Boo Kitty Lends a Helping Paw

It’s that time of year when the Midwest is participating in the race against time to beat old man winters arrival. One of the many tasks during this time is to prepare the containers for winter storage.  With most of today’s container designs they are easy to move indoors or just leave outdoors.  However, with the end of the season and preparing for winter I’ve notice many gardeners are ready for a change and cleaning out the containers for storage is part of the transition into a new season.

Thoughts on Container Gardening

Container gardening is not only a trend that has swept America in the past five years but it is a great way to be able to have more design options in the home and landscape.   An advantage of container gardening is its portability and suitability for many lifestyles.  Container gardening allows one to be creative in any type of garden.  Gardening in containers can be enjoyed by beginners as well as advance gardeners.  The possibilities for growing are endless using a container.  Veggies, Annuals and Perennials are suitable for container with a down side of having to fertilize as well as water frequently.

Autumn Care For Containers

Every year before the hard frost arrives I decided which plants I want to enjoy indoor for the winter.  While deciding on this plants I also have to consider the container I’m going to grow them in.  With my greenhouse I prefer to transplant many of the annuals, herbs and perennials into plastic growing containers that I’ve recycled.  The decorative containers will be cared for and put away for storage.

Tips :

1. Empty containers soil into compost pile for winter.

2. using a wire brush and hose  gentle scrub the inside of the container from all soil and green that maybe present.

3.  Be sure to container is completely dry before storing indoors to prevent bacteria growth  and also freeze damage.

4. Allow plenty of room when stacking the containers in storage.  The changing of the season can cause the container to expand and break if nestled tight against one another.

5.  Take a photo  of your containers in storage so you can refer to them while you plan out your spring garden during the winter months.

We all love what our beautiful garden provides us with during most of the year so lets remember to let those containers know we appreciate all that they do by taking the time to care for them.

Caution : Container That Explodes Throughout the Season

After watching this container design filled with a few of my favorite colors this season erupt into summer, I ‘m seriously considering creating a category dedicated to Container Design.  This combination I’m sharing today will explode all the way into the first frost.

Tag for a Winning Combination

In This Planting :

• Fireworks Fountain Grass / Proven Selections
  
• Coleus / Wizzard Sunset < not proven winners >
  
• Superbells CoralBerry Punch by PW
  
• Sweet Caroline Sweet Heart / Light Green by PW
  

The Fireworks grass in the combination recipe above is going on it’s third year in my garden.  The grass in this container is going on 3 years old after spending winters in my Ohio greenhouse.   The coleus, petunia and potato vine are all new this year.   I want to note that Proven Winners has a shop on their site where you can order plant so be sure to check that out if you can’t find these at a garden center near you.

Don’t Forget The Container

In this design I am using  a tall / thin new plastic container.  This container is celebrating six years in the BGgarden.   I will have to get you the manufactures name during the next soil change because the label is inside the container.  A bonus while using plastic containers  is they are lightweight and can be left outside year-round in my planting zone.  This material also retains water better than other containers such as terra cotta clay. Plastic containers get a bad ‘wrap’ for being too light making them more acceptable to tumbling over in wind.  I use Up’s A Daisy in the bottom of mine allowing room at the bottom to be weighted down with a rock if container is placed in a windy location in my garden.

I would love to hear about your favorite container combination this season.  Please leave me a comment with a link to your blog entry or image featuring your design.