Garden Gloves – So Important

Spend extra money for the best quality gloves you can afford. The higher cost is justified. The garden gloves fit better, last longer and will withstand a lot of gardening time. It's worth the extra dollars to get the right pair of garden gloves.

Wonderful Yellow Amaryllis

We have just come across the Yellow Goddess Amaryllis – wonderful trumpet shaped soft yellow flowers on 20 inch stems. They will be terrific for your indoor containers and will bloom six to eight weeks after planting. Look for them this season.

Easy & Attractive Indoor Planter

Just looking for something to add color to your indoor décor this winter, Kalanchoe is one of the most popular potted plants. It is easy to find in garden centers and nurseries, and provides brilliant color together with bright green leaves. It is fairly hardy and requires little water, regular watering however will ensure regular blooming.

Large Bloom Containers

Why did those large garden planters look so good this past season, one reason is the incorporation of Controlled Release Fertilizer or Time Release Fertilizer. It comes in pellets and is an improved version of Slow Release Fertilizer in that it is released based on soil temperature itself, more exact than Slow Release Fertilizer.

Indoor & Outdoor Container Plants

Some plants are wonderful both inside and outdoors – one of these is the Torenia or Wishbone Flower. It is great for those garden planters and can also be brought into the house for a great houseplant the rest of the year. The Catalina White Linen is so elegant – all white velvety blooms with color greenery.

Containers for Cool Weather

There are many annuals that still look good and will last well past the first frost in your planters and containers. They change dimension with the first fall of snow. The best ones to try are Pansies, Violas, Dianthus and Oranmental Kale and Cabbage, each has it own form and height for a beautiful container.

Start Amaryllis Planter Now

Now is the time to get your Amaryllis started again for the season. Make sure that you leave about one third of the bulb above the surface of the soil and at least an inch on the sides of the container when planting. Water in well, and then keep soil on the drier side until you see the stalk emerging. Now you can water more regularly & keep in a warm, sunny location until the buds begin to open. Enjoy this beautiful plant.

Taking a Break

I am taking a break for a few days to attend the Free the Children Me to We Conference in Vancouver. We will have an opportunity to be inspired by speakers like the Dalai Lama and see what a difference just one person can make in the world. There will be thousands of youth at the conference seeking how they too can make a difference in their community and world today.

"Create a world of change through your daily choices"

Container Foliage Combination

It is always fun to try a couple of new container combinations in the Fall – here is one that is very attractive and adds interest to any setting. In your 14” pot, plant a Black Scallop Ajuga together with Helen’s Blush Euphorbia and Key Lime Pie Heuchera. Simple and unique.

Garden Planters with Gaura

Now that summer is fading, the Gaura in our garden planters is going strong. The slender stems float over the garden container and extend out like wands in the breeze. It thrives in full sun and adds movement and grace to those garden pots, urns and window boxes.

Bold Bergenia in Your Planters

One of the favorite plants for containers in the Bergenia – it is hardy to zone 3 and a strong grower providing a very bold element in the design of your garden planters and flower pots. They seem to thrive in containers and in some areas can survive over winter.

New Idea – Growing Peas in a Container

Peas are a great crop to grow in containers but not usually recommended because of the amount of space they take up. Now anyone can grow a delectable crop of garden peas, no matter where you live or how much space you have. Burpee’s Petite Pea plants are only 10"" tall, produce as many full-sized 3"" pods as a larger plant and can be grown in a space as small as an 8"" diameter pot with no support. Here is a great idea for next year’s vegetable garden.

Mid-Summer Garden Planter Pick Up

By this time of the year the garden pots and planters start to look at little bedraggled – all they really need is a shot of water soluble fertilizer the next time you water. Be sure to clip off or dead head any finished blooms and your containers will look good well into the Fall.

Bulbs in Containers for the Fall

Bulbs are such fun, they are always a surprise when they come up – you plant them so far in advance that we forget what to expect. Plant your bulbs in garden planters and containers in the Fall for Spring and of course in the Spring for Fall viewing.

Plant Container Hedge

Garden plant containers and pots showcase plants and do enhance an area’s aesthetic appearance. A beautiful hedge can be created which includes many planters suitably spaced containing boxwood topiaries. They look wonderful along a driveway or against a privacy fence.

Another Beautiful Garden Planter

This one looks spectacular and is easy to create. Start with your Purple Grass or Sedge in the middle and place a red Verbena on either side. Then alternate with (2)Yellow and (2) Purple Calibrachoa, ending with one Sweet Potato Vine. Make sure to have a large pot or container, they will grow!

Hot Weather Tolerant Container Plant

The Lantana is a wonderful garden planter and container plant. It loves hot hot weather, the blooms are colorful and the butterflies just love them. The trailing lantana is excellent in planters and pots. Treat as annual in cool climates.

Reminder – Container Watering Rules

We can never remind ourselves too often to water those garden pots and planters. The hot dry weather can do havoc in such a short time. Be sure your planters have drainage holes, only water when the top of the soil is dry to the touch, water until you see water seeping out of the drainage holes and do not let the container sit in standing water.

Shady Garden Containers

Often we only consider sun filled container locations, however, they can be spectacular in shady locations to create excitement – try a topiary boxwood surrounded by trailing ivy or impatiens variety suitable for shade.

Elegant and Exciting Garden Planter

Start with a Square Planter – the perfect stage for classic boxwood topiary. In a shady location, the Planter will fade into the background unless you add some white impatiens or variegated leaf ivy to bring it back into view. The white maintains the simple elegance of this garden container.