Well, the first phase in creating my new bed is DONE!

Our property is a 50x200ish plot with a house about 75 feet back from the
street. One side of the front yard, about 50 feet long by around 10 feet
wide and bordering the walkway leading up to the house, had grass, a couple
of roses that survived a grass cutting service last year, the stump of a
never dying Ailanthus Altissima, some peonies, and a crab-apple.

We decided this would make a great perennial bed. Half of it is dappled
shade throughout the day courtesy of an overhanging black walnut and the
crabapple, plus the maples keep the area shaded as well. In the evening,
the sun cuts through the maples and shines on the upper half of the bed.

So, we had the family save up their newspapers for two months. All that
newspaper was then laid down on the area (about 50-75 pounds of it) to
smother out anything growing down there (grass, weeds, etc.). This was then
covered over by about 3 or 4 inches of mulch -- a total of 37 bags. Then
stones were placed along the walkway to help frame it out.

Took about 30+ hours of work overall, plus hauling nearly 40 bags of mulch
(each about 30 pounds) as well as a few hundred pounds of rocks. Now we
wait about a month, see if we can't get some seeds to germinate and then we
do some transplants. Should give the new plants just enough time to prepare
for the winter, just enough protection to survive it well, and set us up for
a really sharp display next spring.

James