If you have a patio, porch, terrace, balcony, deck or veranda, now is the time for some beautiful flowers to add excitement and a personal touch to your outdoor living space. Planting blooms of different colors, textures, heights and widths will enhance your enjoyment while cooking, entertaining or just hanging out.

In this hectic fast paced world, it’s so nice to get home and unwind while enjoying your outdoor space. As butterflies and hummingbirds visit your blossoms, you can be happy you provided them with Mother Nature’s gifts. It is much easier than you think.

First decide what kind of containers you want. Choose from pots, urns, window boxes, troughs or hanging baskets. Be creative, the skies the limit, check out Pinterest for fun container ideas.

Using good potting soil is vital; plants are only as good as the soil they are planted in, so splurge on quality potting mix.

The fun part is next — the flowers! Choices are limitless. Determine if you need sun lovers or shade lovers or somewhere in-between. For sunny spaces, choose marigolds, zinnias, petunias, geraniums, moss rose and sweet potato vine, just to name a few. Your shade lovers are impatiens, coleus, fuchsia, begonias and ivies.

Selecting the right plant for the right place is vital, and easy to do. Don’t be afraid to try new, fun varieties at your local garden center. There are hundreds, if not thousands of plant choices. Don’t get overwhelmed, simply pick your favorite colors and create your own style.

When planting, add some slow release fertilizer mixed in your soil and ensure you have good drainage. Plant taller plants, like spikes or ornamental grasses in the center and trailing plants like lobelia and bacopa, around the rim to spill over. Fill in with medium-sized plants like petunias and geraniums. The color is up to you, no rules. If you like orange and red together, have at it, and it will be fabulous. Maybe patriotic is your taste, then red, white and blue it is.

Now just a little watering and once a week pinch off spent blossoms, and you’re the envy of your neighborhood.

What flowers and plants decorate your outdoor living spaces?