It's still wishful thinking across much of the country, but the lure of budding trees and blooming flowers has many green-thumbers pressing their noses against the window panes.

The good news? It's never too early to start planning your garden.

First, you must establish what "zone" you live in. Knowing your zone will tell you when to plant what. You can find out your zone by visiting Garden.org.

If the risk of freeze is over in your zone, you might be able to start getting your hands dirty!

Everyone loves to look through Spring seed catalogs and dream up their perfect garden. And every perfect garden starts with a well-thought out plan. Now is the time of year to decide what you want to watch grow and bloom this season.

Draw out plans and pick out colors. Many flower buffs prefer to group like colors together. They'll have a pink annual garden one year and a yellow the next.

Others focus their attention on larger projects, such as decks, pathways, and patios. If this is your intent this year, start your research now. Garden books and magazines are full of inspiration and how-to books can even lead you down the do-it-yourself path. You can also get pricing estimates from local home improvement stores and lumber yards.

Spring is also a time to prepare your soil. This means checking the pH to see if it needs balancing, as well as prepping the soil with compost to ensure it is full of nutrients. Compost works especially well when you add it prior to planting, and it's a natural organic way to make your garden just that much better.

You can also take this time to prune bushes and hedges, clean dirty bird feeders, and service your lawn equipment. If you hire a landscaping company to handle the heavy work for you each year, then now would be a great time to interview potential companies and decide upon a service plan.

Above all else, be sure to enjoy the process of planning and caring for your garden. It really is a rewarding hobby that keeps on giving for years to come.

Published: March 9, 2011

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Carla Hill, M.A., works on the Realty Times staff as Managing Editor for our online publication. She also is Producer for the real estate news channel, seen daily on RealtyTimes.com and on video newsletters nationwide.