Choosing your Containers – What Shape?

The shape of your garden container does decide or suggest a certain style. Certainly the garden urn goes into the formal category, basket-weave planters are more country and angular, conical planters are definitely more contemporary. When in doubt about the best shape for your patio, deck or garden, just go for the classic design – square or rounded and slightly larger at the top. You want to show off the plants and foliage of course. Have a look at our Eye-Am and Eye-Ain’t for the latest “look”.

Container Gardening – Basic Arrangement

Sometimes we want something simple, the go anywhere basic kind of garden planter arrangement. This one looks good in almost any location and particularly well planted in a conical or upright container. Like the basic black dress, just plant four (4) Shasta Daisy plants into your 14” pot – I like a white container. It shows off beautifully and can be placed anywhere on the deck, porch, balcony or deck.

Forsythia for your Garden Planters

We are all getting anxious for Spring and what better way to welcome this new season than with garden planters and pots stuffed with beautiful yellow Forsythia branches. To force these wonderful woody plants into bloom, just shear your Forsythia stems into 3 ft lengths and place them in water for a few hours. Then, change the water, add floral preservative, recut the stems under water and you’re ready for a wonderful container arrangement.

Garden Planter Arrangement for Spring

This Spring garden planter arrangement can be set outside long before the regular annuals can survive outdoors. Take your 12” resin planter, pot or garden container and place a Polar White English Daisy in the middle. At the top of this garden urn or planter, add two Winter Joy Erysimum or Wallflower, then at the lower side of the circle, arrange one each White Sequins Arabis or Rock Cress, a Baby Blue Forget-Me Not and a Chic in Blue Primula or Primrose. This makes for a wonderful combination for your first container for Spring.

What is a Focal Point in your Garden

There are a number of features that you could consider focal points in your garden, deck or patio plantings. Firstly, a dwarf shrub or tree, something a little unusual would be great. Perhaps a group of plants – taking the eye to that specific area. We like to see an ornament such as a birdbath or garden planter filled with an unusual specimen.

Deck and Patio – Where to Place Your Planters

The deck and patio are great places just to relax, enjoy the quiet and be with friends. Nothing creates a better atmosphere than surrounding yourself with beautiful flowers and plants. The patio is an extension of your home, consider it a room with a view and turn this outdoor space into an outdoor room. You can provide a feeling of a distinct space by bordering the patio or deck with garden planters or edge with containers.

More Vegetable Varieties for your Containers

We had a request for what kind of vegetables suit container gardening, more particularly what type of peppers can you plant in your pots and planters. Here is the list of what we think works best: Jalapeno, Yolo Wonder, (Red (Hot) Cherry, Keystone Resistant Giant and Canape. That should give us a good start with our pepper crop this year.