The Obsessive Neurotic Gardener

Category Archives: Containers

Confession – DGP

Posted on by Posted in Comedy, Containers .

“Forgive me Father for I have sinned.”

Inaudible whispering.

“Time since my last confession you ask? Um, is never okay to say?

Deafening silence.

“Well here’s the thing. I’m not technically Catholic. My wife and two kids are but not me. We agreed to raise them Catholic but I never converted. We good?”

A simple head nod.

“Oh great, thank you Father. Appreciate it. Here’s the thing. Yeah I’ve sinned here and there, sure. But this one is kind of big and I’m hoping this doesn’t keep me out of the pearly gates when the time comes.”

A barely audible gasp.

“No, no, nothing like that. But it’s bad. In my eyes at least.”

Gesture clearly indicating to get on with it already.

“Fine. Brace yourself.”

A very audible yawn.

“My bad. You’re a very busy man. Here it is. I’ve embraced the use of … fake plants.”

Pointer finger raised pointing towards the church exit.

“Don’t you want to hear why?”

He didn’t want to hear why.

But I need to let you all know why:

I got sick of watering the ferns or boxwoods that sat in containers near our front entrance. My time could be better spent elsewhere. Yes, that is a fake boxwood but doesn’t look like it, right? Shape is decent and it’s even sitting in real soil.

So no harm, no foul, right?

Me and my containers

Posted on by Posted in Containers .

You’ve created a monster.

Your feedback has me invigorated.

I’m loving taking videos of the garden. It gives me a new perspective which I never anticipated. It allows me to take a step back and evaluate the garden through a, ahem, different lens.

For today, here’s a look at my back deck. The views out into the garden and the containers that reside here. As you’ll see, I could really use your expert opinions on how to improve these pots o’ plants.

There may even be some actual tomatoes.

So I’ve heard.

Enjoy.

Yuck uh, what?

Posted on by Posted in Containers .

So this happened last week.

yucca-container

Yes, that is my back deck.

And these plants weren’t purchased on a whim or on a dare. I actually came up with the concept while falling asleep the other night knowing I had these two containers begging for occupants.

The tall and upright planters were most recently occupied by two Sorbaria shrubs and were strategically located within my garden. I thought the containers and shrubs were a decent attempt at focal points since they stood out from all of the surrounding greenery.

Except they weren’t very focally or pointy.

So I removed the shrubs, planted them in the ground in more logical locations (for now at least) and the containers became vacant. That vacancy sparked many thoughts as the clock struck midnight on Monday last week and I some how settled on two yuccas framing the view from my kitchen into the backyard.

But I despise yuccas.

They are too spiky.

And too tropical.

And too dry inspiring.

And too modern.

And need never set foot anywhere near my property.

Yet even after sleeping on the concept and waking up with fresh mind and thought, I was still in favor of operation Yucca. That afternoon I found myself at the nursery carrying the two potential weapons and willingly having my wrists cut up along the way.

And I still like them in their current location.

I don’t know if I could ever describe why but I’m rolling with it. Maybe I enjoy the departure from my usual style/liking. Maybe I’m looking forward to color in fall and into winter. Who knows, but for now they’re staying.

Am I crazy? What is the over/under for how long they will reside in their current location?

 

The greatest grass, accepting chaos and a plea for container ideas

Posted on by Posted in Containers, My garden, Ornamental grass, Perennials .

A few thoughts:

We’re always trying to piece a garden together that has visual interest all year long. Ideally, we’ll construct it where one perennial stops blooming and takes a step back, while another takes center stage. Continuous succession of bloom or emergence of interesting foliage or texture. That’s the game.

