One side of a square flower bed is 12 feet long. How many plants are needed if they are to be spaced 12 inches apart around the outside of the bed?

One foot is equal to 12 inches. To be 12 inches apart, the first of parallel sides should each have 13. These would up to 26 flowers.

The second pair of parallel will each have 11 flowers which would add up to 22 flowers. This will make the total number of flowers outside the bed equal to 48.

Answer: 48 flowers