Planting up pots
May is changeover time – it’s the month when we plant up most of our containers for summer and autumn, be it with plants grown from seeds or cuttings. The tulip combinations come out of the pots and in go the tender perennial or half-hardy annuals, but they take a while to settle in.
We have a nifty system to avoid a total colour lull. We use robust plastic inner pots in our dolly tubs and long toms. The tulip lasagnes are planted in those, as are the plants we plan to follow on with. So when the tulips start to look ropey, the whole inner pot is whipped out and the next combination is slotted straight in. Grown in the polytunnel, there are some things (such as nemesias, verbenas and argyranthemums) for the summer pots that we can force to be already in flower as they go out in May.
The one downside of this succession system is the inner pot’s black plastic rim. This can look ugly, at least until things have grown. Rather than propping them on the rim of the outer pot, we now allow them to sink down within it by just an inch, supporting them from the base with empty, upturned plastic pots or empty compost bags. This system is practical, works aesthetically and, with half the volume of potting compost, is cheaper in the end, too. We can’t use this system with our largest pots for large climbers, or hungry feeders (such as dahlias), so we plant those straight into the decorative pots to give their roots more room. Drainage is key, so all pots and containers need one or more holes in the bottom. The holes need to be covered with rocks, pottery shards or pebbles to keep them from clogging or blocking with emerging plant roots or compost. If you are planting up large pots, put crumpled empty plastic compost bags in the bottom. This provides good drainage and you’ll use less compost.
For planting up seasonal containers, we use a good quality, multipurpose peat-free compost.
Fill the pots with compost to within 2.5cm of the rim and then create planting holes with a trowel or your hand. This is a better practice than placing plants into a half-filled pot and filling in with more compost around them. It’s hard to get the compost into the nooks and crannies around the plant roots and you’re often left with big air pockets. Pack the plants tightly at twice the density you’d space them in the garden. You get a better show and there’s no room for weeds.
Water in well. Add labels to the pot edge so you can remember the exact names of the plants you’ve loved, or not, at the end of their season.
Give your garden some oomph with bright blooms