Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

This post is sponsored by Encore Azaleas, who provided me with the plants for this post. As always, all opinions, writing, photographs, and the dog pictured are 100% my own, and I would never recommend a product that I didn’t use myself. For my full disclosure policy, click here.

Happy spring, y’all! Now that it’s officially spring, I’ve been thinking about adding color to my yard, especially in front of my shed. It was kind of a blank slate/dirt pit.

It needed some help! It needed some color!

Choosing plants for a garden bed is hard. Right?!? You have to think about the sunlight and shade the plant will get in that spot, plus size, color, texture…it can be overwhelming.

When I decide what to plant, I start by thinking about the sunlight that the plant will get – because that narrows down the possible choices of plants I could use in a particular spot. The spot in front of my shed is perfect for azaleas, because it gets afternoon sun, but some shade in the morning. The space was also big enough for two medium-sized and two small azaleas. (And, apparently, a large dog.)

Next, after choosing the plant type, I think about color. Azaleas come with purple, white, pink, or red flowers – you can see the different types of azaleas here.

For the shed, since the roof of the shed is a dark red, I wanted the plants to complement that and highlight it. Reds would also contrast with the blue on the shed siding. I chose two Autumn Bravo Azaleas and two Autumn Sunset Azaleas. You can see the entire collection of Encore Azaleas by color here.

When planting, make sure you leave enough space for each plant. Check the tags on each plant for the spacing each requires.

In addition to the fiery red azaleas, I added pink and red begonias to the flower boxes, just for some additional pops of color that look good with the azaleas.

Click here to see how I built these flower boxes out of cedar fence posts. It’s a great, budget-friendly project!

The shed looks so much better now with the pops of red!

If you want to plant azaleas in your yard but aren’t sure where to begin, try this 1-2-3 approach to color guide by Encore Azaleas.

Now get out there and dig in the dirt! (I love spring!) What are you planting in your garden or yard this spring?