Below is one of those situations where I’ve managed to play it perfectly. The pink Astilbe blooms have had their day in the sun but are now fading and losing color just in time as the yellow coneflowers are emerging. Yellow and pink, not so great together and fortunately, the world will not have to bear witness to it.

coneflower astilbe

 

I’m really starting to buy into the ornamental grass as deer-loving-plant-protector. This hydrangea bloom is proof. Now the challenge is how to design an ornamental grass moat and make it look pleasant and natural.

hydrangea

 

You can only say it so many times before the message is lost on people. So here is my last plea for you to find a way to get Panicum ‘Northwind’ into your garden. Even if you have a smaller garden, please add one and thank me later. What a handsome and massively upright specimen (how I’m often described as well).

northwind

 

Do not underestimate the “see through-ness”of certain grasses like this ‘Karl Foerster’.

karl foerster

 

While you are adding a Panicum ‘Northwind’ to your cart (virtual or metal) also throw in Amsonia. They play nice together.

amsonia and panicum

 

Nothing has reseeded more in my garden than Mountain Mint. It pops up everywhere in spring and even with my OCD tendencies, I’m able to let it do whatever the hell it wants. My therapist calls that incremental progress.

amsonia mountain mint

 

Bee Balm, friend or foe? Discuss.

bee balm

 

I’ve been trying to up my container planting game for a few years now and I’m still not happy with my progress. I have learned to experiment more and stuff each container to capacity but I still need work. I’d love your feedback on this one. It seems to be thriving in its shady location. Be gentle but be honest.

container persian

QOTD – What is your go-to container planting combo? I have no shame in stealing all of your brilliant ideas.

Garden lessons learned this year

Posted on by Posted in Containers, Garden problems .

Before I get to the garden lessons learned …

It’s early June, 1985 and I will be turning 13 years old in a few weeks. School has just let out for the day and a bunch of us prepubescent boys are gathered around the lockers, planning our afternoon activities. If I had to guess, I am wearing Jams shorts, a Gotcha t-shirt. and a killer coral necklace. Surfer wares for a non-surfer but damn if I don’t look good. It doesn’t matter that I had never set foot on a surfboard and still haven’t to this day. I was a fashion follower, not a leader.

The plan is to meet up at the middle school for yet another intense game of baseball. The fences are in close so we can all feel like Darryl Strawberry and hit a ton of home runs. It is even possible to hit the other school building across the street with a mammoth home run; that only adds to the excitement. If a window shatters we all run for our lives; always a good time when you are a pre-teen. Oh yeah, and anything hit to right field is a foul ball since we never have enough kids to cover the entire field. I hate that rule.

After collecting my books and heading out to my mom’s car in the parking lot, I inform her of my afternoon plans. Baseball is good clean fun, right? I won’t be staring blindly into the TV while playing Atari all afternoon. This is a no-brainer.

I can remember her response like it was yesterday.

“John, I don’t want you go. There is no supervision and anything can happen. Not today”

Are you f’n kidding me? (I didn’t say that to her). I’ve done this a dozen times before and nothing ever happened. I am not telling my friends that my mom said “no”. C’mon, do you want your oldest child to be the laughingstock of the 7th grade? I need this.

Needless to say, I talk my way into going and my mother regretfully drops me off … within walking distance of the school.

Game on.

It is a great time. No broken windows, but still fun. It’s a close game and comes down to the last out of the game to decide the winner. My father and youngest sister wait for me along the left field fence and I shout “Just one more out.” I have to focus in left field and there is no way in hell I am leaving now.

What happens next changes my life forever. And I swear to you it is the absolute truth. Mom – can you leave a comment below to confirm this really happened as I remember it? I need to keep my credibility in check. Thank you.

Line drive is hit to left field. I am ready to make the last out and secure the win. I go down on one knee to make the catch and end it in style. Everyone will jump on me with excitement and even my family will witness my greatness.

The ball completely misses my glove and drills me above the left eye. The field is dead quiet. While I guess it hurts like hell, I feel no pain. None at all. I immediately flash back to my mother’s warning and become furious. I even blame it on her as my dad ushers me to the car.

Lesson learned – Mom is always friggin right and you cannot do anything about it. Even though the black eye brought me much desired attention in school the next day, I was never the same playing on a baseball diamond again. And it all could have been avoided if I listened to the wise one.

So about those garden “lessons learned” …

To begin, I realize you’ve had your fill of these already. You’ve read about them on other sites, on other blogs and even on TV shows (that last one is an intentional joke, there are no garden TV shows anymore.) By now, we know them all. So I apologize in advance if you’ve had your fill.

But my lessons learned are killer. They’re better than all of the others combined. I’m talking life changing. Go get a notepad and pen and jot these down and keep them in a place where they can be seen daily so they reinforce how you go about your gardening ventures in the future.

