If the garden appears 'tired',
particularly after the summer, the limited size of our outdoor space allows great creative
freedom to freshen up the overall look with changing displays of foliage and/or flowering
plants.
Splashes of colour in strategic positions can rapidly and effectively transform the
garden. If used in larger gardens, however, this process tends to be strictly seasonal and
reduced to a maximum of twice yearly, because of the cost of refilling numerous pots or
open ground beds with large numbers of plants. In smaller gardens, the impact of a few
well-placed containers or pockets of planting within borders can be exploited as often as
wished to create new effects and experiment with colour. It is important to identify the
appropriate focal Positions also from indoors (especially from kitchen and living room
windows or doors), before placing.
For best results, the style of the container should be in keeping with the rest of the
garden. In informal gardens (including 'wild' ones) opt for wicker baskets, rustic wooden
boxes and half barrels or be inventive with unusual recycled containers, and try painting
or spraying them for an instant transformation (always provide drainage holes). Plain
Terracotta is at home almost anywhere, especially after ageing, but beware of
over-ornamented pots that can detract from the flowering display and look out of place.
Painted clay pots and glazed containers of simple shapes can be particularly effective
when chosen in a shade which emphasises the flowers and/or foliage colour, or vice versa
in a contrasting one. Metal planters of all types are still much in fashion and can add an
urban feel (aluminium dustbins have featured in many specialist magazines), but overall
they tend to integrate best in modern, designed settings, particularly if the metal is
shiny.
Remember that both the container and the plants should be in proportion with each other
and with the size of the garden. However, it can be fun to play with size and alter the
sense of perspective. For example, a smaller container providing a focal point at the far
end of the garden can trick the eye into assuming greater distance, especially, if planted
with white or light coloured flowering plants and oversized planters have a strong impact.
The planting can be a combination of permanent small evergreens (such as Hebe, Hedera,
clipped Box, Euonymous, dwarf conifers, heathers) and annual flowering plants added at
regular intervals (in: autumn and winter: pansies, cyclamens, winter cherries, ornamental
cabbages), underlined with bulbs if wished (crocuses, miniature, daffodils, snowdrops,
hyacinths). If you like to change the display often, opt for annuals only. The plants
should fill the whole container and be planted close to each other to obtain a lush effect
when they develop, rather than take months to fill the available space.
The success of container planting depends to a great extent on the size of the planter
itself, so try to be generous. The smaller the pot the more it will need looking after,
both in terms of timely watering and careful feeding, even in autumn and winter if the
plants are trying to flower at that time. Don't forget to provide extra drainage (with a
layer of crocks, pebbles or chunks of broken up polystyrene at the bottom) and fill the
container with proper potting compost rather than ordinary garden soil.
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