Before begining on your container gardening adventure it is always a good to flip through magazines and pick up useful container gardening ideas and tips to growing great indoor plants. It’s useful to help choose the right plants, pots and soil for your container garden.

Container Gardening Ideas For Your Home
By Mary Hanna

Many gardeners have given up on the idea of a garden because they lack space, time or lots of experience. But if growing plants is an interest of yours container gardening could be your answer. Container gardens will allow you to enjoy “playing in the dirt” without investing a lot of time or money. You can get very creative in container gardening using vegetables, decorative grasses or flowers and herbs. You can plant a container garden with any plant that would grow outside. The trick is to come up with some creative ideas for your container garden.

You should do some research at your local nursery or on the internet to choose the plants you wish to grow to help you come up with some ideas. Try to use plants that complement each other and have the same basic needs for water, air and light.

A container garden idea that has taken off recently is the landscape container. Some people plant a simple evergreen tree in a container with good drainage to place at their front door. Or you could plant an assortment of flowers for a bright and beautiful vista. If you do plant flowers, add plants that spill over the sides of the container to add more visuals and interest. What ever container gardening idea you can come up with can be placed on a deck, patio, and balcony or by the front doors. Put them somewhere that your family and friends can enjoy.

You can grow vegetables in containers but choose wisely. Vegetables like squash and pole beans need lots of space, while tomatoes need a deep pot. When you grow your own vegetables you will have tasty produce not the bland stuff that is in the grocery store. Nothing tastes better than a tomato right off the vine. There are many chefs and good home cooks that grow their own for just this reason. Don’t forget to pot some herbs, they are pretty plants and add zest to your meals.

But don’t just stick to vegetables and herbs; why not add fruit trees too? Instead of using an evergreen tree, pot a fruit tree instead. There are many dwarf varieties available that work best in pots since with pots there is less soil therefore less nutrients to draw from. If you live in a year round warm climate citrus trees are perfect. In other regions, stick to pear, apple and cherry trees. Another good container gardening idea is to grow strawberries. With strawberries climate does not matter since you can bring the container inside. Fresh strawberries are amazingly sweet and delicious. Imagine how good a bowl of fresh strawberries will be, strawberries that you have just picked.

Remember that container gardens dry out more quickly than traditional gardens. Be diligent about watering your plants if you don’t want your container gardening ideas to wither and die. Container gardens must be fertilized too. Keep a small notebook handy so you can write down the needs of your plant so you will always know when to water or feed. Keep an eye out for pests. If you find a container that has an infestation, isolate it immediately and treat it with a natural pesticide. You don’t want harsh chemicals on fruits, vegetables or herbs. A good natural pesticide recipe is:

In a jar, combine 1 teaspoon dishwashing liquid and 1 cup vegetable oil. Shake vigorously. In an empty spray bottle, combine 2 teaspoons of this mixture and 1 cup water. Use at ten-day intervals (or more often if needed) to rid plants of whiteflies, mites, aphids, scales, and other pests.

So, do some research, come up with your own unique container gardening ideas, gather your materials and get to work. The fruits of your labor will be amazing.

Happy Container Gardening!

Copyright © Mary Hanna, All Rights Reserved.

This article may be distributed freely on your website and in your ezines, as long as this entire article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are unchanged.

Mary Hanna is an aspiring herbalist who lives in Central Florida. This allows her to grow gardens inside and outside year round. She has published other articles on Cruising, Gardening and Cooking. Visit her websites at Gardening Landscaping Tips Gardening Outside and Indoor Herb Garden

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mary_Hanna

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Your container gardening ideas should help build a great container garden design project complete with great health plants, herbs, fruits and vegetables. And all grown at home with love and care.

One of the best things to get right is container gardening design. It is a great skill to arrage container plants in a visually attractive and stimulating arrangement.

Not only can it be visually interesting but great container gardening designs and ideas can enhance the over all look of a home or garden.

Container Gardening Design – Color That Communicates
By Virginia Slachman

Flower pots filled with color make feel something, from happy and energized to calm and soothed. And since container garden design is the uber small space design, it’s essential to understand the power of color.

Why? Because whether you’re patio gardening or glancing up at your window boxes or hanging planters, what you see should reflect decisions you make and not appear random. Or even worse, convey a busy, harried look when you were going for elegant and refined.

The container gardening design help below will show you how to achieve just the feeling you want, using color alone.

Strategic Color Choices

• Green will always be present. And that’s great because it functions to absorb and soften some of the stronger colors. It also presents a calming presence since the deeper shades are very soothing.

