Container gardening plants
Container gardens offer the advantage of changing your garden whenever you want to. Whether you want to try a new plant or change color combinations with every season, choices are limited only by your climate and your imagination!
No rules
If you live in a tropical or temperate climate, you may not need to change the plants in your container garden at all, but you still might get the urge. The fun part about container gardening is there are no rules. You decide how you want to combine plant material and what looks best to you. You can experiment to you hearts content without spending a lot of time or money.
Soil first
When we think of planting a container garden thoughts usually turn first to what kinds of plants we want to try. But before you get started, remember container gardens are a different breed. In a container garden, roots can't escape and seek food or moisture and top growth can't travel long distances to seek light. So to get your container garden off and running, you must first provide the right soil conditions.
Good container soil should be free draining but also hold moisture. Use a variety of container soils depending on the requirements of the plants. For most, you can use a 50/50 mix of soil based and organic potting soil. The organic material provides water holding materials and improves drainage. Adding a soil that already has the fertilizer mixed in is great for keeping annuals blooming.
What to grow
When it comes to planting your containers, let your imagination run wild. Don't limit yourself to a few common annuals. There are so many choices including trees, shrubs, climbers, perennials, ferns, bulbs and vegetables. Which plants you like and your growing climate will help determine what to buy. For example:
- For shady spots. If you have a shady spot use containers full of shade lovers like ferns, hostas and camellias for foliage and fuchsias, lilies and impatiens for color. Containers with different shades of foliage can be just as interesting as flowers.
- For sunny areas. Sub-tropical plants like oleander, bougainvillea and hibiscus will thrive in warm sunny areas, although they will need protection over the winter in all but the hottest climates. Annuals like wave petunias and geraniums also love sunny spots.
- For height try climbers. If you need height try climbers. You'll get lots of flower coverage with clematis, morning glory and climbing roses.
- For coverage. Use foliage plants for lots of coverage and to add color before, during and after blooms.
Choosing plants
When designing a container garden, choosing plants is the fun part. Think of yourself as an artist using containers and plants instead of canvas and paint. Try matching various colors and textures together until you achieve the look you want.
Following is a listing of some popular annual and perennial flowers and foliage that are suitable for container gardening:
Annual flowers
Alyssum
Begonia
Coleus
Dianthus
Dusty Miller
Germanium
Impatiens
Lobelia
Nasturtium
Pansy
Periwinkle
Petunia
Salvia
Snapdragon
Verbena
Zinnia
Marigold
Perennial flowers
Columbine
Candytuft
Chrysanthemum
Gaillardia
Lupine
Rudbeckia
Sedum
Shasta Daisy
Veronica
Foliage
Cannas (variegated and red-leafed)
Coconut Palm
Elephant Ears
Dracaena
Ficus
Ferns
Ivy
Sweet Potato Vine
Spikes
Planting guidelines
When planting containers, it's better to err on the side of too much rather than too little. Two thirds of a mixed container should be planted with foliage plants to get a beautiful lush, full effect. Here are some other helpful guidelines for planting containers:
- Color strategy.Both harmonious and contrasting color strategies are striking. One option is to group pots of flowers with like colors with one pot of different colored flowers mixed in for dramatic impact.
- Plants for height.Include at least one plant that is taller than the others for height and interest.
- Trailing plants.Containers should also include plants to grow down over the edges of containers, like trailing foliage, hanging fuchsias and verbena.
- Lasting blooms.Include plants that flower for an extended period.
- Experiment.If something doesn't look right or work in an area, try again. The important thing is to have fun by experimenting with different colors, textures and groupings.