I will preface my 5 lessons learned with this: I did very little in the garden this year. There were a few reasons for that and here is how it breaks out:

40% time constraints – kids, family, job

25% pipeline shock – no need to discuss this further

25% intentional – I’ll go into this one in a bit but I wisely took a break when nature called for it

10% laziness – I’m not ashamed to admit it.

Yes, every winter/spring I allege that this will be the year I transform my garden into a mini Longwood Gardens. If you are a regular reader, you know how that has turned out. But this was the first year I took a more realistic approach.

No long term goals.

Just do what I can when the time allows.

No rush.

No pressure.

And you know what? I feel like it paid off in spades.

Garden lessons learned #1 – Patience

It’s amazing what happens when you just let your garden develop on its own. No tweaking or moving plants around every other day. The plants establish themselves and those empty and bare areas fill in quickly. It’s like giving the garden a chance to breathe and stretch its legs.

Like I mentioned before, I did a lot more sitting back and enjoying this gardening season. I think I grew a little bit tired of constantly changing things up and playing plant musical chairs.

The area of the garden below has been a continuous project over the years. Last year I added perennials that I knew would establish themselves quickly. I didn’t do a thing this year and I’m thrilled with the results.

planter bed

Other areas have benefited from my absence as well.

e2

 

017

 

018

 

Garden lessons learned #2 –  Smaller plant palette

I know by now what plants work well with my conditions. Anything that the deer ignore and anything that is OK with consistently wet soil. This includes ornamental grasses, deer resistant shrubs like Clethra and Boxwood and perennials like Bee Balm, Joe Pye Weed and Lobelia.

This is what I have been handed on this property and I am going to embrace it. No more attempts to try and force in plants that will never thrive here. There is enough variety within these plant choices and I will just continue to explore that avenue.

Here are some examples of my, dare I say, smart plant choices.

Clethra and Joe Pye Weed.

j11

Bee Balm and Joe Pye Weed.

j7

Clethra, Joe Pye Weed and ornamental grass.

h6

Bee Balm and ornamental grass.

d15

 

Garden lessons learned #3 – Repetition

This ties into the previous one and is an age old tenet of most garden designers. Repetition of plants, shape, color, etc. is pleasing to the eye. It is what separates a garden from a collection of plants. Repetition leads the visitor through the garden and enhances the visit.

By limiting my choices of plants, I’ve somewhat inadvertently (I’ll take just a smidge of credit) created repetition throughout my garden.

m3

 

h18

 

h11

 

veronica

 

Garden lessons learned #4 – No planting in the heat of summer

Yes, another well known “not-to-do” among gardeners all over the world. Planting in the heat of the summer with the extreme temperatures and lack of rain is a recipe for disaster. But I’ve always been defiant and figured I could plant whatever I want, whenever I want.

This really hit  home for me one day this past summer. I was updating my plant list/spreadsheet and referenced recently purchased plants through various online plant sellers.

I kid you not, half of the plants I had ordered over the past two years had died. Most of them I had forgotten I had ever purchased. That is not good. That is what you get when you stick a small and vulnerable plant in the ground and forget about it … during the wrong time of year.

Just plain dumb.

Garden lessons learned #5 – Start small plants in containers rather than in the ground.

I’m still not sure if scientifically, this is the right way to go but it has been working so I ain’t stopping. Too often I’ve witnessed small plants purchased online not make it through the year. They easily get lost in the shuffle with all of their larger brethren. That means not enough water and potentially not enough sun if overshadowed by other plants.

My solution has been to “raise” these plants in containers so I can carefully watch them and give them a good head start. Since they stare me in the face at all times, I know to keep them watered.

Case in point is this Sambucus ‘Lemony Lace’.

garden lessons learned

This was no bigger than 5-6 inches when I purchased it this spring and now it looks fabulous. I am debating when to introduce it to the wild and may keep it in the container for one more year.

So there you go, please fire away with your thoughts and comments.

 

 

 

 

 

Bulbs in containers

Posted on by Posted in Bulbs, Containers .

My soil drains poorly therefore my soil is almost always wet.

Most bulbs don’t like “always wet soil” therefore I struggle to grow bulbs.

I like bulbs in spring therefore I grow bulbs in containers.

tulips

A rather logical solution me thinks.

