Container Gardening

Photo from: http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/gt/container/container.html

It is a little late to start a container garden...but it is a great time to buy containers for next year!

Container gardening can be fun and a dramatic way to accent your landscape and add dramatic color. New containers are stylish and last longer than the clay pots of a few years ago. Many are light in weight. Using a potting mix (vs. topsoil) keeps weight down even more.

Before picking the flowers for your container, will it be in full sun or partial shade? For containers on the west and south side of your home, consider begonias, petunias, coleus, geraniums, marigolds, nasturtiums, snapdragons, zinnias and other heat tolerant flowers. In partial to full shade, consider impatiens, begonias, ferns and even tropical plants.

In the front of your home, use containers to accent and create attention around your front door. In the back yard, containers make great accents at the edge of your patio or deck.

Make sure your containers have drain holes in the bottom. A layer of pebbles in the bottom of the pot will keep the hole open so excess water can drain away. Purchase potting mix because it holds more water and weights less than top soil.

Use slow release fertilizer every few months or small amounts of quick release plant food every 2 weeks.

Enjoy the color!