• Monochromatic: To create a soothing, restrained statement, pick a monochromatic scheme of one color and its variations (with limited spots of accent if you wish).
  Gardening Help Tip: Try using different leaf textures, flower shapes, and color shadings to create a lovely, sophisticated outdoor planter. For example, a summer flower palette in white might include tall ‘Casablanca’ lilies above non-trailing petunias. The surface of the pot will stack upward. You can add trailing bacopa (with its tiny white flowers) to complete the display.
• Complimentary container designs are striking and bold. Since yellow and blue are directly across from each other on the color wheel, this color combination is considered complementary. A spring example of complimentary colors would include yellow daffodils combined with blue hyacinth and bi-colored pansies or crocuses.
  Gardening Help Tip: Alter the impression of this color scheme by softening to or away from the pastel. Delft blue hyacinth, for example, would blend well with a small, softer-colored jonquil (a smaller flower size than the daffodils) to make a less-assertive impression.
• Analogous, blending colors: If you prefer a softer look and feel, plant flowers with colors next to each other on the color wheel. Green, yellow-green, and yellow would make an analogous planting. In fall, your container garden design can include analogously colored chrysanthemums in yellow, gold, rust, and burgundy. Be sure to select hues carefully so your container design doesn’t appear haphazard.

Emotional Effect of Color

We know color makes us feel something. But what, specifically?

Generally, blues, and purples recede, or seem to be farther away from the viewer, and present a cooler, more reserved presence. Yellows and reds come forward and are much more assertive, creating a “hot” emotional climate.

Gardening Help Tip: To warm up a cool color, move it toward the red or yellow shades. Blue becomes warmer as you move it toward the lavender shades, for example. The opposite is also true. Cool down hot colors by moving them toward their opposites-yellow becomes cooler as you move toward the yellow-greenish tones.

Also, try using these two container design rules:

Repetition. Repeat colors and flower shapes, types, and forms. Repetition is soothing, and very easy to achieve. Plant a flower pot with trailing variegated ivy topped by white calla lilies. In a container garden display, repeat this bi-colored palette or use the ivy in two other clay flower pots.

Odd numbers. For some reason, we humans like odd-numbered groupings. They’re much more satisfying than even-numbered ones and send a message of “completeness” to the viewer. Make sure your container gardening design includes pots in numbers of one, three, five, or seven (etc.) for best effect.

And finally, to add color and light to your shade garden, try these two easy tips:

Use variegated foliage (ones that contain shades of white). They really stand out in semi-or full-shade locations. Also try planting impatiens (especially in the pastel colors). They almost glow in the shade, are very easy flowers to cultivate, and best of all, they thrive in shade.

Think of your overall container gardening design as another “room” of your home. It’s an extension of your interior décor (including your color choices and style) and how you’ve landscaped and designed the outside of your home. Remember, color communicates–make sure it conveys exactly the look and feel you want.

© Copyright 2009-2013 container-gardening-made-easy.com (All rights reserved)

For lots more container gardening design information, plus how to select, plant, and care for your flower, herb, vegetable, or container water garden, visit [http://www.container-gardening-made-easy.com].

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Virginia_Slachman

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If you’re looking to add value to your home or garden that container gardening design ideas will be a great place to start. By choosing the right colors and designs you can enhance the look and feel to any area.

Herb Garden Design

Herb garden design should take into account how easy will it be to get to your herbs. If you plan to have a larger home herb garden, you might want to build a few small paths to reach all the herbs in your garden. Paths can also guide a user through a variety of fragrances produced by the herbs. A popular design resembles a cart-wheel with the wheel spokes translating into the garden paths. Gravel, brick or paving make good path material. Here the different herb types are grouped in rows.

The size and type of garden depends on personal interest, time, and space of the person planting the herb garden. If you are new to herb gardening, I recommend you start small. Some people like to mix their herbs with a mixture of flowers and vegetables plants. Your herb garden design should include a way for you to identify your herbs and a clear path to get to each herb.

Make sure that when you design your herb garden you put it in a place that gets plenty of direct sunlight. Herbs need about 4 to 6 hours of sunlight or more per day. You can have rosemary, chamomile, mint, basil lavender and oregano in your indoor herb garden. You can buy a set of new gardening pots for your indoor herb. Indoor herbs will grow in any kind of containers just make sure that the container has proper drainage.

Perennial herbs, however, will do better if you place them outdoors during the summer. Check for extremes in temperature since herbs don’t take to them too well. Heat from the kitchen stove or radiator might shrivel and dry up your indoor herb garden. Ensure that the herbs get 6 – 8 hours of light every day. Keep on the lookout for insect infestation. You can rinse off any insects you see on your herbs. Avoid use of insecticides. Herbs can be used for cooking, tea and potpourri or just to enjoy their sharp fragrance.

Proper soil is an essential part of growing indoor herbs. Mix soil with sand and a small amount of lime to give your herbs the best soil condition possible. It would essential for its growth. And, before adding soil to your container, layer the bottom with gravel to make sure if it has suitable drainage.

Many herbs can be successfully grown in containers. Container-grown herbs can be designed to accommodate nearly any setting or need and are a great alternative to gardening in small areas. They can also be arranged into attractive groupings and changed around or moved as needed.

Herb garden designs are not too hard to maintain and can be done even by a beginner who would acquire the skills in the process. All level of skilled gardeners can try their hand in herb gardening and enjoy its simple yet effective results. There are different ways to design an herb garden. The best herb garden design is one that works for you.

