Spectacular Creations in Confined Spaces

Mary Olson’s green thumb is evident from the moment you step onto her front stoop.  Her large front door is framed on each side with oversized, beautifully well worn terra cotta urns over flowing with a bevy of colors and scents.  Olson views her pots as a blank canvas waiting for her inspiration.  She says, “Container gardening brings in the color because of all the annuals.  It provides constant color.  I look at it as a miniature painting, my own sense of expression.”

What is more satisfying than going to the garden center and coming home to create an instant cornucopia of drama to display throughout the yard in the form of container plantings?  There is a certain sense of immediate satisfaction for any impatient gardener that is a tempting allure:  Plant a pot full of your favorite annuals and voila, you have to a masterpiece minutes later.  Olson agrees with the instant gratification but has different motives to her approach, “It does immediately spice up your garden, but I am a patient gardener so that doesn’t play into my thoughts.  For me it is more about the creativity.”

“My problem is I just keep buying and buying plants until there is no more room in any of my pots,” she says, “and then, of course, I have to buy more pots!” 

There are a few basic tips to successful container gardening which Olson narrows down to five keystones: the pot, the plants, their color, texture and height.  Find combinations of these that are pleasing to you and that work well together.

Finding plants that do well in the unpredictable weather of the Midwest can be a challenge, but Olson finds all her needs met with one plant. “My very favorite plant to use in containers is Coleus because of the foliage and texture.  It has everything; a rainbow of colors, height and it spreads like wildfire,” Olson beams. “They now even have Coleus that thrives in the sun it used to be just a shade loving plant.”

Once the harsh, hot, and often dry months of summer have passed and your reliable potted annuals are ready to bid adieu, don’t store those containers but do as Olson does.  She suggests, “When things get leggy in late August and early September and the plants are tired.  I take them out and give them a decent burial in the compost pile.  Then I plant lots of mums in my containers.”  Mums continue the show of colors well into the fall.

Some ideas for even more added interest that can be left in a beautiful container all year long are Bonsai Trees, Japanese Maples and Dwarf Conifers. Each of these is stunning standing alone in a container for a simple, clean, uncomplicated look.

Olson has some advice for getting the maximum results from your potted creations.  “Deadheading is very important because the whole idea is continuous blooming and that is how to promote that.  Also, over-fertilize because you are looking at a five to six month lifespan and you need to get everything you can out of your annuals.”

Containers allow gardeners to be adventurous, take chances and experiment.  They are ideal for people with very little green space or who are living in an apartment.  They also provide immediate satisfaction for the less patient gardener.  Containers offer solutions to unsightly areas and liven up gloomy, barren spots.  Alternatively, they can be a way to guide eyes to a focal point that you want to attract attention to.  Most importantly, they are a magnificent way, as Olson has found, to express your creative green thumb.

Tips for Successful Containers:

-Containers need drainage holes.  Put broken tiles or stones over those holes to help them from being plugged by the soil.

-Start planting in the center of the pot and work your way to the edges.  Leave room for expansion but no large gaps.

-Sprinkle with time released fertilizer and water well.

-Containers dry out quickly in warm, sunny or windy weather so water them often.

-Clay pots dry out faster than plastic.

-If you are out of town often, try planting drought tolerant plants like yuccas or ornamental grasses in your pots.

-Feeding is important because the roots are restricted and are in a constant quest for nutrients.  Use liquid fertilizer once a week.

-A permanent planting in a container needs to be repotted every few years especially if the roots are constricted and growth or flowering becomes weaker.

-Flowering plants need regular deadheading and the dead leaves removed.

-Old pots, decorative bowls, pretty storage tins, baskets, buckets, wheel barrows & rowboats are some good container suggestions  It is often the most off beat container that boosts a garden.

-Summer color can be created with easy to maintain annuals like petunias, begonias, nasturtiums, geraniums and verbenas.