I tried growing tulips for a number of years when we first moved into our current home. I was out there each Fall digging to the proper depth, spacing them out accordingly and even feeding them a bit. And not once did I see a sign that any of them even thought about leafing out.

Even a dolt like me eventually figured out that they were rotting in the wet soil over the winter/spring. The daffodils and summer snowflakes have reliably come back year after year, but almost all other bulbs, including the tulips, have failed to thrive. Normally I would say “shit happens” or “it isn’t in the cards”, but my wife loved tulips and I needed to keep up the front that I was an all world gardener.

It didn’t take long to find the solution. A little bit of web research and I had my plan. Grow bulbs in containers where I could control the soil and ultimately, the drainage. Genius.

There were a few options on how to pull off growing bulbs in containers. I could bury the containers outdoors over winter. I could store the containers close against the foundation where they would stay warmer. I could store the containers inside my attached garage where it was warm enough to escape the brutal cold but cold enough for the bulbs to go through their appropriate cycle.

I opted for “garage” and haven’t looked back.

Seriously, it couldn’t be any easier. The bulbs are planted in your standard old potting soil at a shallower depth than is recommended on the package and are planted closer together than is suggested.

tulip-bulbs-container

I cover the bulbs with more soil, water them a bit and that is it. They go into the garage not to be thought of again until spring. No watering or anything else needs to be done.

The first signs of growth appear in early March and by the time they are 2-3 inches in height, I move them outdoors. If there isn’t enough water from the spring rains, I’ll water them regularly. That is it. I just let them do their thing.

I had these by mid April last year.

tulips1

Fast forward to this week and I realize I’ve completely forgotten about the four containers I had stowed in my garage. They were hidden out of view, which probably speaks volumes about the state of my garage organization. I immediately moved them outdoors, probably later than required as you can see by the amount of growth below.

bulbs in containers

bulbs in containers 2

Oh well, we’ll see how it goes.

If you want a lot more detail on growing  bulbs in containers, I suggest you click here. Really good stuff.

I am incorporating one process improvement this season and that is doing a better job of acclimating the bulbs in containers to the sun. In years past, after I’ve moved them from the garage, I’ve stuck them immediately into full sun. This year, all of the containers have been placed in a shaded location for most of the day and will then bump up the sun exposure over the next few weeks.

bulbs in containers 3

Wish me luck!

Struggling with container planting

Posted on by Posted in Containers .

I struggle mightily planting in containers. Always have and there’s a good chance … always will.

My container aesthetic, for the most part, has been to use them as a means to grow something I can’t currently grow in my landscape. An escape for a plant or shrub that would have been eaten by deer or eventually destroyed by my poor soil drainage.

Now truth be told, I am not a huge fan of huge mixed containers with all sorts of different flowers and colors in the mix. I’m not sure why, it just has never appealed to me. But I do love those container plantings that share an equal mix foliage, flowers, texture, etc; a mini garden of sorts. I get the thriller, filler,spiller idea but have not been able to pull it off to date. Add to the growing list of garden “skills” I need to brush up on.

To further prove my point, here are some pics of my current container plantings (and I use the term loosely).

This is a Physocarpus (Ninebark) ‘Diablo’ that was getting chewed regularly “out in the yard” so I saved it by dumping it in a large container I had sitting in the garage:

And there it sat in a cormer of my deck for months, recovering from the savage beating it took for so long. The original intention was to reintroduce this shrub to the wild when a proper location could be found; of course that location doesn’t exist in my landscape so the reality was the container WAS home. So why not dress up said home with some Lysimachia ‘Aurea’ (creeping jenny)? The results: not too bad, looks much better when the creeping jenny spills over the sides.        

Sensing a theme after seeing this?

This is a Weigela ‘Wine and Roses’ that was salvaged in a container and actually rebounded real nicely. It looked decent enough a few weeks ago when it was blooming a bit, but now, not so much, even if it is healthy. The charteuse potato vine plants I added at the base add some decent color contrast, but not enough to make this very interesting.

I have tried many times to go grow a rose bush, any rose bush and even the so-called “can’t fail” Knockout Roses have failed me. So my last attempt was to try it in a container and so far so good. A few blooms but more importantly, the leaves haven’t been destoyed to date:

Eh, more to come on this one.    

