Carol Klein is planting up stunning seasonal pots
‘Before we consider the contents, rejuvenating the compost they’re going to be growing in has to have top priority’ Planting summer pots is a great opportunity to experiment as well as having some fun
Tulips have been exceptional this year – not just at Glebe Cottage, but everywhere. The brilliance of their show has a lot to do with how dry and sunny it has been. Now, sadly the show is over. Neil picked the fallen petals from some of our tulip ‘Purissima’ just so we could enjoy the architectural structure of their upright stems and fascinating seed heads above their broad, glaucous leaves.
Now though, it’s time to snap off those seed heads, lift the bulbs and store them so they can reabsorb the goodness from the leaves. We won’t use the same ones for display pots next year, but some of them will be planted out to take their chance with our heavy soil, not to mention the unwelcome attentions of squirrels and voles.
In gardening, the end of everything spells the start of something new. No sooner have the tulips come out than their containers can be requisitioned for summer displays.
Before we even consider their contents, rejuvenating the compost they’re going to be growing in has to have top priority. Growing any plant in a container is challenging – for the plant. Unlike a plant growing in the open ground, where it would have access to unlimited soil and nutrients, and where it would receive the benefit of rain and watering, when it’s placed in a pot its resources are severely limited. It’s up to us gardeners to make sure it gets what it needs, not just for our benefit in ensuring we’ll get the best out of the display, but from the plant’s point of view, too.
If it’s a perennial, such as a dahlia, canna or hedychium, it shouldn’t only produce a splendid display this year but
make bigger tubers or rhizomes for next year, too. If it’s an annual, then although it will have a short life, it should be a happy one. Our big pots will have at least half their compost removed as we lift
out the tulips, and we’ll replenish them with a mixture of our own
home- made compost, proprietary loam-based compost and some extra grit for drainage. Some gardeners would add fertiliser in the form of crills or pellets but I prefer to let the plants establish well, watering frequently and then adopting a regime of dilute
liquid feed every couple of weeks. An organic seaweed liquid feed is our favoured option.
As for the fun bit, everyone has their own ideas about what kind of picture they aim to create. Often, in a big container, a cone or pyramidal effect is dramatic, with a tall, fastigiate plant at the centre. It could be a narrow conifer or an upright salvia. Next layer down, encircling the centre piece, could be dahlias. We’re going to be using dark-leaved, single dahlias, originally grown from seed, and
in between agastache for a frothy effect and nasturtium ‘Empress of India’ at the edge.
Pot displays can be extremely simple, nothing’s more effective than a single specimen agapanthus – foliage is healthy and shiny, flowers last for ages and, in most cases, they’ll be followed by seedpods, hugely handsome in their own right.
One idea I want to try out this year is to grow a lot of tall plants together, perhaps an airy-fairy
Nicotiana mutabilis, with branching stems covered in pink and white flowers, and around it a mass of larkspur, the stockflowered variety. Purples, pinks and blues – a full-on cottage garden in a pot.
There’ll be some jazzy pots of rudbeckia ‘Rustic Dwarf’, offset by the big grey leaves and curious
flowers of cerinthe ‘Purpurascens’ and extra foliage interest from rainbow chard.
Most of our gardens have their beds, borders and
permanent plantings prescribed, so planting in pots gives you the opportunity to experiment and express yourself!