If you really love flowers and plants, but don't have a lot of knowledge on this subject, container gardening may be a good place to start.  For a change of scenery to brighten up a room or small patio, but with a limited budget, container gardening could be the perfect solution for you.  Containers can be arranged in groups or a single plant used in any area of the house,patio or yard.

When buying the flowers, choose different kinds of flowers.  Check out colors, shapes and sizes to see how they go together before you buy them.  Then look at containers.  They will be a vital part of your decorating scheme, so that the flowers and containers go together to form a colorful and bright scene.  You might want to start looking for containers first.  Go to garden centers and nurseries as they usually carry a large supply of both.  You might even stumble onto the perfect item at a junk store or flea market at bargain prices. If you are in a hurry and want an instant garden without all the fuss and labor of growing flowers from seeds, then watch ads for sales on mature plants at garden centers or discount stores that can just be transplanted into your special containers.  Carefully follow instructions for transplanting.  If there are no instructions in the pots, you might want to invest in a manual for helpful hints and suggestions.

Watering plants is the most important duty you have to perform every day.  Pots outside need extra care because they are exposed to sun, hot dry air and blowing winds.  Check the soil in these plants twice a day and especially during long hot dry spells.  Watering in the evening is the best time to prevent moisture evaporation.  Plants inside the home are not at so high of a risk, but they need watching too.  Both outside and inside plants need to be placed in areas where they will thrive.  Do they need full sun or shade or do they do best in areas of partial sun and shade?  This is especially important during the time of day of greatest heat.

Remember, all living things need feeding to live and be healthy.  After you have had the flowers for a few weeks, they will  need to be fertilized.  There are many excellent products to choose from on the market.  You can ask for assistance to pick the one that works best for you.  There are liquid plant foods, slow-release granules or slow-release pellets.  Some of the granules and pellets will feed plants for several months at a time.  Make sure the soil is kept damp or the nutrients will not be released.  Give your plants what they need when they need it and they will do great.

Protect your investments from pests and invaders.  There are many products available to protect and guard your plants.  These include spray and dusting powder insecticides.  By spraying or dusting directly on plants, it can be absorbed in the leaves and root system and kill insects for an extended period of time.

Now, look at what you have put together and arrange everything to create beautiful, bright and restful areas both inside and outside of your home.  After a time, if you see something that does not appeal to you, change it!  Container gardens make this an extremely easy task to accomplish.