Go potty on your patio
Containers will give you fun and versatility, says Ruth
FOR many people, the arrival of the first swallows (not just one, obviously!) means that summer is here. But for gardeners, the season has finally turned when bedding plants become available to buy.
Many varieties are tender and need decent temperatures to survive, so their annual return is truly a reason to celebrate.
Containers – including hanging baskets and window boxes – are a wonderfully versatile form of gardening. They work for whatever space you have and can be used for plants that suit every situation and condition, from sunny rural patios to a shady, windy urban balcony.
This issue of Amateur Gardening is dedicated to helping you create the best containers yet. I look at the practicalities and suggest the best composts to use, and a variety of plants and planting ideas to really make your garden shine. Elsewhere our expert contributors tackle a variety of subjects including container crops, roses for pots and how (and what) to plant underneath standard container trees or shrubs.
This year I wanted to try something different so I partially buried a large terracotta pot on the edge of a sunny border, backed with a curved row of mixed-colour cosmos ‘Sonata Mix’. The top plants (hardy Fuchsia ‘Baby Blue Eyes’, Heuchera ‘Blackberry Jam’ and an upright argyranthemum ‘Summit Pink’) will thicken up and fill the pot, while coleus, trailing calibrachoa and variegated nepeta will fill the spaces around them. I scattered wool slug pellets around the container and will top up the compost if it is washed down by rain and watering.