Related Container Garden Designs Articles

Creating A Container Garden At Home

When you are ready to mix ingredients for your container garden, be sure the soil is damp and workable. To determine this, take a handful, squeeze it and allow it to drop. If water comes out, it is too wet; if it breaks apart, it is too dry. But if the lump of soil retains its shape or cracks just a little when it is dropped, it is in good condition to work into your gardening pots.

Be certain your garden containers are clean when you start. Soak used or new clay gardening pots overnight so they will not draw moisture from the soil after planting. This is a very important step when you are beginning your plants life. If the pot draws off the moisture the new plant will be deprived. Clean dirty clay pots with a stiff brush and hot, soapy water.  Clean gardening pots will be much more attractive in your container garden.

Though redwood, cedar, and cypress gardening pots may be left natural, they may also be stained or painted. First clean the surfaces then apply one or two coats of stain or paint. Let dry completely before planting. Concrete, metal, plastic, fiberglass, and similar materials all need cleaning before planting your container garden.

Suiting plants to garden pots is very important in container garden design. Consider the shape of each container, its color, and texture in relation to the color of flowers and foliage, as well as the ultimate size of each plant in your container garden. Don’t choose material that is too small, and if you want a group of plants for a large container, select one tall specimen for the center to give height and scale.  Don’t forget that you can plant vegetables in container gardens; try to incorporate them into your container garden design.  And, for a tasty addition to your container garden plant herbs in garden containers or even hanging baskets, your recipes will become marvelous.

In low pots or bulb pans and in tubs, use low-growing plants like fancy-leaved caladiums, petunias, verbenas, Iantanas, ageratum and wax begonias. Hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils are also appropriate. In tall containers, plant specimens of geraniums, heliotropes, coleus, balsam, dwarf dahlias, fuchsias, and marguerites. Reserve the larger container pots and boxes for trees and shrubs or roses.

As a gardener, keep in mind the form of plants, particularly the evergreens which stand out boldly in winter. Rounded types, as clipped yews or globe arborvitae, look well in angular containers. Hollies or yews, sheared into squares or pyramids, look better in circular tubs. This contrast of the curving with the straight always gives interest to the garden and those guests that visit your container garden.

The first step in potting for a gardener is to place sufficient drainage material in the bottom of each garden container, allowing the water to pass through freely, but not so much as to interfere with the roots. An inch or two of flower pot pieces (rounded sides up), or chips of brick or flagstone, pebbles, gravel, small stones, or cinders can be used. The larger the container, the larger the pieces should be. Some gardeners spread a piece of coarse burlap and a layer of sand over large drainage pieces. A layer of Vermiculite or sphagnum moss over the drainage material is also fine to keep soil from clogging holes. If the holes clog the roots will drown in their gardening pot.

Above the drainage, spread a layer of soil, the amount depending on the size of the container and the root ball of the plant. Place the plant in position so that the surface of the soil will be an inch (more for big plants) below the rim of the container. This space is needed to hold water.

Fill soil in around the roots, firming gently with your fingers or a piece of wood so as to eliminate air pockets. Add more soil and firm, but do not make the soil too tight for fine feeding roots must be able to penetrate it with ease.

Finally, water your garden container plants well, let them drain. If water passes through the gardening pot very rapidly, press soil again to firm it; that means there are air pockets. If the soil holds water too long, loosen it a little.

Place the container garden in a sheltered spot out of sun and wind for the first week while they make new root growth and adjust to new conditions. This also helps to avoid shock.  Once your plants have settled in, you ready to arrange your container garden according to your original container gardening design.

Happy Container Gardening!

Find More Container Garden Designs Articles

Creating A Container Garden At Home

When you are ready to mix ingredients for your container garden, be sure the soil is damp and workable. To determine this, take a handful, squeeze it and allow it to drop. If water comes out, it is too wet; if it breaks apart, it is too dry. But if the lump of soil retains its shape or cracks just a little when it is dropped, it is in good condition to work into your gardening pots.

Be certain your garden containers are clean when you start. Soak used or new clay gardening pots overnight so they will not draw moisture from the soil after planting. This is a very important step when you are beginning your plants life. If the pot draws off the moisture the new plant will be deprived. Clean dirty clay pots with a stiff brush and hot, soapy water.  Clean gardening pots will be much more attractive in your container garden.

Though redwood, cedar, and cypress gardening pots may be left natural, they may also be stained or painted. First clean the surfaces then apply one or two coats of stain or paint. Let dry completely before planting. Concrete, metal, plastic, fiberglass, and similar materials all need cleaning before planting your container garden.

Suiting plants to garden pots is very important in container garden design. Consider the shape of each container, its color, and texture in relation to the color of flowers and foliage, as well as the ultimate size of each plant in your container garden. Don’t choose material that is too small, and if you want a group of plants for a large container, select one tall specimen for the center to give height and scale.  Don’t forget that you can plant vegetables in container gardens; try to incorporate them into your container garden design.  And, for a tasty addition to your container garden plant herbs in garden containers or even hanging baskets, your recipes will become marvelous.