Another common practice for me is to try out ornamental grasses in containers. I can’t get enough of that shape and multi-season interest so why not add some more that can be viewed up close and personal while I am eating my breakfast outdoors.

I know they are everywhere, but I am a friggin sucker for the annual purple fountain grasses:

I kind of dig them in a green/gray container and for the love of odd numbers, I’ve got three of them in clear view outside the kitchen window. Boring, I guess, but I enjoy them now and when they are in full bloom in a few weeks.

Over the winter, I purchased a bunch of Leymus ‘Blue Dune’ grasses after seeing their phenomenal blue color on the Santa Rosa Gardens website. I have made a concerted effort to add more blue to my gardens this year so this would work out beautifully. Except, turns out, they are potentially invasive and I wasn’t going to take that chance. Another bit of poor planning/research on my part.

So I wasn’t going to simply destroy them, so why not try them out in containers? I love the combo of brown and blue so a few brown containers later and we have this:         

They are very small right now, but I assume they will grow quickly. I am excited about these so more pics to come as they mature and hopefully bloom.

And finally, we have the edibles that are growing in containers. I have a bunch of tomato plants that look real solid to date including the ‘Isis Candy’ cherry tomatoes:

The real test comes with all of the watering now that we are entering the dead of summer; but so far so good.

I even have my first bounty of ‘Senorita Hybrid’ peppers:

Pretty exciting stuff as I’ve never tried these mild jalapenos before.
I have scores of other plants in containers but I am hiding those from you for now. These were just some of the highlights (lowlights).
I know I need to be more adventurous/experimental with my choices/combos and maybe one of these years, I’ll actually do it. 
John  

A symbolic container

Posted on by Posted in Containers .
It has been a little over a week since Hurricane Sandy came thrashing through and while life has returned to normal in some ways, I think we all know life will never quite be the same. 
There are still reminders everywhere around us, and this is an area that was not nearly as devastated as places like the Jersey Shore, New York City and Long Island:

On a personal level, this is all I had to contend with:

The potential loss of the arborvitae above may be a blessing in disguise as its neighbor will be on its way out as well, due to the dreaded bagworm:

My ‘Winter King’ Hawthorn is leaning a bit, but I’m hoping it will correct itself without much intervention:

All in all, I am blessed to have not suffered any other damage. We have so many others still without power and with temps in the 20’s last night, that ain’t so good. We were thrilled to have helped out our friends and family over the past week by simply providing warm beds and hot showers.

Now this is a gardening blog (or a weak imitation of one … see, still haven’t lost the self deprecation) so I’m back to my calling (slight sarcasm still here too).

One thing that has been capturing my attention, post hurricane and now that we have super cold temps, is this planter:            

Not elaborate or dramatic by any means, but it is hard to take issue with seeing anything green and alive this time of year. And I think I may have nailed the thriller, spiller, filler equation.

I originally created this container back in mid summer as a space filler in shade on my front porch. I threw it together without much thought and stuck it in the corner. It was cheap and low maintenance.

Prior to Hurricane Sandy, I brought this container in the garage so it couldn’t operate as a missile during the storm.

After the storm, I put it out on my back deck, right in view out of the kitchen:        

It’s amazing how something so simple can provide such pleasure. But then again, that is what drew me to gardening in the first place. It is a constant reminder to enjoy the little things. Good times.

I think this container, from this point forward, will serve as a reminder of all that transpired with Hurricane Sandy. And a reminder to enjoy all that we have, because you never know when your world can be rocked.

In fact, I may keep the “Leaning tower of arborvitae” as a backdrop to this container. It is too symbolic to remove it:        

Later my friends.

John

Additional thoughts on perennials in containers

Posted on by Posted in Containers, Perennials .

I love and appreciate all of the feedback I received from yesterday’s post about using individual perennials in containers.

