Help Me Design My New Garden

[Vein]

Some background information;
I've recently moved, and I used to have a 'garden' (if you could even call it that) where I just grew stuff willy nilly. I didn't really like the way it looked, but it still functioned as a nice getaway. Now that I'm in my new house, I'm going to start a new garden. I'm open to anything, but here are my ideas so far.

I wish for my garden to look similar to these ones I've found online;

Key things I want my garden to have;

• Animals
• Pond, or some sort of body of water
• Cottageish aesthetic
• Food

The layout for my backyard is decently sized.

Tomorrow I'll go out and measure, take pictures, and do anything else that's needed.
The green would be where the garden will be, The purple is my shed, the white is my pool equipment, the blue is the pool, the yellow is my deck, the red is my house, and the unlabeled greyish stuff is my poolside.

If you have any questions, advice, or anything to pitch in. Please let me know.
I'm a complete newbie when it comes to this stuff, so I have no idea where to begin.

 

[oneeye]

Hello Vein, Its good to see you, and hope everything is good in Ohio. The first thing I would do is to take soil samples and send them to the soil lab. If you have this information it can keep you from guessing in the long run. The lab will give you professional recommendations for getting the best out of your soil. Also if you plan on having a Koi pond I would recommend you have your water tested too. The water information will be valuable in both landscape and ponds.

Koi pond water need adequate volume, proper pH levels, temperature, oxygen, and regular water changes.

Soil testing info for Ohio

https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/hyg-1132

Good luck friend, thanks for the post, keep us updated.

 

[Vein]

Hello Vein, Its good to see you, and hope everything is good in Ohio. The first thing I would do is to take soil samples and send them to the soil lab. If you have this information it can keep you from guessing in the long run. The lab will give you professional recommendations for getting the best out of your soil. Also if you plan on having a Koi pond I would recommend you have your water tested too. The water information will be valuable in both landscape and ponds.

Koi pond water need adequate volume, proper pH levels, temperature, oxygen, and regular water changes.

Soil testing info for Ohio

https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/hyg-1132

Good luck friend, thanks for the post, keep us updated.

Thanks man, do you have any tips on how I should lay everything out?

 

[oneeye]

Thanks man, do you have any tips on how I should lay everything out?

Make sure your garden is full Sun and not shaded.

 

[rosmith]

Thanks for sharing your background—starting a fresh garden at a new place sounds exciting!

 

[Vein]

Make sure your garden is full Sun and not shaded.

Thanks for sharing your background—starting a fresh garden at a new place sounds exciting!

Do you guys have any tips for designing it? Anything will help.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

If you have small children, or they may ever visit, think about making water inaccessible to them. Do you have no plans to grow anything but grass? Even if you don't want to tend beds a few well placed shrubs or small trees can make a big difference.

 

[Vein]

If you have small children, or they may ever visit, think about making water inaccessible to them.

Sometimes I have the neighbors over to play cards, and they bring their kids, but I think they're old enough to know better.

Do you have no plans to grow anything but grass?

Flowers, Berries, Trees, etc.

Even if you don't want to tend beds a few well placed shrubs or small trees can make a big difference.

I'm planning on doing this, but where should I place them? Near the fence?

 

[oneeye]

Sometimes I have the neighbors over to play cards, and they bring their kids, but I think they're old enough to know better.

Flowers, Berries, Trees, etc.

I'm planning on doing this, but where should I place them? Near the fence?

Good question friend, when you buy your plants they should have a tag telling you what growing conditions are needed—some shrubs like Sunny areas. A good rule of thumb is to plant where the plant gets at least a minumum of 6 to 8 hours of Sun exposure. Start small and work in phases, and keep it simple and you will do great.