In low pots or bulb pans and in tubs, use low-growing plants like fancy-leaved caladiums, petunias, verbenas, Iantanas, ageratum and wax begonias. Hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils are also appropriate. In tall containers, plant specimens of geraniums, heliotropes, coleus, balsam, dwarf dahlias, fuchsias, and marguerites. Reserve the larger container pots and boxes for trees and shrubs or roses.

As a gardener, keep in mind the form of plants, particularly the evergreens which stand out boldly in winter. Rounded types, as clipped yews or globe arborvitae, look well in angular containers. Hollies or yews, sheared into squares or pyramids, look better in circular tubs. This contrast of the curving with the straight always gives interest to the garden and those guests that visit your container garden.

The first step in potting for a gardener is to place sufficient drainage material in the bottom of each garden container, allowing the water to pass through freely, but not so much as to interfere with the roots. An inch or two of flower pot pieces (rounded sides up), or chips of brick or flagstone, pebbles, gravel, small stones, or cinders can be used. The larger the container, the larger the pieces should be. Some gardeners spread a piece of coarse burlap and a layer of sand over large drainage pieces. A layer of Vermiculite or sphagnum moss over the drainage material is also fine to keep soil from clogging holes. If the holes clog the roots will drown in their gardening pot.

Above the drainage, spread a layer of soil, the amount depending on the size of the container and the root ball of the plant. Place the plant in position so that the surface of the soil will be an inch (more for big plants) below the rim of the container. This space is needed to hold water.

Fill soil in around the roots, firming gently with your fingers or a piece of wood so as to eliminate air pockets. Add more soil and firm, but do not make the soil too tight for fine feeding roots must be able to penetrate it with ease.

Finally, water your garden container plants well, let them drain. If water passes through the gardening pot very rapidly, press soil again to firm it; that means there are air pockets. If the soil holds water too long, loosen it a little.

Place the container garden in a sheltered spot out of sun and wind for the first week while they make new root growth and adjust to new conditions. This also helps to avoid shock.  Once your plants have settled in, you ready to arrange your container garden according to your original container gardening design.

Happy Container Gardening!

More Container Garden Designs Articles

How to Plant Gardening Containers Or Gardening Pots In Your Container Garden

When you are at the ready to blend ingredients for your container garden, be bound the soil is wet and possible. To find out this, take a handful, squash it and let it to drop down. If water comes out, it is too soaked; if it breaks apart, it is too adust. But if the lump of soil retains its shape or cracks just a little when it is dropped down, it is in acceptable condition to work into your gardening pots

Be certain your garden containers are clean when you start. Soak utilized or fresh clay gardening pots overnight so they will not draw moisture from the soil after implanting. This is a very crucial step when you are beginning your plants life. If the pot draws off the moisture the new plant will be divested. Clean filthy clay pots with a strong brush and blistering, insincere water. Clean gardening pots will be much more bewitching in your container garden

Though redwood, cedar, and cypress gardening pots may be left natural, they may also be stained or painted. First fresh the surfaces then utilize one or two coats of stain or coat. Let adust completely before implanting. Concrete, metal, plastic, fiberglass, and akin materials all necessitate making clean before planting your container garden

Suiting plants to garden pots is very important in container garden design. Consider the shape of each container, its color, and texture in relation to the color of flowers and foliage, as well as the crowning size of each plant in your container garden. Don’t select material that is too little, and if you desire a group of plants for an ample container, pick out one full-length specimen for the center to give height and scale. Don’t bury that you can plant vegetables in container gardens; seek to comprise them into your container garden design. And, for an acid-tasting addition to your container garden plant herbs in garden containers or even hanging up baskets, your recipes will go extraordinary

In low pots or bulb pans and in tubs, use low-growing plants like fancy-leaved caladiums, petunias, verbenas, Iantanas, ageratum and wax begonias. Hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils are also apropos. In full-length containers, plant specimens of geraniums, heliotropes, coleus, balsam, dwarf dahlias, fuchsias, and marguerites. Reserve the larger container pots and boxes for trees and shrubs or roses

As a gardener, keep in mind the form of plants, particularly the evergreens which stand out boldly in winter. Rounded types, as clipped yews or globe arborvitae, look well in angular containers. Hollies or yews, sheared into squares or pyramids, appear better in apple-shaped tubs. This contrast of the swerving with the unbent always gives interest to the garden and those guests that visit your container garden

The first step in potting for a gardener is to place sufficient drainage material in the bottom of each garden container, allowing the water to pass through freely, but not so much as to interfere with the roots. An inch or two of flower pot pieces (rounded out sides up), or chips of brick or flagstone, pebbles, gravel, little stones, or cinders can be utilized. The larger the container, the larger the pieces should be. Some gardeners spread a piece of coarse-grained burlap and a layer of sand over ample drainage pieces. A layer of Vermiculite or sphagnum moss over the drainage material is also close-grained to keep soil from choking off holes. If the holes choke off the roots will submerge in their gardening pot

