Containing color

It’s late summer, and the light and colors are beginning to fade, yet in the garden, there's still quite a bit of life left to give. Here in the Pacific Northwest, it won’t be long before the dark and colder months start to overtake everything. Seeing some color and life can certainly help lift the spirits.

Planter containers 

One of the best ways to show off a colorful winter garden is by adding large, sturdy, and colorful planter containers. The great thing about using planter pots is that you can continue to rotate the variety, design, and colors of plants to match each season. The larger planter pots can be pricey depending on the quality so shop around for the best deal, but above all else, look for pots with plenty of drainage holes or find pots that are made from materials you can quickly drill into to create more drainage holes.  

Filling pots

Finding the right potting mix is crucial to the health of your plants. Select a high-quality organic potting mix that is light, fluffy, drains well, and has enough organic material to hold water and nutrients. Container plants do better in a potting mix rather than garden soil, which can become compact and hinder proper drainage. It's a myth that by adding gravel, pottery shards, or stones to the bottom of your container will increase the drainage.  

Plant selection

Choose plants with similar needs for each container and save their garden tags for reference. Before planting, play around with the arrangement and see what you like best. 

Watering

 The way we water plants in containers is different than watering plants directly in the soil. Potting soil is often less dense than garden soil and thus holds less water, and because the pots are above ground, they don’t have all that insulating ground mass around them to keep cool.

Too much or too little water can kill your plants. The idea, then is to keep the soil moist throughout but not too wet. Most container plants should be watered once or twice a day when it is hot, and less in cooler weather, however at least once a week. 

Talk to the staff at your local garden center about what plants and potting mixes are right for your region, or you can give us a call; we would be happy to do the work for you.