I don't have a lot of land in the front of my home and there is a bare area near the entry that needed some color and glamor. I went to tag sales and picked up many different used pots to plant in. I used different objects that would give me assorted levels. You can use old step stools, baskets, bricks, anything you can find to create a variety of elevations. I planted the pots in front with a colorful assortment. In no time at all I had the neighbors coming over to admire the beauty of nature.
This page contains the following solutions.
I love gardening. I have been planting a lot more perennials lately as we are retired and gone quite a bit during growing season. I also do a lot of container gardening. Hope you like my pictures. The flowers on the fence is one plant. It is a Fall Clematis. Very hardy and smells wonderful.
My husband built planter boxes that run along the full length of our driveway. I really enjoy filling the boxes and watching them explode as they grow!
Although I could plant more in the ground, I am a container gardening freak and I love the control that it gives me. There's far less weeding, and I love that the plants are (generally) portable.
Always cure a new terra cotta pot before planting in it. Otherwise, the pot's sides will draw moisture out of the potting soil and possibly even the plant's root ball.
If the soil in your potted plants is hard and water has a hard time penetrating, poke holes in the soil with a pointed stick. then fill your water pail and add 1-2 drops liquid dish washing detergent. This will soften the soil and allow water to penetrate more easily.
A friend of mine with a truck who makes a fair living recycling curb-side cast offs began finding older heavy plastic Car-top Luggage Carriers.
Our Province is in a severe drought, so we have many flowers in pots and planters.
Polymer crystals (found in garden centers and some variety stores) are a tiny crystal that expands in water to hold up to 200 times its weight in stored water.
I like to put figurines in and around the pots in my container garden - to fill in bare spots and to generally liven up the garden. You can find good deals in slightly damaged figures -in proportion to your pots/plants. . .
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I am looking for a thrifty way to container garden my vegetables this year. Any ideas?
Jennifer
HI :)
Alot of people in this area use drywall mud or industrial paint buckets... wash them very well and poke holes in the bottom for drainage... fill 1/4 of the way with stones or something to allow good drainage...
Freecycle.org. You can request for items there. I got a container through it for gardening.
I read somewhere instead of using stones in the bottom, to use packing peanuts. They are much lighter!
I used paint buckets with holes drilled in the botton for the second year in a row and absolutely love the results. I have had tomatos all summer (the ones the squirells dont get first) and they work great!
I have a lot of shells from previous beach trips (my kids loved to collect when they were little). I have used them in the bottom of containers for drainage.
There is a recycling program in our city, so the gardenning centers tosses used pots in bins. When I go grocery shopping i raid the bin in that store's gardenning center. I've bought few pots. Keep worms in a bin and feed them vegetable kitchen waste.
Since my container garden is on the front of my house because it gets more sunlight there, I thought it would look better if all the containers were the same. I bought dollar store waste baskets, drilled holes in the bottoms, used packing peanuts for drainage, and filled with soil. I have grown tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, and herbs like sage, basil, mint, parsley and chives. This was my 5th year using these containers.
has anyone grown vegetables all year in containers...I wanted to plant lettuce, spinach, tomatoes and cucumbers in containers and grow them this winter in my attic. It's chilly there but the sun is great. There's nothing better than fresh vegetables. Would love to be able to do this...any suggestions would be appreciated.
has anyone grown vegetables all year in containers...I wanted to plant lettuce, spinach, tomatoes and cucumbers in containers and grow them this winter in my attic. It's chilly there but the sun is great. There's nothing better than fresh vegetables. Would love to be able to do this...any suggestions would be appreciated.
I live in Central Texas and have a neighbor who raises cattle. I kept seeing these 10 gal tubs in his pasture. I finally asked him about them and learned that these are minerals that look alot like black tar that the cattle lick to supplement their diet.
Is it possible to use dry beans for drainage in the bottom of a pot?
You can certainly place dried beans in your flower pots, if you like bean sprouts with your flowers.
I would like to have ideas for what to plant in a large planter pot for our north facing balcony. We get very limited sun and live in zone 5B. I prefer non-flowering types, so grasses are OK. I will have only one large pot so plants must "work" together.
Hardiness Zone: 5b
By Rebecca Jessiman from Indianapolis, IN
I would ask at your local green houses or garden centers.
The horticulture department of your local university can be a good source of info. I live in Western Canada and my "go to" book is the Sunset Western Garden Book. I have a helleborous that has done well in shade. It's a winter bloomer and I have seen it in planters. I have found that flowering plants recommended for shade do need some sun to flower well. eg pansies, astilbe, fuschia.
Is plaster of Paris used in outdoor things like putting it in the bottom of a planter for weight, or is concrete better?
By Jane Smith from Bonifay, FL
Why not add some stones in the bottom of your planter.
Plaster of paris will deteriorate. As MCW said, use stones or pieces of brick.
The dirt in my small yard is quite hard and clay-like, so I thought I would try container gardening. I have several Rubbermaid storage boxes I thought I could use, but I want to make sure I do it successfully. Should I put holes in the boxes and if so where? Do I need a layer of rock under the soil and if so how deep? Any other pointers?
By Janice
Do I need to amend or change out all the soil from my containers each season?
By Marc R.
We're planning to use containers to plant tomatoes and peppers. I also plan to use window boxes for zucchini, cucumbers, and pole or string beans. I have a homemade (3/4 galvanized pipe) tee or yardarm shape approximately 7 feet high with a 4 foot cross at the top for stringing the beans. All the plants will be purchased at a local nursery which leads to my main question. Should we use potting soil, top soil, or a mixture of both?
By John F.
Check out these photos.
My property presents challenges, such as mowing the half acre with a push mower. There are dry, shady areas where not much of anything will grow. I am experimenting with ground covers, such as ivy, in these areas. Until it becomes established, I'm playing around with little decorating ideas.
Shrubs and herbs fluffed out with geranium and fuchsia cuttings from last year. Tomatoes grown from seeds recovered from last year's fruit. Upside down plant pots and kiddies' plastic chairs help create levels.
This was my favorite planting last summer. I enjoyed all of the vibrant colors mixed together. The mix contains geraniums, begonias, a blue salvia, petunia, and dahlia, with 2 spikes for interest.
Grow beautiful flowers, herbs and vegetables on your deck in containers, even if you don't have a yard. This is a page about container gardening on a deck.
When a plant growing in a container begins to show signs of stress you will need to determine the cause if you are going to save it. Often its roots are somehow involved in the mystery. This is a page about reasons container plants fail.
Window boxes add a lovely floral touch to your home's exterior. To keep the soil from leaking through the joints and the wood from rotting there are a variety of liners to choose from. This page offers a number of good suggestions for lining wood window boxes.
Many types of containers that you would typically recycle can be used for container gardening. This is a page about recycled container gardening.