Above the drainage, spread a layer of soil, the amount depending on the size of the container and the root ball of the plant. Place the plant in position so that the surface of the soil will be an inch (more for ample plants) below the rim of the container. This space is necessitated to keep water

Fill soil in around the roots, firming gently with your fingers or a piece of wood so as to eliminate air pockets. Add more soil and firm, but do not make the soil too air-tight for close-grained giving roots must be competent to penetrate it with ease

Finally, water your garden container plants well, let them drain. If water passes through the gardening pot very rapidly, press soil again to firm it; that means there are air pockets. If the soil holds water too abundant, tease apart it a little

Place the container garden in a sheltered spot out of sun and wind for the first week while they make new root growth and adjust to new conditions. This also helps to debar shock. Once your plants have settled in, you at the ready to set up your container garden according to your avant-garde container gardening design

Happy Container Gardening!

Copyright © 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved

This article may be distributed freely on your website and in your ezines, as long as this entire article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are unchanged.

Mary Hanna is a drawing a bead on herbalist who lives in Central Florida. This allows her to mature gardens inside and outside year pear-shaped. She has printed other articles on Cruising, Gardening and Cooking. Visit her websites at http://www.GardeningHerb.com http://www.CruiseTravelDirectory.com and http://www.ContainerGardeningSecrets.com or contact her at mary@webmarketingreviews

Create Stunning Container Garden Designs

You certainly have a feeling of great abundance with you see plant-packed containers on your deck, patio or in your garden. There is nothing like container gardens to link the indoors and outdoors between home and garden. Today, we all desire to see out alfresco space turned into an extraordinary fresh addition to our homes

After choosing the right planters, pots and containers from a wide range of materials, styles, colors and sizes, the time is right to think about what you are going to put in the planters and where to place them

You can use your planters, urns and pots in many areas. Think about where they would be best – to set off your doorway or deck entrance, to conceal ugly utility areas or storage spaces, or to show off the best views on your deck, garden or patio. You can travel your containers around to enamour the afternoon shade, render protection from wind and to debar those distant blistering spots in summer heat. Do plan to bask those musky plants and always have them close to your realigning areas, or to brush against next to walkways. A rule of thumb, purchase larger planters than you think you may necessitate, little little pots will get misplaced in the space and never accomplish that WOW appear in the area

We know that we need to plant containers properly and of course to water when needed. Now to get got down! Pick containers that will manage the size of the plants you are considering. You can contrast ample and little containers together for a disorienting effect. Annuals and bulbs are very democratic choices for pots and planters

When you are ready to plant, fill the containers to within about three inches from the top and gently firm down the soil. Set the plants you have selected and place on top of the soil and then step back and visualise how they will appear when they fill up out and create a gross view. Containers that will sit down next to a wall or fence posit downion the tallest plants at the back of the planter and environ with other plants. When you have ample containers or when they will be seen from all sides, set the tallest plants in the central and surround with the other plants.

Once you are pleased with the temporary arrangement, dig out holes with your trowel or your hands and set the plants in place. Gently firm the soil around each plant. Be bound to go forth three inches from the top of the pot to let for appropriate irrigating. When implanting, an acceptable tip is to make sure that the roots of the plants are very wet or soaked before implanting. Then water your container thoroughly when you have finished your arrangement

Now is the time to move your garden planters and containers to create the overall look that you would like to achieve in the chosen space. It is always an acceptable idea to keep the sun loving plants together and abstracted from the shading loving ones. Don’t make any combination too upright or too sprawly, have a good blend of both – one will heighten the appear of the other.

Mix large containers with the small ones, arrange in groupings. Place one or two on plant stands to create a central point in your arrangement. You may care to cruise around your neighborhood, go to garden centers or even view the latest magazines to do some constructive slipping for more design ideas

How to Plant Gardening Containers Or Gardening Pots In Your Container Garden

When you are ready to mix ingredients for your container garden, be sure the soil is damp and workable. To find out this, take a handful, squash it and let it to drop down. If water comes out, it is too soaked; if it breaks apart, it is too adust. But if the lump of soil retains its shape or cracks just a little when it is dropped down, it is in acceptable condition to work into your gardening pots

Be certain your garden containers are clean when you start. Soak utilized or fresh clay gardening pots overnight so they will not draw moisture from the soil after implanting. This is a very crucial step when you are beginning your plants life. If the pot draws off the moisture the new plant will be divested. Clean filthy clay pots with a strong brush and blistering, insincere water. Clean gardening pots will be much more bewitching in your container garden

Though redwood, cedar, and cypress gardening pots may be gone forth biological, they may also be tarnished or coated. First fresh the surfaces then utilize one or two coats of stain or coat. Let adust completely before implanting. Concrete, metal, plastic, fiberglass, and akin materials all necessitate making clean before planting your container garden

