Containers for autumn
Have fun adding potted zing to the garden, says Ruth
IT’S been a strange summer in many ways, partly due to the weather and partly down to the lingering effects of Covid. As with last year, the garden has been a place of sanity and sanctuary for many of us this summer and hopefully we will be able to get out into it and enjoy a few more weeks of warmth and sunshine yet.
I want to see summer out with a bang, and what better way to do this than plant up pots and baskets full of cheery, eye-popping colour?
Moreover, what better time of year to do it, as late summer segues into the vibrant russet tones of autumn, when slightly cooler days and the increased chance of rain help boost the longevity of plants, and there are some wonderfully bold colours to choose from.
Garden centre shelves will have been picked clean of early summer bedding, but you may be able to pick up a few bargains to fill your containers.
I managed to find two beautiful trailing begonias (‘Illumination Rose’ and ‘Nonstop Petticoat Rose’) for £1 apiece in my local garden centre, as well as a couple of trailing nemesia for 50p each. They weren’t in prime condition but once planted up and fed and watered, they are sure to bounce back.
I also managed to find a deliciously dark ‘Black Velvet’ petunia, a corallike silver leaved Calocephalus, two dwarf Gaillardias with sunny blooms and lots of buds and some acid-leaved coleus that will act as a visual palette-cleanser among all the vibrant colours. For the main plant I chose a ‘Kisses and Wishes’ rose pink Salvia, a tall and elegant variety that will hopefully flower well into the autumn and be a late-season bonus for the local insect population.
When the weather finally turns chilly I will empty the pot ready for spring bedding. The spent summer bedding plants will be composted while the perennials, begonia tubers and salvia will be overwintered in the greenhouse, ready to shoot again next spring and be planted out next summer.