Flower gardening is becoming more and more popular every day. Flowers smell nice, look beautiful, and brighten your day. Flower gardening is a simple inexpensive hobby that's loads of fun. While most people grow flowers for their own pleasure, you can also grow them to sell at farmer's markets or to floral shops. Before you begin growing flowers, you need to know something about you yard and decide what you want to plant. To know what you can grow, you need to know what kind of soil you have, how much sun your site receives, how much planting space you have, and local weather patterns, among other things.

You also need to decide if you want to grow perennials (which return year after year) or annuals (which die after one year). You may want to have a cutting garden where you can always pick things to bring indoors, or you may choose to plant flowers that can bloom for prolonged periods while still on the plant. When flower gardening, it's also important to decide what type of look you want before planting.

For instance, mixing different heights, colors, and varieties of flowers together in a 'wild-plant style' will give your garden a carefree look. You may also choose to plant short flowers in front of taller flowers to create a stair-stepped look. Your flowers may be woven throughout your garden, mixing with trees and shrubs, or they can be concentrated in one area.

Many people like planting flowers in containers, which can be replanted yearly or layered to provide year round color and beauty. You can get your plants in many forms and from many sources. Most people choose to buy containerized flowers from nurseries or catalogs. While this is a good solution for time-crunched people, there is also great satisfaction in buying and propagating seeds.

With a good source and a little patience, you can grow a beautiful garden from seed. If you have friends who also enjoy flower gardening, you can set up a plant exchange program. As your flowers grow and thrive, you can exchange seeds, cuttings, or divisions to friends, expanding your plant palette and sharing the beauty and fun. Maintaining flower gardens is easy. Before planting, and every 2-3 years afterwards, test your soil to get recommendations on any needed nutrients and fertilize as needed. Group your flowers according to their water and sun needs to minimize maintenance and resources.

Many flowers benefit from 'deadheading', or removing spent flowers. By removing dead flowers, you can often encourage a new round of flowering. Adding a layer of mulch will reduce the need to pull needs, while providing a gradual source of nutrients, among many other benefits. As you can see, flower gardening is fun and easy.

With a little planning and some simple maintenance, you'll have a beautiful flower garden in no time. Your friends and neighbors will be jealous of your flowers and marvel at your green thumb.

Jerry Cahill is a featured writer for his many websites. If you'd like to learn more about his current writings go to Sustainable Horticulture