Flowers, vegetables, herbs, trees and some fruits can be grown in containers and pots. Containers can be hung from porch railings and some can be used as window boxes.
Keep in mind that containers and pots generally dry out much faster than a garden, especially on hot days or long stretches of dry weather. Water regularly and remember that it is also important when watering the plants to get some advice from your local garden center about the watering preferences of the plants. It is very important to ensure that you understand how much wetting each plant needs.
Watering rates are so important that it might be a good idea to divide the containers and pots into groups with similar sizes and similar watering needs. It is also advisable to separate groups of containers and pots into groups that are split between those that need full sun and those that need more shaded areas. The key to success, as in any kind of gardening, is to put things in the sun that like sun and things in the shade that like shade.
Mixing water-retaining granules with the compost will reduce watering chores but you'll still have to water the baskets once a day in hot, dry weather.
Planting flowers in your garden containers adds immediate color and liveliness to your yard. However, you may find that some of your plants are so special, they deserve special treatment and pride of place at certain times. I move my containers around a lot as the season progresses so that, the best are always in the most visible positions, but be assured that every one of them are beautiful when blooming. Limited visible exhibiting space in some back yards can also make this option appealing to the gardener.
I am always grateful that weeding is not the problem for containers and pot grown plants as it is in garden beds. It is a wonderful to enjoy plants you've successfully started from seed, but again in flower beds the weeds can easily overpower young seeds and weeding can become a chore. Not so with container gardening!
Pot plants are great for adding color to a spot in a garden that 'needs something,' and they can also be moved around for when you are entertaining in a certain area.
Terra Cotta has been the classic material for a garden pot since ancient times. This porous material breathes and provides drainage for optimum growing conditions. You can put plants closer than you would in a garden, but with pot plants much more so than with plants in the ground - you'll have to be vigilant about food and water.
Many may the mistake of thinking that container pots would be a minor accessory in a garden. You need to realize that they can be a major focal point. Not to say that a pot plant will always remain so. As plants get larger and larger, giving them more root room becomes impossible and the act of planting them in the garden may be the only solution.
A large variety of containers are available for all gardens, but be aware of limitations in very dry and hot gardens. For example in the dry, Colorado climate, moss baskets don't do well.
Here is a plant we like. It is sometimes referred to as "Garden Orchids" (Spathoglottis). This plant offers year-round color and can be used in landscaped ground beds in warm climates as well as an interesting summertime flowering patio plant for cooler climates.
In container gardening you need to prune and re-pot late in the afternoon out of the sun, or on cool days. We have a lot of hanging baskets with mostly south/southeastern exposure. We find that attractive, well-planted containers are an essential component of today's garden. In his new book, Pots in the Garden, award-winning horticulturist Ray Rogers offers a fresh approach to container planting and explains the basic design principles of container gardening.
Another tip is to make an arrangement of plants in your basket at the garden center before you buy. You'll easily find many plants suitable for pot and container gardening at garden centers. Remember, if you cannot make up your mind on what pot would suit the plant, experiment, and don't be afraid to try something original. If you decide you do not like the result you can always re-pot the bonsai the following year into a more preferred style. Equally, a low ground-hugging container can be planted with an annual to match or complement its neighbors, seemingly seamlessly. Or a wide-based and tall container can be placed as a contrast, with larger plants to be a focus rather than a background.