Suiting plants to garden pots is very crucial in container garden design. Consider the shape of each container, its color, and texture in relation to the color of flowers and foliage, as well as the crowning size of each plant in your container garden. Don’t select material that is too little, and if you desire a group of plants for an ample container, pick out one full-length specimen for the center to give height and scale. Don’t bury that you can plant vegetables in container gardens; seek to comprise them into your container garden design. And, for an acid-tasting addition to your container garden plant herbs in garden containers or even hanging up baskets, your recipes will go extraordinary

In humble pots or bulb pans and in tubs, use humblegrowing plants like fancy-leaved caladiums, petunias, verbenas, Iantanas, ageratum and wax begonias. Hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils are also apropos. In full-length containers, plant specimens of geraniums, heliotropes, coleus, balsam, dwarf dahlias, fuchsias, and marguerites. Reserve the larger container pots and boxes for trees and shrubs or roses

As a gardener, keep in mind the form of plants, particularly the evergreens which stand out boldly in winter. Rounded types, as nipped yews or globe arborvitae, appear well in angled containers. Hollies or yews, sheared into squares or pyramids, look better in apple-shaped tubs. This contrast of the swerving with the unbent always gives interest to the garden and those guests that visit your container garden

The first step in implanting for a gardener is to place adequate drainage material in the bottom of each garden container, letting the water to go through through freely, but not so much as to intervene with the roots. An inch or two of flower pot pieces (rounded out sides up), or chips of brick or flagstone, pebbles, gravel, little stones, or cinders can be utilized. The larger the container, the larger the pieces should be. Some gardeners spread a piece of coarse-grained burlap and a layer of sand over ample drainage pieces. A layer of Vermiculite or sphagnum moss over the drainage material is also close-grained to keep soil from choking off holes. If the holes choke off the roots will submerge in their gardening pot

Above the drainage, spread a layer of soil, the amount depending on the size of the container and the root ball of the plant. Place the plant in position so that the surface of the soil will be an inch (more for ample plants) below the rim of the container. This space is necessitated to keep water

Fill soil in around the roots, firming gently with your fingers or a piece of wood so as to extinguish air pockets. Add more soil and firm, but do not make the soil too air-tight for close-grained giving roots must be competent to penetrate it with ease

Finally, water your garden container plants well, permit them drain. If water passes through the gardening pot very rapidly, press soil again to firm it; that means there are air pockets. If the soil holds water too abundant, tease apart it a little

Place the container garden in a committed spot out of sun and wind for the first week while they make fresh root growth and aline to fresh conditions. This also helps to debar shock. Once your plants have settled in, you at the ready to set up your container garden according to your avant-garde container gardening design

Happy Container Gardening!

Copyright © 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved

This article may be meted out freely on your website and in your ezines, as abundant as this smooth article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are dateless.

Mary Hanna is an aspiring herbalist who lives in Central Florida. This allows her to mature gardens inside and outside year pear-shaped. She has printed other articles on Cruising, Gardening and Cooking. Visit her websites at http://www.GardeningHerb.com http://www.CruiseTravelDirectory.com and http://www.ContainerGardeningSecrets.com or contact her at mary@webmarketingreviews

Plant Flower Bulbs For Beautiful Container Gardening

As a group,flower bulbs are outstanding plants—colorful, showy, and generally easy to grow for container gardening. Many have evergreen foliage; with others, the leaves ripen after flowering and the bulbs are stored and started again, year after year. Some flower bulbs are hardy, others, tender, though what is, and is not hardy, in a particular area is a matter of winter temperature averages. In cold regions, tender types—tuberous begonias, gloxinias, and calla lilies—can be treated like summer in container gardens. This gives the gardener a wide variety to grow from earliest spring to late fall.

Dutch flower bulbs include crocus, snowdrops, eranthis or winter aconites, chionodoxas, scillas, grape hyacinths, leucojums or snowflakes, Dutch hyacinths, daffodils, and tulips, the pride of northern spring gardens. Though hardy, they are not adapted to garden containers outdoors where temperatures drop much below freezing. They require the protection of a shed, unheated cellar or cold frame. Gardening Pots can also be dug into a trench in the ground for the winter and covered with a thick blanket of marsh hay or straw. Where temperatures do not go below freezing, Dutch flower bulbs can be left outdoors in gardening pots over the winter.

For best results in a container garden, start with fresh, firm, large-sized flower bulbs each fall. Insure good drainage in the bottom of each garden pot and use a light soil with bone meal added. If in clay pots, plunge during the rooting period in damp peat moss to prevent rapid drying out. If this occurs too often, roots will be injured and flowers will be poor. When weather permits, after the danger of freezing passes, put your container garden outside where they are to flower or in a nursery row until they reach the bud stage. After blooming, move your container garden where foliage can ripen unseen.

For fragrance, concentrate on Dutch hyacinths, excellent for bedding large planter boxes or raised beds. Daffodils look well grouped around trees or large shrubs, as birches and forsythias. Tulips, formal in character, combine delightfully with pansies, violas, wall flowers, forget-me-nots, marguerites, English daisies, and annual candytuft in container gardens.

