Container Gardening

Container gardening is popular with people living in houses, flats and apartments with or without an outside space. No matter how small or large your plot there is somewhere that can be enhanced by the addition of a pot of some sort.
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containers in permanent position on stepsContainer gardening is understandably popular - it gives you freedom to express your own individual style and to cater for whatever space you have, be it a window box, an old wheelbarrow, custom-made vessels or a simple pot on the kitchen window-sill.  Whatever you choose you will be expressing a little bit of your own personality.
Free Newsletter for every reader Container gardening can be used for long-term plantings in permanent positions or pots can be moved depending on the season.  One advantage is that you can choose plants which would not normally survive in your area because of the weather or the soil type, or even because neighboring animals dig them up!

You can create the optimum growing conditions for your chosen plant or combination of plants. When the weather gets too cold, simply wrap the plant up or bring the whole thing into a sheltered spot near the house, or bring it indoors!

Pots are available in a multitude of materials: plastic, terracotta, stone, wood, wire, concrete, rubber - the list is only as short as your imagination extends.
 

Choosing your Pots
Hanging-BasketsPergola with hanging-baskets
One of the first ideas that come to mind are hanging-baskets. These are available in a range of sizes, and materials range from wood to cane, from wire to plastic and are best suited to seasonal planting. But seasonal planting  need not just mean trailing lobelia and geraniums (not that these are not lovely!); winter baskets can be full of pansies, miniature cyclamens and ivies, or anchor a well-soaked block of oasis in the bottom and arrange twigs of conifers, holly, evergreens and some artificial Christmas flowers, cones or conkers; a bow of bright red raffia or ribbon completes the look transforming that sad remnant of summer into a novel seasonal welcome!

Plastic Pots
Relatively inexpensive and very easy to maintain, they are lightweight and weather proof. Plastic is available in a variety of colours and you can even paint them to bring a splash of contemporary colour to your container garden.

Terracotta strawberry potTerracotta and stone tends to be more expensive and these pots are heavier, but if chosen well (frost-resistant for outdoors) will last for many years and appearance improves with age. However, they may not be suitable for lime-hating plants.

Wood                                                                                                                          
This requires regular maintenance if it is to be used outdoors and can be heavy but wood provides insulation for delicate plant roots in winter.

Planning Your Container Gardening

When planning your container gardening don't just go to a centre and buy the first pot you see; study the area where you want your container gardening to be situated: can the space fit one large pot or would a group of smaller pots look better? Could you mix a number of different styles of pot together or do you want to create a formal arrangement of identical pots? Can you accommodate height as well as spread in the pots - maybe you have stands, old benches or dwarf walls that can be built into your display?

Choosing plants for Container Gardening

There are lots of on-line stores to choose from
 This is a relaxing job for a winter day. There are so many suppliers to choose from but we have tended to go back repeatedly to those we have tried before.  Send for any catalogues thay have available as these often have offer codes to get discounts.
    

 



















Basic Equipment for Container Gardening

Planting requires only a few key items: a good quality hand trowel for planting and for filling and emptying containers. A watering can can with a fine rose for watering before and after planting and some broken crocks or broken-up polystyrene to provide drainage, save on compost and reduce the weight in very large pots. Remember, container gardening is fun and easy - enjoy it!
 


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