While I wrote it in somewhat of a “tongue in cheek” manner, I still really believe it can be useful in garden design. After reading your comments and thinking it through even more, I think there are a few factors in play in order to pull it off successfully:

  • Water – As many of you pointed out, plants in containers can dry out very quickly so the need to water frequently can be a cumbersome task. If you live in a typically dry part of the country/world, this could be a nightmare. I’ve never used self-watering containers but maybe they are an option? Burying the pots in the soil could also lessen the need to water (Thanks Allan and Xan!). Maybe the best route is to use only a few perennials and place them in locations where they can be easily accessed for watering purposes. Watering is a tall task but I’m not ready to give up yet. There are too many perennials I cannot keep alive in my slow draining clay so I’m going to give this a shot.
  • Overwintering – Another item I forgot to mention was overwintering these “contained” perennials. The rule of thumb is that a plant can overwinter successfully in a container if that plant can survive 2 zones colder than your region. For example, I live in zone 6 here in New Jersey, so plants that can survive the winter down to zone 4 will be OK. If the plant can survive the winter in it’s container, it becomes more appealing as the need to store in a garage or bury the container in the soil isn’t required.
  • A better means to baby small perennials? – Nothing scientific here. I like to buy small sized perennials on-line because of the cost but have had trouble keeping these little guys alive over the winter. I’ve started to “raise” them in containers where I can ensure better drainage, hide the new growth from the rabbits and prevent winter heaving. Yes, watering is still an issue but I’ve had mad success to date with this process. As these babied plants start to grow, I can tuck them into the perennial beds and show them off a bit.
  • No need to limit to perennials, can use shrubs and grasses – The same concepts apply but it may be a bit tougher to move some of the necessary large containers around. One advantage I’ve found though, is that shrubs/grasses that may be too large for your garden can still be used effectively because they will not grow as fast or as large as they would in the ground. In the photos below, you can see how I hid a large Miscanthus in the garden bed since it is small enough to fit in a tighter space:  
I’ll continue to play with this concept and will show you the results, both good and bad.

One last thing, my new post is up at New Jersey Life Magazine and it is all about my love of foliage. You can check it out here.

John            

Embracing containers

Posted on by Posted in Containers .

Little light reading/viewing today after the deep and dark psychoanalysis of the previous post (but damn that was cathartic).

I have sort of a weird relationship with container planting. We’re not really dating – more like “we’re seeing each other”. Nothing too serious and we have agreed to see other plants. But … I may be ready to take our relationship to the next level. It is a big step but I am at a point in my life where I am ready to make the necessary commitment.

While I am well educated on how containers can be incorporated into design and the benefit of this type of planting, I still have a few hang-ups:

  • I feel like I am stifling the plant growth when they are placed in containers. I love knowing the roots of plants in the ground can, in theory, go in search of nutrition as far out as they like.
  • Speaking of nutrition, I am not a big fertilizer guy. I get the whole N-P-K thing, I just can’t seem to stay on top of what is required for plants in containers. While my soil may be clay-filled, it is full of everything the plants need (and yes I’ve tested the soil – yeah me!).
  • Matching the actual container to the plant color/texture is always tricky for me. I just don’t like terra cotta and most of the plastic containers available, so I find myself purchasing more expensive options. And it kills me to spend hard earned cash on those things.

One huge benefit I see with containers is that I can use plants that would never be possible due to my soil conditions and the threat of deer.

I also like the ability to move plants around with ease so I can try out different designs with minimal effort.

I have also embraced purchasing annual seeds this season (just got the Zinnia – Green Envy – I may be in lust) and what better way to use these then to direct sow in containers.

So … count me in as a container gardener and while there will be bumps along the way, I think I am ready to commit to this.

One last container note – I purchase a lot of plants at the end of the fall and overwinter them in containers. The problem is I then have trouble finding a place for them in the spring. More often than not, I end up keeping them in their container (not forgetting the rule that a plant can typically survive in a container for me – zone 6 – if it can survive down to zone 4 or colder) and finding a place for them. As an example, see the two photos below:      

These three Pieris Japonica have made their way onto my front steps … for now. I sort of like them in the pots but just need to find something to plant with them. So, yes, I welcome your suggestions with open arms.

The three containers below fall into the same category:

Those are two Boxwood ‘Green Mountain’ and a Prunus Cistena (Purpleleaf Sand Cherry). I am trying out these three to block out the utilities on the side of the house without needing to dig into the soil around them. I am still on the fence here, but will give it a few days to determine if I like it or not.  

That is all for today folks. I am off to find me some thrillers, fillers and spillers for my containers. 

Later