As already indicated, in cold areas, Dutch flower bulbs cannot be potted or planted in small window boxes and left outdoors unprotected for the winter. They can, however, be set out in large planters and boxes, deep and wide enough to contain plenty of soil. The garden pots should be one and a half to two feet deep and about two feet wide. Set flower bulbs, with at least six inches of soil above them, planting them early enough in the fall so that they can make root growth before soil freezes hard. In penthouse gardens in New York City, Dutch bulbs have been grown successfully in this way, but it is always a risk. It makes no difference whether garden pots are made of wood, concrete, or other material; it is the amount of soil they hold that counts.

Actually, it is not the freezing of the soil that injures flower bulbs (this occurs in open ground), but it is the pressure and counter pressure exerted by frost on the sides of containers, which are firm and do not give. As a result, flower bulbs are bruised and thrust out of the soil, their roots torn. Where there is no hard freeze, but sufficient cold weather, hardy flower bulbs can be grown successfully in garden containers of small size.

Here is a partial list of flower bulbs that thrive in container gardens. They will help you with your container garden design

Achimenes are warmth-loving trailing plants with neat leaves and tubular flowers in blue, lavender, red and white. Related to gloxinias and African violets, they are nice in hanging baskets and window boxes or in garden pots on tables, shelves, or wall brackets. Start the small tubers indoors and give plants a sheltered spot with protection from strong sun and wind. Achimenes, an old standby in the South, is worthy of more frequent planting.

Agapanthus or Blue Lily of the Nile is a fleshy-rooted evergreen plant, with strap leaves, often grown in tubs and urns on terraces and steps during the summer, when the tall blue spikes unfold. Culture is easy, but plants require a well-lighted, frost proof room or greenhouse in winter. This is an old-time favorite, often seen in the gardens of Europe. It is a perfect flower bulb for container gardening.

The Calla Lily is Showy, and outdoors in warmer regions, but a tender pot plant in the North. Most familiar is the white one with large, shiny, heart-shaped leaves. Start bulbs indoors in February or March in rich soil and, when weather settles, transfer to large gardening pots and take outdoors. Calla lilies do well in full sun or part shade, are heavy feeders and need much water. There is also a dainty yellow one with white-spotted leaves. Rest your flower bulbs after foliage ripens and grow again.

Colorful and free-flowering Dahlias provide bounteous cut blooms. Tall, large-flowering kinds can be grown only in large planters and boxes, but the dwarfs, even freer flowering, are excellent in small garden containers. Attaining one to two feet tall, they grow easily from tubers in average soil in sun or part shade. They may also be raised from seed sown indoors in February. If tubers are stored in peat or sand in a cool, frost proof place, they can be grown for years. Check bulbs during winter, and if shriveling, sprinkle lightly.

Gladiolus, the summer-flowering plant has spear like leaves and many hued spikes. Corms can be planted in garden containers outdoors after danger of frost is passed. Set them six inches apart and four to six inches deep. The best way to use these in container gardening is to planting a few every two to three weeks, giving you a succession of bloom in your container garden. Stake stems before flowers open. After the leaves turn brown, or there is a frost, lift corms, cut off foliage and dust with DDT to control the tiny sucking thrips. After dusting, store corms in a dry place at 45 to 55 degrees F for future planting.

Gloxinias, another Summer-flowering plant and tender with large, tubular blooms of red, pink, lavender, purple, or white, and broad velvety rosettes of leaves. Start tubers indoors and don’t take outside until weather is warm. Since the leaves are easily broken or injured by wind or rain, put plants in a sheltered spot. The low broad eaves of contemporary houses, with restricted sun, offer an appropriate setting for rows of pots or window boxes filled with gay gloxinias.

Now you have some great ideas for your container garden design. It’s time now to start planting your flower bulbs.

Happy Container Gardening!

Copyright © 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved.

This article may be distributed freely on your website and in your ezines, as long as this entire article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are unchanged.

The Complete Gardening System
A massive gardening course that will transform your garden and home and help to increase the value of your home. Downloadable course materials including Audio.
The Complete Gardening System

Plant Flower Bulbs For Beautiful Container Gardening

As a group,flower bulbs are outstanding plants—colorful, showy, and generally easy to grow for container gardening. Many have evergreen foliage; with others, the leaves ripen after flowering and the bulbs are stored and started again, year after year. Some flower bulbs are hardy, others, tender, though what is, and is not hardy, in a particular area is a matter of winter temperature averages. In cold regions, tender types—tuberous begonias, gloxinias, and calla lilies—can be treated like summer in container gardens. This gives the gardener a wide variety to grow from earliest spring to late fall.

Dutch flower bulbs include crocus, snowdrops, eranthis or winter aconites, chionodoxas, scillas, grape hyacinths, leucojums or snowflakes, Dutch hyacinths, daffodils, and tulips, the pride of northern spring gardens. Though hardy, they are not adapted to garden containers outdoors where temperatures drop much below freezing. They require the protection of a shed, unheated cellar or cold frame. Gardening Pots can also be dug into a trench in the ground for the winter and covered with a thick blanket of marsh hay or straw. Where temperatures do not go below freezing, Dutch flower bulbs can be left outdoors in gardening pots over the winter.

