It is no big secret that planting flowers in containers is my favorite kind of gardening. First, there is very little weeding with containers. Maybe a single weed here and there. Second reason is because I can put them any place that needs a little love! Third, because one container can take you through all the seasons. More about that here!
I have been planting containers for YEARS, and I have learned many things the hard way. I am not an expert, but sharing what works for me!
PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING CAN BECOME A CONTAINER…as long as your drill holes in the bottom to let the water drain. You don’t have to go out and buy all the fancy containers. Yes, some of them are lightweight, and make it easier to move them around. And they come pre-drilled. But I have used old wooden crates, old pots, whiskey barrels, all sorts of things. If it is wooden and you want it to last years, I suggest lining the inside with plastic, but remember to poke holes in that too.
I found this wooden box at a barn sale, A LONG TIME AGO, I didn’t line it with anything so it didn’t last as long as I wished. I should have brought it in for the winter, haha! You live and you learn.
The second tip I have for you: The water needs to drain, and no I am not talking about the holes, we already went over that silly, Think of your container needed layers (like parfaits). So you have your container, and the bottom has holes drilled in it, then you need a layer with gravel, stone, or rocks, to allow the water to easily flow to those drain holes. Over the years, I have used, packing peanuts, gravel, large rocks I found in the garden. Recently, I have been using the plastic pots that the flowers I buy come in. I put them upside down in the bottom of the container. Like a pyramid so they stay in place.
Like this, but this is a screenshot of a video I took, so not great!
Now your next layer will be the dirt, I usually use potting soil. I have also been known to throw some dirt from our veggie garden in a container to plant something quickly. But potting soil is the best to use. I love the brand Foxfarm, when I can get it, but it is expensive. But more often then not, I use Miracle-Gro Moisture Control. Since I am not shopping in stores right now (unless I absolutely have to, because of Covid-19) I just bought it online for curbside pickup.
This is the bigger bag option:
I have also been known to mix bags of whatever I have left. So don’t stress about the soil. You have dirt, lets move on to the single most important step of container gardening….
WATERING and WATERING, but not OVER WATERING!!!!
Water the dirt, not the plants, not the leaves, don’t just sprinkle your hose over top while chatting to your neighbor. Water the dirt, stick the hose right down to the top of the soil and water from there. DO NOT ASSUME that since it was raining in the night that your containers are all good! Sometimes the rain only touches the leaves and rolls right off, never even getting to the dirt, let alone the roots of your plants.
I put my finger into the dirt to see if it is wet, if it isn’t damp, then I will water. If you let the container completely dry out (which is okay for some plants, like geraniums, and succulents, but the majority do not like this) then you will see the water run right out of the bottom of your container. This doesn’t mean that it is watered enough, it is just so dry that the water isn’t absorbing as your hose is flowing, so it runs out. When this happens, water a little, let it sit, go get a cup of coffee, or mimosa ( I don’t judge, as I write this, we are quarantined, so I don’t believe we even have a clock right now, so drink what you want, when you want, but put it down while your kids are on google classroom, please!) So back to watering, get the drink, come back and water some more. Let it soak in. Do this a few times, until the dirt is moist and soft again.
The weather plays a huge role in how often you have to water. If it is windy, your container may dry out faster. If the container is not protected by buildings or structures, it may dry out faster. Here in New York, we can have some hot summer days, those days are the most important for watering. I have heard that watering in the middle of the day is the worst time. So I water at sun down. Once our veggie garden is planted, my husband takes over the watering. He likes to go out and water everything at night, maybe he is escaping our organized shipwreck, either way, we let him do his thing.
Let’s chat plant. I won’t go into the different varieties because in different parts of the country, we don’t have access to all the same plants. If you have a specific question about a plant, just leave it in the comments and I will let you know! I plant containers with plants of varying heights. I always have plants that hang over (trailing) then some of medium height, and some a little taller. I also pack them in (another reason watering is important). I break up the root system a little on each plant before sticking into the dirt. If your plant has white roots, it means it is super healthy. Funny how when I get plants from a nursery, their roots are almost always white. But when they come from department stores, not always the case! If the plant has been in stress, then the roots should show that by discoloring.
If you decide to use a perennial flower in your container, you can pull it out in the fall and plant in the ground before any danger of frost. I do this a lot. These succulents above, are perennials, and they do great in the ground after being in the container. Annuals (the ones that don’t come back year to year) can be expensive if you buy the speciality ones, and are planting a bunch of containers. At least with the perennials, you can plant them after for more enjoyment the next year!
For the planter above, I just planted one plant (purple scaevola) in the center, and it spread all around and trailed over. So that only cost $3.99. So there are ways of making it a less expensive hobby.
Another tip, is cutting off the dead flowers, will encourage the plant to grow new. So when it has seen better days, just snap or cut it off.
Whenever I see a beautiful container somewhere, I snap a photo, that way I can use it for inspiration with my own. These next photos are ones I snapped places, I didn’t plant them myself…
I liked the idea of the evergreens in the center of the pots. Adds some interest, and in some parts of the country, they might live there all year, so great for the winter months, and then just add some trailing and smaller plants around them for the nicer months.
A lot of places use petunias (the pink in the photo above) in their containers, constant color the whole summer. I think they are high maintenance, haha! You have to pick off the flowers as they die back. And that can be time consuming. Also if you let petunias get too dry, they might not come back. If I do plant them, I like the white ones the best, like these ones:
This one below was just planted, so by the end of the summer, those little plants will be much bigger and hanging over the container.
I hope this gave you some inspiration to plant a container! I have a highlight saved on my instagram of containers that I planted last year. If you want to check it out, click here!
I have had some questions about good places to buy containers, so I will pull some of my favorites together and get working on that for another blog post.
Thank you for stopping by and reading!
XOXO,
Leandra