Container Gardening Basics

By Benjamin Dickerson

Simple Elegance / Design & Consulting

 

Location/Location/Location: Is your container in sun or shade? Is there access to water?

How windy is the location? Answering these questions will help you chose the best plants for the site.

For instance, ferns will wilt in full sun, while in full shade roses become thin and diseased.

 

Consider your colors: You may think that you are limited to only the colors of flowers and foliage provided by your planting pallet, but you'll be pleasantly surprised to discover a wide range of colors in your choice of pots.

 

Three basic forms: As you try out various combinations, remember that when it comes to creating stylish arrangements, its all about putting together plants with distinctively different visual elements. First,

look at each plants form. Group them in three categories: tall & spiky, such as ornamental grass: round and full, like hydrangea and cascading, such as scaevola. The most compelling designs have plants that combine these three basic forms.

Tall,Spiky,Upright
 

BAUER'S DRACAENA PALM
Cordyline 'Baueri'

BLUE ARROW JUNIPER Juniperus virginiana 'Blue Arrow'

DWARF ALBERTA SPRUCE
Picea glauca 'Conica'

DWARF MAIDEN GRASS Miscanthus sinensis 'Yakushima' (M. Yakushimensis)

EMERALD ARBORVITAE Thuja occidentalis 'Emerald' (T.o. 'Smaragd')

BIRD OF PARADISE Strelitzia reginae

Round, full

 

AUGUST BEAUTY GARDENIA Gardenia jasminoides 'August Beauty'

ARCTIC FIRE MAIDEN PINK Dianthus deltoides 'Arctic Fire'

BIG DADDY PLANTAIN LILY Hosta x 'Big Daddy'

BLAZE HEATWAVE^™ SAGE Salvia x 'Blaze'

BLUE WAVE LACECAP HYDRANGEA Hydrangea macrophylla 'Blue Wave'

BUTTERFLY BLUE PINCUSHION FLOWER Scabiosa columbaria 'Butterfly Blue'

CAROLINE CORAL BELLS Heuchera x 'Caroline'

DWARF ASPARAGUS FERN Asparagus densiflorus 'Nana'

DAPHNE SPIREA Spiraea japonica 'Alpina'

BOSTON IVY Parthenocissus tricuspidata 'Veitchii'

CONFETTI^™ SPREADING LANTANA Lantana x 'Moni'

DEEP BLUE CLIPS BELLFLOWER Campanula carpatica 'Deep Blue Clips'

MAX FREI BLOODY CRANESBILL Geranium sanguineum 'Max Frei'

Scaevola 'Mauve Clusters'

 

Solo vs. Groupings: If space is limited to one container, use the “three basic forms” as a guide to making your arrangement. However, if you have more square footage, plant a single type of plant in each pot and group several containers together .This ensemble is particularly effective around entries, corners of patios, or anywhere you want more visual weight. Use containers that are similar in look and style, and vary the size and height of the containers. This gives the collection a coordinated look and puts focus on the plants.