For best results in a container garden, start with fresh, firm, large-sized flower bulbs each fall. Insure good drainage in the bottom of each garden pot and use a light soil with bone meal added. If in clay pots, plunge during the rooting period in damp peat moss to prevent rapid drying out. If this occurs too often, roots will be injured and flowers will be poor. When weather permits, after the danger of freezing passes, put your container garden outside where they are to flower or in a nursery row until they reach the bud stage. After blooming, move your container garden where foliage can ripen unseen.

For fragrance, concentrate on Dutch hyacinths, excellent for bedding large planter boxes or raised beds. Daffodils look well grouped around trees or large shrubs, as birches and forsythias. Tulips, formal in character, combine delightfully with pansies, violas, wall flowers, forget-me-nots, marguerites, English daisies, and annual candytuft in container gardens.

As already indicated, in cold areas, Dutch flower bulbs cannot be potted or planted in small window boxes and left outdoors unprotected for the winter. They can, however, be set out in large planters and boxes, deep and wide enough to contain plenty of soil. The garden pots should be one and a half to two feet deep and about two feet wide. Set flower bulbs, with at least six inches of soil above them, planting them early enough in the fall so that they can make root growth before soil freezes hard. In penthouse gardens in New York City, Dutch bulbs have been grown successfully in this way, but it is always a risk. It makes no difference whether garden pots are made of wood, concrete, or other material; it is the amount of soil they hold that counts.

Actually, it is not the freezing of the soil that injures flower bulbs (this occurs in open ground), but it is the pressure and counter pressure exerted by frost on the sides of containers, which are firm and do not give. As a result, flower bulbs are bruised and thrust out of the soil, their roots torn. Where there is no hard freeze, but sufficient cold weather, hardy flower bulbs can be grown successfully in garden containers of small size.

Here is a partial list of flower bulbs that thrive in container gardens. They will help you with your container garden design

Achimenes are warmth-loving trailing plants with neat leaves and tubular flowers in blue, lavender, red and white. Related to gloxinias and African violets, they are nice in hanging baskets and window boxes or in garden pots on tables, shelves, or wall brackets. Start the small tubers indoors and give plants a sheltered spot with protection from strong sun and wind. Achimenes, an old standby in the South, is worthy of more frequent planting.

Agapanthus or Blue Lily of the Nile is a fleshy-rooted evergreen plant, with strap leaves, often grown in tubs and urns on terraces and steps during the summer, when the tall blue spikes unfold. Culture is easy, but plants require a well-lighted, frost proof room or greenhouse in winter. This is an old-time favorite, often seen in the gardens of Europe. It is a perfect flower bulb for container gardening.

The Calla Lily is Showy, and outdoors in warmer regions, but a tender pot plant in the North. Most familiar is the white one with large, shiny, heart-shaped leaves. Start bulbs indoors in February or March in rich soil and, when weather settles, transfer to large gardening pots and take outdoors. Calla lilies do well in full sun or part shade, are heavy feeders and need much water. There is also a dainty yellow one with white-spotted leaves. Rest your flower bulbs after foliage ripens and grow again.

Colorful and free-flowering Dahlias provide bounteous cut blooms. Tall, large-flowering kinds can be grown only in large planters and boxes, but the dwarfs, even freer flowering, are excellent in small garden containers. Attaining one to two feet tall, they grow easily from tubers in average soil in sun or part shade. They may also be raised from seed sown indoors in February. If tubers are stored in peat or sand in a cool, frost proof place, they can be grown for years. Check bulbs during winter, and if shriveling, sprinkle lightly.

Gladiolus, the summer-flowering plant has spear like leaves and many hued spikes. Corms can be planted in garden containers outdoors after danger of frost is passed. Set them six inches apart and four to six inches deep. The best way to use these in container gardening is to planting a few every two to three weeks, giving you a succession of bloom in your container garden. Stake stems before flowers open. After the leaves turn brown, or there is a frost, lift corms, cut off foliage and dust with DDT to control the tiny sucking thrips. After dusting, store corms in a dry place at 45 to 55 degrees F for future planting.

Gloxinias, another Summer-flowering plant and tender with large, tubular blooms of red, pink, lavender, purple, or white, and broad velvety rosettes of leaves. Start tubers indoors and don’t take outside until weather is warm. Since the leaves are easily broken or injured by wind or rain, put plants in a sheltered spot. The low broad eaves of contemporary houses, with restricted sun, offer an appropriate setting for rows of pots or window boxes filled with gay gloxinias.

Now you have some great ideas for your container garden design. It’s time now to start planting your flower bulbs.

Happy Container Gardening!

Copyright © 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved.

This article may be distributed freely on your website and in your ezines, as long as this entire article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are unchanged.

The Complete Gardening System
A massive gardening course that will transform your garden and home and help to increase the value of your home. Downloadable course materials including Audio.
The Complete Gardening System