Container gardening is good for any location, be it a house with a yard or an apartment with a small balcony. One pot can offer lots of color, great textures and is easy to manage.
“They’re a good way to add color to a small space and great for people who don’t have beds in front of their house. They can really doll up an area like that,” said Lloyd Reavis, general manager of Varnell Nursery in Cleveland, Tenn. They’re also perfect for a deck or concrete patio, he added.
five tips
Here are five tips he offered for making your own container garden. All it takes is a visit to your garden center for one-stop shopping.
1Any type of container will work, from an old boot or bucket to a beautiful flower pot. Manufacturers also are making plastic pots that look like big concrete planters. They’re much easier to move around if a cold snap arrives.
2 Start with some type of evergreen in the center so your container has some year-round interest.
3 Plant some upright growers along with some spreaders, and it always looks nice to have some ivy or sedum or vinca to hang over the side of the pot.
4 When choosing your plants, pick those that will bloom throughout the summer, even at different times so you always have that sharp, interesting look.
5 Put your containers on a feeding schedule. Remember these plants are in a pot, so the only thing they have to pull from is what you put into it. Liquid food seems to work best. Super Bloom is a good choice.