HOW TO

GET READY TO BUILD A CONTAINER GARDEN

You can do it!

STORY AND PHOTOS BY ANGELA CUTRER

TThere’s nothing like entering a room or outside area dotted with the calming and beautiful effects of plantings. Whether it’s healing Aloe vera, fully fluffed ferns or spindly vegetable plants, visitors will surely get the full effect of serenity when they eye that greenery.

But not everyone has a green thumb. And sometimes a person just doesn’t have the room or time to nurture plants. Received a plant as a gift? Now what, you might ask.

When there is a desire to nurture plants and flowers, there are also the issues of what to grow, where to grow it and how to maintain it. Some of us have little space, but that doesn’t mean gardening is off the table. A container garden is one that is grown in, you guessed it, containers rather than in the ground.

Ever think about trying a container garden? Doing so means a controlled space as big or small as you like, making maintenance a breeze.

How about you at least give it a go?

Let’s start with what kind of container you want.

There are so many types, you’ll have a tough time choosing. Let’s narrow it down: What’s your style? Do you prefer squares or circles? Hanging or on a table?

Rustic or modern? Plastic, metal, wood or stone?

What about a glass terrarium?

What are you thinking about planting? “An arrangement of sun-loving plants means you are going to need a bigger pot,” Donna Case of Buds and Blooms suggested, since those plants require a lot of watering.

So take care to think before you buy or recycle. Have an idea of what you want to grow, what you want to grow it in and where you plan to grow it — inside or out.

You don’t have to be traditional: Containers can include pots, plastic buckets, old kitchen utensils, wood squares, cups, concrete blocks or hanging or vertical gardening. Decide on how much space you have to work with and go from there. There are no wrong answers here — just whatever inspires you.

“It’s always bigger is better in the South because of our humidity,” said Case. “[But] it’s a challenge to grow outside in containers because of our heat and humidity.

“You have to make sure you can provide ample watering so you don’t get root rot. The more ample the container and the more soil is in there, the better the plant’s roots can spread out.

“So, the more soil in the pot is better. The bigger the pot the better. You want to make you go with a bigger pot unless you are going with a rock garden or succulent plants.”

However, as Heather Bonds, a floral designer at Shipp’s Flowers, said, some plants — like orchids and the Peace Lily — actually prefer to be root bound. Research before you make any decisions.

Prepare your containers by ensuring they will drain properly. Large containers are beautiful, but they are not so pretty when you need to move them. Keep that in mind for your container garden if you plan to relocate your plants.

Ensure its suitability for holding soil and releasing water so that roots don’t drown. If necessary, drill small drainage holes in the bottom of your container before you line the bottom with small rocks or broken stone.

Remember that sturdiness is vital so the weight of the moist soil doesn’t ruin your garden setup. If you plan to stack your containers, take care to do a trial run with weighted pots before you do anything else. Practice makes perfect — or at least saves you some valuable time down the road.

“A lot of people take down their hanging pots and put them away for the winter,” Case said. “They become root bound and they need more soil to tap into to grow. You can set them in a larger pot with some soil, but by late April or May, that hanging basket has already grown in that 10-inch pot and you’re going to want to grow it into something bigger.

“Most baskets are 10 inch — the ones you find in most stores. You are going to have to go into a 14- or 16-inch container, so the plant can go longer between waterings.”

Choosing the right soil for your container garden is critical so your plants’ roots get the best nutrients for growing success. Some people prefer organic soil, while others find regular potting soil convenient and affordable. “Add fertilizer,” Case suggested. “They’ll go a longer period of time that way.”

All-purpose potting soil is fluffy, nutritious and good for most plantings, including general containers, but remember that some water-holding plants prefer to have a little sand included.

For planter boxes and hanging plants, use a “soilless mix” that includes peat moss and no sand, says getbusygardening.com. Gently leave a valley where the plant sits so water has a direction to take to thoroughly hydrate the plant. Add a good starter food to help your plants make a good start in your home.

Bonds said soil containing osmocote fertilizer plant food works well because it helps hold in moisture. “It’s ‘smart release,’ so every so often, it releases food for your plant.”

Select plants that go together, whether by color, size or contrasting shapes or textures, but also by need of the same growing conditions. Planting sun-loving plants in a shaded area ensures disappointment, while shade-loving plants in full sun will not last long. And your pot choice becomes critical here. “If you try to grow in the full sun in a clay pot, they just bake in the sun,” Case warned.

Prefer a vegetable garden? Try growing leaf lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant or radishes. Lean toward evergreens? Boxwoods, junipers, dwarf blue spruce, dwarf Alberta spruce and dwarf mugo pine will be adorable. Like flowers? Geraniums, petunias, begonias and impatients offer stunning colors as well as lovely greenery. Want to stick with herbs? Basil, chives, mint and sage are great choices. For the general “house plant” choices, choose the everpopular spider plant, the dependable philodendron, spritely palms or mysterious jade plants to give your room a shot of airy earthiness.

Clean your plants of dead leaves, branches and blooms. Break up the root ball so the plant is encouraged to spread out in its new digs. To encourage horizontal growth, cut directly above the node of leaves that sits at the height you desire, a post from gulleygreenhouse.com related.

Have you heard the saying “thriller, filler and spiller?” That’s how you should plant your container garden, whether in one to three pots, or in eight to 10. You need taller plants for the thriller, filler plants to cover the soil and to bridge the gaps between the other two, and spillers to hang over the sides to give a dramatic movement effect.

If you have smaller containers to make your garden, you don’t have to have all three types in one pot - you can arrange the containers so they mimic the thought: The middle or back pot can have taller plantings, while a few arranged around it can have spillers like air plants, ferns and trailing options. Within this, add fillers for softness and fullness of the arrangement.

Water is life to plants. Water well so that your plants are drenched, the roots are flushed and the soil is left moist. No 20 MARCH/APRIL 2022 trickling drips for your garden — watering well means your plants drink hungrily, but not often.

Bonds said “watching your plants” will tell you everything you need to know. “When your Peace Lily droops, it’s saying it needs water,” she said. “When you water it, it actually stands right back up.” But it’s not always so easy to tell what your plants need.

“There is a balance there,” Case said. “The soil should start looking kinda gray. Stick your finger a inch down in the soil. Dry? Time to water. And water it good. It flushes through and makes the fertilizer, which are salts, flush those roots and leach out the bottom.

“You don’t want to keep it wet all the time, though. You have to let the soil tell you when it’s time for watering.”

Case suggested feeling the weight of hanging plant to see if it needs watering. “Lift it a bit with your hand and if you feel half the normal weight, it’s time to water,” she said. “You can’t always tell with other plantings, but you can tell with hanging plant.”

Case suggested mulching is vital to keep your container plants safe and happy. “When you grow in a bigger container, always mulch,” she said. “Anything you can do to protect that plant from drying out from the sun and the wind is important. Water is evaporating out of the top of that pot and if you mulch, it stays moister that way.

“You can mulch with anything — straw, leaves, purchased mulch. Watering balance, mulch and having more soil are the keys to successful planting.”

Bonds said it’s also important to remember to check indirect light and temperature where you’ll place your plants so that they get the right amount of sunlight and don’t have a draft drying out the soil.

Now the only thing is to maintain your garden. You’ve done the hard work and now comes to good part. Sit back and enjoy.

To provide proper maintenance, research your plant type and follow those instructions. Good light, enough water and thoughtful attention will keep your container plants healthy and hearty all year long.