Build it and they will grow, sorry to borrow that phrase from a favourite movie (Do you know which one?), however, it does sum up the basics of gardening, build the garden and they will grow. The problem is unless you begin with a sound design and use a few simple techniques what will grow may not be what you want.

The plants we call weeds love to move into any spot that is not occupied by something else. When planning a garden take that reality into consideration.

Reducing the work you need to do and creating a garden that thrives begins in the planning stage.

Planning steps to take:

1- Calculate the amount of time you have to invest in your garden.

2- Determine what available space you have or where your garden will be.

3- The first two steps tell you how big your garden should be.

4- How much light does that space get? This tells you what you can grow.

5- Be sure to write your answers to the above down.

6- What do you want to grow?

7- Draw a rough plan which you can refer to as you go.

8- Get started.

Simple activities:

1. Which garden tasks would you rather not do?
2. Which garden tasks do you enjoy doing? If there is nothing on this list, perhaps, you are not a gardener.
3. If you dislike mowing the lawn, reduce the lawn space. Add a shrub, some berry bushes or a fruit tree or two, Put in a vegetable or cut flower garden or add a deck.
4. Dislike weeding, add mulch. Mulch will not only reduce the need to weed but also reduce the need to water. You are reducing labour in two ways and improving the garden’s health.
5. Keep a compost bin. This gets rid of food scraps, lawn clippings and tree leaves, for example, and turn them into organic matter that will help the garden thrive and reduce the amount of garbage you will need to put out.
6. Spend time in your garden, just watching the plants grow. What could be easier? While there check for any new and unexpected happenings. This way you can catch a problem in its early stages and reduce the work you will need to do, if the situation gets out of hand.
7. When planting put the right plant in the right place. Make sure the plant gets the sunlight it needs.
8. Water in the early morning and water deep; you are watering the roots.
9. Plant a diversity of plants and use a combination of herbs, vegetables and native wildflowers. This will attract the pollinators your garden needs to reproduce.

Time spent in the garden is a great investment; one that will repay you for many years.