Container yourself
Pots house a huge variety of plants of all shapes and sizes
to perennials suited to pots, but I like to choose plants with wildlife in mind.
Mat-forming Lysimachia nummularia (creeping jenny) is a hardy, lowmaintenance grower providing year-round nectar sources for wildlife.
Flowering shrubs and trees are great in pots and come spring will decorate your outdoors with ornamental embellishment. Blueberry trees are decked in delicate flowers and these miniature trees like modestly-sized pots so, for a feature plant, they can work well.
Self-fertile variety ‘ Tophat’ will only grow to two feet or so. Alternatively, Hebe ‘Pink Elephant’ boasts cream and pink tinted leaves all year, and white flower spikes during early summer.
WHAT TO EXPECT
It’s all about getting the right soil, plant and positioning.
Pick for aspect and you can’t go far wrong, because choice plants will suit your set up. For instance, Scabiosa atropurpurea ‘Black Cat’ loves full sun and can really work as a striking addition to feature pots but won’t do well mixed with ericaceous plants because it prefers an alkaline soil.
Don’t forget to consider the exposure of your land, too.
Use dense hedges to keep delicate plants better protected or determine which of your front or back garden is more sheltered so that tender plants can use the house as a wind break.
One idea is to plant up containers based on a preferred habit. Jasmine and clematis are two top climbers and their foliage effortlessly lends decoration to otherwise neglected corners.
Otherwise, a large fixed planter is great long- term addition to your garden – look to something like Passiflora ( passionflower) ‘Amethyst’ – which loves climbing up garden walls, to use the features in your garden to your advantage.
However you pot up plants this year, try something new and it’ll put a smile on your face each time you see it.
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