HELP!

I am not good with plants at all (I could kill a rock garden), but my husband wants to put a flower garden in the front of our house. He is more knowledgeable about plants than I. We have an area laid out-- approximately 3 x 12. Our house faces west, so we get a lot of sun in the evenings. There are no trees in the front (but will be before the year is out... I am opting for at least one maple). What types of flowers would be good to plant there? He has chosen marigolds and petunias plus a couple of others I am not sure of. Also, when we buy plants and the soil in the pots is hard is it a good idea to water them before planting them or should I wait until they are planted then water the entire area? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Zukerfuss, you are entering a great pastime by gardening, I hope many years of enjoyment, I would advise going to your librery and find a good beginners book as it will be full of hints and tips about getting your confidence going.
Maples are lovely tree's but need chosen with care as some grow huge and in a small place, can eventually cause root damage, some are grown for leaf colour, some because they have wonderful bark, some because they are slow to grow and will stay small with attractive autumn leaf change/colour, so do a bit of research unless you know already the eventual hight and spread of your maple.
Plants for beds are vast in veriety , do you want plants that come up every year (perennials) ones that only last a season annials, or shrubs that are evergreen to be on show all year round, the choise is easy once you know what kind of bed you want and not hard to make IF you follow the plants needs, this is where a book will help.
As regards plants ready to put into the soil from the stores, do remember that these plants have traveled to store, been touched, poked and ignored by customers and staff alike, so even IF any plant you buy from a store, I always put them, with the pots, into a basin of water for a couple of hours before they go into the ground, they will thank you for it and as the roots will be nice a wet, then as you water the bed, almost daily in summer, the plants dont get too dried out, remember Marigilds, Petunias are one season only plants and you will be advised, as you water, once each week, give them a liquid feed at the same time, deadhead all the flowers that are finnished as you want them to make new flowers so you get colour and enjoyment all summer,
These are good starter plants and by this time next year, you will gain more confidence, have learned more about gardening and the seasons, what plants like and dont like, so you will be well prepared for your next bed design, so good luck, be patient and ENJOY.
Hope this answers some of you questions.
WeeNel.

Other good plants for a bright show are portulaca (moss roses) and lantana. They'll grow and spread everywhere, but they're annuals so the frost will slay them and you don't have to worry about them showing up in the yard next year. The lantana especially has nice strong-colored green leaves.

I'd caution you about maples. I had 2 in the back yard and 1 in front when I bought my house, and now all 3 are down. I had lakes in the front yard after rain, because maple roots are very shallow and they didn't allow anything, even grass, to grow underneath it. When the tree was down the grass moved in and now I have no puddling problems. I now have a Cladrastis kentukea (American yellowwood) (white blooms like wisteria in June) in the back yard, a Heptacodium miconioides (seven sons) (white flowers in September) in the front yard, and plan to put an Oxydendron (sourwood) (white blooms like lily-of-the-valley) in the back yard when one of the maple stumps rots away sufficiently.

The sun-loving plants you put in that bed before your tree matures will be unhappy with the shade that tree casts. If you plant a smaller tree (dogwood, redbud, yellowwood, dwarf Japanese (cut-leaf) maple) you can have the sun-lovers and a shady spot at the same time.