If, on other hand, you relish “fussing,” annuals, vegetables, fruit trees or fruiting shrubs (such as raspberries, blackberries or currants), and tea and shrub roses can be added to your landscape. These plants all require routine maintenance including trimming, pruning, weeding, deadheading, and regular pest control.

SIZE, PROPORTION AND BLOOM TIME

A plant’s final size – height and width – are also important factors in choosing plant material. Plant size should be in proportion to size of bed and size of any buildings or fixtures. If you’ve ever seen foundation plants that have overshadowed home they were supposed to compliment, you’ll know what I mean. Those overgrown arborvitae eventually have to be cut down and dug out, which is backbreaking labor, or expensive if you have to hire a Bobcat. Better to plant with end result in mind.

Bloom time is your final consideration. You may choose to create a mixture of shrubs, bulbs, perennials and annuals in your bed, which will produce a long period of blooming as each group flowers successively. You may decide that one splash of color, followed by a pleasing palate of green, is more to your liking. Knowing when a plant shows its best side (and what it looks like afterward) can help you choose whether that plant belongs in your yard, or if you’ll maliciously suggest it to your crabbiest neighbor.

Take time to plan before you plant, and you’ll be rewarded with seasons of color, fragrance, and garden health.

A medium version of Chromatella is "Moorei" lily flower is smaller and will use brown spots in leaves instead of purple in leaves of plant. This plant is more suited for small water garden.

"Sulphurea" is yet another yellow lily grown in small water garden. The flowers are taller than others, held above leaves of plant while at same time petals point upwards to reach sun.

Changes you can make in water garden include use of miniature lily, "Helvola". This small lily is only about two inches wide and it will fit in smallest of water gardens or creatively used in container water garden.

The point of describing various types of yellow lilies is to show you that you have choices. If you walk into a supply store but only see one or two types of lilies, you most likely are not going to get full effect of what you were searching for. Be sure to read about how large lilies will grow, and how fast lilies will take over your water garden so you can be sure that your water garden will be your ultimate dream!