About – Flower Gardening

Flower Gardening is a free informational resource about growing flowers outdoors. The guides are written for beginners: people planning a first flower bed, a border along a fence or a few pots by the door, who want to understand what the plants need and why, in plain language.

What the site covers

Basics: a starting guide, how to read the sunlight and soil you have, and flowers that are forgiving for beginners.
Annual flowers: plants that grow, bloom and finish in one season, and how to raise them from seed or transplants.
Perennial flowers: plants that come back each year, and how to choose ones that suit your hardiness zone.
Garden design: laying out beds and borders, and combining colors, heights and bloom times.
Planting: preparing soil, sowing seeds, setting out transplants and bulbs, and spacing.
Flower care: watering, feeding, mulching, deadheading and staking.
Container flowers: growing flowers in pots, window boxes and hanging baskets.
Seasonal care: what a flower garden needs in spring, summer, fall and winter.

If you are new to gardening, begin with Flower Gardening for Beginners. From there, useful next reads are How to Plant Flowers, Growing Zinnias and Deadheading Flowers. Profiles of individual flowers are gathered under Flower Guides, step-by-step how-tos under Tutorials, and every article is listed on the Guides page.

How the guides are made

Written and reviewed by the Flower Gardening editorial team. Each guide is drafted, then read again for clarity and accuracy before it is published. The guides carry the site name as their byline; no individual author is named.

Based on widely published horticultural guidance. The guides follow general gardening practice as it is described in widely available sources, such as university extension material. Where a guide links to an outside reference, it is there so you can read the source yourself.

The illustrations are original drawings. The pictures on this site are illustrations drawn for the guides. They are not photographs. They are there to show an idea, such as how deep to set a plant or where to cut a faded flower, and a real plant will look different in its details.

Tools, soils and other supplies are described by type and not by brand, so you can use what you already have or can find locally.

Honest limits

General information, not local advice. The guides are general information. They are not a substitute for advice from someone who knows your area, and they are not professional horticultural, veterinary or medical advice.
Conditions differ from place to place. Climates, hardiness zones, frost dates and soils vary, sometimes within a short distance. Check your own conditions, and use your regional extension service or a similar local source for dates and plant choices that fit where you live.
No single planting calendar fits everywhere. When a guide mentions timing, it describes it in relation to local conditions, such as the last expected spring frost, and not as a fixed date.
Plant safety. Some garden plants are harmful if eaten. For questions about whether a plant is safe around pets or children, ask a veterinarian, a poison control service or your local extension service. If a pet or a child eats part of a plant, contact a veterinarian, a doctor or a poison control service right away. Do not wait for symptoms, and do not rely on this site.
Pesticides and fertilizers. When a guide mentions a pesticide, a fertilizer or another product, the label on the product you bought is the instruction to follow. For questions about a product, read its label or ask your local extension service.

What you can rely on

We do not publish invented reviews, ratings or testimonials.
We do not claim credentials, awards or qualifications.
We do not guarantee results. Plants are living things, and a planting can fail even when it is cared for well.
Time estimates in the guides are approximate.

Corrections and suggestions

If something in a guide is unclear, looks wrong or links to a page that no longer works, please tell us through the Contact page. Mention the name of the guide and the section so the problem can be found quickly. Corrections are always welcome.