How to Plant a Front Garden

Clear enough space in your front yard for the garden that you want to grow. Remove from the lawn all rocks, branches and other objects that will get in the way of your soil preparation.

Prepare the soil for your front garden so that it drains well and can support flowers, shrubs and the other plant life that you want to grow. Break up the top 6 to 8 inches of the front lawn with a shovel so that the entire front area where you want to plant the garden has a fine, gritty consistency. If you have one, you can also run a tiller over the yard to break up the soil.

Layer 1 to 2 inches of compost, manure or fertilizer on top of the tilled soil and work the fertilizer down into the soil with the tip of the shovel or a firm rake so that it is thoroughly mixed in.

Plant shrubs or trees in your front garden first since they will be likely to create shade in some areas of the yard once planted. Once planted, you can see where they cast shade in your yard, which prevents you from accidentally planting flowers and other plants that need full sun in shaded sections. If the foundation of your home is unsightly, you may choose to plant shrubs a few inches from the front of the house so that they cover the foundation. For each tree or shrub that you want to plant, dig a hole that is roughly three times the size of the plant's root ball and 2 feet in depth. Set the root ball into the center of the hole and tightly pack the soil in around the base of the plant.

Plant flowers so that you can see them as you walk toward your house. Plant all flowers according to the recommendations listed on their information tags to ensure that they have plenty of space to develop. To making caring for the flowers in your front garden easier, it may be most effective to keep perennials separate from annuals.

Place plants that need full sun in areas of your front yard that get six to eight hours of sunlight per day. Plant those flowers that need only partial sun in shaded areas of your front yard or in containers on the porch to prevent overexposure to the sun.

Help fixtures in your yard, such as fences and mailboxes, blend in with the garden theme by incorporating them into your garden design. Plant ivy at the base of your mailbox, for instance. As it grows, the ivy will cling to and climb up the fixture. For plant features that you would like to make stand out, consider adding a decorative feature, such as a circle of stones arranged around the plant's base.