some plants require occasional pruning, while many flowers bloom best when they are deadheaded -- when the spent blooms are removed from the plant prior to their drying out.