Patio pots make a big splash in a small place

PATIO plants come into their own in summer, adding wow factor to your outdoor space even on the smallest balcony or in the tiniest courtyard. “Think of container gardening as the art of choreographing individuals into a joyous composition,” says broadcaster and multi award-winning garden designer Chris Beardshaw, above. Beardshaw, who has just launched a new container course for Learning With Experts, says that with the right plants plus a bit of knowledge about how they thrive, you can easily spruce up your outdoor space. Here are some of his favourite...

MINT

“We love to grow a wide range of herbs in containers, sometimes as single species and others as mixed herb pots, which we harvest from on an almost daily basis. Mint, due to its vigorous nature, is often best restricted within a container and I particularly love Mentha spicata for mint tea. At other end of the scale, a favourite of mine is the diminutive and creeping Corsican mint.”

LAVENDER

“Lavender is a delightful addition to any garden, formal or informal, and they work beautifully in pots. The dark blue, more compact habit of Lavender angustifolia ‘Hidcote’ is better suited to containers as it doesn’t mind being slightly restricted. It flowers from June-August, is fully hardy and also attracts bees and butterflies. They work well as a single pot plant or as a line of containers to act as a path edge.”

ALPINES

“The rarefied conditions enjoyed by alpine plants are, for most of us, best recreated in a container, where you can carefully concoct the growing media to suit and a container helps elevate them into the spotlight. Have fun combining alpines to suit your taste, but I especially like Iris hookeri, which is flowering right now.”

COSMOS

“Annual cosmos plants bring instant cheer to your garden, with their airy, feathery stems and large open flowers. They come in a variety of colours, whites and pastel pinks being the classic options, but look out for intense varieties such as Cosmos atrosanguineus ‘Chocolate’ or Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Sonata Carmine’ to add a bit of drama.”

ECHIUM

“The intense blue flowering spikes of Echium fastuosum, pictured, add an exotic flair to the garden. They grow outdoors only in the most southern parts of the UK, with most of us in colder climates needing to overwinter them in a frost-free glasshouse. So we keep ours in a pot and enjoy it’s multi branching display each year.”

SEDUM

“Succulents, such as Sedum ewersii, make great container plants for alpine bowls or troughs. We like to mix a variety of sedum and saxifraga together and display on a table or raised wall, as it allows us to get a closer view of these low growing beauties.”

For more info, see learningwithexperts. com/gardening.