How do you start a garden?

Take a look at your yard and study what space is available and what the soil and light conditions are. Also, is this a flower garden or a vegetable garden? If the latter, consider what you are likely to eat and how much of it you need.



Flower gardens are tailored to the area - if your yard is sunny, use flowers that do well in sun, but if your yard is shaded, there are still many attractive plants that will do well in shade. You just have to pick the right ones. Consult a garden book or ask someone at your local garden center for help if you need it.



Vegetable gardens should always be in sunny areas, since most vegetables require full sun. Depending on what your soil is like, you may need to amend it by tilling in things like compost, or you could build raised bed boxes and fill them with a good soil mix if your natural soil is really bad.



For more detailed information, go to a book store or library; there are plenty of good books for beginning gardeners.
I would start by deciding how large you want